The Anarchy, published in 2019, tells the story of the East India Company's transformation from a trading concern into a territorial power. It opens with the decline of Mughal authority after Aurangzeb, the devastating Persian raid on Delhi in 1739, and the scramble among regional powers that followed, an age of chaos that gives the book its title.
Dalrymple follows a vivid cast: Robert Clive and the battle of Plassey, the Bengal famine of 1770, the young emperor Shah Alam struggling to keep his dynasty alive, Tipu Sultan of Mysore, the Maratha confederacy and Warren Hastings, whose impeachment trial in London exposed the Company's abuses. He shows how the Company used credit from Indian bankers, a modern army and local rivalries to extend its reach.
A central argument is that this was conquest by a corporation answerable chiefly to shareholders, and Dalrymple draws pointed lessons about corporate power and its capture of governments. Drawing on Persian, Urdu and Company records, the book combines narrative drama with scholarship and became an international bestseller.
Book details
| Author | William Dalrymple |
|---|---|
| First published | 2019 |
| Original language | English |
| Genre | History |
| Type | Non-fiction |
| Pages (approx.) | 520 |
| Setting | Bengal, Delhi, Mysore, the Maratha lands and London, 1756-1803 |
Themes
- Corporate power
- Colonial conquest
- Mughal decline
- Plunder and famine
- Imperial accountability
Who should read it
Readers curious about how a company came to rule a subcontinent, and what that says about corporations today.