author
Sir John William Kaye
1814–1876
A soldier turned historian, he wrote some of the best-known nineteenth-century accounts of British India and the 1857 uprising. His books blend official experience, narrative drive, and a strong sense of the empire he served.
3 Audiobooks
History of the War in Afghanistan, Vol. 3 (of 3) Third Edition
by Sir John William Kaye
History of the War in Afghanistan, Vol. 2 (of 3) Third Edition
by Sir John William Kaye
History of the War in Afghanistan, Vol. 1 (of 3) Third Edition
by Sir John William Kaye
About the author
After studying at Eton and the East India Company's military college at Addiscombe, he joined the Bengal Artillery and served in India before leaving the army because of ill health. That firsthand experience shaped the rest of his career, as he moved into writing, editing, and public service.
He became well known for works on Indian and military history, including The History of the War in Afghanistan, Lives of Indian Officers, and his major study of the events of 1857, later published as The History of the Sepoy War in India. He also worked as editor of the Calcutta Review, building a reputation as a careful and influential commentator on imperial affairs.
Later, he served in the East India Company's home administration and then at the India Office in London. Read today, his books are valuable both for their detailed narratives and for what they reveal about how a prominent Victorian writer understood British rule in India.