Indian Feudalism 3/Ed

This seminal work traces the origin, nature and growth of feudalism in India and provides a detailed analysis of the political structures and economic relations it gave rise to, during the early medieval period. It examines how the practice of land grants widely prevalent in medieval India, led to the emergence of a class of landlords, endowed with fiscal and administrative rights. The landlords, in turn, imposed these rights upon a class of peasantry who were deprived of their agrarian rights. One of the most authentic and comprehensive studies on the social and economic processes of early medieval India, Indian Feudalims generates a lively debate about early India society and polity. The present edition is a thoroughly revised version of the author's pioneering work first published in 1965. In the two new chapters on the nature of the early medieval Indian state and classical Indian feudalism, the author not only refutes the critics of the feudal model but also provides substantial fresh data on rural life to show the survival of feudal vestiges in contemporary India. The book, which attained the status of a classic long ago, is a refreshing work that addresses several current historiographical debates. The book will prove to be immensely useful to students and researchers alike and will certainly deepen their understanding of the social and economic processes at work in early medieval India.