Author: BRUCE, Miss Phyllis. Title: Miss Phyllis Bruce's Visit to the Delhi Durbar of 1903. Durbar Album with Photographs, Watercolours and Ephemera.
Description: 1903. Oblong folio, 280 x 365 mm. 60 pages, with c. 140 mostly original photographs, over 30 watercolours, 10 postcards and other pieces of printed ephemera including programmes, invitations, etc. The pages rather brittle and the whole a little loose. Miss Phyllis Bruce, accompanied by her mother, left England on 5 December 1902 aboard the P and O ship S.S.Arabia. Her father had arranged that they should attend the dazzling Delhi Durbar of 1903, held to celebrate the succession of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra as Emperor and Empress of India. Great preparations went into the trip and Miss Bruce records the last minute securing of "Crepe de Chine, chiffon fichus, hats &", such being the rush that "Mrs. Ibbs & Eliza's fingers were worked almost to the bone…neither went to bed at all." This Durbar, organised by Lord Curzon, was the most magnificent of the three held in India, and the passenger list reflects this. Those on board included Lord Elphinstone, The Grand Duke of Hesse, and Countess Loewenstein to name but three. Miss Bruce is an amusing and perceptive narrator who does not take either herself or her travelling companions too seriously. After initial seasickness during which she remained "limpet like all day" Miss Bruce soon finds her sea legs as well as her irrepressible good humour. She is greatly amused by a conjuror who "performed with chickens, which he called 'canary', addressing the Duke & Duchess of Portland as Mr & Mrs Langtrey and another man as Mr Masher." They pass through the Suez Canal and move through the Red Sea where she notices "a strange elderly lady & wig, always wandering about with her Kodak." She befriends E.T.Reed of "Prehistoric Peeps" in Punch and begins the numerous photographs and watercolours which are a feature of the album. On Christmas Day they are nearing Bombay and there is a general exchange of presents, "I presented Mr Pearson with a packet of hairpins in consequence of his chaffing about my hair." The next day they leave the ship, "the Viceroy's party were specially arranged for leaving the ship before others", she remarks tartly and, after a long wait, she and her mother eventually arrive at Watson's Hotel. The next morning, they set off for Delhi and on the journey Miss Bruce reveals a particular interest in both the countryside and the local tradesmen, providing photographs of Hindu sweet sellers and Bhisti water carriers. The horse they take at the station is "so bad that we got out to carry it, but determined that charity began at home & carried our own bodies only."Eventually they arrive at the camp of the Gordon Highlanders and are met by Colonel Scott who "looked questioningly at the two dusty tramps." On 29 December Miss Bruce and her mother witness the State Entry of the Viceroy, "on elephants, an unprecedented sight", for which she provides a series of photographs. They manage to get tickets for both the Durbar and the State Ball and on New Year's Day take their "superior seats in Block A." They marvel at the arrival of "the Rajahs in silver carriages & beautiful jewels." Miss Bruce describes the ceremony in great detail, providing both photographs and watercolours. After the speech, 99 Native Chiefs & the Begum of Bopal were each presented to the Viceroy. The following day they visit the Indian Arts Exhibition and are struck by the "beautiful embroideries." Next day they attend the Great Parade Service at the Polo Ground, followed by the Ball at the Diwan-i-Am, Delhi Fort: "a gorgeous scene, the beautiful ball room, red sandstone, & the place from which the Peacock throne had been removed, all white marble & gold…. quite an Arabian Nights scene." The next morning they witness another extraordinary ceremony, "the Review of Native Chief Retainers…42,000 in all," more photographs and watercolours are included, elephants in procession, Bikanir Camel Corps and XI Bengal Lancers. Although in many respects a child of the Empire, Miss Bruce differs from other visitors to the Durbar by virtue of her interest in the lives of the Indian tradespeople she encounters. Many of her photographs show working Indians> a silversmith, a sweeper, a water carrier, even a woman making chapattis and these photographs and watercolours would seem to distinguish her from other contemporary accounts. On 12 January she and her mother visit the Kutab Minar, one of the minarets of a Jumma Musjid. "A fat Rajah tries to put his hands around it…and was followed about by his servant carrying his hubble bubble, reminding one forcibly of a fat baby with its bottle." Several days later they travel to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and once again Miss Bruce's impressions are original: "the tomb was not as brilliant as it should have been. It was a strange weird scene. We heard jackals barking." On the 20 January the two women set off for Lahore. They visit the native bazaar: "wonderful sights, & an immense population…all sorts of trades & queer things sold." The next morning they leave Lahore and head to Sialkot for a further round of social engagements. Several days later they travel to Jammu and see "the snow capped hills in the distance & the town of Jammu with its golden domes & many quaint buildings which were most beautiful." On arrival they travel on an elephant: "we mounted & at first were rather reminded of the Bay of Biscay." Once again Miss Bruce is interested in the various trades "being plied in the various shops or houses." They return to Bombay on 6 February through "beautiful scenery & a strange corkscrew line, reminding us of the St. Gothard tunnel." A few days later they board the P&O Oriental and begin their journey home. Since Bombay was a "plague infected port" all the passengers are in quarantine and several are ill with fever, "our fellow traveller rather trying in her use of eau de cologne & other scents." They pass through the Suez Canal again and reach the Straits of Messina with watercolours of Stromboli provided. On the 23 February they reach Paris and are reunited with their father. The following day they arrive home and are greeted with "beautiful flowers from the servants." An amusing and entertaining account of the Delhi Durbar from a young woman with an unexpectedly original take on both the pageantry of the Raj as well as the often unregarded lives of the local population.
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Price: GBP 1680.00 = appr. US$ 2399.01 Seller: Michael S. Kemp - Bookseller
- Book number: 46252