Britain and India : the interaction of two peoples / M.E. Chamberlain.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Did the British intend to conquer India? --
The British reaction to India --
The Indian reaction to the British conquest --
Did the British connection distort British foreign policy? --
The imperial period --
The twentieth century.

India attained independence a quarter- century ago. Here is new profit and loss account of the connection between Britain and India from the eighteenth century to 1947. The impact of Britain on India and, less often considered, of the Indian connection on British society, is considered in detail. For good or ill, the British were the instrument by which the Indian sub- continent was welded into two twentieth- century nations. India in turn compelled the British to develop a new image of themselves as an imperial power: they then took this image to other parts of the world. Possibly the Indian connection decided the direction of British foreign policy for over a century.

During the period of the connection, British society itself changed fundamentally, progressing towards democracy at, home, just as India was developing towards nation status. Gandhi formulated one of the most original methods of political action in the twentieth century, extending far beyond the boundaries of India and it is arguable that it would have been less effective had he not been able to appeal to developing democratic opinion in Britain.

The British-Indian connection is seen as the interaction of two equal peoples, great changes, rather than as an episode in colonial policy.