Tigers, Durbars and Kings: Fanny Eden's Indian Journals, 1837-1838

This historical collection of travel journals remained in the India Office Library and Records for more than150 years, and was not printed until 1988. 202 pages including dozens of sketches and illustrations. Emily Eden was born in 1797 into the charmed inner circle of the English upper class who conducted the country's political life. In 1836 this prominent member of Whig society joined her brother George in India where he was serving as Governor-General. She stayed there for six years, during which time she embarked on a two-year-long tour of the country. With an unfailing eye for the eccentric and picturesque, Emily Eden describes in her eloquent letters and detailed sketches the extraordinary experiences encountered in early nineteenth-century India. Most notably, she accompanied her brother on a state visit to Maharaja Ranjit Singh, and recorded the whole event with great detail and unabashed amazement. Although released in 1988, it was quick to be a classic and is currently out of print.