Queen Victoria was at the head of the Raj, Britain's Indian empire, for much of her long reign. Passionately involved, she intervened in Indian politics, commissioned artists and photographers to record a landscape and people that she never saw herself, sent her sons as ambassadors to the subcontinent, and surrounded herself with the trappings of the Indian conquest, from the Koh-i-Noor diamond to her own Indian troop escort and servants.

Indian politics and society were in turn fundamentally reshaped by her influence: maharajas vied for her favour, missionaries used her as a tool for conversion and Indian reformers turned to her as a symbol of justice and equality. She also became an object of fascination and veneration: hundreds of popular biographies and tributes emerged from the vernacular printing presses, and her two jubilees of 1887 and 1897 were celebrated with unprecedented gusto.

In this new and original account, Miles Taylor charts the remarkable effects India had on the queen as well as the pivotal role she played in India. Drawing on official papers and an abundance of poems, songs, diaries and photographs, Taylor challenges the notion that Victoria enjoyed only ceremonial power and that India's loyalty to her was without popular support. On the contrary, the rule of the queen-empress penetrated deep into Indian life and contributed significantly to the country's modernisation, both political and economic.

In this subtle portrayal of Victoria's India, Taylor suggests that the Raj was one of her greatest successes.

Contents:
Cover page; Halftitle page; Title page; Copyright page; Dedication; CONTENTS; ILLUSTRATIONS; ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS; NOTE ON THE TEXT; ABBREVIATIONS; INTRODUCTION; CHAPTER 1 CROWN AND COMPANY; Empire by Treaty; A Whig Queen; Defender of the Faith; East India Men; CHAPTER 2 WARRIOR QUEEN; The Runaway Elephant; The Queen's Army; Loot from Lahore; Double Trouble; CHAPTER 3 EXHIBITING INDIA; Prince Albert and India; India on Display; Indian Exiles; CHAPTER 4 'THIS BLOODY CIVIL WAR'; The Infidel Victoria; News from India; The Transfer of Power; The Indian Magna Carta; CHAPTER 5 VICTORIA BEATRIX
SovereignsSubjects; Servants; CHAPTER 6 QUEEN OF PUBLIC WORKS; The Age of Improvement; Famine Queen; Immoral Economies; CHAPTER 7 ROYAL TOURISTS; 'A walking proclamation': Prince Alfred in India, 1869-70; Shahzardah: The Prince of Wales in India, 1875-6; Heirs and Graces: The Later Tours; CHAPTER 8 QUEEN- EMPRESS; The Blot on the Queen's Head; The Imperial Assemblage; Crown Orders; CHAPTER 9 MOTHER OF INDIA; Widow; Mother; Sisters; Daughters; CHAPTER 10 PATRIOT QUEEN; Voices of India; Ripon engel appan20; National Union; CHAPTER 11 JUJUBILEE; Managing Loyalty: The Golden Jubilee of 1887
Loyal Legacy: The Imperial InstituteFeast and Famine: The Diamond Jubilee of 1897; CHAPTER 12 THE LAST YEARS OF THE QAISARA; Manipur; In Memoriam; EPILOGUE; Raj and Swaraj; Jai Hind; Empire to Republic; APPENDIX; NOTES; SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY; INDEX