"Book Review: The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of ..." Topic

…the East India Company by William Dalrymple.

"In The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company, William Dalrymple gives a new character-driven account of the ascent to power of the East India Company following the collapse of the Mughal Empire and the resulting ‘anarchy' that followed. Tracking the Company's ruthless profiteering and territorial conquests, The Anarchy is not only a fine addition to Dalrymple's studies of the emergence of British rule in India, but also prompts reflection on the dangers of corporate excess in our present, writes Thomas Gidney…"
Full Review here

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Amicalement
Armand

Just bought it, looks very interesting!

Thanks!.

Amicalement
Armand

This is a great book, but the quoted blurb does not acturately describe the book. According to the book, the term "Anarchy" was used to describe the period of general lawlessness and collapse of government from roughly the 1730s. The HEIC did not cause the anarchy, it took advantage of the situation. The HEIC were no doubt ruthless in their own way, but the number of Indian characters in the book who were blinded, murdered and imprisoned by their native political rivals, who were often their relatives, is truly astounding. This book is a wonderful narrative of the period, right up thief with Dalrymple's account of the outbreak against the British in Delhi and subsequent siege in "The Last Mughal."