Indian Armies, Indian Art: Soldiers, collectors and artists 1780 - 1880
Opening Wednesday 19 May 2010
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An ivory chess set, watercolours of Indian soldiers and miniature paintings presented by Maharaja Ranjit Singh will form part of the National Army Museum’s exhibition Indian Armies, Indian Art: Soldiers, collectors and artists which explores the story of the soldiers serving the British in India.
The exhibition looks at the period of East India Company rule in India and the early years of British colonial rule. British and Indian cultures merged and co-existed for many years, which can be seen in the multi- ethnic and multi-faith armies of the East India Company. The watercolours, intricate sculptures and miniature paintings that will be exhibited were created by local artists, usually for a European audience, and reveal the fascination many British officers had for aspects of Indian life.
A highlight of the exhibition will be a series of eight paintings commissioned by Colonel James Skinner, an officer of the Bengal Army whose father was Scottish and his mother Rajput. The paintings were commissioned by him to record his life and exploits, from images of a regimental durbar hosted by Skinner to St. James’s church in Delhi, which he built - in addition to a mosque and Hindu temple. Many of the paintings have never been exhibited before, and it will be the first time that the Museum’s collection of Skinner paintings will be displayed together.
Other objects in the exhibition with powerful stories to tell include:
- Three watercolours from 1885 of the last king of the Konbaung kingdom of Burma, King Thibaw.
- Two early carved wooden figures of a sepoy of the Madras Army created in 1785 by an Indian craftsman.
- A white metal tiger taken from the palace of Tipu Sultan at Seringapatam at the fall of that city during the fourth Mysore War, 1799.
Exhibition curator Pip Dodd said “The National Army Museum has one of the largest collections relating to the armies of the East India Company and the Indian Army, and this exhibition will be a great opportunity for Museum visitors to learn more about this fascinating and beautiful collection”.
The British East India Company traded in India from 1617 and established Company rule by the eighteenth century. The Company created the Bengal, Madras and Bombay presidencies each with its own army of Indian soldiers and British officers.
This rule lasted until 1858, after the Mutiny in the Bengal Army when power was transferred to the British Crown, and the armies of the presidencies were merged to form the British Indian Army. After the Indian Independence act of 1947 and the subsequent partition of India, the British Indian Army was divided between India and Pakistan and British Army units returned to the United Kingdom.
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Visitor Information
Address: National Army Museum
Royal Hospital Road
Chelsea
London
SW3 4HT
Date: 19 May until January 2011
Location: The White Space gallery
Admission: Free
Opening hours: Daily from 10.00am until 5.30pm
Visitor enquiries: 020 7730 0717
Website: www.nam.ac.uk
For more information or images please contact:
Jane Lucas jlucas@national-army-museum.ac.uk 020 7730 0717 Ext 2433
Editors Notes
The National Army Museum explores the impact of the British Army on the story of Britain, Europe and the world; how Britain's past has helped to shape our present and our future and how the actions of a few can affect the futures of many.
The National Army Museum was established by Royal Charter to tell the story of the Land Forces of the Crown wherever they were raised. Opened by the Queen in 1960, it moved to its current site in Chelsea in 1971.
Indian Armies: Indian Art is part of a rolling exhibition programme in the National Army Museum’s gallery The White Space, which was launched in June 2009.
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