ABSTRACT
The idea and practice of martyrdom was central to the politics of revolutionary nationalism that emerged in Bengal in the early 20th century and has continued to play a dominant role in the contemporary imagination. Martyrdom not only resonated within the society that actually experienced such politics but memories of the martyrs continue to carry tremendous emotional freight after independence. Beginning with an exploration of the cultural artefacts that have shaped the collective memory of revolutionary martyrdom, this chapter goes on to demonstrate that cultural memory is an important process that enables society to operate as a functioning organism despite its internal conflicts.
