L'Inde coloniale : nationalisme et histoire

Nationalism and History in Colonial India This article focuses upon the relationship between historical consciousness and the development of nationalist ideology in India circa 1870-1920. There is first an attempt at tracing the gradual emergence of a coherent version of Indian history in the writings of important nationalist ideologues and politicians. The main themes of nationalist historiography are then explored, and the influence of various European intellectual trends on nationalist historical thought brought to light. The analysis shows how nationalist authors used European ideas and historical models to produce a highly idealized version of Indian history. Yet it is possible to distinguish between two schools in nationalist historical writings. The conclusion lays emphasis on the contribution of nationalist history to the development of some of the basic myths of Indian nationalism, as well as on the long-term consequences produced by the popularisation of these ideological constructs.Markovits Claude. L'Inde coloniale : nationalisme et histoire. In: Annales. Économies, Sociétés, Civilisations. 37ᵉ année, N. 4, 1982. pp. 648-668