A stiff upper lip, steely eyes and a cold heart is often how the English imperialist is pictured in popular imagination. Drawing from memoirs, commentaries and family letters, Elizabeth Hamilton brings forth an alternative portrayal of her ancestors, Sir Robert Hamilton and Sir William Barton. Their careers in India are set against the momentous events of their times to present a different side of the colonialists of a quiet people, dedicated to the tradition of upholding the law and avoiding conflict. Volume I, The Proud Empire, traces the life of Sir Robert Hamilton, from the beginning of his career under the watchful eye of his father, up until his retirement. Occupying multiple roles such as the Resident of Indore and Agent to the Governor General in the Central Provinces, he is seen interacting with various prominent Indian figures such as the Rani of Jhansi, Tantya Tope and Nana Sahib. The picture of the arrogant imperialist fades away to be replaced by that of someone keen to make a difference to the society he was working in, who encourages good governance, mends ties in the midst of escalating tensions and must recover cities occupied by insurgents, all the while shadowed by the burden of great personal losses. Volume II, The Straight Race, tracks Sir William Barton’s career in the early twentieth century. Starting in the Punjab and the North-West Frontier, he later served as Resident in the well-administered states of Mysore and Hyderabad, where he stood up to the Nizam, doing his best to set the administration on a less corrupt footing. Retirement did not deter Sir William’s close interest in Indian affairs; he returned twice on tour as an advisor to electrical companies and travelled with a Ministry of Supply mission during the Second World War. With three books and many articles for newspapers and journals on the subject, India remained an integral part of his life.

A WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLD NOTABLE BOOK After the American Revolution, the British Empire appeared to be doomed. Yet it grew to become the greatest, most diverse empire the world had seen. Then, within a generation, the mighty structure collapsed, a rapid demise that left an array of dependencies and a contested legacy: at best a sporting spirit, a legal code and a near-universal language; at worst, failed states and internecine strife. The Decline and Fall of the British Empire covers a vast canvas, which Brendon fills with vivid particulars, from brief lives to telling anecdotes to comic episodes to symbolic moments.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1858. The publishing house Anatiposi publishes historical books as reprints. Due to their age, these books may have missing pages or inferior quality. Our aim is to preserve these books and make them available to the public so that they do not get lost.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1871. The publishing house Anatiposi publishes historical books as reprints. Due to their age, these books may have missing pages or inferior quality. Our aim is to preserve these books and make them available to the public so that they do not get lost.

Chatterjee analyzes how writing over the period of a century justified and was affected by the introduction and extension of British domination of India, demonstrating the link between written representations and the ideological, economic and political climate and debates. By showing how the representations of Britons in India, Indian religion and society and government evolved over the period 1740 to 1840, the author fills the gap between the early colonial 'exotic East' and the later 'primitive subject nation' perceptions.

The untold story of the nineteenth-century American Quaker who tried to build a kingdom in Afghanistan: “A thrilling real-life yarn.” —Booklist In the year 1838, a young adventurer, surrounded by his native troops and mounted on an elephant, raised the American flag on the summit of the Hindu Kush in the mountainous wilds of Afghanistan. He declared himself Prince of Ghor, Lord of the Hazarahs, spiritual and military heir to Alexander the Great. The true story of Josiah Harlan, a Pennsylvania Quaker and the first American ever to enter Afghanistan, has never been told before, yet the life and writings of this extraordinary man echo down the centuries. This “riveting, scrupulously researched” book reveals the full history behind the renowned Rudyard Kipling short story and John Huston’s film classic (The New York Times Book Review). “One of the most remarkable discoveries in the history of biography.” —The New York Review of Books “Macintyre recounts Harlan’s travels with dispatch, and draws on unpublished journals to let his subject’s voice seep through.” —The New Yorker “Here is a writer who seems as taken as I am with crackpottery, delusion, grandiosity, chicanery, and impersonation, but who manages to write about it all with amused restraint, without, that is, the air of the ogler.” —The Boston Globe “Macintyre gives readers both Harlan’s story and a thought-provoking perspective on the history of superpower intervention in Afghanistan . . . Harlan’s story alone is fascinating, but its resonance with modern-day struggles—Harlan urging the British to try ‘fiscal diplomacy’ (i.e., gold) instead of ‘invading and subjugating an unoffending people’—makes it compelling.” —Publishers Weekly