The crown of the British Empire was always India, yet ruling it was a very complex task due to the enormous number of different religious and ethnic groups. When it became clear after the end of the Second World War that Britain would be forced to grant independence to her Indian colony, Lord Mountbatten was appointed to the post of the final British Viceroy to the colony. Once the British flag was lowered for the last time at midnight, hence the title, it was up to the people of India to govern themselves, a task that seemed impossible at the time.
This book is the best account of a short, yet climactic event of history that I have ever read. It is spellbinding to read this account of how the entire subcontinent seemed to degenerate into anarchy. I recently watched the remake of "War of the Worlds" where the train signal goes off and the burning train moves through the town. Something similar actually happened in India during the transition to independence and self-government. Trains would pull up to stations and blood would be dripping from the passenger cars, all of the people on board had been killed by rampaging members of other groups. Even the Indian military fractured on ethnic and religious lines, Hindu units massacred Muslims and Muslim units massacred Hindus. The only reliable military units that the government had were the Ghurka units, where they existed, they provided the only reliable protection for the people.
There have been other instances where a society suddenly collapses into ethnic and religious hatreds, with a slaughter of one or both groups taking place. Recently, we have seen it again in Bosnia and Rwanda. However, nobody has ever captured these events in such detail and clarity as Collins and Lapierre have, it is one of the hardest books to put down that I have ever read. It should be required reading in any course dealing with the history of the British Empire, India or even the twentieth century.

There are two ways to review a book. One is by content another by the quality of the book itself. The content of "Freedom " is great. The best single read to understand the tensions between the modern states of India and Pakistan. Laprie and Collins are at their best here.

However I was disapointed to find the quality of the book itself was poor. The paper was substandard ( close to newspaper quality). The Picture on the hard back was seeminly glued and ofset. The plates ( pictures) inside the book were hard to see and the captions were difficult to read .
Had I known the quality was this bad I would have ordered the soft back version. Sadly this book was to be a present . Buyer beware!!

Reads like a novel, with the detail required to feel the action, but with the sweep of history to put it in perspective for readers. Collins and Lapierre are a great writing team and this is one of their best works. Invaluable for those beginning to read about the subcontinent as well as long-time students. I give it my highest recommendation.

I read this while living in India and found it to be the truest expression and understanding of India's complexities, intricate culture, and history. The book covers India's liberation from British rule from the appointment of Lord Mountbatten as viceroy through to the assassination of Mohandas Gandhi. With India itself as the protagonist, you sympathize with the great mother's birthing pains and cry with her as she loses thousands of her children during the massacres of the partitioning of Pakistan.


All of the important players (Mountbatten, Gandhi, Jinnah, Neru) as well as the ordinary citizens are presented so completely and fully.

Even if you are not an Indian enthusiast, this book is an intriguing read into one of the most dramatic events of the twentieth century.

This book inspired Miguel Sousa Tavares own book,
Equador, apparently, but only conceptually (I didn't
read the latter.)

There's a new edition, from India VIKAS PUBLISHING HOUSE,
based in Jangpura, New Delhi, 1997. Found mine in used
book store, in mint condition.