David Freer

Imperial Britain
Spring 2006

In a Dandy

For the British residing in India in the nineteenth and twentieth century, there was often a

great deal of ambiguity relating their feelings about living in a far-away land and

similarly in leaving India. In Empire Families: Britons and Late Imperial India, Elizabeth

Buettner examines a number of primary sources including diaries, newspapers, school

records, letters, fiction from the period and official government records. Buettner

attempts to separate the reality from the facade for the British while in India, those they

leave behind, and the issues with life after their service is over. Children’s experiences

and reminiscences of their time in India are central to the book. The thinkers of the late

nineteenth and early twentieth century encouraged children to be removed from India

after puberty and educated in a more ‘hospitable’ climate. Overall, it seems there was a

class of people who felt most at home on a steamship traveling between India and Britain

with sentimental attractions to each that grew stronger once away. The book concludes

with an examination of recent trends and the British attempt to reshape their past.

Doctors regularly advised against children remaining in India because of the harsh

climate. However, ‘experts’ also warned against the “intimate exposure to indigenous

society and customs (p. 39)” which could damage the child. Racism was clearly evident

in the negotiations with Indians and the science upheld such racist beliefs. Though there

was a strong preference for British or European nannies, supply and demand left only the

wealthiest able to do afford them. Many children developed deep and meaningful
connections with their caretakers, even learning bits of their language (page 42). It seems

the journey back ‘home’ from India was a way to prove they are not part of the

‘domiciled’ class (page 71).

Schools were a tool of the British, class-based system. Those who traveled by steamship

back to Britain, “enhanced their foothold among the transient British community (p.

109).” Obviously the parents felt their status depended on the journey, how did the

children feel about the trip? Buettner is quick to emphasize the problems with

recollections from an adult perspective. She quotes Kipling’s miserable tales about a boy

in the care of his rotten Aunty Rosa (p. 123). Buettner claims that ‘Baa Baa, Black

Sheep’ was the standard for comparison by numerous other transient children (p. 125).

While children were away, families communicated via letter. Most of the samples

presented in the book seem extremely measured as if following a template. Issues of the

day are discussed but deep feelings seem somewhat masked. Buettner questions whether

the extant letters are unrepresentative of the true feelings of the time and conjectures that

other letters might reflect ‘weaker bonds’ among family members (p.139). Perhaps one

day a secret cache of letters will be found hidden somewhere and it will revolutionize the

social history of the period.

Personally, the book shines when the historical documents such as letters and

photographs are displayed. At times the reader can get lost in the trees and ignore the

forest. Details about the fees for boarding schools became quite tedious. The book is
also weakened, in my opinion, by not making clear what British families did while in

India. I had a sense that some men made close bonds with Indians and left for long

periods hunting but the day to day activities should have been better presented, if

possible. The picture of the “Child in a Dandy” surrounded by five servants is a powerful

photograph.

After their nebulous service in India was over, many sought out Indian-British

communities in London. Indians were sought out to speak with and reminisce about

India. English servants complained about shabby treatment from ex-colonial officials.

Many ended up retiring in Africa or Canada after feeling like second-class citizens in

Britain.

The children from such adventures are still alive and able to tell their stories. In the

conclusion, Buettner clearly comes out against the view of the British Empire as an

overwhelmingly positive endeavor, though some try to make it seem that way. There will

obviously be many histories written about the subject but Buettner concludes that

historians will keep trying to write the truthful version. Empire Families is a scholarly,

well documented look at a group of people who spent their lives chasing an idealized,

over-sentimentalized version of home while desperately trying to prove their supremacy.

The book, however, is targeted at specialists and in spite of the fascinating topic, will

probably be best appreciated in the world of academia.