A History of British India

Dr. Viskontas delves into core aspects of Indian culture that provide a rich background for the story of British rule; grasping the key precepts of Hinduism; studying the caste system, the features of Indian families and marriages.

Dr. Viskontas examines the monumental empire of the Mughals, the Islamic rulers of India; investigating how the Mughals govern through military skill, administrative brilliance and religious tolerance; exploring the 18th-century Indian society.

Exploring further how the Indian subcontinent drifts toward colonialism; how regionalization of the Mughal Empire compromises the ability to govern; charting the rise of powerful families who play a critical role in the emergence of British rule.

Witnessing the English East India Company, a trading organization, expand its early footing in Bengal; studying the Company's transformation through military conquests; following the Company's expansion by employing the Mughal revenue system.

How British scholars and administrators pursue knowledge of Indian culture; how early British colonials adapt to living within Indian society; how British misunderstanding of Indian traditional customs have consequences for policymaking.

Hayden discusses British racial paradigms in Company-ruled India, which emphasizes differences between Indians and the British to justify colonial rule; exploring the British notion of masculinity; how it bolsters their self-perception.