India Remembered: A Personal Account of the Mountbattens During the Transfer of Power

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OnNewYear'sDay1947LordMountbattenwassummonedtoDowningStreettodiscoverhisfutureroleinhistory–toguideIndiatoindependenceasthelastViceroy.Travellingfrompost-warBritainunderrationingtotheoutsizedsplendourofViceroy'sHouseinNewDelhi,theMountbattensleaptstraightintotheirresponsibilities.Gandhi,Nehru,Jinnah,Patel,BaldevSinghandawealthofMarahajasallappearinthistestamenttothebiggestchallengefacedbyaViceroy–tobreakthedeadlockthatexistedbetweentheIndianpoliticians,totrytoavertcivilwarandtoachieveanhonourableexitfortheBritish.TheresultwasthecreationofIndiaandPakistanon15thAugust1947.

LordMountbatten'sseventeen-yearolddaughter,Pamela,wastakenoutofschooltoaccompanyherparentstoIndia,andspentthenext15monthsrecordingthebirthoftwonationsalongsideherowntransitiontoadulthood.Besidehermother,Edwina,thisyoungwomantookonfarmoreresponsibilitythanwouldnormallyberequiredofagirljustfindingherfeetintheadultworld.Asaneye-witness,Pameladescribesoftenharrowingscenes,colourfulandexoticcharactersandmajorhistoricevents,aswellaswonderfulrecollectionsofhertripsaroundIndia.

IndiaRememberedisapureevocationofthiskeyperiodofIndiaandPakistan'shistory.Usingdiaryentriesandextractsfromthemeticulouslykeptfamilyphotoalbumsasdocumentaryevidence,thisbookisabrilliantlyinformativereadandachancetowitnessfirsthandagenerationofcharacterswhoseactionsweretochangethefateoftwonations.

PamelaMountbattenistheyoungerdaughterofLordMountbatten,whowasappointedtheLastViceroyofIndiain1947.AttheageofseventeenshetravelledtoIndiawithhermotherandfather,witnessingandplayingherroleinthedramaticeventsofIndia'shard-foughtindependenceandsubsequentpartition.Shemarriedthedesigner,thelateDavidHicks,andnowlivesinOxfordshireinthehometheysharedtogether.

IndiaHicksisthegranddaughteroftheLastViceroyofIndiaanddaughterofPamelaMountbattenandDavidHicks.Havingworkedasamodelaroundtheworld,indiaisnowtheauthoroftwobooks,IslandLifeandIslandBeautyandisacreativepartnerforCrabtreeandEvelyn.

IndiaRemembered

MyparentswithNehruonanelephantproceedingtotheMela.

17thMay1948:Myfatherdrivingmymother,myselfandNehruontheTibetRoadfromMashobra.

IndiaRemembered

PamelaMountbatten

ForewordbyIndiaHicks

Contents

Foreword

byIndiaHicks

Introduction

byPamelaMountbatten

TheLastViceroyofIndia

MapofIndiaPre-partitionFirstImpressionsAHugeTaskABriefRespite

TheMountbattenPlanRisingTensions

TheTransferofPower

TheFirstGovernor-GeneralofIndia

MapofIndiaPost-partitionRiotsandRefugees

ToursPartIGandhi’sAssassination

ToursPartIIDepartureEpilogue

KeyFiguresGlossaryIndex

Acknowledgements

TheMountbattenFamilyTree

Foreword

byIndiaHicks

I have led by all accounts an unusual life, coming from an unusual family,carryingwithmeanunusualname.Butmyunusuallifepalesincomparisontothatofmymother’s. I imploredher to tell thisextraordinary tale,exactlysixtyyearslater.I never knewmygrandmother, but I clearly remember being told that once

afteradinnerpartyinIndiamanyyearsafterIndependenceshewasaskedwhoshehadsatnext to.Sherepliedthathehadbeenamostamusingdinnerguest,andwhenaskedifhehadbeenblackorwhite,shesimplycouldnotremember.Iknewmygrandfather;hewas thebackbonetoour lives. I remembersmall

‘tasks’hewouldsetme,standingtiptoedonachairpushinghisshouldersbackhardagainstastonewall‘harderchild,harder’hewouldyell;orticklingabladeofgrassacrosshisupperlipashesnoozedintheafternoon,‘softerchild,softer’.Hewastheindominatableyetgentlegiant,untilonesunnyAugustdayinIrelandthecloudsdescendedonthatchildhoodforever.Itishardformetoimaginemygrandfather,onlyafewyearsolderthanIam

now, being asked to dismantle an empire. Unimaginable the responsibility ofstemming the tide of violence and controlling cities that were committingsuicide. It is not hard, however, to imagine that from the moment mygrandparents arrived, they rejected all theRaj stereotypes and looked towardsthejobwithopenminds.Itisalsounderstandablethat,despitehisroyalties,mygrandfather was a tough-minded realist, committed to those liberal principleswhich made him acceptable to Atlee’s Labour party. Gandhi, the soft-voicedarchangel of India’s independence, sensed my grandfather’s warmth andrespondedtoit,ashehadbeenunabletodowithanypreviousViceroy.CriticismoverthedamnablehasteinbringingBritishruletoanendhasnever

softened.Thebluntfactisthatnooneforesawthemagnitudeofthehorrorsthatlayinwait,andtheirfailuretodosowouldbafflehistoriansinlateryears.NehruandJinnaheachmadethegraveerrorofunderestimatingthecommunalpassionswhichwould inflame themasses of their subcontinent, but it was the relativenewcomerintheirmidst, theViceroy,whotooktheblamefromtherestof theworld.Ihavetravelledmywayaroundthisgreatcountry,whosenameIsoproudly

carry,stayinginyouthhostels,occasionallysickenedbytheunexpectedglimpseof India’s timeless miseries or staying in Government houses of considerable

magnitude, lavished upon by luxury. Never once during my numerous visitshave I ever encountered an Indianwithin India who, on discoveringwhomygrandparentswere,hadanyotherreactionthantosmilefromeartoearandbeamin fond remembrance as at an old friend,which is how a generation seems tohaveregardedthem.Mygrandparentsweresuccessfulinmovingacountryinflamesforward,and

it was an immense personal tribute to my grandfather to accept Congress’sinvitationtobecomethefirstGovernor-GeneraloftheDominion.

India(left)withhergrandfather,LouisMountbatten,andafamilyfriend.

Aged17intheMoghulGardensatViceroy’sHouse.

Introduction

byPamelaMountbatten

IcertainlyneverplannedtowriteaboutthetimeIspentinIndiawithmyparentswhen my father was Viceroy, but I was finally persuaded by my youngestdaughter– anything for aquiet life.But then again, I findmyself pushed intodoing all sorts of things I never intended. My daughter India is very, verydetermined, encouraging me to go riding in Patagonia, undertake safaris andexotic travel, which I had never thought to go on, but which provedunforgettableinhercompany.Ononeoccasion,however,shedidbecomeover-enthusiastic. She telephoned me from New Zealand to say that she had justbookedmyseventiethbirthdaypresent.Iwastogohanggliding:‘You’llloveit,Mum.It’sthrillingandyou’llonlyhavetorunfivepacestotakeoff.’Ipanickedandflatlyrefusedtogo.Shetookmeswimmingwithdolphinsinstead.Thisprojectistheresultofanotherofherpersuasiveassaults.AtfirstIsimply

handedoverthediaryIbeganasaseventeen-year-old.ThenwewenttolookintheBroadlands’Archivesatmyfather’sphotographalbumswhichhehadkeptmeticulouslyduringhistimeinIndia.Thepagesofhismostimportantalbumareorganisedbydateandeventandcarefullycaptionedinhisneathandwriting.Aswe turned the pages together I foundmyself remembering those extraordinarymonthswithavividnessreawakenedaftersixtyyears.Indiahadmanyquestionsandwasalsooverawedbywhatshesaw–aneyewitnessaccountofoneofthemostmomentouseventsinmodernhistory.WhenIsawherreaction,Irealisedthatshewasright:Ishouldpublishmymemoriesofthisperiod.Sincethatdaywe have spent many hours together surrounded by letters, typescripts andimages,tryingtopiecetogetherthattimeagaininabookthatmightbeintenselypersonalbutalsoaccessibletoanewgenerationofreaders.The book we have put together combines the photographs my father

assembled with my diaries from that period. It brings it alive to read myseventeen-year-old self, so young inmany respects and yetmature enough tounderstandtheimportanceoftheeventsthateruptedaroundus.Ihaveleftmanyofthepassagesinthatgirl’svoice,eventhoughtimeandexperiencehavesinceaffordedmethegiftofgreaterobjectivity.The time-frameof our staywasMarch1947 to June1948.The Indian sub-

continentwasdivided into two independentDominions, India andPakistan, inAugust 1947 and my father was asked to stay on by Nehru for another tenmonths as Governor-General of India, a great honour. My father always

recognisedtheimportanceofrecordsandheencouragedmetokeepadiary.Ofcoursewhenthingsgetinteresting,one’sdiaryentriestendtobecomeshorterordry up all together because life becomes so hectic, but I am grateful for myfather’spersuasionnow.IwroteinitregularlyinthedaysleadinguptopartitionbuttheninSeptemberandOctober,whenIwasworkinghardasGeneralRees’sassistant, therewas obviously less time towrite and the entries are fewer andfurtherbetween.BythetimemysisterandherhusbandhadflownouttojoinusinDecemberandwebegantotravel(attemptingtovisiteverystateandprovinceinthefewmonthsbeforeourdeparture),thediarywasoftenneglected.The build up to our departure had its equal share of wracked nerves and

excitement,asIrecordonthepagesbetweenNewYear’sDayandourdeparturefromRAFNortholton20thMarch.Myfirstentryfor1947setsthetonefortheyear and a half to come. We were on a family holiday in Switzerland. Myparentshadbeenover-workingasusualandwerejustbeginningtorelaxandmynewlymarried sister, Patricia, and her husband JohnBrabournewerewith us.But my father was summoned to a meeting by the Prime Minister, ClementAttlee.Iwriteinmydiary:

Wednesday1stJanuaryDaddywassuddenlyrecalledyesterdaybythePMtoLondonandconsequentlyour New Year’s party was slightly gloomy and harassed, particularly aseverythingnowissouncertain.HeandMummyleftthismorningwhichreallyisverysadasatlastwewerealltogether.

The‘together’hereemphasiseshowspecialitwastobetogetherasafamily.Obviouslymyparent’sworkhadmeant thatwesawvery littleof themduringthewar.ForchildrenwithfathersfightingintheFarEastthoselastthreemonthswere very hard.Wewere surrounded by the euphoria of everyone celebratingpeace in Europe and forgetting the intense fighting against the Japanese. MyfathertookthesurrenderoftheJapaneseinSingaporeon12thSeptember.Buthehad to remain to hand over power to the newly independent governments ofBurma, Malaya and Indochina, which became Indonesia, and the Dutch EastIndies, and to install the nineteen-year-oldAnanda asKing of Siam.He onlyreturned toLondonon30thMay1946,butmyparents immediately leftonanofficialvisittoAustralia.During the war, when not at boarding school, I lived with my paternal

grandmother,who,asagranddaughterofQueenVictoria,wasPrincessVictoriaofHesse. ShemarriedmygrandfatherPrinceLouis ofBattenberg.During the

Blitz on London, my father persuaded my grandmother to leave KensingtonPalaceandcometoliveatBroadlands,ourhomeinHampshire.ShewasaroyalprincesssoIhadbeenbroughtuptocurtseytoherandkissherhand.Thiswasalarming tomyschool friendswhocame to staybut shewasa fascinatingoldladyandtheywereenthralledbyher.Lifeatboardingschoolduringthewarwasrun on simple lines, as were most people’s lives during those austere years.Therefore the New Year holiday of 1946/47 had been anticipated with greatexcitement.Thediaryentryalsohintsattheotherspokeintheworksatthistime–thefact

thateverythingaboutmyfather’spotentialnewjobwasso ‘uncertain’.Ashasbeenrecordedfrequently, it isnosecret thatmyfatherdidnotwant the jobofViceroy. The command to divest England of the last jewel in the Empire,garneredunderhis great grandmother,wasnot an easyone to accept.He alsoknewthatitcouldmeantheruinofwhathadsofarbeenagloriouscareer,forIndia was wracked with political troubles andmany before him had failed toforgeastraightpathtowardsindependence.ThedeadlineofJune1948hadbeensetbuttherewasnoclearideaastohow

to meet that date successfully. My father therefore made his feelings ofreluctanceknownandalso threwinsomestrongprovisos, including theuseofhisoldaircraft,aYork,whichhehadusedinSouthEastAsia.Healsorequesteda commitment from the board of Admiralty that he might return to the navywhen the job was over and, most important of all, what were virtuallyplenipotentiary powers. He felt that he had to be allowed to act on his owninitativewithouthavingtorefereverythingbacktoWhitehall.Andfinally,whenit looked as though thePrimeMinister and theCabinetmight accept all thesedemands,hewenttotheKing.‘Bertie,’hesaid,‘theywillbesendingmeouttodoanalmost impossible job.Thinkhowbadly itwill reflecton the family if Ifail.’But theKingreplied,‘Thinkhowwell itwill reflectonthefamilyifyousucceed,’ and toldhimhemust go. In fact, unknown to us at the time,Nehruhimself had put my father’s name forward as a potential candidate in hismeetingswithSirStaffordCrippsduring theCrippsmissionof1946when theBritish Government had become committed to a policy of completeindependenceforIndia.Mymotherrecordedinherdiaryof17thFebruary,‘Athomealldaybutconstantconferencesandlongdistancecalls!’

