Published:
August 3, 2021 at 7:09 am
The 70th anniversary of Indian independence triggered a remarkable outpouring of post-colonial guilt in Britain. For a younger generation with no first-hand experience of it, empire is now a dirty word – an evil occupation of other people’s countries in order to plunder their wealth. The idea that imperialism could be a benevolent, modernising force, involving collaboration and exchange between rulers and ruled, is now deeply unfashionable. And yet the survival of the British Raj in India for almost two centuries is impossible to explain without understanding such dialogue and partnership.
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Far from wanting to colonise the minds of their new subjects, most founders of British rule were fascinated by India’s traditional arts and crafts, and keen to explore the wonders of its classical past. The tone was set by the first governor-general, Warren Hastings (in post 1772–85), who mixed freely with Indians. He was fluent in their vernacular languages, Hindustani and Bengali, and also spoke some Persian, the court language of the Mughal empire. As the most powerful man in India, he was determined to rule, as far as possible, through Indian officials and according to traditional Mughal laws and customs.