Sovereignty and Social Reform in India - 9781138888357

Taylor & Francis

Sovereignty and Social Reform in IndiaBritish Colonialism and the Campaign against Sati, 1830-1860\nAuthor(s): Andrea Major\nFormat: Paperback\nPublisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd, United Kingdom\nImprint: Routledge\nISBN-13: 9781138888357, 978-1138888357\nSynopsis\nThe British prohibition of sati (the funeral practice of widow immolation) in 1829 has been considered an archetypal example of colonial social reform. It was not the end of the story, however, as between 1830 and 1860, British East India Company officials engaged in a debate with the Indian rulers of the Rajput and Maratha princely states of North West India about the prohibition and suppression of sati in their territories. This book examines the debates that brought about legislation in these areas, arguing that they were instrumental in setting the terms of post-colonial debates about sati, and more generally, in defining the parameters of British involvement in Indian social and religious issues. \n\nThis book provid.