Followingpage:Myfather’slettertothePrimeMinister,ClementAttlee.

Finallyallwasagreed:

Thursday20thFebruaryIwentwithJohnandPatriciatotheHousetohearthestatementthatDaddywastobecomeViceroy readby thePM. Itwas very crowdedandbefore everyonehad become very uproarious during Question Time so that it dissolved intocompletechaos,WinstondemandingwhyWavellwas toberecalledandAttleerefusingtogivefurtherexplanations.

Preparation

ThefollowingdaymymotherandIwentshoppingwithherFrenchdressmakertotrytofindmaterialstomakeupintosuitabledresses.Weonlyhadfourweeksbeforewewere toflyout.Thereweresomebeautifulmaterials, farbetter thanwe had been used to during the war. But we did not have enough clothingcoupons,evenwiththesmallextraallocationthatwewereallowed,sowehadtobeverymodestinwhatwebought.Itwasexcitingformetohaveanythingnew.My mother ordered some dresses from Molyneux, including a beautifulembroideredsatineveningdress.Myfatherintroducedmetowhatwastobecomemynewlifebyteachingme

elementaryUrduoutof ahandbook forArmycadets.Mymother arranged forMiss Lankester, who had worked for the All India Women’s Conference, tocomeandtalk tomeabout thestudents inIndiaandthevariouscontacts thatImightbeabletomake.ComingfromanEnglishboardingschoolIwaswoefullyignorantofpoliticsand internationalaffairs. I felt entirelyunprepared togo toanother country with so many diverse political parties and such profoundproblems.Myparents had become engaged to bemarried in India in 1921.My father

wasanADCtothePrinceofWalesonhistouroftheFarEast.MymotherandfatherhadfalleninlovebeforeheleftandhepersuadedhertovisitIndia,whichshelongedtosee,whilehewastherewiththePrince.Shewasbarelytwentyandhadnomoneyofherown,sosheborrowedenoughforthefareandfoundherselfachaperone from the listofpassengers.TheVicereine,LadyReading,wasanold friend of her beloved great aunt and invited her to stay.One eveningmyfather asked the Prince to lend him his private sitting-room in the ViceregalLodge(nowpartoftheUniversityinoldDelhi)andthereheaskedhertomarryhim.Whensheheard theywereengaged, theVicereinewashorrified.ShehadhopedEdwinawouldhavechosensomeoneolder,‘withmoreofacareerbeforehim.’

FamilyTies

Myfather’smotherwasPrincessVictoriaofHesse,whowasagranddaughterofQueenVictoria.HewasbornatFrogmoreHouse,intheHomeParkofWindsorCastle, in 1900. Hewas christened Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas, butvery soon became known as Dickie. His elder sister, Princess Alice, marriedPrinceAndrewofGreece and their youngest child,Philip, became thepresentDukeofEdinburgh.MypaternalgrandfatherwasPrinceLouisofBattenberg,whoin1917became

Marquess ofMilfordHavenwhenKingGeorgeV anglicised the royal familynames, and our family namewas translated intoMountbatten.Mygrandfatherhad been forced to resign from his post as First Sea Lord in October 1914,followingahystericalwaveofanti-Germanfeeling–hewasaGermanbybirth– a humiliation which my father felt had been expunged when he himselfbecametheFirstSeaLordinJune1950.Mymother,Edwina,was thedaughter ofLordMountTemple.She andmy

father were married in 1922. By the time they arrived in India in 1947 asViceroy andVicereinemy fatherwas forty-six andmymother forty-four. Hewasenthusiastic,pragmatic,extrovert,araconteurandfascinatedbyhisfamilyconnections, but above all extremely hard-working. She was an introvert, butfearlessandexcitedbyaction,andboredbyprotocolandold-fashionedapatheticcomfortablesociety.Theyworkedwellasateam;myfatherhadappointedhertowardstheendofthewartoflyintotheprisonerofwarcamps,andreportbacktohimontheconditions.Hehadaveryhighopinionofherabilities.My father trusted her decisions implicitly. For instance, whenwemet as a

familyforbreakfast,hewouldsimplyaskher,‘Whatdecisionsdidyoumake?’‘Whodidyou see?’Andof course,her special relationshipwithPanditNehruwas very useful for him – ever the pragmatist – because thereweremomentstowardstheendofourtimeinIndiawhentheKashmirproblemwasextremelydifficult.PanditNehruwasaKashmirihimself,sohewasemotionalabout theproblem. If thingswereparticularly trickymy fatherwould say tomymother,‘DotrytogetJawaharlaltoseethatthisisterriblyimportant...’

TheEnglandWeLeftBehind

January1947inEnglandbroughteightweeksofsnowandthecoldestnighteverrecorded. There were eighteen-foot drifts in the north with cut-off villageshaving food supplies dropped in by parachute. There was a coal crisis andinterminable power cuts throughout the country. Itwas terribly cold and darkeverywhere.Whenthelightwasonitwassodimonecouldscarcelyread.Goingintolargestoreswefoundthemtobeinalmostcompletedarknessexceptforacoupleofcandles.Enormousnumbersofpeoplewereunemployedasindustriescloseddown.Wewerestillinthegripofausterity.Foodwasrationedandourmeagresweet

rationwaseateninaflash.Kind-heartedAmericanfriendsstillsentfoodparcelscontainingdeliciousdriedfruitandsoupbutnocookingfatorsugar,whichwaswhatwe lackedmostofall. IndiaandViceroy’sHouseweregoing tobeverydifferent from England. When we left for India my mother took her oldSealyham terrier,Mizzen, as she could not bear to leave him in case he diedbeforeour return.WhenwearrivedatViceroy’sHousesheasked if shecouldhavesomefoodforhim.Breastofchickenarrivedonasilversalver.Mymotherlockedherselfinthebathroomandateit.SoonafteritwasannouncedthatmyfatherwastobecomeViceroy,wedrove

uptoLondoninanAdmiraltycar.Theroadswerestillterriblyicyandwhenthedriverbrakedintrafficweskiddedsidewaysintoanarmytrailerandrebounding,crashedintoanother.ThecarwastoosmashedtocontinuebutluckilyaLondon-bound bus pulled up behind us.We climbed aboardwithmy fathermutteringthathewouldbelateforthePMatDowningStreet,whichIrememberthrilledanddelightedthecuriouspassengersaroundus.IwentwithmyparentstohaveteawithQueenMary and theDukeofGloucester atMarlboroughHouse.Shewas always awe-inspiring but on this occasion she was amused to hear howindignantmygrandmotherwasaboutmyfathertakingon‘thepoliticians’dirtywork’.Mymother’s diary entry for 14thMarch records that they had ‘gala photos

taken’ inwhichyoucanclearly seeherordersanddecorations:TheCrownofIndia,GrandCrossoftheOrderofSt.John,GrandCrossoftheBritishEmpire,DameCommanderoftheVictorianOrderandHonoraryDoctorofLaw.WegaveafarewellcocktailpartyforsevenhundredattheRAC,ofwhichmy

father was President. It was a great success and justified my parents having

rejected theDorchester’smuch reducedbut still alarmingquoteof twenty-fiveshillings a head. My father’s Press Attaché, Alan Campbell-Johnson, recordsthat ‘every celebrity in London was there.’ My mother, with characteristicdelightather‘inclusive’attitudetosociety,tookpleasureinthefactthatamongthecelebritieswereordinarypeoplefromtheirlives‘includingthecaretakersatmyoffice.’

Thursday20thMarchWe drove down to Northolt, the Royal car bulging with bodies, dogs andpackagesand thewhole fleetofcarspreceded into theairportbyaverydustybabyAustin!DaddyhasgothisfamousYorkbackwhichhetouredallafSEACin.Everyonecametoseeusoff,anactionwhichoughttobestoppedbylaw.

ASpecialRelationship

Indiaremainedamagicalplaceforbothmyparents.MyfathersetuphisSouthEast Asia Headquarters in Faridkot House in New Delhi during the SecondWorldWarwhenhe first tookuphis jobasSupremeAlliedCommander, so Ihadheardmany family stories.Butmymainsourceofknowledgeabout Indiawas provided by Rudyard Kipling and the photograph of Mahatma Gandhiwearinghisdhotiandshawl,surroundedbycheeringmillworkersinLancashire.MyparentshadmetPanditNehruin1946whenhehadtravelledtoMalayato

meet the Indians living there.My fatherwasSupremeAlliedCommander andsomeofhis staffwarnedhim that theremightbe trouble andwereagainsthismeetingNehru.Oneofhisstaffhadalreadyrefusedtoprovidetransportforthevisitor.Whenheheardthismyfatherwasfurious.HedrovewithPanditNehruinhisofficialcartotheYMCAinSingapore,wherethemeetingwasbeingheld.Mymotherwas already therewith a groupof Indianwelfareworkers.As shecame forward to be introduced, a crowd of Panditji’s admirers swarmed inbehindhimandshewasknockedoffher feet.Shecrawledundera table fromwherePanditjirescuedher.Towards the end of the fifteen months we spent in India the immediate

attraction betweenmymother and Panditji blossomed into love.Nehruwas awidowerandhisdaughter,MrsGandhi,wasstillmarriedwithahusbandtolookafter,andwasnotoftenaround.HehadsenthissisterasambassadortoMoscow,andthentoNewYork,andhedidn’tseemuchofhissecondsister,whowasinBombay.Ifyouareatthepinnacleofpoweryouarealone;whateveryousaytoyourcolleaguesislikelytobeimmediatelybroadcast,soyoucan’ttalktoyourpolitical collaborators at all and you are lonely. She became his confidante.Nehruwould neverwrite to her until about two in themorning,when he hadfinishedhiswork,andhisletterswereafascinatingdiaryofthecreationofIndia.Hewouldstartwithacharmingopeningparagraph,verytouchingandpersonal,andhewouldendaffectionately.Butthemainpartoftheletterswereadiaryofeverythinghehadbeendoingandthepeoplehehadseen,hishopesandfears,and, towards the end of this twelve-year correspondence, his disappointmentsanddisillusion.Mymother had alreadyhad lovers.My fatherwas inured to it. It broke his

heart the first time,but itwassomehowdifferentwithNehru.Hewrote tomysisterinJune1948:‘SheandJawarhalal[sic]aresosweettogether,theyreally

doteoneachotherinthenicestwayandPammyandIaredoingeverythingwecantobetactfulandhelp.Mummyhasbeenincrediblysweetlatelyandwe’vebeensuchahappyfamily.’Sothereexistedahappythree-somebasedonfirmunderstandingonallsides.

