Exploring the epicenter of the Mutiny, Delhi, 1857
My thoughts while leafing through the pages of ‘The Last Mughal’ by William Dalrymple
I’ve been reading this book for the past week and I just got done with it. Since it’s the time of lockdown, I thought of writing up a casual review of the book. This was my first Dalrymple book ever (and I’ll definitely be back for more) so this was a totally new experience for me.
Normally, when we think of a history book, we think of a barrage of dates and events hitting us in the face. This quickly ensures that we lose our focus and interest in the subject matter. This leads to history being classified as a “boring subject” when in actuality, it is far from that. History has been bashed by students and parents for many years for being drab and uninteresting. But, with the rise of historian authors like Ramachandra Guha, Romila Thapar, Irfan Habib and William Dalrymple, we’ve seen a greater interest among the common folk to embrace history.
This book, as the title suggests, deals with the end of the great Mughal dynasty after the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857 in British India. It covers the events leading up to the Uprising, the fateful events of 11 May and the British military backlash and ends with the trial and exile of the Last Mughal Emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar. As this book deals primarily with the Mughal Royal family therefore it is primarily based in and around Delhi.
“So removed had the British now become from their Indian subjects, and so dismissive were they of Indian opinion, that they had lost all ability to read the omens around them or to analyse their own position with any degree of accuracy. Arrogance and imperial self-confidence had diminished the desire to seek accurate information or gain any real knowledge of the state of the country.”
William Dalrymple, The Last Mughal
This book isn’t drab and uninteresting. It gets going from the beginning. The writing is fluid, concise and real. To be able to run a clear thread through the events, and not be side-tracked by other tidbits, is no mean feat. There are side stories in the book but they don’t go so far as to impede the flow or distract the reader from the book. Even though, we’re all aware of the outcome of the Uprising in 1857, Dalrymple is able to preserve some element of suspense with the choice of chapters and his general style of writing. Through the well-rounded material of the book, we realize the incredible hard work done by Dalrymple and his team of researchers. Dalrymple must have gone through thousands of Urdu and Persian documents which were a part of the Mutiny Papers at the National Archives, evidenced by the fact that there are 73 pages of Notes, Glossary and Bibliography even after the narration is over. So, this isn’t just another half — hearted attempt at writing a book on the Uprising!
The book also contains some pictures of Old Delhi and the important events, characters and places that are referenced from time to time. That goes a long way to help the reader visualize the events of 1857. Another remarkable feature of this book is its footnotes. I was blown away by the sheer number of footnotes, an indication of his thorough research. Normally, I ignore the footnotes unless I’m really interested but, you just can’t do that in this book. The footnotes have been kept extremely crisp and they’re actually informative and interesting to read. I read through every single footnote in the book. That’s the magical part about this book: it’s able to draw you in to the point where you actually want to know more.
“Zafar always put huge emphasis on his role as a protector of the Hindus and the moderator of Muslim demands. He never forgot the central importance of preserving the bond between his Hindu and Muslim subjects, which he always recognised was the central stitching that held his capital city together.”
William Dalrymple, The Last Mughal
Don’t mistake the book to be a biographical account of Bahadur Shah Zafar. He is the main focus of the author here but the viewpoints of the events keep on changing. In one moment, you may be riding with the officers of the Delhi Field Force and in the another, you may find yourself with the sepoys of the Bareilly Brigade defending the streets of Delhi. So, the perspective is always kept fresh. Also, excerpts from different sources (about the same events) are present which helps to understand the general outcome and sometimes even, the character of the narrator. The author does not shy away from including the horrendous atrocities committed by both the Sepoys and the British officers. The destruction of the cultural, political and moral fabric of the city is described in great detail. And the description of the inhumane happenings is not biased towards any particular side.
“Finally, on 14 September 1857, the British and their hastily assembled army of Sikh and Pathan levees assaulted and took the city, sacking and looting the Mughal capital, and massacring great swathes of the population. In one muhalla alone, Kucha Chelan, some 1,400 citizens of Delhi were cut down. ‘The orders went out to shoot every soul,’ recorded Edward Vibart, a nineteen-year-old British officer. It was literally murder…I have seen many bloody and awful sights lately but such a one as I witnessed yesterday I pray I never see again. The women were all spared but their screams, on seeing their husbands and sons butchered, were most painful… Heaven knows I feel no pity, but when some old grey bearded man is brought and shot before your very eyes, hard must be that man’s heart I think who can look on with indifference …”
William Dalrymple, The Last Mughal
Against our current backdrop, this book is fascinating because it demonstrates what happens when a society grows less tolerant. Quoted from the last page of the book:
“……As before, Western Evangelical politicians are apt to cast their opponents and enemies in the role of ‘incarnate fiends’ and conflate armed resistance to invasion and occupation with ‘pure evil’…….”
To conclude, it is a very enjoyable read. It’s a must read for people interested in Indian history. I thoroughly enjoyed my journey and experience of reading this fantastic work. I firmly believe this is how history must be written — neither overdramatic nor boring. The fat and heavy book may be intimidating to many (it was to me at first) but as you start to read it, it slowly draws you in with its magic and soon it becomes unputdownable!
