Indianization, the Officer Corps, and the Indian Army : The Forgotten Debate, 1817–1917

••Short-listed for the Society for Army Historical Research UK's Templer Medal Best First Book Prize, 2020••In the Indian Army of the British Raj, the officer corps was “reserved for the governing race”— in other words, the British. Only in 1917, a mere thirty years before India won its freedom, did the Raj permit Indians into the Army's officer corps, thus slowly beginning its Indianization. Yet it is often forgotten that this decision was the culmination of a hundred-year-long debate. Based on meticulous archival research in Britain and India, Indianization, the Officer Corps, and the Indian Army breaks new ground by offering readers the first detailed account of this generally forgotten debate. It traces the myriad schemes and counter-schemes the debate generated, the complex twists and turns it took, and how it engaged both British policymakers anxious to maintain control as well as nationalist Indian leaders agitating for greater self-government. This work also offers insights into the martial races concept, the 1857 uprising, and the impact of Anglo-Indian ideology upon the Indian Army. Clearly written and carefully argued, it is an original and defining contribution to military/war and society history, the history of colonial India and its army, the history of British empire, the history of racism, and civil-military relations. "In the Indian Army of the British Raj, the officer corps was "reserved for the governing race", (i.e. the British). Only in 1917, a mere thirty years before India won freedom, did the Raj permit Indians into the Army's officer corps, thus slowly beginning its Indianization. Yet it is often forgotten that this decision was the culmination of a hundred-year-long debate. Based on meticulous archival research in Britain and India, this book breaks new ground by offering readers the first detailed account of this generally forgotten debate. It traces the myriad schemes and counter-schemes the debate generated, the complex twists and turns it took, and how it engaged both British policy-makers anxious to maintain control, as well as nationalist Indian leaders agitating for greater self-government. This work also offers insights into the martial races concept, the 1857 uprising, and the impact of Anglo-Indian ideology upon the Indian Army. Clearly written and carefully argued, this monograph is an original and defining contribution to military/war and society history, the history of colonial India and its army, the history of British empire, the history of racism, and to civil-military relations." --Provided by publisher Contents Foreword Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations Introduction 1 Contexts of the Forgotten Indianization Debate, 1600–1914 2 The Idea of Indianization and Its Enemies, 1817–1898 3 The Imperial Cadet Corps: Its Formation and Pedagogy, 1900–1915 4 Future Recruitment, Future Employment, and the Future of the Corps, 1902–1915 5 War and the Window of Opportunity, 1914–1917 6 Little Grace in the Giving: Indianization Policy, 1917–1945 Conclusion Bibliography Index About the Author The decision by the British Raj in 1917 to permit Indians into the Indian Army's officer corps was a key turning point in modern South Asian military history. This book analyzes the political, military, and ideological factors in the forgotten hundred-year-long debate culminating in this ruling.