This letter was written I suppose because their relationship had deepened themonth before, inMay,whenwe had gone to the retreat atMashobra andmyparents,andindeedPanditji,foundthemselvesableatlast torelaxalittleforafewdays.Everyonehadbeen toobusy toworkon friendshipsuntil thatpoint,butIthinkitwasthattripthatwasreallyspecialforusall.Nehrureferredtothisinalettertomymotherwrittenmuchlater,inMarch1957:

Suddenly I realised (and perhaps you did also) that there was a deeperattachment between us, that some uncontrollable force, of which I was dimlyaware, drew us to one another, I was overwhelmed and at the same timeexhilaratedbythisnewdiscovery.Wetalkedmoreintimatelyasifsomeveilhadbeen removed and we could look into each other’s eyes without fear orembarrassment.

Therelationshipremainedplatonicbutitwasadeeplove.Andalthoughitwasnotphysical,itwasnolessbindingforthat.Itwouldlastuntildeath.Theymetabout twiceayear.Shewould includeavisit to India inheroverseas toursonbehalfoftheSt.JohnAmbulanceBrigadeandtheSavetheChildrenFund.FromthebeginningshewouldcontinuetooverseetheworkofrehabilitationandreliefwhichshehadsetupfortherefugeesuprootedbyPartition.Panditji would come to London for the Commonwealth Prime Ministers’

conferences. He would always come down to Broadlands, our house inHampshire,foraweekend.Wekeptalittlegreymareforhimsothathecouldcomeoutridingwithus.Mymotherwasonanoverseastourin1960andhadjustleftIndia,carrying

out a heavy programme of inspections and engagements inBorneo,when herheartgaveoutandshediedinhersleepagedfifty-eight.ApacketoflettersfromPanditjiwas foundbyherbedside. Inherwill she left thewhole collectionofletterstomyfather.Asuitcasewascrammedfullofthem.Myfatherwasalmostcertainthattherewouldbenothingintheletterstowoundhim.However,atinydoubtcausedhim toaskme to read the letters first. Iwashappy tobeable toreassurehim.Theywereremarkablelettersbutcontainednothingtohurthim.On my mother’s death, the two Houses of the Indian Parliament stood in

silenceinhermemoryandafrigatefromtheIndianNavyattendedherfuneralatseaoffPortsmouth.Theycastawreathofmarigoldsintotheoceanonbehalfof

thePrimeMinister,Nehru.Forme,PanditNehruwasaveryspecialperson.Ifeltatremendouswarmth

towardshimfromthefirsttimeImethim.ThewholetimewespentinIndiawasnomorethansixteenmonths:veryshort,butitseemedlikealifetime,andifyouhad asked me whom I loved most after my father and mother, or my sister,undoubtedly it was Panditji. I called him ‘Mamu’, which means ‘Uncle’. IrememberthatPanditjifrequentlyusedtheexpression‘Allmannerofthings’–hesaidittosuchanextentthatweusedtoteasehimaboutit.Myfatheralsofeltarealaffectionforhim.

TheNeedforSpeed

Therehasbeencriticismaftertheeventaboutthespeedofthetransferofpower.Toall the leaders struggling to solve theproblems at the time, this speedwasessential.MyfatherbecameViceroyon23rdMarch1947withthedateforthetransfer given as June 1948. It seemed a very short time for so much to beresolved.Infact,itsoonbecameclearthatitmusthappenmuchsooner.Indiahadlongwantedself-government.TheFirstWorldWarhadweakened

thepoweroftheBritishinIndia,andGandhi’sarrivalfromSouthAfricaandhissubsequent and effective advocacy of non-violent civil disobedience greatlystrengthened the (Hindu) IndianNationalCongress, founded in1888,which in1929 declared itself for the complete independence of India. The Hindus,dominant in trade in the townsandcities, tookbetteradvantageofBritishrulethantheoppressedMuslims,butBritainhadnothelpedthesituation,exploitingthe divide between Hindus and Muslims by giving the Muslims their ownelectoratesandencouragingtheirverydifferentcultureandhistory.TheideaofaseparateMuslimsovereignentityarosein1933,completewithaproposedname,Pakistan,andwasadoptedbytheMuslimLeague,foundedin1906.Differencesanddifficultiesmultiplied.As the SecondWorldWar threatened to engulf India in 1942, Sir Stafford

Cripps,LordPrivySealandLeaderoftheHouseofCommons,wassentoutonamissiontoofferGandhiself-governingdominionstatusforIndiaafter thewar,inreturnforsupportfortheBritishwareffort.Hewasturneddownflat:Gandhiwanted independence now, or not at all, and the result was the Quit Indiamovement.Muslim frustration broke into violence on Direct Action Day, 16th August

1946,whenafter threedaysofdreadful slaughter20,000MuslimsandHinduslaydeadinthestreetsofCalcutta.ItwasthesignaltotheMuslimleaderJinnahthatIndiamustbeeitherdivided,ordestroyed,andthesignaltoPrimeMinisterAtlee inBritain that independencecouldno longerbepostponed.HeneededanewViceroytoseeitthrough.LordWavell,thecurrentViceroy,wasagoodmanandwellrespected,buthe

was not held in affection, nor in confidence. He was also hamstrung by thegovernment in not being allowed to talk to Gandhi, around whom so muchrevolved.He had been unable to secure cooperation from theMuslimLeagueand had no solution to the problem other than his ‘Operation Madhouse’, a

phasedandcompletewithdrawalofBritishcivil andmilitarypersonnel.Attleerealised that a newman, a different personality,was required – and thatmanshouldbemyfather.Hehadinfactbeenproposedpreviously,byLeoAmeryin1942,andin1945hehadwrittentomymother,fromKarachi,totellher,‘Youwouldmake theworld’s idealVicereine.’ In1946KrishnaMenonhadputhisnameforwardasaViceroyacceptabletoCongressandAtleeperceivedhimas‘anextremelylively,excitingpersonality.’Hehad‘anextraordinaryfacultyforgettingonwithallkindsofpeople,’andwasalso‘blessedwithaveryunusualwife.’

BodiesintheCalcuttastreetsaftertheriotsfollowingtheMuslimLeague’sDirectActionDayinAugust1946.

Apopularhero,aliberal,andperhapsbestofall,theKing-Emperor’scousin,my fatherwas dispatched to India to oversee the grantingof independencenolaterthanJune1948.Itwasanurgenttask.TheconflagrationshadspreadtoBiharandEastBengal.

Punjab was ready to ignite at any time. And of course, there was nothing tocounteract this growing force: the Indian Civil Service had ceased recruitingsince the beginning of the SecondWorldWar and theBritish troopswere allgoing home. There was no way that an inflammable situation could becontrolled.AlltheIndianpoliticalleaderstoldmyfatherthatthehandovermusttakeplaceassoonaspossibleandthiswasaviewcorroboratedbytheGovernorsattheGovernors’ConferenceinDelhiinAprilandbackedbyLordIsmay,myfather’s Chief-of-Staff. The state of uncertainty was unbearable and a terrificfeeling of urgency prevailed. Dominion Status was proposed as a solution togivebothcountriessupportwithintheCommonwealth.AtthestartofJune,afterthe announcement that the plan for Partition had been accepted, therewas anenormous press conference and in answer to the all-important question, my

father replied that theTransferofPowerwould takeplaceon the15thAugust1947. This would be ten months earlier than the original deadline but it wasnecessaryiftherewasanyhopeofavoidingcivilwar.

WithPanditjiatPalamairport.

MyIndia

MycruciallateteenageyearswerespentinIndia,sothetimeswhenIsatwithmypeersinearnestdiscussionaboutimportantthingsinourlivesandgenerallygossiped, chatted and giggled, was with a group of Indian girlfriends whichincludedMuslims,Hindus,Sikhs,ChristiansandBuddhists.Thereseemedtobenodivisions.Wewerejustyounggirlsenjoyinglifeandeachother’scompany.Manyofmy friendswere students at theLady IrwinCollege, an all-female

establishmentwhichlaterbecamepartoftheUniversity.OnlyoccasionallywasI

broughtupshortbytheunexpected.Oncewewerediscussingwhatwewoulddowhenweweretwenty-oneandonegirlsaid‘Oh,butIwillbedead.’Sowesaid,‘Whatdoyoumean?’–wewerealleighteenornineteenatthetime–andshesaid,‘Well,theycastmyhoroscopewhenIwasborn,andthentheywouldneverletmeseeit,never.TheonethingIwantedtoseewasmyhoroscope,anditwasputawayinmyfather’sstudy.OnedayIfounditwhentheywereallout,andIreadthatIwilldiewhenIamtwenty-one.’Throughout the politically heavy days there were plenty of welcome

distractionsintheformofanimalswhichhadalwaysplayedagreatpartinourlives.AsIdescribedinarareletterhometomyfriendMary:

It really is such funout here seeingall thebirdsandanimals, the little greenparrotsand the ridiculous little crestedhoopoes, and thebullocksand jackalsandcamels.Wehaveababymongooseasapet.Heisverysweetandtameandthey make extremely good pets as they love company and although timid arehopelesslyinquisitivesothattheyaregreatfun.

InthegardenatBroadlandswithmyparentsandourmongoose,Neola.

There were always lots of monkeys up at Viceregal Lodge in Simla. Theylookedvery sweetwith their little black faces andwhen itwas the season foreveryfemaletohaveababywithhertheylookedperfectlycharming.Ofcoursetheywereasnaughtyasanymonkeyandtheystoleeverything.We’d been given a baby mongoose which we called Neola, rather

unimaginativelyI’mafraid,asitmerelymeans‘mongoose’.Neolagrewfastbutashe’dbeenremovedfromhismother,myfather thought itnecessary thatwefillherplaceandhewasverydistressedtofindthatNeoladidnotknowhowtocrackhisownegg.Helovedeatingeggsbutwheneverhetriedtobitetheshellof theeggofcourseitsnappedoutofhis jawsandhewasveryfrustrated.My

fatherrememberedfromRudyardKipling’sRikiTikkiTavi,whatamongooseissupposedtodo.Onthefloor,youtaketheegginyourfrontpawsand,withyourbacklegsapart, takeitneararockoradoororwallandthrowtheeggagainstthis hard thing,whereby it shatters and you can then eat your egg.We didn’tquiteknowhowtogetthisthroughtoNeola.Myfathersaid,‘wellit’sperfectlyeasy.’Hegotdownonthefloorandhedemonstrated.He’dgothislegsapartandhadthrowntheeggagainstthewallwhenaChaprassi(messenger)cameinwithamessageandsawhisExcellencytheViceroyonthefloor,forcingmetoholdthemongoosesothatitcouldseewhatwashappening.SadlyNeolaneverunderstoodthatlesson.Hedidn’treallyneedtobecausethe

kitchenswouldprovidefriedeggswhichweneverwereable toeatbecauseasyouraisedyourknifeandforktherewasaflurryofgreyfurandalittleweighton your lap for an instant as your egg disappeared.My father used to get soinfuriatedatnevergettinghisfriedeggthathewouldorderthekitmagarnottoputthefriedeggdownontheplateuntilhehadhisknifeandforkatthereadyandthenhe’dsay‘go’andhestilllosthiseggeverytime.Ifitwasboiledeggsandwehadmanagedforsomestrangereasontoactuallyeatoureggandtherewasalittleleftatthebottomintheshell,againtherewouldbeaflurryandNeolawouldarriveandgrabtheshell.Butofcoursebygrabbingtheshellthebottombitwasinhismouthandthetopbitwaslikeahelmetcoveringhisheadsothathewasblindedandranroundtheroombumpingintoallthefurniture.

Mypony,Picolette.

Then therewas the troubleofhouse-training themongoose.My father said,‘Well I thinkwestarthim thewayyoudowithadog. If there’snochanceofputtinghimwhereheshouldgo,havesomenewspaperdownandhecanlearntogo on the newspaper.’ That worked very well. His puddles were veryscrupulouslydoneonnewspaper.Unfortunately,earlyon,hedidfindpapersonmyfather’sdeskwhichheused.Theyhappenedtobedeathwarrantswaitingtobesigned.Neolastartedbysleepingwithmeinmybed.Buthewasverysmallandhe

wasalarmedifhethoughtIwasgoingtoturnover.Sohebitverysharpneedleteethintomytoeseverytimetherewasanysignofmymoving.IreckonedthatI’dreallypreferagoodnight’ssleepsoeventuallyhewasplacedtosleep inasortofspecialboxandrunwehadmadeforhim.Intheday,Neolalikedtorideonmyshoulderorroundthebackofmyneck.

