"Sicques, Tigers, or Thieves":: Eyewitness Accounts of the Sikhs (1606-1809) [Paperback]

Amandeep Singh Madra (Author), Parmjit Singh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 23, 2004

In 1812, Sir John Malcom, a Lieutenant General in the British Army wrote "A Sketch of the Sikhs," commonly believed to be the first account of the Sikhs written by a non-Sikh. In truth, soldiers, travelers, diplomats, missionaries, and scholars had provided accounts for many years before that. Drawing on this difficult-to-find material, the editors of this volume have compiled a unique source that offers a fascinating insight into the early developments in Sikh history. From the first ever written accounts of the Sikhs by Persian chroniclers of the Moghul Emperor to the travel diary of an Englishwoman, this volume contains material invaluable to those studying the evolution of the Sikh religion.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A fascinating account of the Sikhs as seen by foreign travellers in the land which was to become their kingdom. They give us an insight into the macho self-image that Sikhs have to this day - anything you can do I can do better. This spirit of upmanship has sustained the community miniscule in numbers but grand in achievements."--Khushwant Singh, author, A History of the Sikhs

"Better than time travel... a richly-peopled, intimate journey through the dawn of Sikh history."--Christy Campbell, author of The Maharajah's and Fenian Fire: The British Government Plot to Assassinate Queen Victoria

"This is a splendid compilation of documents which should have an appeal beyond the narrowly academic to a range of readers, including many with general interests in the expansion of British rule in northern India as well as those particularly interested in early Sikh history at whom the book is most directly targeted."--Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society

From the Inside Flap

"A fascinating account of the Sikhs as seen by foreign travellers in the land which was to become their kingdom. They give us an insight into the macho self-image that Sikhs have to this day - anything you can do I can do better. This spirit of upmanship has sustained the community miniscule in numbers but grand in achievements." --Khushwant Singh, author, A History of the Sikhs

"Better than time travel... a richly-peopled, intimate journey through the dawn of Sikh history." --Christy Campbell, author of The Maharajah's and Fenian Fire: The British Government Plot to Assassinate Queen Victoria

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (December 23, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1403962022
• ISBN-13: 978-1403962027
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #831,032 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #46 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Other Eastern Religions > Sikhism

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent piece of historical research, February 24, 2005

By 

H. Rayat "Harcharan" (London) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: "Sicques, Tigers, or Thieves":: Eyewitness Accounts of the Sikhs (1606-1809) (Hardcover)

Well done to the authors and all who supported them in this long overdue project.

Amandeep and Paramjeet have attempted to write this book in an unbiased fashion, and I must say, have succeeded. This is a rare acheivement for authors of history and historians, as the biased historical accounts of the early Europeans in India show.

The accounts (some apparently eye witness) of Banda Bahadur are particulary informative as to the culture, opinions, attitudes and politics of the rulers and the Sikhs in the early eighteenth century.

It's a shame that there is still a gap in mid eighteenth century Sikh history, although there are accounts of this, they are still very limited in content and historians rely heavily on the hearsay of the time.

Maybe a project on the Sikh Misls could be a possibilty, using all known sources!! There is a lot of misinformation about this period and the Sardaars. A comprehensive and historical records based study is much needed!

There is some very interesting information as to the practices of Sikhs which I never knew of before e.g. stirring amrit with a boars tooth, which is very believable if looked at in the context of the problems faced by the Sikhs of the time.

Unsuprisingly, there are comprehensive reports of Ranjit Singhs darbaar.

In all, this is an eye opening, inspiring and educational book.

Harcharan

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Step into the Past, June 2, 2006

By 

H. Pannu "Avid Reader" (Aus) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: "Sicques, Tigers, or Thieves":: Eyewitness Accounts of the Sikhs (1606-1809) (Paperback)

I bought this book expecting to read articles with a bigoted, mis-informed view of the Sikh culture and people from an anti-Sikh western viewpoint, or worse, pure ignorance. I was pleasantly surprised by the detailed and fascinating detail on the circumstances of Sikh people and life during the periods covered. I appreciate that there are gaps in coverage, but that adds to the authencity of the accounts and helps you formulate a view in your mind how the Sikh's could've changed from a small band of warriors under Bhanda Singh to the organised armies under Ranjit Singh. What I liked were the commentaries by the narrators who put the writer's circumstances into context before putting the writer's actual account before the reader. This helps the reader appreciate the limitations of the writer's perspective, and appreciate the actual gems of insight where they are to be found. The book also gives a glimpse into the past when it wasn't necessary to be 'man with turban' to be sikh, but there were other ways to be spiritually sikh without donning the appearance of a Khalsa sikh.

Overall, a gr8 read. Now onto Patwant Singh's book...

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An outsiders mine of informations on the early sikhs /khalsa., May 7, 2007

By 

Amrik Singh (Belgium) - See all my reviews

This review is from: "Sicques, Tigers, or Thieves":: Eyewitness Accounts of the Sikhs (1606-1809) (Paperback)

This book is specialy interesting and instructive to be read by the sikhs

and those who have allready some knowledge of Sikhism.