The Indian eye

The central theme of this master thesis revolves around the question how British-Indian travellers viewed the cultural hierarchy of the British-Empire during their journey to and stay in London during the period 1810-1915. To answer this question I examined and compared the journals of over a dozen British-Indian travellers. I looked at several ways a travellers’ opinion about London formed. The most important aspects that I analysed can be divided into three parts. The first is about the travellers’ backgrounds and motivations for travelling and writing. The second part regards their opinions about the British-Empire. The third part concentrates on the city of London, its people, and the way the Empire was represented in London. All the researched journals can be found in the first part of ‘The Empire Writes Back’ collection. Besides cultural hierarchy another important aspect discussed in this thesis revolved around how how (British)-Indians were represented in London in the eyes of the British-Indian travellers. Throughout the thesis attention is paid to the expectations of the travellers and their own special position between the East and the West. The British-Indian travellers I researched did not belong to a single cohesive group, but all had the means and contacts to afford making the journey to London. They prepared for their journeys and had an active interest in the British-Empire and its inhabitants. Travellers were well-informed about London and the British-Empire through friends and by reading books. Travellers also expanded their knowledge of the imperial hierarchy by visiting other British territories in the Eastern hemisphere, including Tasmania, Ceylon and Australia. Once the travellers arrived in London they noted the differences between the British in the colonies and those living in London. Where in the colonies the British were isolationists that did not mingle with the local population, the British in London were friendly and had a great deal of interest in the British-Indian travellers and the Orient, including India. Travellers also noted the interconnectivity between London, the heart of the British-Empire, and British colonies. Signs of the Empire were everywhere, from restaurants and markets to museums. Most travellers were impressed by London, and those that travelled to London as critics of the British gained a more positive outlook regarding the British living in Britain. Travellers had to adjust their vision on the British hierarchy, as the British proved to be more approachable in London for someone from the East. There were some disillusions. The travellers did not expect criminality to be so rampant in London and this reflected badly on the work of Western missionaries in India. Missionaries had failed to ‘civilize’ the criminal population in the heart of the Empire. A major disappointment came from the British parliament. Members of Parliament in general were not interested in India and left Indian business to Anglo-Indians. Despite British politics, travellers held hope that the relationship between East and West could improve. Britain and India could learn much from each other. Although the traveller did not expect to be treated as equals, they held the hope that a mutually beneficial relationship between India and Britain would lead to an improved India. Not a country designed by the British, but a modernized country that remain Indian at its core.