Introduction: Islam and the army in colonial India; 1. Traditions of supernatural warfare; 2. The padre and his miraculous services; 3. Allah's naked rebels; Conclusions.
A study of the cultural world of the Muslim soldiers of colonial India in the mid-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Nile Green is Associate Professor in the Department of History at the University of California, Los Angeles. His recent publications include Indian Sufism since the Seventeenth Century: Saints, Books and Empires in the Muslim Deccan (2006) and Religion, Language and Power (with Mary Searle-Chatterjee, 2008).
'This fascinating study of religious practice and religious change
amongst the Muslim sepoys of the British Indian army confirms Nile
Green's position as one of the most gifted young scholars of South
Asian History.' Francis Robinson, Royal Holloway, University of
London
'One of the supreme ironies of 'British' rule in India was that so
much of the military power of an ostensibly 'Christian' state
should have rested upon the shoulders of a 'Muslim' soldiery. Nile
Green brilliantly explores this paradox, probing the subjectivity
of many who served the Raj and insightfully recreating their
cultural and religious traditions. His book represents an
outstanding and highly original contribution to South Asian
studies.' David Washbrook, Senior Research Fellow, Trinity College,
Cambridge
'In a strikingly innovative work, Nile Green opens up a new
understanding of the world of the Indian sepoy and offers fresh
insight into the nature of Islam and the effects of colonial rule …
There is much to relish in this immensely rewarding book … this is
a splendidly accessible book, full of insight into the complex and
subtle changes taking place in subaltern society. It is a book that
deserves to be widely read not just for its content but for the
inspiration it provides to a new generation of historical writing
about South Asia.' David Arnold, Bulletin of the School of Oriental
and African Studies
'Perhaps the biggest compliment that can be given to any historian
is that their work has compelled others to look at their own
research in new ways … [This book] has offered an entirely new
framework through which I have been able to glimpse something of
the 'miraculous' within subaltern understandings and experiences of
a range of colonial forms of discipline and confinement … In large
measure, this book is not just about 'barracks Islam', religion, or
about the making of history beyond post-Hegelian understandings of
'scientific reasoning'. Islam and the Army [in Colonial India] is a
history that can reach far beyond the academy itself, drawing
family and community into epistemologies of modern India itself.'
Clare Anderson, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society
'… this volume is indeed an indispensable addition to the military,
cultural and religious history of 19th-century India narrated from
an essentially non-modern perspective … an irresistible feast of
social history … We must be thankful to Nile Green for rescuing
some of [the faqirs] in this excellent book which must be read by
all teachers and students of Indian military and cultural history.'
Anirudh Deshpande, Biblio
'Such wondrous tales are made possible by Green's using vernacular
sources which lie beyond the ambit of the colonial archives … sit
back and enjoy the richly spiced tales his work contains. The flair
in Green's richly layered work is undeniable.' Sabyasachi Dasgupta,
The Book Review
'… there is little doubt that the work will emerge as a valuable
contribution to the field … the book offers a very distinctive
slant on the interface between Islam and colonialism.' Justin
Jones, Journal of Islamic Studies
'… an insightful foray into military history as it enables us to
comprehend the relationship between armies and their religion
during the raj … the book is based on a wide variety of sources
that makes it a well-researched work … avant-garde in the sense
that it is the first of its kind to attempt reconstructing the
socio-cultural and religious life of the Indian soldier who served
colonial masters.' Shilpi Rajpal, Economic and Political Weekly
'Its research and its approach are both ground-breaking. Nile Green
deserves to be congratulated for his contribution to a neglected
field of modern Indian history.' The Telegraph
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