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Below the Peacock Fan: First Ladies of the Raj
The lives of four Victorian gentlewomen are transformed when they leave the cozy confines of England for India to accompany their husbands or a brother who were appointed Viceroys of India, the crown jewel of the British Empire. Emily Eden, Charlotte Canning, Edith Lytton and Mary Curzon were well-born, cultivated women who experienced the extremes of decadence in a country gripped by poverty.
Emily Eden imagined an India of dazzling splendor but found a land of dark secrets. Charlotte Canning painted delicate watercolors while the carnage of the Great Mutiny raged. Edith Lytton feared the moral laxity and adultery of India but indulged her husband rather than restraining him. Mary Curzon, an insecure American heiress in thrall to her husband unwittingly was almost crushed by him.
Marian Fowler, “both scholarly and tart,� recounts their adventures in this classic work of colonial and women’s history.
Emily Eden imagined an India of dazzling splendor but found a land of dark secrets. Charlotte Canning painted delicate watercolors while the carnage of the Great Mutiny raged. Edith Lytton feared the moral laxity and adultery of India but indulged her husband rather than restraining him. Mary Curzon, an insecure American heiress in thrall to her husband unwittingly was almost crushed by him.
Marian Fowler, “both scholarly and tart,� recounts their adventures in this classic work of colonial and women’s history.
352 pages, ebook
First published November 1, 1987
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About the author
Marian Fowler
9Ìýbooks1ÌýfollowerMarian Fowler holds a Ph.D. in English literature from the University of Toronto and was the recipient of the Canadian Biography Award. She has taught at York University and is the author of a number of books, including In a Gilded Cage, Below the Peacock Fan, The Embroidered Tent, Blenheim and The Way She Looks Tonight. She lives in Toronto.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 17, 2023
I'm not sure what I expected from this book but I was disappointed and angered.. It is a history of four of the wives/sisters of the Viceroys of India who left their sheltered lives in Victorian England to live in India during the British Raj.
It was basically a hell-hole of poverty, disease, famine, and heat. The Indians were suffering under Viceroys who ruled with an iron fist and who cared little for the indigenous population. And the wives, rather than attempting to address some of the problems, such as starving children, just suffered. Oh, how they suffered........except when they were ordering gowns from Worth of Paris, hosting parties (English only) and wearing countless jewels.
I realize that women of the Victorian age were subservient to their husbands and the lives of these women are hard to accept in modern times. But this book concentrated on their "suffering" which got old really fast. If the reader was meant to sympathize with them, It didn't work for me.
It was basically a hell-hole of poverty, disease, famine, and heat. The Indians were suffering under Viceroys who ruled with an iron fist and who cared little for the indigenous population. And the wives, rather than attempting to address some of the problems, such as starving children, just suffered. Oh, how they suffered........except when they were ordering gowns from Worth of Paris, hosting parties (English only) and wearing countless jewels.
I realize that women of the Victorian age were subservient to their husbands and the lives of these women are hard to accept in modern times. But this book concentrated on their "suffering" which got old really fast. If the reader was meant to sympathize with them, It didn't work for me.
January 10, 2019
Four 'First Ladies' of the Raj, chosen from distinct periods of the Raj. Emily Eden (and her sister Fanny), accompanied her brother, George Eden, Lord Auckland, when he was appointed Governor General in 1835; they remained there until 1842. Charlotte Canning came to India with her husband Charles in 1856, and she would be buried there in 1861. Emily Lytton's husband Robert would be appointed Viceroy in 1875; they arrived in 1876 and remained until 1880. Mary Curzon made her triumphant debut as Vicereine in 1898; she would leave in 1905 when her husband, George, resigned in a sulk.
Canning's tenure as Viceroy coincided with the Great Mutiny, while Lytton presided over the Second Afghan war (1878-1880). These events, though mentioned, don't figure largely in these biographical sketches. None of these women were admitted in the counsels of the men, so instead we mostly hear about heat and disease, jewels and dresses, and above all, enervating boredom. Since none of these women really accomplished anything in their own rights, it's hard to distinguish among them.
