The Shortest History of India

September 18, 2023
Australian historian Zubrzycki (Empire of Enchantment) surveys five millennia of Indian history in this concise account. People first began living in the subcontinent 1.5 million years ago, making them one of the earliest human populations outside Africa. Noting that India has birthed three empires—Mauryan, Gupta, and Mughal—Zubrzycki explains that the Gupta Empire presided over a golden age (320–550 CE) of economic prosperity and flourishing science, and that the Mughal Empire (1526–1857) left behind some of the most exquisite architecture in all of Asia, including the Taj Mahal. Beginning in 1757, Great Britain’s East India Company gradually took over India in a “corporate coup unparalleled in history.” When a famine in the 1870s resulted in the company’s bankruptcy, the British government bailed it out, marking the beginning of British colonial rule in India. In the 20th century, the Indian National Congress pushed for India’s independence, which it attained in 1947 in an agreement that led to the partition of Pakistan, inhabited mostly by Muslims, from Hindu-dominated India, triggering the largest forced migration in history. Throughout his accessible narrative, Zubrzycki spotlights the origins of Indian innovations such as the decimal system, yoga, and vegetarianism. This is a fantastic resource for educators.