Sikkim - Paperback

Descripción

Author: Andrew DuffLanguage: EnglishPublisher: Birlinn LtdBook Description: This is the true story of Sikkim, a tiny Buddhist kingdom in the Himalayas that survived the end of the British Empire only to be annexed by India in 1975. It tells the remarkable tale of Thondup Namgyal, the last King of Sikkim, and his American wife, Hope Cooke, thrust unwittingly into the spotlight as they sought support for Sikkim's independence after their 'fairytale' wedding in 1963. As tensions between India and China spilled over into war in the Himalayas, Sikkim became a pawn in the Cold War in Asia during the 1960s and 1970s. Rumours circulated that Hope was a CIA spy. Meanwhile, a shadowy Scottish adventuress, the Kazini of Chakung, married to Sikkim's leading political figure, coordinated opposition to the Palace. As the world's major powers jostled for regional supremacy during the early 1970s Sikkim and its ruling family never stood a chance. On the eve of declaring an Emergency across India, Indira Gandhi outwitted everyone to bring down the curtain on the 300 year-old Namgyal dynasty. Based on interviews and archive research, as well as a retracing of a journey the author's grandfather made in 1922, this is a thrilling, romantic and informative glimpse of a real-life Shangri-La.About the Author: Andrew Duff is a writer and freelance journalist based in London. Born and brought up in Scotland, he now writes on India and related subjects and has been published in the UK (FT, The Times, Sunday Telegraph) and India (Times of India, India Quarterly). The Times called his 2008-9 Indian travel blog 'by turns insightful and funny - Andy Duff's blog is the next best thing to a railway tour of the sub-continent... it's well worth a read.' He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and travels to Asia frequently, particularly to Sikkim, the former Buddhist kingdom that is the subject of his first book 'Sikkim: Requiem for a Himalayan Kingdom' - a tale of love, intrigue and the Cold War in Asia.