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Amongst the riches of nineteenth century India, as the British fought their way across Mughal territory, an orphaned streetgirl ends up at court with the ear of the Emperor. That girl was Farzana, and she would become a courtesan, a leader of armies, a treasured defender of the last Mughal emperor and the head of one of the most legendary courts in history. In this beautifully written book, the author's last, Julia Keay weaves a story which spans the Indian continent and the end of a golden era in Indian history, the story of a nobody who became a teenage seductress and died one of the richest and most prominent women of her age. Farzana rode into battle atop a stallion, though only 4 1/2 feet tall, and led an army which defended a sickly Mughal Empire. She dabbled in witchcraft while gaining favour with the Pope, and died a favourite of the British Raj. Farzana is an evocative and moving depiction of one of the most remarkable, and least-known, historical lives of the nineteenth century.
List of contents
Foreword vii
Prologue 1
PART ONE: MARRIED TO THE REGIMENT
1750–1778
1 Where Passions Rage 13
2 In Between Empires 26
3 The Butcher of Patna 43
4 Enchanted by Her Heroism 62
5 A Home of Their Own 77
PART TWO: DAUGHTER OF THE EMPEROR
1778–1788
6 Steel Beneath the Muslin 95
7 Fit for Service 124
8 Fearless Foreigner 146
9 Violence, Rapine and Barbarity 166
10 Errors of Judgement 189
11 A Gathering Storm 214
12 A Salutory Experience 237
PART THREE: THE ONLY LADY AT THE TABLE
1788–1836
13 A Genius for Majesty 255
14 Best-laid Plans 269
Epilogue 291
Afterword 298
Notes 300
Select Bibliography 320
Index 327
Summary
Farzana is an evocative and moving depiction of one of the most remarkable, and least-known, historical lives of the 19th century.
