ABSTRACT
W hen Disraeli dubbed India a ‘jew el in the C row n o f England’, both the example and its symbolism were well chosen, as the subsequent popularity o f the phrase amply confirms.2 In the m id-nineteenth century, even observers o f the political scene w ho were generally indifferent to empire could scarcely overlook Britain’s connections w ith India. The sub-continent had already acquired the special value that attaches to ancient possessions; the weight o f its presence w ithin the empire ensured that discussion o f its future readily transcended the levels occupied by particular pressure groups and entered the sphere reserved for matters o f national interest. From this point onwards, m oreover, the history o f India under the Raj showed ‘the face o f the future’ to m uch o f the rest o f the empire as she passed from acquisition to colonial management and on to the transfer o f power. T he orists o f empire may bypass Tonga and may regard Uganda as being an exception to the rule, whatever it may be, o f imperial growth and decay; but no serious account of British imperialism can omit India or treat her as an anomaly, and no plausible explanation o f the purpose o f empire-building can afford to stumble over the sub-continent.
