Chapter I: Preface

A history, above all one which claims to hold no original research, but simply to be a compilation of the work of others, needs no introduction save the compiler's thanks to many who have been consulted.

One word, however, may be said regarding the only accent used--the circumflex.

This is put always on the tone of stress; that is to say, on the syllable to be accented. Thus Mâlwa, Ambêr, Jeysulmêr, Himâlya, Vizigapatâm. Where no accent appears the syllables are of equal value.

F. A. STEEL.

Talgarth, Machynlleth.

LIST OF MAPS

INDIA TO B.C. 231.

INDIA TO A.D. 1000.

INDIA TO A.D. 1483.

INDIA TO A.D. 1556.

INDIA TO A.D. 1707.

INDIA TO A.D. 1757.

INDIA AT THE PRESENT DAY.

CONTENTS

PART I

THE ANCIENT AGE

CHAPTER I

The Ancient Age--When it began--Earliest hymns--The Black
people--The White people-Was there a third tribe?

CHAPTER II

The Vedic times--Extent of India--Rig-Veda--Seven
rivers--Agriculture--Aryan gods--Aryan features--Hymns to
the Dawn.

CHAPTER III

Days of the Epics--Larger extent of India known--Two great
epics--The Brahmânas--The Mâhâbhârata--Story of Bhishma
--A golden age--Bhishma's vow and its results--The Princess
Drâupadi--Bhishma's death--The Râmâyana.

CHAPTER IV

The marvellous millennium--Its literature--The Ûpanishads--Kapîla's
philosophy--Vedanta teaching--Religious atmosphere--Gâutama
Buddha--Yoga, and other philosophies--Megasthenes' accounts.

CHAPTER V

The Sesu-nâga and other kings--Actual history--Scythians--First
breath of reality--History of parricides--Nanda dynasty.

CHAPTER VI

The Anabasis--Alexander's march--Halt on the Indus--The
Hydaspes--The stealing of a passage--His victory--Appeal to
his soldiers--Forced to return--His sail down the Hydaspes to
the sea--His death.

CHAPTER VII

The Great Mauryas--A landmark of history--Chândra-gupta's ability
--His iron nerve--Seleukos Nikator--His great success and
vast empire--Bindu-sâra--The great Asoka--His reign of
religion--The Rock and Pillar edicts--An example to all people
--His vast empire.

CHAPTER VIII

The outlying provinces--Difficulty of piecing together historical
facts--Case of coins--The personal equation our only
guide--The Sâkas--The Yuehchi--Manes--Gondophares--St Thomas
--Horse sacrifice--Vikramadîtya--His era--Difficulty of
recognising him--Soter Megas-Greek influence on India.

CHAPTER IX

The Bactrian Camel and the Indian Bull--Indo-Greek rulers--Age
of gold--Transference of power--Mongolian invasion--Embassy
to Rome--Kanîshka--Buddhist council--Hûshka, Jûshka,
Kanîshka--Secretiveness of India--Song of the Plough.

CHAPTER X

The Great Gûpta Empire--Wedding bells--Kumâri Devi--
Chândra-gûpta II.--Samûdra-gupta--An Indian Alexander--
An Admirable Crichton--Vikramadîtya-gupta--The Golden
Age of Hindus--Extraordinary artistic activity--A real
Renaissance.

CHAPTER XI

The White Huns and good King Harsha--Attributes of the Huns--
Worst invasion--Hindu life crystallised into
custom-Hypoæstheticised--Good King Harsha--Conversion to
Buddhism--Hiuen T'sang, the Chinese priest.

CHAPTER XII

Chaos--The Dark Ages--No hero to hold the imagination--History
silent--The Mahomedan invasion imminent--Mahomed's character.

PART II

THE MIDDLE AGE

CHAPTER I

Campaigns of the Crescent--Northern battlefield--Constant invasion
--New blood against old--New creed against old--Mahmûd of
Ghuzni--Taking of Nagarkot--Twelve raids--The last to
Somnâth--Mahmûd's cruelty--His avarice--A born doubter.

