Nehru

Nigel Hamilton's new epic biography is the story of how Nehru's struggle for Indian sovereignty became a surrogate search for his own self-sufficiency in a world dominated by his brilliant, rich and powerful father. Set against the epic story of Britain's perfidious attempt to hang on to a dying empire by force, and using previously unpublished letters between father and son, the narrative follows Nehru's education in England at Harrow and Cambridge, his arranged marriage to a non-English speaking 13-year-old, the meeting with Ghandi that changed his life, and the years of conflict with Britain that involved a total of 14 years in jail. When Mountbatten was finally charged with effecting the transfer of power, Nehru became his only hope of achieving this peacefully, and Edwina Mountbatten gave herself to Nehru as a sort of sacrificial victim. Finally, Nigel Hamilton describes how Nehru became India's first Prime Minister.