I’dbeinclinedtowanderaroundmyroom,notrealisingthatNeolawasonthefurnitureabouttojumpontomeandI’dmoveawayandtherewouldbealittlethumponthegroundbehindmeasNeolamissedhislandingstage.They’relikedogsinthattheylovebeingincompanyandwithpeople,butthey’relikecatsinthattheydonotacceptdiscipline,soNeolaandIdidhavequiteafewrowsbuttherewasnothingyoucoulddotochastiseamongoose.Ifyouusedtwofingersyou squashed him flat. There’d be a row and then he would bring a peaceofferingandI’dbesittingreadingabookandsuddenlyhe’djumpuponmylapwithit.OfcourseitwassomethinglikeacockroachandIhadn’ttheheartnottobeveryappreciativeoftheoffering.My parrot andmymother’s dogwere probably a nuisance for the servants

whocouldn’tfindalowlyenoughsweepertoclearupafterthem.AsVicereinemy mother once had a big dinner party for about sixty people. She was alldressedupinherlongdressandherlongwhiteglovesandherjewelswhenshenoticedthatherdogMizzenhadhadanaccident in thecorner.Shesaid toherbearer,‘Ohlookwouldyoubekind,youseemydoghashadanaccident.Wouldyou,couldyou,clearitupbecauseI’mgoingin.’Itwasperfectlyapparenttoherthat he was not going to clear themess up. He said ‘Lady Sahib, I will findsomeone.’Andnobodycameandnobodycameandnobodycame.At least tenminutes went by. And of course they were unable to find somebody lowlyenoughtoclearupadogpoo.Mymotherwassodesperatethatofcourseshegotdownonherkneesandcleareditupherself.The ADCs gave me my parrot, which they then stole back to have in a

treasurehunt.HewascalledEustacebecausehewassouseless.Hewasoneoftheobjectsof the treasurehuntwhichannoyedmesomuchwhenIdiscoveredwhat they’d done. After the treasure hunt, knowing that I would be annoyed,

they thought they’d console the parrot by giving him cherries dipped inDrambuie,becausetheywerealltipsybythen.Theparrotwassodrunk,hefelloffhisperch.PooruselessEustace.Themongoosewaslessofaproblembecausetheyareofficialpets–theonly

petsallowedin the jails.Nehrusaidhealwayshadonewhenhewas inprisonandthewildoneswouldcomeinbecausetheywouldbefed.AsprisonerswereallowedtokeepmongoosesinprisonIthinkthestaffassumedthateventhoughweweren’tinprison,wewereallowedtohaveamongoose.

AfterIndia

IhavebeenfortunateinthatmanyofmyIndianfriendscontinuetovisitLondon,whereIcanseethem.IreturnedtoIndiathreeorfourtimeswithmymother.Ononeof thesevisitsmymother and Iwere alonewithPanditjiwhenDrMartinLutherKingandhiswifecame todinner.DrKingeagerlyquestionedPanditjiaboutMahatma Gandhi and I remember him saying what he thought Gandhiwould have done if he had been alive on a recent occasion. Panditji gentlypointedoutthatGandhiwouldhavebeenpragmaticandthathewouldprobablyhaveacteddifferently,tomeetthedemandsofasituationarisingtenyearsonintime.AnothertimewedinedalonewithhimandEarthaKitt.IaccompaniedmyfathertothefuneralofPanditjiandthenthatofhissuccessor,Shastri.MyfatherreturnedtoIndiaseveraltimesinhiscapacityasFirstSeaLordand

thenasChiefoftheDefenceStaffandwasdelightedtoaccompanythepresentPrince ofWales on his first visit.Whenmy father becameGovernor-GeneralafterPartitionandtherulingPrinceshadaccededtoeitherIndiaorPakistan,heencouraged them tooffer their services to thenewHeadsofGovernment.TheMaharaja of Jaipur became Ambassador to Spain and then Rajpramukh ofRajastan.AcoupleofyearsafterImarriedDavidHicksin1960,wewenttostaywith

Panditji.WealsostayedwithBob, thenewyoungMaharanaofUdaipurwhileJackieKennedyandhersister,LeeRadziwill,werethere.Asadesigner,Davidwas inspired by the colours of India, the colonial architecture ofCalcutta andLutyens’masterpiece,Viceroy’sHousewithitsincredibleMoghulGardens.My daughter India first went there backpacking with her cousin Timothy.

TheyvisitedBangaloreandIsuggestedshegoandseeV.P.Menon’sdaughter,Menakshi.Asshewassayinggoodbye,IndiaaskedifshewouldbeseeingherinDelhi. Menakshi replied, ‘Why did your mother not come with you?’ Indiaanswered, ‘She toldme that shewas too busy and that she couldn’t leavemyfather.’Menakshi said, ‘And you believed her?No, no yourmother and I aresnobs.Shedidn’tcomefor thesamereasonthat Inevergo toDelhi.Welivedtherewhilehistorywasbeingmade.Welivedincrediblelives.Wedon’twanttospoilthatmemory.’

Author’sNote

ThisbookhasbeencreatedfrommydiariesandletterswritteninIndia,andfrominterviewsandnotesIhavegivenorwrittensincethattime.IhavealsolookedoccasionallytomyparentsdiariestogiveamorethreedimensionalperspectiveonourtimeinIndia,aswellasquotingonceortwicefromletterswrittentomysisterPatricia.Myfatherwasameticulousdiarywriterandnotetaker–thefactthathedidsoandencouragedustodothesamemeansthatthisbookexists.Ourfamilyphotographalbumsalsoprovide thewonderful captions tomanyof thepictures and are now kept in the Broadlands Collection at SouthamptonUniversity. Many of those legends in his own hand are reproduced here infacsimile.Ofcourse,whenthingsgotexcitingitwasdifficultandsometimesimpossible

to keep the diary as up to date as it should have been, it is therefore, withgrateful thanks, that I have on more than one occasion looked to the dailyrecordings of Alan Campbell-Johnson (MissionWithMountbatten, Atheneum,1951)toremindmeofthegoingsonatthattime–especiallyduringtheperiodthatweweretravellingattheendof1947andthebeginningof1948.

PartI

TheLastViceroyofIndia

ChronologyofEvents

20thMarch1947 Mountbatten,EdwinaandPamelatraveltoIndiatotakeupresidenceinViceroy’sHouse.

24thMarch Swearing-inofthenewViceroy.MountbattenbeginshisinformalmeetingswithallthekeyplayersinIndia,includingGandhi,NehruandJinnah.

15th–16thApril Governors’ConferenceatViceroy’sHouse.28thApril MountbattenandEdwinaconfronttheMuslimLeaguedemonstration

duringavisittoPeshawar.30thApril–2ndMay Edwinatoursriotareasandrefugeecamps.3rdMay MountbattensvisitTheRetreatatMashobra,Simla.14thMay MountbattensreturntoDelhi.18thMay MountbattenfliestoLondonfordiscussionswiththeGovernmentand

Opposition,followingNehru’srejectionoftheoriginalPlan.1stJune MountbattenbackfromLondon.2ndJune ConferenceatViceroy’sHousetodeterminethedetailsofthePlan.3rdJune Agreementreachedbyallpartiesandadministrativeconsequences

discussed.AnnouncementmadeonAllIndiaRadio.4thJune Pressconferenceindicating15thAugustasdatefortransferofpower:the

countdownbegins.18thJuly ParliamentpasstheIndianIndependenceAct.25thJuly MountbattentriestopersuadetheChamberofPrincestoaccedetoIndia

orPakistanbeforePartition.14thAugust IndependenceceremonytakesplaceinKarachi,Pakistanwith

Mountbattenspresent,whothenflybacktoDelhifortheIndianindependenceceremonies.JustbeforemidnightMountbattenformallyinvitedtoactasIndia’sfirstGovernor-General.

FirstImpressions:

March1947

‘Ofcourse,toarriveandtoliveinahouselikeViceroy’sHouse.Inawayitwascompletelytheend

ofone’ssmallfamilycircleandprivatelife.’

(FromaninterviewwiththeauthorbytheNehruMemorialMuseum.)

2ndMarch1947:WiththeViceroyandLadyWavellwatchingmyparentsarriveinahorse-drawncarriageescortedbytheBodyguard.

ArrivalinDelhi

Myfirstimpressionwasofheatandjumble.Ihadtoconcentrateonbeinggood–hatuncomfortable,dittogloves.Inthosedays,whereveryouwereflyingintheheat, you would get these air pockets and there was no pressurisation in thecabin.So,ifyougotbadweatheryouwouldbumpanddrop,andifyouweremeyou were sick. But, as you got out of the plane, with a dozen photographerswaiting,youwerenotallowedtolookgreen.Itwasreallytheconcentrationoftrying to do what one was supposed to be doing and to be where one wassupposedtobeandhowhotone’slittlewhitegloveswereandhowthehatwasso uncomfortable.One had no real sense of the excitement of actually havingarrived in India; itwasallworry,worry,worryand thedust, andhad thedustcoveredone’sface,andifso,shouldonegetone’shandkerchiefout?

Saturday22ndMarchWearrivedatKarachiinthemorningtobemetwithterrificguardsofhonourandnumerous people tearing round…We flewon and had a very bumpy tripandlandedatDelhifeelingquitefrightful.MetHEandHerEx,sawMummyandDaddy arrive complete with carriage and had dinner with Felicity and herhusbandandbrother.

22ndMarch:StandingtoattentionastheNationalAnthemplaysonourarrival.

OnarrivalIrememberthedismountedSikhBodyguardinturbansoneachstepofthatenormousflightofvery,verywide,imposingstepsuptothehouse.AlltheSikhsintheirturbanslookedmagnificentwiththeirlancesandthebagpipesoftheRoyalScotsFusiliersplaying.Ofcourse,havingtocurtseytotheViceroyandVicereineonarrivalatthetopwasn’tdifficultbecause,atthattime,mostofone’s relationsneededcurtseysanyway,butonealwayshad toworry thatonediditproperly.Weonlyhadoneevening todiscussmatterswith theWavells, theoutgoing

ViceroyandVicereine.FelicityWavellbroughtmeallherfilesandtoldme,‘theViceroy’sHousecompoundhas555servants,so,withtheirfamilies,therewillbe several thousand, andwe have a school, and youwill have to be the chiefvisitorfortheschool.Andthereisaclinic…Oh,ithasawholecommunityandtheofficeoftheVicereinehardlyhastimetodothat,soitwillbeyourduty.’Soonereallydidfindoneselfinatthedeepend.Mymother’sQuakerfriendsinLondonhadadviseduswhoweshouldcontact.TheyhaddonealotofworkinIndia,particularlywhentheleaderswereputinto

prison.MymotherwaskeentomeetalloftheinfluentialwomeninIndia.Iwasgiventhenamesofallthestudentleaderswhowereinprisonatthatmoment,butwhowereabouttobereleased.WhenwewereinBombayorCalcutta,Iwouldhavetomakecontactwiththem.

Sunday23rdMarchWewent to the airfield and sawall theWavell party off. Itmust have been agreatwrenchforeveryonetosuddenlybeforcedtochangeoverlikethat.

22ndMarch:TheViceroy’sBodyguard.

22ndMarch:EnteringViceroy’sHouse.Bodyguarddrawnupafterescortingus.

TheSwearing-inCeremony

‘Thefilmcameraswhirredandtheflash-bulbswentoffforthefirsttimeintheconfinesofthe

DurbarHall.’AlanCampbell-Johnson

Mymother’sdresshadbeenmadeinEngland.Andmyfatherworethefulldresswhite naval uniform.Theyboth looked like film stars –very, veryhandsome,

bothofthem.Ofcoursetherewasnohairdressersomymotherhadtodoallofthatkindofthingherself.

Monday24thMarchThenumerousargumentsastowhatwasfittingresultedinDaddywearingfulldress whites andMummy a simple, long white dress with decorations but nojewellery.Itwilltakealotofgettingusedtoseeingthemsittingonthronesanddroppingcurtseystothemetc,butitcan’tbenearlyastryingasitisforthem,butafterlookingslightlyglazedtobeginwiththeyseemtobebearingupquitewell.

