Member Book, Cynthia Talbot, the Last Hindu Emperor: Prithviraj Chauhan and the Indian Past, 1200-2000

H-Asia Member Book, Cynthia Talbot, The Last Hindu Emperor: Prithviraj Chauhan and the Indian Past, 1200-2000

Discussion published by Cynthia Talbot on Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Dear Colleagues,

I am happy to announce my recently published book:

The Last Hindu Emperor: Prithviraj Chauhan and the Indian Past, 1200-200 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2016). 352 pages, 13 illustrations and maps.

Hardback $99.99

ISBN: 9781107118560

This book traces traditions relating to the twelfth-century Indian ruler Prithviraj Chauhan, who was defeated and killed during the conquest of North India by armies from Afghanistan. Surveying a wealth of narratives that span more than 800 years, Cynthia Talbot explores the reasons why he is remembered and by whom. In modern times, the Chauhan king has been referred to as "the last Hindu emperor," because Muslim rule prevailed for centuries following his defeat. Despite being overthrown, however, his name and story have evolved over time into a historical symbol of India’s martial valor. The Last Hindu Emperor sheds new light on the enduring importance of heroic histories in Indian culture and the remarkable ability of historical memory to transform the hero of a clan into the hero of a community, and finally a nation.

Contents

List of Illustrations

Acknowledgments

Note on transliteration and citation

List of abbreviations

1. Introduction: layers of memory

2. Literary trajectories of the historic king

3. Delhi in the making of the last Hindu emperor

4. The heroic vision of an elite regional epic

5. Imagining the Rajput past in Mughal-era Mewar

6. Validating Prithviraj Raso in colonial India, 1820s–1870s

Citation: Cynthia Talbot . Member Book, Cynthia Talbot, The Last Hindu Emperor: Prithviraj Chauhan and the Indian Past, 1200-2000. H-Asia. 01-26-2016. https://networks.h-net.org/node/22055/discussions/108977/member-book-cynthia-talbot-last-hindu-emperor-prithviraj-chauhan Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. 1 H-Asia

7. Contested meanings in a nationalist age, 1880s–1940s

8. Epilogue: the postcolonial Prithviraj

Appendix: Prithviraj Raso’s textual history

Bibliography

Index

You can find a link to the book on the Cambridge website here: www.cambridge.org/9781107118560

Wishing you all the best in this new year,

Cynthia Talbot