A History of India [Hardcover]

Hermann Kulke (Author), Dietmar Rothermund (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0415154812 | ISBN-13: 978-0415154819 | Publication Date: January 8, 1998 | Edition: 3

A History of India is a compact synthesis presenting the grand sweep of Indian history from antiquity to the present. It remains the definitive text on the nation. This new edition has been thoroughly revised, containing new research, and an up-to-date preface, index and dateline.
The authors examine the major political, economic, social and cultural forces which have shaped the history of the Indian subcontinent in this survey. This classic text is an authoritative detailed account which emphasises and analyses the stuctural pattern of Indian history.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Kulke and Rothermund's work provides an authoritative and detailed account of the structural pattern of Indian history. Through first rate scholarship, the authors have done a fabulous work in delineating the various nuances of India's glorius historical past while presenting readers with a much needed and highly readable survey." Mohammed Badrul Alam, Jamia Millia Islamia University, New Delhi

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: German --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 408 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 3 edition (January 8, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415154812
• ISBN-13: 978-0415154819
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,658,364 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite one-volume history of India, November 4, 2001

By 

Tom L. Forest (Forest Grove, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A History of India (Paperback)

This book is mercifully brief on the deconstruction of literary sources that South Asian area studies are prone to and (again quoting the on-target cover copy) "emphasises and analyses the structural pattern of Indian history." I wish it was longer than 335 pages.

The first 2/3 of the book covers the pre-British period -- a good fraction. While relating more of the military viscitudes than I would like, there is some consideration of social, religious, and economic issues as well as ruling strategies. And the focus on 'great empires' is less than in most Indian histories, which is good since India has spent much more time disunited than united.

Kulke and Rothermund break with the Hindu/Islamic/British periodization of Indian history, breaking periods before the Guptas and before the Mughals. All in all, it is a substantial improvement over Romila Thapar's effort, and a huge improvement over Stanley Wolpert's book.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A concise and beatiful rendition about the history of India, November 9, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A History of India (Paperback)

This is a thoughtful and well researched book. It answers some of the questions which bother most Indians are we aryans or dravidians, how did the indus valley civilization dissappear . The manner in which they explain the myths like the one about the vijayanagar empire tells us about the research put in by the authors. I would recommend this book to novices as well as connosieurs of Indian history

8 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A Eurocentric view of India, November 30, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: A History of India (Paperback)

This book is, like most other books on India, a Eurocentric view of the subject. It's shortcomings have been well documented by Dilip Chakrabarti, the archaeology professor at Cambridge University, in his seminal book COLONIAL INDOLOGY.