Founding Empire: James Rennell and the Eighteenth-Century Survey of British Bengal
Abstrak
This essay attempts to analyse the impact of the colonial transition (i.e. the mid-eighteenth century political transformation from Mughal to East India Company administration) on cartographic traditions existing in India. Specifically, the essay focuses on French and the early British mapping of Bengal as a result of colonisation and imperial expansion in the mid-eighteenth century. Rather than viewing colonial map-making as a “unidirectional exercise” of authority, this essay focuses on the dynamic interaction and negotiation between indigenous and colonial cartography. It analyses the efforts of Major James Rennell and the Surveyors of the East India Company to establish their political authority in Bengal using surveys and mapping as tools for imperial expansion. The trials and tribulations of these early surveyors form the subject matter of this essay.
Topik & Kata Kunci
Penulis (1)
Baijayanti Chatterjee
Akses Cepat
- Tahun Terbit
- 2021
- Sumber Database
- DOAJ
- DOI
- 10.4000/1718.8375
- Akses
- Open Access ✓