Sahib

Sahib is a magnificent history of the British soldier in India from Clive to the end of Empire, making full use of personal accounts from the soldiers who served in the jewel in Britain’s Imperial Crown.

This is a stunning account of Indian soldiering in peace and war, from the barrack rooms to the cavalry swirling across open plains. Bestselling military historian Richard Holmes not only illuminates the lives and feelings of the men who served, but also those of the women who followed them across a vast continent, bore their children, and suffered alongside them in the merciless conditions.

Reviews

‘For anyone interested in the Raj this book is a must.’ Observer

‘Richard Holmes’s mastery of the British Army is unequalled … A worthy memorial of one of the extraordinary experiences in British history.’ Max Hastings, Sunday Telegraph

‘Holmes is a passionate and richly entertaining champion of the rank and file.’ Daily Telegraph

‘Insightful, colourful, relevant and pithy.’ The Times

About the author

Richard Holmes was one of Britain’s most successful historians and television presenters. Author of the best-selling Tommy, Redcoat and Wellington: The Iron Duke, he has also written and presented television series for the BBC. As well as serving in the TA, he taught military history at Sandhurst and, latterly, as Professor of Military and Security Studies at Cranfield University and the Royal Military College of Science. Richard Holmes died suddenly on 30 April 2011 from pneumonia, aged 65.