The Mutiny of 1857 remains an event shrouded in mystery and intrigue. Even its very nature, whether it can be considered the first war of independence, is questioned. The causes remain many but rather elusive, the consequences even more so – did it ring the death toll of the British Empire, was it a mere speck of exaggerated trouble. This book serves as a tremendous gap-filler and demystifying agent. It begins with a background of the building of the British Raj in India, a move not deliberate but powerful enough to shape history for decades to come. The author delves in great detail into the causes of the mutiny, unlike preceding writers who mostly concentrated on the consequences. Through personal knowledge and observation he attempts to pin-point that ‘latent power’ that drove the mutiny on. He gives a realistic account of all the important operations that took place, praising the heroic and criticising the undeserving. He is careful not to overlay his work with too much tedious detail, so his writing remains lucid and interesting. The Indian Mutiny of 1857 captures successfully and uncompromisingly an event that was perhaps disorganised but large in scale, dealing with each individual area separately, analysing the causes and effects locally and nation-wide. It captures the spirit of the time, its people who fought and died, the attitudes of the Raj that was gradually losing control of its empire.
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