---
product_id: 7156622
title: "The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857 (Vintage)"
price: "€ 42.29"
currency: EUR
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 8
url: https://www.desertcart.fi/products/7156622-the-last-mughal-the-fall-of-a-dynasty-delhi-1857
store_origin: FI
region: Finland
---

# Deep historical insight Extensive archival research Focus on 1857 Delhi uprising The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857 (Vintage)

**Price:** € 42.29
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## Summary

> 📖 Unlock the untold saga of empire, rebellion, and legacy — don’t miss the story that reshaped history!

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- **What is this?** The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857 (Vintage)
- **How much does it cost?** € 42.29 with free shipping
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## Why This Product

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## Key Features

- • **Award-Winning Author:** From travel writer to acclaimed historian, William Dalrymple delivers a masterpiece of historical storytelling.
- • **Scholarly Yet Accessible:** Meticulously researched with fresh archival sources, presented in an engaging, readable style.
- • **Cultural & Political Depth:** Unpacks complex religious and political tensions that shaped a pivotal moment in Indian history.
- • **Collector’s Vintage Edition:** Own a used copy in good condition of a highly rated bestseller that sparks reflection and conversation.
- • **Immersive Historical Narrative:** Experience the dramatic fall of the Mughal dynasty through vivid eyewitness accounts.

## Overview

The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857 by William Dalrymple is a critically acclaimed historical account focusing on the 1857 Indian rebellion centered in Delhi. Drawing on newly rediscovered Farsi and Urdu archives, it offers a richly detailed, emotionally powerful narrative of the last Mughal emperor’s downfall and the brutal aftermath. This vintage edition is a must-read for history enthusiasts seeking a profound understanding of colonial India’s defining moment.

## Description

The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857 (Vintage) [Dalrymple, William] on desertcart.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857 (Vintage)

Review: An extraordinary but horrifying tale of the brutality of war, superbly written - William Dalrymple has done it again and I thank my friend, Mairead, who first introduced me to his writing. This book describes in amazing detail the events leading up to, during and then following the Delhi uprising of 1857. Of all the books I have read by this author, this one has left me the most changed. Shattered. Written by one who loves India as we can sense from some of his other books, this one documents the bad decisions, arrogant attitudes and blind stupidity that set the stage for an uprising by people who had truly been "trashed" by Empire building individuals. The detail of this book is incredible and the references at the back of the book are massive in number. The personal details of those English who did and did not escape the traumas of the uprising are moving, in the extreme. As are the details of those who suffered as the British returned to punish all and sundry who happened to be in their way as they fought back to take Delhi and change it forever. One cannot read this book without holding a different view of "the Mother Country" which I have loved for decades, but now hold at a little more arms length! To think of where the wealth of the conqueror has come from is truly confronting and for the first time in my life I start to see the value of my own country moving to Republic status. The author does help salvage some respect for Justice and truth in those who were left or sent to mop up after the total bloodbath that was Britain's revenge for the uprising. Having visited India several times I can see positives that have been embraced from the time Britain spent as conquering rulers. This book has set me a goal of visiting Delhi with a friend of mine from India as I want to stand where thousands stood and were massacred as a result of bad government and strong ideological differences. COVID permitting that will be next year. This is not a book for the faint hearted. It is a book that will change you. It is a masterpiece.
Review: A Writerly Rendition - Neither William Dalrymple nor 'The Last Mughal' need another positive review after all the prior accolades they have received. This 2006 work continues the amazing metamorphosis of a travel writer into a historian. The writing seems effortless, although a tremendous amount of research has been done. Perhaps this is partly due to the author's passion for the world of which he writes, but it also must be more than that. Greatness is sometimes easy to recognize and yet difficult to describe. The book tells of the last emperor at the time of the Indian rebellion of 1857. In the final days of the dynasty real power had been ceded to the British, but the emperor was allowed to remain as a figurehead. In preceding centuries the descendants of Islamic conquerors ruled partly by consensus, and a degree of religious freedom existed between Muslims and Hindus. The empire and its court were responsible for a great body of architecture and literature that flourished up to the time of its demise. Many earlier British settlers had adapted to local customs and culture, intermarrying and in some cases converting to Islam. In the mid 19th century a wave of Christian evangelism became prevalent, and efforts were made to promote the conversion of native religions. This culminated in a military rebellion when indigenous troops under British command were ordered to trespass religious taboos, such as traveling overseas, mixing castes and breaking dietary restrictions. The religious underpinnings of the rebellion were exacerbated by an untimely British decision to end the Mughal line of succession. The ensuing war was the greatest challenge to colonial power since the American Revolution and ultimately resulted in the transfer of East India Company rule to the British crown. After Shah Jafar was captured he was tried for aiding the rebellion, and exiled to live out his remaining years under house arrest in Rangoon, British Burma. This pivotal period of history is delivered in a scholarly but not overly academic manner. It only covers Delhi, the epicenter of the rebellion. Events in Lucknow and Kanpur must be read about elsewhere. The story is told through eyewitness accounts by British and Indian participants. Many of the sources are new, culled from rediscovered archives written in Farsi and Urdu. The research is greatly complemented by the superb storytelling abilities of the author.

