Distinguished Speaker Series: Dr. Mrinalini Rajagopalan, “Dancing and Diplomacy: The Arts of Hospitality at the Court of Begum Samru (1805-1836)”
In the 1830s, Lt. Thomas Bacon recalled the grand celebrations on Christmas Eve given by the Begum Samru, dowager ruler of a small principality in northern India. High mass was followed by nautch (Indian dance), fireworks, and sumptuous feasts for a large number of guests. Bacon was an officer with the East India Company (EIC), and he found it hard to reconcile that the … Read More