Inglorious Empire

Remarkable . . . The book is savagely critical of 200 years of the British in India. It makes very uncomfortable reading for Brits. -- Matt Ridley, The Times 'A necessary antidote to the romantic falsehood that the British civilized and modernized India, when in fact they built railways, roads and an administrative structure for the sole purpose of efficiently carrying their loot to Indian ports.' -- The New York Times His writing is a delight and he seldom misses his target . . . Tharoor should be applauded for tackling an impossibly contentious subject . . . he deserves to be read. Indians are not the only ones who need reminding that empire has a lot to answer for. * Literary Review * Those Brits who speak confidently about how Britain's 'historical and cultural ties' to India will make it easy to strike a great new trade deal should read Mr Tharoor's book. It would help them to see the world through the eyes of the . . . countries once colonised or defeated by Britain. -- Gideon Rachman, Financial Times Ferocious and astonishing. Essential for a Britain lost in sepia fantasies about its past, 'Inglorious Empire' is history at its clearest and cutting best. -- Ben Judah, author of 'This is London' Tharoor's impassioned polemic slices straight to the heart of the darkness that drives all empires. Forceful, persuasive and blunt, he demolishes Raj nostalgia, laying bare the grim, and high, cost of the British Empire for its former subjects. An essential read. -- Nilanjana Roy, Financial Times Tharoor convincingly demolishes some of the more persistent myths about Britain's supposedly civilising mission in India . . . [he] charts the destruction of pre-colonial systems of government by the British and their ubiquitous ledgers and rule books . . . The statistics are worth repeating. -- Victor Mallet, Financial Times 'Inglorious Empire' both reiterates long-standing, persuasive and well-founded critiques of the British Raj's countless exploitative activities and the damage done under colonialism, and expresses [Tharoor's] surprise and disappointment that such basic points still need to be made anew today. Chapter by chapter, the book convincingly demolishes the nostalgic, self-serving arguments voiced by imperial apologists. -- Times Literary Supplement Eloquent . . . a well-written riposte to those texts that celebrate empire as a supposed 'force for good'. * BBC World Histories * 'Inglorious Empire' is a timely reminder of the need to start teaching unromanticised colonial history in British schools. A welcome antidote to the nauseating righteousness and condescension pedalled by Niall Ferguson in his 2003 book 'Empire'. * The Irish Times * '[M]agnificent.' -- Tribune Tharoor's book -- arising from a contentious Oxford Union debate in 2015 where he proposed the motion 'Britain owes reparations to her former colonies' -- should keep the home fires burning, so to speak, both in India and in Britain. . . . He makes a persuasive case, with telling examples. * History Today * [Inglorious Empire] seethes with anger and resentment [it] lays out in chillingly plain prose how the British empire plundered Indias resources and riches and left the country broken. An 'indispensable book on race issues -- The Guardian Erudite and beautifully written . . . page after page of biting critique. 'A brilliant work . . . distinguished among this literature in its manner of presentation and dazzling arguments . . . an eye-opener and a valuable source of reference for students and others to understand India's experience under British colonialism.' Rare indeed is it to come across history that is so readable and so persuasive. -- Amitav Ghosh Well researched . . . this book is an extremely useful corrective to nostalgic imperial history and well worth reading. Brill

Shashi Tharoor served for twenty-nine years at the UN, culminating as Under-Secretary General. He is a Congress MP in India, the author of fourteen previous books and has won numerous literary awards, including a Commonwealth Writers' Prize. Tharoor has a PhD from the Fletcher School and was named by the World Economic Forum in Davos in 1998 as a Global Leader ofTomorrow.