Four stars is really a generous 3 1/2
Canning's tenure as Viceroy coincided with the Great Mutiny, while Lytton presided over the Second Afghan war (1878-1880). These events, though mentioned, don't figure largely in these biographical sketches. None of these women were admitted in the counsels of the men, so instead we mostly hear about heat and disease, jewels and dresses, and above all, enervating boredom. Since none of these women really accomplished anything in their own rights, it's hard to distinguish among them.
Four stars is really a generous 3 1/2
September 13, 2016
No puedo separar este libro de las circunstancias en que lo compré.
Luego de visitar por dentro uno de los edificios del siglo XIX más hermosos de Buenos Aires, el Palacio de las Aguas Corrientes, de 1887...
... convencà a mi esposo de que recorriéramos unos metros, ya que enfrente de este edificio está una de mis librerÃas preferidas de toda la vida, la LibrerÃa Anticuaria El Glyptodón...
... donde siempre encuentro cosas extraordinarias.
Ni siquiera tuve que entrar, porque este librito estaba en la vidriera. ParecÃa que después de tanto esplendor victoriano me llamaba para darme una dosis más.
Compré este libro y una edición antigua de un libro de quÃmica de Lavoisier (a reseñar en algún post futuro).
Lo leà de a pedacitos, tiene muchÃsima información y varias láminas muy bellas, que cuentan la historia de la ocupación británica de la India, no tanto centrada en la polÃtica, sino en las mujeres que iban forzadas acompañando a sus maridos. Dichos maridos tampoco simpatizaban demasiado con la India sino que más bien la sufrÃan. En el texto no faltan ejemplos de la falta de comprensión de los "servidores del Imperio" con sus reticentes súbditos. Esta falta de flexibilidad hizo que la adaptación al continente sea difÃcil, no sólo por las diferencias culturales sino por factores como el clima y la falta de comodidades, o las epidemias, que se cobraban muchas vidas y repercutieron en la salud de los burócratas.
Esto era aún peor para las mujeres, ya que privadas de toda función quizás excepto la protocolar, languidecÃan descompuestas de calor en mansiones en las que, atendidas por ejércitos de sirvientes, no podÃan siquiera servirse ellas mismas un vaso de agua o cuidar a sus hijos. Mientras tanto, sus maridos se volvÃan cada vez más distantes debido a la carga de trabajo y los viajes constantes.
El libro está dividido en 4 partes, cada una de ellas dedicada a una mujer distinta.
Me encantó leerlo y aunque estoy bastante familiarizada con la historia de India debido a un interés personal (mayormente a través de su cine) aprendà mucho.
Luego de visitar por dentro uno de los edificios del siglo XIX más hermosos de Buenos Aires, el Palacio de las Aguas Corrientes, de 1887...
... convencà a mi esposo de que recorriéramos unos metros, ya que enfrente de este edificio está una de mis librerÃas preferidas de toda la vida, la LibrerÃa Anticuaria El Glyptodón...
... donde siempre encuentro cosas extraordinarias.
Ni siquiera tuve que entrar, porque este librito estaba en la vidriera. ParecÃa que después de tanto esplendor victoriano me llamaba para darme una dosis más.
Compré este libro y una edición antigua de un libro de quÃmica de Lavoisier (a reseñar en algún post futuro).
Lo leà de a pedacitos, tiene muchÃsima información y varias láminas muy bellas, que cuentan la historia de la ocupación británica de la India, no tanto centrada en la polÃtica, sino en las mujeres que iban forzadas acompañando a sus maridos. Dichos maridos tampoco simpatizaban demasiado con la India sino que más bien la sufrÃan. En el texto no faltan ejemplos de la falta de comprensión de los "servidores del Imperio" con sus reticentes súbditos. Esta falta de flexibilidad hizo que la adaptación al continente sea difÃcil, no sólo por las diferencias culturales sino por factores como el clima y la falta de comodidades, o las epidemias, que se cobraban muchas vidas y repercutieron en la salud de los burócratas.
Esto era aún peor para las mujeres, ya que privadas de toda función quizás excepto la protocolar, languidecÃan descompuestas de calor en mansiones en las que, atendidas por ejércitos de sirvientes, no podÃan siquiera servirse ellas mismas un vaso de agua o cuidar a sus hijos. Mientras tanto, sus maridos se volvÃan cada vez más distantes debido a la carga de trabajo y los viajes constantes.
El libro está dividido en 4 partes, cada una de ellas dedicada a una mujer distinta.
