Eyewitness Accounts of the Sikhs

[asmlondon]

From the authors of Warrior Saints, introducing a fascinating new reconstruction of Sikh History through eyewitness accounts:

"Sicques, Tigers or Thieves" : Eyewitness Accounts of the Sikhs (1606-1809), Amandeep Singh Madra and Parmjit Singh. Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2004

see www.sicques.com for more information

In 1810, Sir John Malcolm published the ground-breaking Sketch of the Sikhs. Contrary to popular belief, Malcolm was not the first European to write an account of the Sikhs. In the previous two centuries, soldiers, travellers, administrators, scholars, missionaries and empire-builders had witnessed the development of the Sikhs. The letters, diaries, newspaper accounts and memoirs of these men and women have been painstakingly researched and compiled to shed light on a little-understood period of Sikh history.

A fascinating account of the Sikhs as seen by foreign travellers in the land which was to become their kingdom. They give us an insight into the macho self-image that Sikhs have to this day - anything you can do I can do better. This spirit of upmanship has sustained the community miniscule in numbers but grand in achievements - KHUSHWANT SINGH, JOURNALIST AND AUTHOR (History of the Sikhs)

Better than time travel... a richly-peopled, intimate journey through the dawn of Sikh history - CHRISTY CAMPBELL, AUTHOR (The Maharajah's Box)

"Sicques, Tigers or Thieves" promises to include the following highlights:

1. Over 35 of the earliest European accounts of the Sikhs in one volume, many previously unpublished.

2. Over 20 of the earliest images of Sikhs including those by, or commissioned for, Europeans.

3. The only European written account of the martyrdom of Guru Arjan in a new translation of the original 17th century Portuguese text.

4. The first ever translations of French accounts of Sikhs.

5. Several early British newspaper reports of Sikh military activity in the late 18th century, not known to have previously been published in any other work.

6. The chroniclers, many unaware of the traditions of this new faith group, have often witnessed unorthodox practices and extrapolated these as articles of faith. In many cases these statements provide a useful insight on early Sikh practices, but in some instances they can be misleading (the editors introductory remarks and endnotes will address these areas).