Primus Books - King, Country and War: Idelogy, Memory and Written Indian History

To counter the influence of nationalist anachronisms on Indian historiography, King, Country and War: Ideology, Memory and Written Indian History, c.1600–1900 presents a critical analysis of six themes of Indian historiography: the historicization of the Indian mind, the role of individuals in history, desh and rashtra in pre-colonial India, forts in Indian history, the Third Battle of Panipat and hybridity in Indian history. The book asserts that deconstructing the ideological binaries which condition the Indian minds comprises the beginning of our quest for a critical appraisal of India’s past. This book presents a serious interrogation of the theoretical assumptions of colonialist and nationalist historiographies which continue to influence the historical thinking of contemporary Indians. The book also brings to bear on its subject matter the insights provided by the 'micro history' method. After all, critical history is produced by the inevitable tension between the historian and his sources. This makes history writing a dynamic, honest and scientific craft practiced by the critical historian who is forever alert to the political allure of ideology. Like any social being, the historian has ideological predilections but in his practice as a professional historian he should not be overtly influenced by them.