Me encantó leerlo y aunque estoy bastante familiarizada con la historia de India debido a un interés personal (mayormente a través de su cine) aprendà mucho.
August 19, 2011
Amazing book. It tells the stories of four "First Ladies" of the British Raj, often in their own words gleaned by the author from letters and memoirs. The first, Emily Eden, is by far the best. She comes across as a fully three-dimensional character with the kind of independent spirit that is timeless. Her writings are the best of the four too - very readable and full of wit. One senses she is the author's favourite as well. Fowler has done a tremendous job with this book. She is of course not very interested in *India* itself, and a bit prejudiced to boot, but the quality of her research and writing is impeccable. A must read for anyone interested in the Raj.
January 23, 2018
An amazing history of the Raj from the viewpoint of the women who served alongside the Viceroys. Much of the story is told through letters the women wrote during their sojourn in India. The book was both a fascinating read concerning the changing roles and expectations of "noble" women and the changes to the Raj itself. This one stays in my library.
May 28, 2022
I really enjoyed this book. India is a favourite place of mine to read about and the 4 heroines of the book made the read well worth it. These were 4 amazing women, who put their husbands or brother ahead of all else including their health. The extremes of the time period were amazing from the excesses of the rich and the extremely poor. I would like to read other books by these author.
August 20, 2013
The four 1st ladies span the 19thC and so this book gives a great overview of the life and time of the British Raj. It's opinionated, but solid research backs up the opinions. I needed background for my new novel and have found excellent references in the book.
What I knew about each woman is not quite historically accurate. I received the spin doctored accounts in my general reading. This book gets me firmly on track with some sharp comments backed up by good references, often letters and official memos.
The book is well written. Each woman is treated with respect and the political background and social background for her is filled in so that a reader can see the large picture as well as the personal one.
For anyone interested in history this is a good read. For people wanting a good reference book to fill them in on the 19thC Raj this is an excellent choice.
What I knew about each woman is not quite historically accurate. I received the spin doctored accounts in my general reading. This book gets me firmly on track with some sharp comments backed up by good references, often letters and official memos.
The book is well written. Each woman is treated with respect and the political background and social background for her is filled in so that a reader can see the large picture as well as the personal one.
For anyone interested in history this is a good read. For people wanting a good reference book to fill them in on the 19thC Raj this is an excellent choice.
February 11, 2016
3.5 star rating. A fascinating, if a trifle slow, read. I knew next to nothing about British rule in India and not only did this book teach me a lot, but it made me very curious to discover more.
Additionally, it was eye opening to get first person accounts from women of what their lives were like during the Victorian era. Most of my ideas of what life was like came from fiction books which I know give a distorted perspective. I am very thankful to not live in a time where I was told I was inferior to men by the very fact that I was a woman and that my only goal should be to mold myself to my husband's every whim. Recommended to anyone who is also an anglophile.
Additionally, it was eye opening to get first person accounts from women of what their lives were like during the Victorian era. Most of my ideas of what life was like came from fiction books which I know give a distorted perspective. I am very thankful to not live in a time where I was told I was inferior to men by the very fact that I was a woman and that my only goal should be to mold myself to my husband's every whim. Recommended to anyone who is also an anglophile.
November 10, 2013
This one is all about the sisters, wives of the different Viceroys in the 19th and 20th centuries and how they saw India.
India changed their lives in a significant way, it ties in beautifully with The Fishing Fleet although this is by a different author.
Such a lot of history presented well. I can recommend this highly.
India changed their lives in a significant way, it ties in beautifully with The Fishing Fleet although this is by a different author.
Such a lot of history presented well. I can recommend this highly.
November 25, 2015
While I enjoyed reading this book, I was disappointed that the women were only interested in serving their husbands. Only Emily Eden, though devoted to her brother, was an interesting character but allowed herself to dwindle away.
May 28, 2013
Really enjoyable book to read. You watch the progression of British rule in India as seen from the wives/sisters of the reigning British ruler, including the interactions between British and Indian citizens and to some degree the attitude of each towards the other.
July 6, 2012
These women are truly remarkable given the time in history and the restraints upon them. A look at real life in India during British Colonial times.
June 9, 2023
A fascinating story of the British Raj in India through 4 Vicereines told in a brilliantly wry style.
January 2, 2013
read in June 1994
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