This is an astounding read; William Dalrymple at his finest and strongest. Drawing upon a wealth of previously unpublished material from the Indian National Archive, Dalrymple presents the Indian Mutiny of 1857, the events leading up to it, and its aftermath with unprecedented breadth. The subject has been deeply researched and there are extensive, informative, footnotes throughout. For students of the period this book should be mandatory reading. But part of its brilliance is that this book is, for the general reader, a highly accessible read - the narrative flows and moves at a gripping pace. The story is a tribute to the civilians of Delhi, caught like proverbial grains of wheat between the giant millstones of the opposing factions. Whilst it relates to events of 150 years ago powerful contemporary messages are reinforced. That racial and religious intolerance and bigotry serve to spawn extremism and "self righteous hysteria".
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