Indian Summer: The Secret History of the End of an Empire

الغلاف الأمامي
Henry Holt and Company, 30‏/09‏/2008 - 416 من الصفحات

An extraordinary story of romance, history, and divided loyalties -- set against the backdrop of one of the most dramatic events of the twentieth century

The stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, liberated 400 million people from the British Empire. With the loss of India, its greatest colony, Britain ceased to be a superpower, and its king ceased to sign himself Rex Imperator.

This defining moment of world history had been brought about by a handful of people. Among them were Jawaharlal Nehru, the fiery Indian prime minister; Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the leader of the new Islamic Republic of Pakistan; Mohandas Gandhi, the mystical figure who enthralled a nation; and Louis and Edwina Mountbatten, the glamorous but unlikely couple who had been dispatched to get Britain out of India. Within hours of the midnight chimes, their dreams of freedom and democracy would turn to chaos, bloodshed, and war.

Behind the scenes, a secret personal drama was also unfolding, as Edwina Mountbatten and Jawaharlal Nehru began a passionate love affair. Their romance developed alongside Cold War conspiracies, the beginning of a terrible conflict in Kashmir, and an epic sweep of events that saw one million people killed and ten million dispossessed.

Steeped in the private papers and reflections of the participants, Alex von Tunzelmann's Indian Summer reveals, in vivid, exhilarating detail, how the actions of a few extraordinary people changed the lives of millions and determined the fate of nations.

 

المحتوى

In Their Gratitude Our Best Reward
Mohan and Jawahar
Civis Britannicus
Dreaming of the East
Private Lives
We Want No Caesars
Power without Responsibility
A New Theater
Part Three The Beginning
Paradise on Earth
The Battle for Delhi
Kashmir
Maybe Not Today Maybe Not Tomorrow
Part Four Afterward
A Kiss Goodbye
Echoes

Now or Never
Part Two The
Operation Madhouse
A Barrel of Gunpowder
Lightning Speed Is Much Too Slow
A Full Basket of Apples
A Rainbow in the
A Tryst with Destiny
Additional Praise for Indian Summer
Notes
Bibliography
Acknowledgments
حقوق النشر

طبعات أخرى - عرض جميع المقتطفات

عبارات ومصطلحات مألوفة

نبذة عن المؤلف (2008)

Alex von Tunzelmann was educated at Oxford and lives in London. Indian Summer is her first book.

معلومات المراجع