AlanCampbell-Johnsondescribesthescene:‘...trumpetsfromtheroofactingasashatteringprelude...Mountbattenhimself lookedsuperbwith thedark-blue ribbonofKnightof theGarterandtheoverwhelmingarrayofordersanddecorationsacrosshischest...LadyMountbatten...wastheepitomeofgrace,withherneworderoftheCrownofIndia,besidesallherwarmedalsandotherdecorations,onherdress.Thered-and-goldthronesweresetinboldreliefbythelightingconcealedintherichredvelvethangings.’Thisremindsmeofanicepieceofromanticfamilyhistory.Inthe1930s,my

mother and a friendofmyparents,YolaLetellier,were inParis at a big ball.OneoftheattractionswasafortunetellerwhowastherageofParis.Everychicpersonwanted tohave their fortune told,except formymotherwho thought itwasnonsense.But,Yolawasveryinsistentandsaid,‘No,no,no,Edwina,youmust,youmust, everybody’shaving itdone.’ In fact, itwouldhavebeen rudenottoagree,sotheybothgiggledtheirwayovertoher.Butwhenshehadherfortunetoldmymotherknewithadtobenonsensebecausethewomansaidtoher, ‘I see you sitting on a throne, but it’s not an ordinary throne, there’ssomethingstrangeaboutit,butyouaresittingonathronenonetheless…’

24thMarch:ProcessingoutofDurbarHallaftertheswearing-inceremony.

24thMarch:SeatedontheThronesintheDurbarHallinViceroy’sHouse.

OfficialportraitofmymotherasVicereine.

TheHouse

I describedViceroy’sHouse in those first diary entries in India as ‘absolutelyimmense,presumablyquiteimpressivejusttocomeandseeandgoawayagain,butacompleteheadachetoliveinanditseemstohavebeenbuiltfortheexpresspurpose of losing people in’. It was enormous with high ceilings: it took tenminutestowalkfromyourbedroomtothediningroom–bybicyclewasoftenquicker.Mymothersetoutimmediatelytounderstandeverythingaboutthehouse,the

estateandtheservantsataratewhichastonishedtheComptroller.Nodetailwasleftunexaminedorunquestioned: thetimingandcostofmeals, thestateof theservants’quarters, theconditionof the linenandplate, themanagementof thehouse, the gardens, the stables, the school, the clinic, and Iwouldmost oftenaccompanyher:

Tuesday25thMarchIwentonatourofthehousewithMummywhichentailedwalkingforwellovertwohours!Ourpresent roomsareveryniceandwehope tokeep themuntil theybecomereallytoohotwhenweshallhavetomoveovertotheotherside.Thursday27thMarchAlthoughthehouseissoimmense,theaccommodationiscompletelyinadequateas the entire plan seems to make no sense whatever but just consists of vastcorridors leading nowhere. There is a lovely swimming pool though and webathedyesterdayandhadlunchouttheretoday.

Viceroy’sHouseviewedfromtheMoghulGardens.

I soon became aware that Viceroy’s House was like a hotel in which youhardlyeversawanyotherguestswhomightbestaying there–and therewereoften guests.My sisterPatricia had accompaniedmy father in 1946when shewas in theWrens,andhadbeenaskedtostayonbytheADCs.Whenshehadprotested that she had not been invited by the Viceroy she was told that thehousewassobigthatnoonewouldeverbumpintoher!Laterinthe1960sIaccompaniedmyfatheronavisittoIndiaandwestayed

inwhatwasnowPresident’sHouse.Asweweresayinggoodbyetoourhost,theKingandQueenofAfghanistanandtheirpartyalsoarrivedtosayfarewell.Theytoohadbeenstayinginthehouseforaweek,butwehadnotevenknowntheywerethere.Thehousewas ‘notexactlycosy’, as Idescribed it ina letter toa friend: ‘I

was continuously getting hopelessly lost, and swarms of servants and endlesscocktail parties and people tomeals and the terribleWalkie-Talkie system bywhichpeoplearebroughtuptotalktoonewhenonehasn’taclueastowhothey

are,andthemomenttheconversationgetsbeyondtheweatherpreliminariestheyareremovedandonehastostartalloveragainwithanotherunknownbody,butluckily even the etiquette is generally relieved by being faintly ridiculous andamusing!’Ifyoudidnotbumpintoyourguestsorfamilyyouwereneveralone:‘onecan’texactlytakeabookandfindaquietcornerastherejustisn’tsuchathingandswarmsofpeopleareliabletoappearfrombehindeverybush!Evenwiththeveryreducedstaff,ifoneincludesallthepeopleintheestateplustheirfamiliestherearefivethousandattachedtothehouse!!’

StateDiningRoom.

DurbarHall.

TheServants

WhenFelicityWavelltoldmethatastheViceroy’sdaughterIwouldinheritherbearer–LilaNand–Iwashorrified,Ihadn’tevenhadalady’smaid,letaloneamale.

Tuesday25thMarchIhavebeengivenFelicity’sbearer,LilaNand,whoisquitecharmingandverygoodbutat themoment it isharder togetused to tellingsomeonewhat todo

thandoitoneself,butapparentlythelatterisoutofthequestion.

LilaNandwasinitiallyextremelydisappointedwithme,buttrainedmequitewell.Hekeptonsaying,‘Oh,ofcourseoneofpreviousViceroy’sdaughters,shemuchbetter,shebeatme.’WhenIprotested,‘LilaNandI’mnotgoingtobeatyou,’hesimplysaid‘Oh,Viceroydaughtershould!’We did get on verywell but themost tragic thing happenedwhenwe left;

aboutthreemonthsbeforeourdeparturehissondied–hewasonlyasmallboyofaboutseven.LilaNandalsohadalittlegirlofabouttenandasweetwife.Hewas naturally distraught and so I was trying to comfort him, with all of myeighteenyearsexperience,sayingthingslike,‘LilaNand,youandyourwifewillprobably have another baby and maybe it will be a boy and you’ve got thislovely little girl and you’re young…’He couldn’t have beenmore than forty.‘Youknow,youwillhaveallyourmarriedlifeaheadofyou.’‘No,no,noMissSahib,Idie,Idie.’WhenweleftIwasworriedandreallyveryfondofhim,sobackinEnglandIsentamessageoutaskinghowLilaNandwasandtheanswercamebackfromhisbrother,AmlaNand,‘OhLilaNand,hedied.’Hehadbeeninperfecthealth,buthewassodistraughthehadturnedhisfacetothewallandwilledhimselfdead.

DailyRoutine

MyfatherandIwouldrideeverymorningat6:30amontheridgeaboveDelhiwith a couple of armed bodyguards. Then we would have a family breakfasttogetherifpossible,whenmymotherwasnotrushingofftoseerefugeecampsandriotdevastation,andthenmeetingsbeganat10am–oratleastthatishowthingswereorganisedtobeginwith.Wehadaveryhecticsocialdiaryontopofmyparents’work.Andwithmyparents’emphasisonanopenandapproachablepolicyforViceroy’sHouse,eachweekwegavetwogardenparties;threeorfourlunchesforaboutthirtypeopleandtwoorthreelargerdinnersatwhichthemixofguestshadtobe,atmyfather’sinsistence,atleastfiftypercentIndian.Myfatherwasveryawarethathiswifeanddaughtercouldhelpenormously

withhisworkbysocialisingandmixingwithhiscontactsandtheirfamilies;ourdiariesarethereforelitaniesofsocialevents:

Friday28thMarchIwentdownfordinnerandthenwewentontoapartygivenbyPanditNehrufor

the delegates and saw some dancing displays. I met Nehru’s daughter, MrsGandhi, his niece Lekha and her mother Mrs Pandit, who Miss Lankesterwantedmetocontact.

Saturday29thMarchIwentwithMummy toa receptionat theLady IrwinCollegegivenby theAllIndia Women’s Conference for all the women delegates of the Inter AsianConference.BeingalreadyratherdarkandhavinggotseparatedfromMummy,everyoneseemedconvincedthatIwasthePalestiniandelegate.

ThefamilywiththeDomesticStaffinDecember1947.

Monday31stMarchWehadabigandverytediouslunchpartyandIagainsatnexttotheMaharajahofKapurthalawhoagainaskedmewhatwehadbeenabletogoandsee,veryawkward as one of his wives has just committed suicide off the QutbMinar.[Thiswasa13thcenturysitethatmyparentshadfoundtimetotakemetosee.]

Saturday5thAprilWehadabiglunchparty includingPanditNehruandtheIndonesianpremier,Mr Sjahrir who has just arrived. I sat next to Mr Krishna Menon, Nehru’srepresentativeinEuropeandinmannersfarmoreEnglishthananyEnglishman.

Saturday12thApril…hadanotherenormousgardenparty.

MymotherwithmyfatherathisdeskintheViceroy’sstudy.

TheMoghulGardensatViceroy’sHouse.

Mountbatten’sStudy

Thiswastheepicentreofmyfather’sfirstfewweeksinIndia.Itwastheplacehewouldreceivepeople.Ifyouweregoingtoseehimforameeting,you’dbedrivenuptothefrontof

the house, through the sentries who would be rather decorative. Then therewould be security in khaki behind themwith a revolver at the ready and thepolicewould have a list of people expected.Youwere driven up to the northcourtyard, where the Aides de Camp (ADC) room was, and an ADC wouldcomeoutandgreetyou.Ifitwasabusinessmeeting,therewasADC1togreetyou – they took it in turns. ADC1 was for the Viceroy, ADC2 was for theVicereine,ADC3wasguests.OrifIhadsomethingveryspecial,ADC3woulddome aswell. But it was really guests.You thenwent in a side doorwhereagaintherewasasecretarywhowouldtakeyouthroughtomyfather’sstudy.Itoverlooked theMoghul Gardens, so he and his guests could easily walk intothemduringorafterameeting.

TheMoghulGardens

‘The gardens, although rather too terrific, are looking perfectly lovely now,’ Iwrote.Afterwearrived,MrReader,theheadgardener,dulyattendedmymotherandaskediftherewereanyordersaboutthegardens.Theywereworldfamous–and still are, they’re kept exactly the same to this day.Mymother knewverylittle,unlikeLadyWillingdonwhohadtakenagreatinterestinthegardens.Soshejustsaid,‘Carryon,you’retheexpert.’UnfortunatelyweweregoingtohaveabigAsianrelationsconferenceandwe

were also expecting a Tibetan delegation on the 1st April, but because MrReader knewnothing of these plans and presumably hadn’t actually consultedtheADCswhomusthaveknownabouttheevents,whenwewantedtostepoutforagardenpartyalltheturfhadbeenrolledupandtakenaway.

TheHeat

If thehugehouse, thehecticentertainment schedule, thehundredsof servants,the political issues surrounding us, and the list of contacts we had to meetweren’tenoughtocontendwith,therewasalsotheomnipresentheat.Havingleftthe coldest English winter on record we now found ourselves in the hottestweatherDelhihadexperiencedforseventy-fiveyears.Ofcourseat thisseasontheViceregalentouragewould retire to thecoolhillsofSimlawith the restoftheBritish,butwecouldnotaffordthisluxury.Theresimplywasn’tamomenttolose,sowestayeddowninthefurnace.

Thursday3rdAprilMostof theshopsarealreadyclosingandmovingup toSimlaandreallyonlythebarestnecessitiesseemtoremainforthefewwhostaydownduringthehotweather.

Monday7thAprilWemovedourrooms,changingintotheoppositewingasinthehotweatheritisalmost impossible to live permanently on the south side. It is also almostimpossibletoliveonthetopfloorundertheroof.Aswehavealargeindoorstaffand thehouseconsistsentirelyof immensepassagesbutvery fewbedrooms, itmakesthequestionofaccommodationanabsolutenightmare.

