Lord Curzon : the last of the British Moghuls / monograph

Dazzling, dedicated, some would say cast in an heroic mold, Lord Curzon of Kedleston, Viceroy of India was the last of the great British Moghuls. But it was also Curzon who was responsible for the partitioning of Bengal, an act which was to fuel widespread resentment and to foreshadow the Raj's demise. At thirty-nine, Curzon was the youngest Viceroy to be sent out to India. Yet, six years later, he was to return home a broken man, his viceroyalty in shambles, only to be dispossessed of the Prime Ministership he thought rightfully his. Goradia is the first of Curzon's biographers to examine the effects of Curzon being continually feted throughout his childhood, first by an adoring mother, and later by his male teachers and fellow pupils and students. Though he rose to every challenge, what bordered on narcissism was tragically to pursue him throughout adulthood, even in his first marriage to Mary, the first American-born vicerine, and most particularly in the struggle for power with Lord Kitcherner, in his eight-year affair with Elinor Glyn, and in his hopes of becoming Prime Minister. Goradia shows that there is also evidence of sado-masochistic tendencies. This is the first biography of Curzon to show how the unresolved problems of childhood were to pursue throughout his time as Viceroy of India. "Dazzling, dedicated, some would say cast in an heroic mould, Lord Curzon of Kedleston, Viceroy of India, was the last of the great British Moghuls. British imperialism was to reach its high noon with Curzon's viceroyalty. But it was also Curzon who was responsible for the partitioning of Bengal, an act which was to fuel widespread resentment and foreshadow the Raj's demise. At thirty-nine, Curzon was the youngest Viceroy to be sent out to India. Yet, seven years later, he was to return home a broken man, his viceroyalty in a shambles, only to be later dispossessed of the Prime Ministership he thought rightfully his. Was this the result of some fatal flaw in Curzon's personality? Curzon has certainly led his earlier biographers to think so, leaving copious writings suggesting that he was brought up by an indifferent mother, a cold father and a savage governess. But new evidence sheds a different light on a more complex personality. Nayana Goradia is the first of Curzon's biographers to examine the effects on Curzon of being continually feted throughout his childhood, firstly by an adoring mother, and later by his male teachers and fellow pupils and students. Though he rose to every challenge, what bordered on narcissism was to tragically pursue him throughout adulthood - in his first marriage to Mary, the first American-born vicereine, and most particularly in the struggle for power with Lord Kitchener, in his eight-year affair with Elinor Glyn, and in his hopes of becoming Prime Minister. The author shows that there is also evidence of sado-masochistic tendencies. Lord Kitchener was to say of Curzon, 'There is only one thing that Curzon likes more than hurting others, [and that is] to persuade others to humiliate him.'"--Jacket A psycho-historical biography of one of the most noteworthy Viceroys of India which sheds new light on his childhood and the effects this had upon his viceroyalty in the context of the Indian freedom movement.