Author Description

Published for the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery (Winter 1990-1) "The India and the British, 1600-1947", this catalogue examines the relationship between British and Indian society over the whole period of the British presence in India, from the founding of the East India Company in 1660 to the withdrawal of the British and Partition in 1947. It depicts the wealth, productivity and complex civilization of the India of the great Mughals and shows how Europeans, including the English, were drawn to its shores, seeking the privilege of trading in its fine muslins, printed cottons and spices. The English East India Company had long insisted on sovereignty within its commercial bases on Indian soil, and a significant body of opinion argued for more secure territorial holdings in the subcontinent. The catalogue attempts to illustrate and analyse the history of India and the British for over 300 years with more than 500 illustrations of the weapons, fabrics, coinage, books, drawings, paintings, prints, sculpture, manuscripts, miniatures, jewellery and maps featured in the exhibition. The book is an illustrated history of India and a contribution both to Indian history and to an understanding of the European experience of colonialism.