Delhi

Duringourfirstfewweekswehadverylittle timetoexploreoursurroundingsbut I did see a little as I wrote to my friend Mary: ‘Delhi itself is anextraordinary place. New Delhi with all the government buildings, armyheadquarters, theSecretariatandViceroy’sHousehasonlybeenbuiltover thelasttwentyyears.Itallrunsaccordingtoplanwithgreatvistasandarches,parksandroundaboutsandlookslovelyatnightwithsomeofthebuildingslitup,butit is so spacious that it loses all atmosphere and the people themselves, as sooftenseemsthecaseincapitalcities,areveryartificial.ButitismuchmorefunnowwithalltheforeignrepresentativescominginandamongsttheAmericans,Chinese, French, Dutch, Belgians and Afghanistanis etc there are one or two

girlsfromaboutsixteentothirtywhoreallyareextremelynice.OldDelhi,ontheotherhand,isfirstwhatoneimagines,colourful,crowded,

smellybutfascinatingandcompleteinatmosphere.ItmergesintothenewCitybuteventhenitisabouteightmilesfromwhereweliveattheotherendsoonecan’tjustwalkintoitwhichisapity.’We had little time to accustom ourselves to our new lives as immense

problemswerewaitingtobesolved.

1stApril:TheTibetandelegationatViceroy’sHouse.TheywereverybriskindispensingtheirgiftsofwhitescarvesandgolddustbecausetheywereanxioustogettotheDelhiracesontime.

AHugeTask:

March–April1947

WithinacoupleofdayswemetMahatmaGandhiandPanditNehru.WhenmyfatherwasinIndiawiththePrinceofWalesin1921Gandhihadsecretlybeenarrested.MyfatherhadbeenkeenforthePrinceofWalestomeethim.Butmyfatherwasabrash21-year-oldandmuchthemostjuniormemberofthestaffsohissuggestioncametonothing.Whenhefinallymethimin1947hefeltitwasaveryspecialoccasion.

OperationSeduction

Beforewehadflownout toIndia,myfatherhadalreadyworkedout that ifhewas tohit theground runninghewouldneed tomeet the fourmost importantpersonalities behind the opposing political ideas. He had already contactedMahatmaGandhiandJawarlarhalNehrubeforehearrived,andhetheninvitedMr Jinnah andVallabhbhaiPatel.Theywere about to have a charmoffensiveunleashed upon them – one of my father’s disarming tools before he wouldlaunchinwithhispragmaticstrategiesformovementandsolution.

‘Thesituationiseverywhereelectric...theminemaygoupatanymoment.Ifwedonotmakeupourmindsinthenexttwomonths...therewillbepandemonium.’

LordIsmayMarch1947

Monday31stMarchMrGandhicametotalktoDaddyandIwent inwithMummytomeethim.Hereallyisaremarkableoldmanandagreatcharacter.Crowdsofhishangers-onswarmed about outside the house all the afternoon. Intending to come for anhourhestayedfortwoandahalf.

Tuesday1stAprilMrGandhiarrivedatninetowalkroundthegardensbeforeresuminghis talkwithDaddy.Hehadhisbreakfastduringtheirdiscussions,apparentlyauniquehonourforusforhimtoeatbeforeanEnglishman.

Gandhi’sfirstvisittoViceroy’sHouse.

ItwasimportanttomeetGandhijiassoonaspossiblebecausehewas‘Bapu’:the Father of theNation.All the impetus for the ‘Quit India’ programme hadbeen his and Motilial Nehru’s, Nehru’s father. They were the older, wisergeneration and the others were considered youngsters, although they were alloverfiftyyearsoldatthistime.

‘GandhiwillbeseenbyhistoryasonaparwithChristandBuddha.’LouisMountbatten1948

GandhiwasNehru’smentor.For the servants atViceroy’sHouse,Gandhi’svisitwaslikeGodandroyaltywalkingintogetherandtheywouldbowandfalltotheground,suchwashisimportancetothem.GrowingupinEngland,wehadheardalotabouthim.I’mafraidtheignorant

Englishtakeonhimwas‘afunnylittlemaninaloincloth.’Infact,hedidwearhisshawltocometoViceroy’sHouse,Ithinklargelybecauseitwasn’tyetthathotalthoughitwasthebeginningofMarch,butalsomyfather’sstudywasair-conditioned and quite cool. After the initial photographs of the three of themoutsidethehouse,astheyturnedtogoin,Gandhiputhishandonmymother’sshoulder,becausehewasquitefrailandquiteold.Hewassousedtohisgreatniece,oneofhis‘crutches’,alwaysbeingtherethathe’dalwayshaveahandononeofthesegirlsforsupport.Soinstinctivelyheputhishandforsupportonmymother’sshoulder.Thiswouldhavebeenwelcomedbymymotherofcourse,butsadly this photograph caused real outrage in Englandwhen itwas seen. Theythought itwasnot appropriate at all that this ‘blackhand shouldbeplacedonthiswhiteshoulder.’Thenextday,Gandhijimadeagreatconcessiontoeathishabitualgoatcurds

atViceroy’sHousewiththeViceroy.Heofferedittomyfather,whopolitelytriedtorefuseandthenGandhiji,with

a lovelymischievoussmile, insisted.Myfathersaid itwas themostdisgustinggreenporridgethathe’deverhad.

JawaharlalNehru

It was important that my father spoke with Nehru early because he, withVallabhbhaiPatel, led the IndianCongressParty.HewasaKashmiriBrahminbut spoke, and wrote beautiful English (much better than our own – he waseducatedatHarrowandCambridge).Hewas suchacivilisedpersonand suchfun,andwastheonepersonthatthefutureofIndiadependedon.I suppose the first time ImethimIwouldnothavedaredcallhimPanditji,

that came later aswe got to know him; itwould have beenMrNehru. Iwasnervous. My parents had met him before of course. He and Gandhiji wereobviously the key figures in thewhole situation. It is a greatmoment tomeetsuchanimportantman,andhowveryoftenitisaterribledisappointment.Youexpect so much, having heard so much, especially when you are aboutseventeen. It is shattering if they behave in a normal way. One is terriblydisillusioned.ButwithPanditji, itcouldneverbeadisappointment,becausehehad such charm. I haveno ideawhat he said tome except thatwe just shookhandsandhesaid‘Howdoyoudo?’ButtoshakehandswithPanditjiandtobesmiledatbyhimwassomethingveryspecial.Hehadsuchtremendouswarmthandyoureallyfelt thathewasdelighted tomeetyou,andparticularly, I think,youngpeoplealwaysfelt thiswithhim.Hisairwasfarfrompatronising, therewasnocondescension.Youjustfeltthathe,andGandhiji,werethemostspecialpeopleyouwereeverlikelytomeet.

ThisportraitwasgiventomebyNehru.Theinscriptionreads‘Pammy,fromMamu1948.’

Panditjiwasseldomaloofwithus.Buthewasdefinitelyapersonwhowentinto great silences and one would never have thoughtlessly intruded upon orinterrupted him at thatmoment.One felt that hewaswrestlingwith problemsandwantedtobealone.Butthen,anhourlater,hehadchanged.Hewouldhaveresolvedtheproblemhewasstrugglingwithandhewouldhavethatenormouscharmagain.Thiswastypicalofthespeedwithwhichhismoodscouldchange.Hecouldlosehistempersoquickly.Irememberonedaytoomanypeoplegavemyparentsautographbookstosign,thecrowdwasoverbearing,thrustingthemintheirfacesandhebecameimpassionedandtookalltheautographbooksandthrewthemintheair.Mymotherwasveryshocked,buthehadawonderfulway

ofputtinghisarmaroundone’sshouldersandgivingoneahugandeverythingseemedfine.PanditjiwasoneofthewisestpeopleIhaveevermet.Youknowthekindof

intolerantremarkonewouldmakeatseventeenoreighteenwhenonethinksoneknowsthesolutionstotheworld’sproblems.IsatnexttohimonceatoneofthebigdinnersatViceroy’sHouse.Iwasgettingveryindignantaboutthebehaviourofthe‘PukkaSahib’sortofBritishinIndiaandIwassaying,‘Butit’sterrible,howcantheybehavelikethis?’andPanditji justlookedatmeandsaid,‘Oh,Ishouldnotgetsoexcitedaboutit.WhenIgotoEnglandIamalwaysmortifiedby the behaviour of the Indians.Youwill always find that people out of theirowncountryappeartoleastadvantage:ithappensalltheworldover.’Heneverwouldallowonetogetawaywithmakingasillyremark.AnothertimewhenIsatnexttohimatdinner,wetalkedaboutmymongoose.

Panditjiwastellingmethatwhenhewasinprisonthemongooseswerealwaysverypopular.Thisledtomesayhowdreadfulitmusthavebeenforhimtohavebeenimprisonedforsomanyyears.Heacknowledgedthatitwasfrustratingnottobeable tohaveaccess toall the referencebookshewouldhave likedwhenwritingTheDiscoveryofIndiaandGlimpsesofWorldHistorybutthatthegoodthingaboutprisonwasthatitgaveonetimetothinkandeveryoneneedstimetothink.Headded,withasmile,‘Itwoulddoyougoodtobeinprisonforawhile.’I was amazed that he showed no bitterness. But Gandhiji had taught that thestrugglewasagainst theRaj, andnot thepeople.Thosewhosuffered termsofimprisonment without trial for anything from ten to twenty years with theirfamilies and children, could yet come toViceroy’sHouse and all it stood forwith no trace of bitterness, and be prepared to extend true friendship. It is aparticularlywonderfulpartoftheIndiancharacter.

VallabhbhaiPatel

Patel,Nehru’sCongress colleague, on the other hand,was a hard trade unionman.Hewaspragmaticandtough.WhenNehru, theurbaneidealist,wouldgooffatapassionatetangent,Patelwouldsay‘Don’tgoaheadofthepeoplesofar,come back, take themwith you.’ Theywere a very good team.He toowas adisciple of Gandhiji. He had worked with him in 1922 organising civildisobedienceandhadrisenthroughtheranksofCongresssincethentobecomearespectedleader.I remember a funny incident with this severe man at lunch one day. My

motherwas forever takingher shoesoffunder the tablebecause shehadquitehighheels.AndVallabhbhaihadtakenhissandalsoffandwecouldseethatsheandhewere chuckling.Lotsof chucklingwasgoingon andof coursehewastryingtogethershoesonandshewastryingtogethissandalson.

VallabhbhaiPatel.

MohammedAliJinnah

MrJinnah–myfather rarelycalledhimanythingelse–wasa fastidiousman.He was extremely sophisticated and unlike the other Indian leaders alwaysdressed in an immaculate English style rather than national dress. He was aMuslim but only spoke in English, which he spoke perfectly, whenever hecondescended to speak.Hehadbeen intent on creatingPakistan ever sincehehadbeenintroducedtotheconceptatthehistory-shapingmeetingintheWaldorfinLondonin1933.He did not fall formy father’s charm offensive in those first days –which

musthavebeenworkingat fullpower. Iwasobviouslyoustedwhenthegoinggottoughasmydiaryentryfor6thAprilsays,‘IhaddinnerwiththeADCsasJinnah and his sister came to talk business.’ At first my parents were veryoptimisticaboutthechancetomediatebetweenNehruandCongress,andJinnahandtheMuslimLeague.Asmymotherwroteinherdiaryofthatsameevening,

‘Fascinatingevening,twoverycleverandqueerpeople.Iratherlikedthembutfound them fanatical on their Pakistan and quite impractical.’ Within a fewmeetingsthisoptimismlapsed.My father could talkofnothingelsebecausehe couldnot crack Jinnahand

thishadneverhappened tohimbefore.He lateradmitted thathedidn’t realisehowimpossiblehistaskwasgoingtobeuntilhemetJinnah.Hehassinceoftenbeen accused of being anti-Muslim league but that was not the right way oflooking at the problem – Congress made themselves open to my father andcourtedhishelp.Jinnahwastheoppositeandrejectedmyfather’sinvolvementwheneverhecould.Of course the famous story of Jinnah’s first meeting with my parents was

aboutthecommentthatbackfiredattheirphotoshoot.Jinnahwasmeticulousandwould have prepared a joke – presumably, of course, it was delivered beforethey were posed: as he had assumed that mymother would be photographedbetweenhimandmyfather,whenaskedtoposehesaid,‘Ah–arosebetweentwo thorns.’ Unfortunately it was he who was placed in the middle of thecompositionandnotmymother.

5thApril:FirstmeetingwithJinnah.‘Arosebetweentwothorns.’

Itbecameperfectlyapparentoncemyfatherhadmetallfourleadersandtakenonboardtheirviews(andtheintransigenceofMrJinnah),thattherewasnowaytheyweregoingtobeabletokeeppeacewhilethisimpasseremainedandthatitwas vital to transfer power as quickly as possible so that the various leaderscouldmaketheirowndecisions.Iftheywerestillinwaiting,nothingwouldgetdone because everything needed their approval. If they were in powerthemselves,thendecisionscouldbetakenmorequickly.

