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  • The Last Mughal

  • The Fall of a Dynasty, Delhi, 1857
  • By: William Dalrymple
  • Narrated by: Robert Bathurst
  • Length: 4 hrs and 27 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (98 ratings)
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The Last Mughal cover art

The Last Mughal

By: William Dalrymple
Narrated by: Robert Bathurst
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Summary

At 4 PM on a dark, wet, winter's evening in November 1862, a cheap coffin was buried in eerie silence - no lamentations, no panegyrics, for as the British commissioner in charge of the funeral insisted, "No vesting will remain to distinguish where the last of the Great Moghuls rests". This Mughal was Bahadur Shah Zafar II, one of the most talented, tolerant, and likeable of his remarkable dynasty, who found himself leader of a violent uprising he knew from the start would lead to irreparable carnage.

Zafar's frantic efforts to unite his forces proved tragically futile. The Siege of Delhi was the Raj's Stalingrad, and Mughal Delhi was left an empty ruin. The Last Mughal charts the desecration and demise of a man, his dynasty, his city, and civilizations mercilessly ravished by fractured forces and vengeful British troops.

©2006 William Dalrymple (P)2007 Bloomsbury Publishing
  • Abridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

What listeners say about The Last Mughal

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Another belter

I confess to being a massive fan of William Dalrymple's - everything that I have read of his work has been wonderful and this is no exception. An extraordinary subject, far too little understood in this country, is rendered lucidly and almost all the characters are entirely three-dimensional.

This would easily have merited five stars if the abridgement were not so savage. 500 and odd pages rendered into just 3 hours is just too compressed.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Pointless

An absolutely pointless procession of facts about characters and events that are not made relatable. Worse there is a strong whiff of upper class imperial nostalgia. The whole experience was dreadful.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Spotlight on history

William Dalrymple at his best. A sad story of oppression and misunderstanding on both sides. Well told etc etc etc

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

It’s thrilling and depressing

It’s really depressing to see how great empires fall.
It’s hard to believe how much blood was shed and the barbaric actions of brits against Indian civilians

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Another brilliant book by Dalrymple

A great book however the abridging really does it a grave disservice as I feel it would have been much better had the axe not been wielded quite so liberally

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Well researched, beautifully written

Well researched, beautifully written.
A masterpiece!
A spectacular lucid account of a history, with lessons for our current times.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Enlightening information about the Sepoy uprising

I had a limited view of what happened which was largely fed by the atrocious actions against women and children. This book showed me a different view and explains what the English men did to innocent Indians.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Enjoyed throughout...

We enjoyed listening to this audiobook on our long motorway drives. I felt the voice would dip in volume or enthusiasm as points but overall well recommend for anyone interested in piecing together accounts of Indian History.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

As ever Dalrymple's research shines though

Gripping from the start and you never want the exploration to end. If I have one negative criticism it would be Bathurst's narration. The movement from narrative to quotation is indistinguishable, you never know if you are listening to Dalrymple or quotation from one of the long dead players in the account

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Fun and instructive but not Dalrymple's best

i enjoyed reading the last mughal but i found it less interesting than other books by Dalrymple. it was neither too historical nor personal

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