The Arabian Frontier Of The British Raj: Merchants, Rulers And The British In The Nineteenth-century Gulp

摘要

Shortly after stepping down as Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon remarked that "It has been the policy of Protectorates that the Indian Empire has for more than a century pursued, and is still pursuing, its as yet unexhausted advance" (p. vii). Taking Curzon's words as his starting point, James Onley focuses on the Arabian frontier of the British raj. Indeed, one of Onley's most penetrating conclusions is that "the Indian Empire was much larger than current Indian historiography says it was, and that the informal part of this empire included Arabia" (p. 216). Taking his analysis still further, Onley remarks that "it becomes apparent that British India itself had an informal sub-empire in South Asia, Arabia, and East Africa comprised of semi-independent states under the suzerainty of the British Crown' (pp. 216-217). It is the semi-independent states of the Gulf on which Onley's book concentrates. One of the most significant aspects of his excellent book is British reliance on 'native agents' for the maintenance of imperial interests and influence in the region throughout the nineteenth century.