Customer Reviews

A Matter of Honour: An Account of the Indian Army, Its Officers and Men

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Philip Mason's A Matter of Honour is a classic because it is a comprehenisve, deeply researched and wonderfully written account of the Indian Army under the raj. There is one lucana that I am aware of, his failure to give an account of the Imperial Cadet Corps created by Lord Curzon and of the Native Indian Land Forces that was created for Indian officers after Curzon failed to get support for giving ICC graduates King's Commissions. The Native Indian Land Forces Commissions were signed by the King-Emperor, at the time Edward VII, but with the stipulation that they could not command white officers or men. Nine ex-ICC cadets were given King's Commission in August 1917 in recognition of India's contribution in blood in World War I. None of the nine served in the Indian Army until Independence in 1947 with the result that an ICC graduate did not become India's first C-in-C. Lloyd Rudolph, co-author of Reversing the Gaze where these matters are discussed in greater detail.

An absolutely essential book for those interested in the Imperial era, as India was the 'Jewel in the Crown' and this book covers the Indian Army. The author has written other books, but as a former civil servant in India, for the twenty years before 1947 and involved at the end at the highest level.

In a relatively short book he covers two hundred years of history. It is a "broad brush" and not a regimental history.

'Honour' is something hard to quantify, even describe and sometimes fades from modern life. This book shows how a mixture of religions, castes, peoples, culture, traditions and more were moulded together.

Even today it is read in the most strange places, including the current Pakistani Army after the Swat Valley campaign - looking for lessons learnt.