TheGovernor’sConference

TheGovernorsarrivedat theconferencefromalloverIndia togive their first-hand reports to my father of the situation on the ground. Their reports madedepressingreading.TheycamefromBombay,Madras,Punjab,Sind,theUnitedProvinces,Bihar,Orissa,Assam,CentralProvince,theNorthWesternFrontier–only theGovernor ofBengalwasmissing through illness.Apart fromAssam,whose report was comparatively benign, my father learned from Sir Evan

Jenkins that the Punjab situationwas critical; fromBengal’s report, that therewasgreatagitation;andfromSirOlafCaroe,whoCampbell-Johnsonrecordedas‘tenseandtired’,thattheNWFPwasonthepointofcrisis.

Monday14thAprilThroughthedayGovernorsandtheirwivesarrivedtostayforconferences.ThemuddleoverwhoanHEreferredtowasappallingandtheywereallveryapttotry to swoop throughdoorways first!Someof themwerereallyvery sweetbuttwo of the wives have already fought like cats and dogs much to everyone’senjoyment.IwentwithMummytoseetheAlliedForcesCanteen,FelicityusedtoworktheresometimesandIamgoingtotrytoalso.Mr Krishna Menon has sent me a signed copy of Pandit Nehru’s book TheDiscoveryofIndiawhichisratherexciting.The conference startedon the 15thmymother corralled theGovernors’wivesinto a conference of their own – with little exception she was shocked anddisappointedinhowlittletheykneworhadbeeninvolvedinthecrisis.

‘Eventhequieterprovincesfeelthatwearesittingontheedgeofavolcano.’

Mountbatten’sreportaftertheconference

My parents had been brought up to have a very inclusive and internationalattitude to society which is why we found it easy to embrace Indian life soquickly.Notsowithsomeothers.

Tuesday15thAprilI went to the most extraordinary cocktail party given by Lady Tymms full ofhorrifying specimensandswarmsof thehuntin’, shootin’and fishin’ typewhobombardedmewithindignantdemandsastowhyIhadn’tbeenoutwithhoundseverymorningsincemyarrival?!

Wednesday16thApril…hauled back from swimming pool after lunch for a group photograph takenwiththeGovernorsandGovernors’wives,andallofuslookingassillyasinanygroupphotograph.

Thursday17thAprilThethreeIndianADCshavearrivedandseemveryniceandquiteunimpressed

bythegeneralturmoil!

Mymother,havingappraisedthehouseandthestaff,nowinvestedherattentioninunderstandingandgoingaboutimprovingconditionswhereshecouldontheEstate.

1stApril:TheTibetanMissionatViceroy’sHouse.

16thApril:AllIndiaGovernors’Conference–theGovernorsandtheirwives.

Friday18thAprilIwentwithMummytoseetheprimaryschoolontheEstate.

Saturday19thAprilIt soundsvery importantbutratheralarmingbeingeighteen. Iwas thoroughlyspoiltandgiventhemostwonderfulpresentsincludingaminiatureStarofIndiafrom Daddy, very exciting and the only one in existence, and also a mostextraordinarybutratherintoxicatingparrotbytheADCs.

Sunday20thAprilThemostawfulpartofone’stimeisspentinwritingthesewretcheddiaries.Allofus,exceptDaddy,haveitperpetuallyhangingoverusandyetthemomentonegivesuponeregretsit!

Monday21stAprilWegaveagardenparty forall thoseon theViceregalestablishment.Wewereabout fourhundredbut thatdidnot includeanyof the threehundredand fiftyindoorservantsoranyofthePW-W[thePublicWorksDepartment],merelythevarious heads of the departments. There are something like seven thousand

peoplelivingontheEstateconnectedwiththeEstablishment.

Tuesday22ndAprilIwentallroundtheBodyguardwithPaddyMasseyandsawallthehorses,thecarriages, cattle, classrooms,and in fact theentireestablishmentand it reallywasfascinating.Atthemomentinitsmuchreducedstate,itconsistsofaboutonehundred and twenty men and sixty-three horses. They really are the mostmagnificentsightintheirfullregalia.

Wednesday23rdAprilIwentwithMummytoseetheWavellCanteenwhichservesthetroopspassingthrough the railway station in transit. We also went to Auchinlock Auamgahwhich is the corresponding canteen for the Indian troops. Indians aretheoreticallyprovidedforinboththeAlliedandWavellCanteensbuttheirpayisnotsufficienttocompetewithcentresfortheothertroops.

Friday25thAprilIwentwithMummytoseethequartersofthefamiliesofthebodyguardofficersand linesmen, the clinic and the dispensary. All the women were in purdah(which luckily got rid of all our procession!). Their homes are too beautifullykeptandtheyreallyarelovelygirls,severalhadtheirweddingdressesonfortheoccasion.Thesycesquartersarequitehorrifying.

IbegantoworkattheAlliedForcesCanteenwhichgetscontinuousmentionin my diaries. But, encouraged by my parents, I also started to work at amakeshift tented clinic and dispensary and continued to visit schools andhospitals with my mother. The Clinic had been set up in Delhi to treat poorpeopleandthevillagerswhoeithercouldnotaffordpropermedicaltreatmentorwouldnotbepersuadedtogonearaproperhospital.WetreatedeverykindofcasefromsmallpoxandTB–whichofcourse,one

couldreallyonlydiagnoseandthensendontohospital–topricklyheat,boils,and the usual eye, nose and throat troubles and cuts and bruises. There werealwayscrowdsofpatientsandalthoughwereallyknewnothingofnursingitwasextraordinary how much, and how quickly, one could pick things up innecessity. There were often some very gruesome sights but when one wasactuallytreatingsomeoneitnolongerseemedashorribleasonehadimagined.

28thApril:Goingtoconfront100,000militantPathansadvancingonGovernmentHouseatPeshawar.

Saturday26thAprilIwentontotheAlliedForcesCanteenwhereIamworkingtwoeveningsaweekfromfivetoseven.Idothemilkshakes(eightflavoursandverycomplicated!).

Sunday27thAprilIwent to seeLady Shone aboutworking in the clinic and dispensary she andLadySmithandMrsThoratruntogivefreetreatmenttotheIndians,bothattheclinicandtouringaroundthevillages.Started packing for the short tour we are going on to the NWFP and the

Punjab,asaresultoftherecentdisturbances.

WegaveaquietgardenpartyforthestudentsfromtheLadyIrwinCollege,theCollege of Nursing, the Lady Reading Health School and the Lady HardingeMedicalCollege.Therewereaboutsixhundredgirlsandstaff.

RiotsintheNorthWestFrontierProvinceandthePunjab

ThetriptoPeshawarwastypicalofmyparents’imperativeneedtoorganiseandseeforthemselves,especiallyformymother.Formyfatherthiswastobeonlyoneoftwochanceshewouldhavetoassessthisvolatilesituationwithhisowneyesbefore the transfer of power.Formymother thiswas the first of endlesstrips.

Monday28thAprilWe left in theYorkand flew toPeshawar, arrivingatGovernmentHouse justbeforelunch.MummyandDaddywentimmediatelyonarrivaltoseeacrowdofLeaguers who had assembled from all over the Province to see them, andnumberedbetweensixtyandahundredthousand.TodayDaddyreceivedabout179telegrams,760lettersand2,340postcards!

TheriotshadbeenhorrificallyintenseandmyparentsthoughttheymustgotoPeshawar,andofcourseIwenttoo.ButIwasn’tallowedtomeetthecrowdofangryPathansthathadaccumulatedoncetheyhadwindoftheirimpendingvisit.IwasmadetositinGovernmentHouse.TheGovernorandindeedeveryonewasacutely aware of the fact that my parents could be killed. Alan Campbell-Johnson describes the scene: ‘Lady Mountbatten insisted on going with [herhusband].Thecrowdconfrontinguswascertainly formidable.Weclimbeduptherailwayembankment...andlookeddownuponavastconcourse.Therewasmuch gesticulation… and a steady chant of ‘Pakistan Zindabad.’ My father,unabashedandfearless,strodeahead.What these tribesmen saw was this small white woman holding her tallhusband’shand,luckilywearingjunglegreen,thePathans’holycolour.Itwasaterriblydramaticmoment.Therewasnotimeforfear.Mymotheralwayssaid,‘There’s no time for that darling!’, and ‘that’ covered fear, pain and evenprotection at some junctures. And at times she was experiencing incrediblepersonalsuffering.Shehadhadamajoroperationonlyafewweeksbeforeweleft for India and she suffered badly from ‘neuralgia’ (exacerbated by plane

flights), which I now realise must have been migraines. But she nevercomplained at all – her diary records all of her missions with a few addedcommentslike‘feelinglikedeath’butitdidn’tstopher.Indeedshedidworkherselftodeathtenyearslater.Shehadbeentoldthatif

shekeptupthehardworkshewouldbedeadwithinthreemonths,andshediedofheartfailureinBorneo.Shehadforbiddenherdoctortowarnthefamily.

29thApril:AfridiTribes’lastViceregalJirga,intheKhyberPass.

29thApril:InspectingriotdevastationinKahutalaccompaniedbyJenkins,theGovernorofthePunjab.

IwrotetomyfriendMaryaboutthistrip:‘WehadfivedaysintheNorthWestFrontierandthePunjabtouringroundtherefugeecampsandburnt-outvillages,but we were able to go up the Khyber Pass that leads into Afghanistan. Thetribesmen of the Afridi and the other tribes up there really are remarkablelookingpeoplebutratheralarminginhabits.Completetriballawprevailsintheterritory and comes under no Government jurisdiction.’ At the local jirga [anassemblyofvillageelders]myfather said thathewasasked farmoredifficultquestionsthanatanypressconference.TheAlfidisweresoastuteandreallyputhimonthespot.

Tuesday29thAprilWedroveup theKhyberPass towithin viewof the frontier ofAfghanistan. Itreallywasthrillingandnotatalldisappointing,butcompletewithmenperchedoncragsontheskylinewithrevolversandriflesslungalloverthemandwearingpyjamaduniforms.ThentherewasaJirgaofthreehundredchiefsoftheAfridisatLandiKotal.AfterlunchweflewtoRawalpindiinthePunjab.WewenttoseeKahutal,oneofthetypicalsmalltownswhichhavenowbeencompletelyburneddownanddestroyedby theMuslims,and the survivingSikhsandHindushave

nowfled.ThetalestheytellcomparewiththeworstatrocitiesoftheWar.

‘UntilIwenttoKahutalIhadnotappreciatedthemagnitudeofthehorrorsthataregoingon.’

LouisMountbatten,April1947

Wednesday30thAprilMummy and I left at six-thirty thismorning to visit the refugee camp atWahwhereovereightthousandSikhshavenowtakenrefuge,theremainingsurvivorsof the Hindu population of the sacked villages. They have been throughundeniably ghastly experiences. They have nothing to do all day but bemoantheir fate. Our visit provoked mass weeping and wailing, with people kissingMummy’s feet and showing all their scars, or their shaven heads, which ofcourse toaSikhmeans thebreakingofoneof the sacred fiveK’s through theweaknessofhisspirit[aterribledishonourforaSikh].Allsidesexaggerate,itisalmostimpossibletojudgeclearly.IreturnedtoDelhiwithDaddy.

MummystaysontwomoredaystovisitLahore,TonkandAmritsar.

BriefRespite:

May1947

BythebeginningofMaywehadbeeninNewDelhiforalittleoveramonthandevery minute of the day had been filled – with assessments of the situation;conferenceswithGovernorsandIndianleaders;journeyingtotheriotgroundsoftheNorthWest;accompanyingmyparentsonendlesstoursofschools,hospitalsandexhibitions;nottomentionthenormal‘Viceregalworkload’ofentertainingboth international and domestic visitors who had nothing to do with themachinationsofthepoliticalmoment.Iwasalsoworkingatthecanteenandthedispensary.MyfatherhadachievedinsixweekswhathadnotbeenachievedinpreviousViceregaltenures–aplanwhichofferedtheBritishanexitfromIndia,andhehadbrokenthedeadlockbetweenthemajorIndianpoliticalleaders.PugIsmaywasdispatchedtoLondonwiththeplanandwerealisedthatwewereallverytired.