CHAPTER II

Campaigns of the Crescent again in milder form--Masûd's imitation
of Mahmûd's exploits--The Ghuznevide dynasty--Shahâb-ud-din
and Ghiâss-ud-din, the brother kings--The former's change
of name to Mahomed--His loot and riches.

CHAPTER III

The Râjput resistance--Râjputs born soldiers--Prithvi-Râj--Story
of his marriage with Princess Sunyogata of Kanaûj--His victory
over Mahomed Ghori--The latter's disgust--His final attempt
at revenge--Princess Sunyogata's reply--The fatal field of
Pâniput--Râjputs overthrown--Kutb-din the slave left viceroy
of India--Mahomed Ghori's death.

CHAPTER IV

The slave kings--Delhi founded by a slave--The Kutb Minâr--
Kutb-ud-din Eîbuk--Altâmish--His bad sons and good
daughter--The Empress Râzia--Scandal--Her and her
husband's death--Nâsir-ud-din--A good king followed by
many bad ones--Extinction of dynasty.

CHAPTER V

The Tartar dynasties--Slack rule--Tendency to break up into petty
States--House of Khilji--Allah-ud-din--His murder of his
uncle, Dervish Sidi--Allah-ud-din and Padmani--Sack of
Chitore--Difficulties in the Dekkan--Extinction of House of
Khilji--Toghluk dynasty--Ferôze Toghluk.

CHAPTER VI

Invasion of Timur--The Toork--Timur's terrible cruelty--A
crushing blow--Thirty years of stupefaction.

CHAPTER VII

Devastated India--No master hand in India--Puppet kings--The
Dekka fairly consolidated--The Râjputs raise their heads--
Thirty-six years of kinglessness--Three strong men: a warrior,
a bigot, a tyrant.

CHAPTER VIII

The Great Moghuls--Story of Babar the adventurer--His
extraordinary versatility and charm--His memoirs and literary
skill--His constant knight errantry and endless fluctuations
of fortune--His final attraction to India.

CHAPTER IX

Babar Emperor of India--His invasion of the Punjâb and return to
gather more troops--His swoop on Delhi--The fatal field of
Pâniput once more--His victories--His dislike to India--His
overthrow of the Râjputs--His vow of total abstinence and
victory--His unfailing vitality--Babar as lover and husband--
Devotion to his wife and children--His son Humâyon--Strange
story of a father's devotion--The most romantic figure in Indian
History.

CHAPTER X

Humâyon--His patience and clemency--Addicted to opium--
Dilatory character--The brothers' bracelet--Ungrateful brothers
--His flight from Bengal--Increasing misfortunes--Driven to the
desert--Falls in love--Romantic story--Akbar born in the
desert--Father and mother forced to fly to Persia.

CHAPTER XI

The House of Sûr--Absolute usurpers--Not royal--Aided, however,
by Humâyon's brothers--Held India for twelve years.

CHAPTER XII

The wanderings of a king--Humayon's record of misfortunes--His
dilatoriness and absolute good temper--Little Prince Akbar's
marvellous escapes--Europe's first knowledge of India--The
Portuguese settlement-Humâyon's final return to India as
Emperor--His death.

CHAPTER XIII

Akbar the Great--The times in Europe--His singular, almost
incredible, character--A man of genius--His age at accession--His
immediate grip on affairs--Byrâm-Khân--Fatal field of Pâniput
once more--Hemu--Akbar's mercy--Dismissal of Byrâm--Record
of the reign--English merchants--Birth of an heir--Fatehpur
Sikri--Akbar's religion--His disappointment in his sons--A
great dreamer.

CHAPTER XIV

Jahângir and Nurjahân--Story of Mihr-un-nissa--Her meeting with
Jahângir-His constancy and final marriage--The first charter
of the English trading company--Sir Thomas Roe's embassy--
Captain Hawkins--Nurjahân's influence.

CHAPTER XV

Shâhjahân--Knight of the rueful countenance--An age of gold--
Grant to England--Greatest magnificence of the Court--Trouble
with English settlers at Calcutta--Pirates of Arracan--Indian
revenues--Shâhjahân's sons--His devotion to his wife--The Tâj.