## Features

- Used Book in Good Condition

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #289,047 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #7 in Historical India & South Asia Biographies #10 in India History #209 in Asian Politics |
| Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 2,001 Reviews |

## Images

![The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857 (Vintage) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/811kjFzfh8L.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ An extraordinary but horrifying tale of the brutality of war, superbly written
*by R***Y on October 5, 2020*

William Dalrymple has done it again and I thank my friend, Mairead, who first introduced me to his writing. This book describes in amazing detail the events leading up to, during and then following the Delhi uprising of 1857. Of all the books I have read by this author, this one has left me the most changed. Shattered. Written by one who loves India as we can sense from some of his other books, this one documents the bad decisions, arrogant attitudes and blind stupidity that set the stage for an uprising by people who had truly been "trashed" by Empire building individuals. The detail of this book is incredible and the references at the back of the book are massive in number. The personal details of those English who did and did not escape the traumas of the uprising are moving, in the extreme. As are the details of those who suffered as the British returned to punish all and sundry who happened to be in their way as they fought back to take Delhi and change it forever. One cannot read this book without holding a different view of "the Mother Country" which I have loved for decades, but now hold at a little more arms length! To think of where the wealth of the conqueror has come from is truly confronting and for the first time in my life I start to see the value of my own country moving to Republic status. The author does help salvage some respect for Justice and truth in those who were left or sent to mop up after the total bloodbath that was Britain's revenge for the uprising. Having visited India several times I can see positives that have been embraced from the time Britain spent as conquering rulers. This book has set me a goal of visiting Delhi with a friend of mine from India as I want to stand where thousands stood and were massacred as a result of bad government and strong ideological differences. COVID permitting that will be next year. This is not a book for the faint hearted. It is a book that will change you. It is a masterpiece.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A Writerly Rendition
*by D***R on May 20, 2017*

Neither William Dalrymple nor 'The Last Mughal' need another positive review after all the prior accolades they have received. This 2006 work continues the amazing metamorphosis of a travel writer into a historian. The writing seems effortless, although a tremendous amount of research has been done. Perhaps this is partly due to the author's passion for the world of which he writes, but it also must be more than that. Greatness is sometimes easy to recognize and yet difficult to describe. The book tells of the last emperor at the time of the Indian rebellion of 1857. In the final days of the dynasty real power had been ceded to the British, but the emperor was allowed to remain as a figurehead. In preceding centuries the descendants of Islamic conquerors ruled partly by consensus, and a degree of religious freedom existed between Muslims and Hindus. The empire and its court were responsible for a great body of architecture and literature that flourished up to the time of its demise. Many earlier British settlers had adapted to local customs and culture, intermarrying and in some cases converting to Islam. In the mid 19th century a wave of Christian evangelism became prevalent, and efforts were made to promote the conversion of native religions. This culminated in a military rebellion when indigenous troops under British command were ordered to trespass religious taboos, such as traveling overseas, mixing castes and breaking dietary restrictions. The religious underpinnings of the rebellion were exacerbated by an untimely British decision to end the Mughal line of succession. The ensuing war was the greatest challenge to colonial power since the American Revolution and ultimately resulted in the transfer of East India Company rule to the British crown. After Shah Jafar was captured he was tried for aiding the rebellion, and exiled to live out his remaining years under house arrest in Rangoon, British Burma. This pivotal period of history is delivered in a scholarly but not overly academic manner. It only covers Delhi, the epicenter of the rebellion. Events in Lucknow and Kanpur must be read about elsewhere. The story is told through eyewitness accounts by British and Indian participants. Many of the sources are new, culled from rediscovered archives written in Farsi and Urdu. The research is greatly complemented by the superb storytelling abilities of the author.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Fantastic scholarship but not an easy read
*by K***O on August 28, 2017*

For nearly 300 years the Mughals ruled India in addition to what is now Pakistan and Bangladesh but by the 1850s their rule was in a terminal decline. The British East India Company and other colonial forces had eaten away at their power and local governors were virtually independent. The increasingly ambitious British were making plans for remake India in their image and the Mughals were not a part of the plan. In this book William Dalrymple tells the story of Zafar, the last Mughal Emperor as he finds himself thrust into the largest anti-colonial war of the 19th Century the Indian Mutiny/Uprising of 1857. It's a grim story with atrocities and stupidity on both sites. This is not a light read. It is probably the definitive account of of the war drawing on British, Indian and Pakistani records, some never translated before. Diaries, letters and other personal accounts provide a vivid first-hand account. Dalrymple's writing also does not make things easy for the reader, he never says washerman when he can say 'dhobi' , never says police station if he can say 'thana'. He's usually good at defining the Urdu words in context and the Kindle dictionary or his glossary cover most of the rest but the use of Indian terms plus the Victorian terms from many of the accounts make this a bit of a chore to read sometimes. The publisher also put no effort into creating the ebook. For example photos in the print version are, of necessity, in their own section on special paper. But in an ebook there's no reason they can't be placed among the text where they belong in context. Instead they just suddenly appear as a block in the middle of a chapter interrupting the text. I also find it hard to flip to the maps and glossary on an ebook, I might have enjoyed this more on paper. Finally I found the conclusion a bit abrupt. Yes, ending 'The Last Mughal' with the death of the last Mughal makes sense, but another chapter covering the transition from the British East India Company to the British Raj would be help finish the story. Instead there's some overly simplified conclusions mourning the loss of the Mughal's cosmopolitan rule and trying to link the uprising to the rise of Al Qaeda and the September 11th attacks 150 years later. All that being said, this was a great read, an incredible work of scholarship and storytelling and anyone with an interest in India will enjoy it.

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*Last updated: 2026-03-01*