AtreatforMizzen.Thekitmagardoesnotapprove.

Thursday1stMayTherewas one of the usual lunch parties of about twenty but asMummywasawayIhadtoactashostesswhichwasratheralarming.

Friday2ndMayWesawtheGovernorofBengal,whohasbeenstayingheretoseeDaddyoff.HeisextremelyillwithBengalrot[andhencewasnotabletoattendtheGovernor’sConferencethepreviousmonth].Iwent tomeetMummyat theairportasshehadcomebackearlyhavingbeenunabletolandatMultaanowingtobadvisibility.Shehadbeenveryillonthetrip with bad neuralgia and general upset, and as Daddy also is only justrecoveringfromabadgoofDelhibellyithasbeendecidedtospendnextweekin Simla which should be rather fun. However, as with almost everything themoveiscausingterribleheadachesinorganisation.

Thetruthwasthatmyparentswereexhausted.Aftersomuchworkmyfatherhad dispatched Ismay to London to see the Cabinet with the proposedMountbattenPlanforthetransferofpower.Hehadbeenworkingto1am(laterin crises) and reading until 2 or 3am. We would then ride at 6.30am eachmorning before it got too hot – as thiswas one of the only chances to spendfamilytimetogetheranditalsogavemyfatherachancetoletoffsomesteam.But this hard scheduling was beginning to take its toll.My father wrote in aletterdated2ndMay,tomysisterPatricia:‘Afteraveraging17hoursadayfor6weeksI’mjustaboutwornoutandmustrecuperatebeforemeetingshavetostartonPug’sreturn.’Itwasalsogettingunbelievablyhot.WewantedtogotoViceregalLodgeinSimlaintheHimalayasforjustafew

days.MyfathersaidtoColonelDouglasCurrie(themilitarysecretarywhowasresponsibleforthemovementsofthehousehold),‘I’vedecidedthatHerExandPammyand I aregoing togoup toViceregalLodgeandwe’ll onlyhave twoguests.That’llbePanditNehruandKrishnaMenonIthink.’AndDouglassaid‘I’mawfullysorrybutit’soutofthequestion.Itwouldtakemeatleastamonthoforganisingforyoutogoupthere.’Myfathersaid‘WellDouglaslook,we’renotgoingtogiveanygardenparties.We’renotgoingtogiveanyformaldinners.Weneedaskeletonstaff.Reallyitisjustthefiveofus.’SoDouglassaid,‘WellevensoyourExcellency,Imean,ifyouknewtheamountofworkthatgoesintoit.’My father said, ‘OhwellDouglas, verywell, don’tworry.Book us into ahotel.’Butwedidgowithin aweek.Andwhenwearrived, I thinkmy fatheraskedwhat‘theskeletonstaff’webroughtwithusamountedtoandI’veneverforgottentheanswer:itwas180.Daddy invited Nehru and Krishna Menon to come and stay with us – as

relaxedguestsforwalkingexpeditions.

Saturday3rdMay…therewasabiglunchparty…thenontotheCanteen.

Sunday4thMayDaddywasnotfeelingtoowellsoMummyandPeter[Murphy]andIhadlunchaloneatthepool.

Peter was one of my father’s oldest friends, they met while at Cambridgeuniversity. He was an excellent pianist, a marvellous raconteur and he had abrilliantbrain.

Monday5thMay

Iwent to theClinic for the first time.One really does see themost gruesomecasesbutwhenoneisreallyfacetofacewiththemtheyneverseemashorribleasonewouldhaveimagined…Theyareallsopatheticallygrateful.Theytreatcasesthatreallynoonewhoisnotcompletelyqualifiedoughttotouch,butoneiswillingtotaketheriskwhenoneknowsthatthereisalmostnohopeofgettinganyotherhelp.Isawmyfirstcaseofsmallpoxonababywhowasbroughtin.

ViceregalLodge,Simla,inthefoothillsoftheHimalayas.

Tuesday6thMayAfter lunchweall left forSimla, flying toAmbala(ahorriblebumpy trip)andthenfourhoursupthemountainstoSimlawhichisabout7,000feetup.Viceregal Lodge is a sort of Scottish baronial manor or castle spoilt bythousands of little additions like statues and stone doves, but really quitecomfortableandwelldone-upwithsomelovelystaterooms.

My mother wrote in her diary, ‘House hideous. Bogus English Baronial.Hollywood’sideaofViceRegalLodge.’Ihadnoideawhatitwouldlooklike.Itwas very large, albeit dwarfed by Viceroy’s House in Delhi. The décor wasreally rich. The rooms weren’t as large and as lavish as those at Viceroy’sHouse.Ofcourseitwasnotcosy.Butitwasbeautifulandhadlovelylawns.Andyoucouldplaycroquetand thestrange things thatweneveractuallyfoundwehadtimetodo.WesawmuchmoreoftheBritishcolonythanonewouldhavedoneinDelhibecauselotsofthemhadretiredupthere,ortheywerethewivesandfamilieswhohadescapedtheheat.

Butitwaslovelytobethere.Youdroveupthroughthemountains.Half-wayup,theairbeginstogetfresh,andbythetimeyou’rerightupat7,000feet,it’smarvellouslycool.Andlifeistransformed.Anotherthingmymotherverymuchdisapprovedofwas,ofcourse,theVice

Regalrickshaws.Theyhaduniformedrunners,andmymothercouldnotbearthethought of riding in a vehicle that was pulled by human beings. She wasmortified.Ithinkwehadoneridewithherbeforeshesaidshewasnevergettinginto ‘that thing again’. Of course this came as a great disappointment to therickshawcoolies!

Wednesday7thMayTheairhereiswonderfulandonereallydoesfeelsoenergeticandwell.Thesceneryisquitelovely…Wewentforawalkthroughthewoods.Itisalrightgoingdownbutoneforgetsthatonehasgottocomeupagainandthepathsarereallyterriblysteep.We all got terribly sunburned since although it is quite cold compared withDelhithemountainsunisverystrong.

ThenPanditjiarrivedtostay–Ididn’tknowhimwellatthatstage.Hehadbeeninvitedasafriendbutafteracoupleofdaysmyfatherbegansoul-searchinganddecided to showNehru theMountbatten Plan to get his feedback.Nehruwasincandescent andkeptKrishnaMenonupuntildawn thenight thathearrived,dictatingthe‘bombshell’letterdatedthe11thMaytomyfather,whichrejectedmanypointsoftheplanwhichhesawasthe‘Balkanisation’ofhiscountry.MyfatherrethoughtandwiththeincredibleandbrilliantV.P.Menon,redraftedthewhole plan and resubmitted it to London – much to the Indian Office andAttlee’sconfusionandperturbation.

Thursday8thMayPanditNehruarrivedtostayforafewdays.WehadlunchinthegardenalonewithMrNehru…EveningalonewithPanditNehru.

Friday9thMayWewalkedand talked in thegardenwithPanditji.Lateronwe joinedupwithMummyandDaddyandpartyandhadteaatMashobra.Thehousetherereallyisadorableandtheobviousplacetostayifonewasupforaholiday.Howeveritcertainlyis‘TheRetreat’andcanonlybereachedonfoot.Thefamousorchardsaremostimpressive.

Saturday10thMayKrishnaMenonarrivedtostay.

WithmyparentsandMizzenontheTerrace.

Sunday11thMayYesterdayeveningPanditjigaveusademonstrationofstandingonhishead,aperformancehegoes through forabout tenminuteseverymorningandduringwhichthemajorproblemsofIndiaaresolved!Actuallyhereallyismarvellouslyfitandhadthethreeofusdownonthefloordoingthemostextraordinaryyogiexercises.IhadalongtalkwithKrishnaMenon,aboutthemostcynicalpersonI’vemetsofar but very interesting. They are all very frank in theway of never agreeingcasuallyforthemistakensakeofmannersbutcatchoneupatonce,somethingwhichtakessomegettingusedto.[Withhindsight,thisisperhapsnotsurprisingifhehadbeenupallnightprevouslywithPanditji!]Panditjileft.

Monday12thMay

KrishnaMenonleft.

Tuesday13thMayWe returned in the Viceregal rickshaws. The pace and distance they run isfantastic,butitwasreallyevenmoreawfulandtrulydegrading(especiallyforthepassenger)thanIhadevenimagined.

BacktoDelhi

Wednesday14thMayWe came back to Delhi, where of course, one now feels the heat far worsehavingspentsometimeinthehills.Theheatintheshadeisnowabout113°andin thesunanythingup150°.This is the first time Ihaveeverreallybeen inatemperatureover100°,but I think thatprobablyby thenone isalreadysohotthathowevermuch itmight riseonecouldnot really feelmuchhotter! It isatnightthatitisunpleasant,though,verydifficulttosleepin.I went as usual in the evening to the Canteen where we seem to drink moreourselvesthanweserveout!

Thursday15thMayI went to the Clinic. Its hours get steadily earlier and earlier as the heatincreases,wenowstartat8:00.Itisthesamewithridingwhichnowgenerallystarts at 6:15. It is extraordinarywhat one can pick up in necessity and howquickly, as one just doesn’t have time to stop and really think of what one isdoingassomanypatientscomenow.MummyspentthedaytouringMulthanasaresultofherfailuretogettherelasttime.It hasnowbeendecided thatDaddy is returning toLondon for twoweeks fortalks. [about the subsequent and last-minute changes to theMountbatten plan]Mummyisgoingtoo.Theyaretoleaveattheendoftheweek.

HindustaniLessonsandtheCaravanofIndia

IstartedmyHindustanilessonswiththefreshoptimismofakeeneighteen-year-old,itisonlyinlaterdiaryentriesthatmyfrustrationbeginstoshow.ItwasalsoatthistimethatIfirstbecameinvolvedwiththeCaravanofIndia.

Friday16thMayYesterday evening I had my first lesson in Hindustani. It is fun learning andreallyessentialtobeabletospeakit,asotherwiseoneisterriblyoutofcontact,

butasit takesaboutayeartolearnImightjustaboutbeabletospeakbythetimeweleaveforhome!AmancametoseemeaboutafunfairandbazaarIhavebeenaskedtoopen.Itis for a society called the Caravan of India, a branch of an internationalAmerican-founded, non-religious, non-political youth organisation concernedwithwelfareworkandinternationalpenfriendships.Thethoughtofmakingmyfirstspeechhasruinedthewholeweek.MrJinnah,FatimaandtheLiaquatsallcametodinner.

Saturday17thMayIwentwithMummytoseeallthequartersontheEstate,boththeclerks’houseswhich are quite nice, and the servants’ quarters in the compoundswhich areterrible.Itwasthefirst timeaVicereinehadbeentoseethem,andabouttimetoo, although there is so little one can do in the short time left and somuchneeds doing.When one thinks that theywere built only twenty years ago it isterrifyingthattheyaresoappalling.Althoughofcoursetheyarefarbetterthantheaveragequarters.

Sunday18thMayI went to see Mummy and Daddy off. Sir John Colville, the Acting Viceroy,arrivedyesterdaywithLadyColville.The house really is just like an hotel since except for occasional meals andpartiesor sometimes swimmingor riding,onenevermeetseachotheratall. Iopenedthefamousbazaarinanabsolutecoldsweatandforgotlargechunksofthe speechwhich Ihadwrittenand learnt,but luckilynoonerealisedand theactualfairwasterrificfun.

My first speech opening the fun fair of the Caravan of India Club washorrifying. Iwrote itmyself and said something as deep as ‘I pronounce youopen’orsomesuchthing.WhenIcamebacktoEngland,IfoundofcoursethattheBritisharmofthisinternationalorganisationalldescendedonmeandIgotout of it because itwasn’t really the same thing at home.But in India, itwasreally the only youth organisation. Dear Ghulam Naqshband was alwaysapproachingmetodothings,hewastobecomethebaneofmylife.

Cuttingthetapetoopenthefunfair.

Tuesday20thMayIhadanotherHindustani lessonandafteraquiet lunchwith theirExes, spenttheafternoonreadingandwriting.ItreallyisterriblyhotatnightnowandsoIhave taken tosleeping inMummy’sroomas it isproperlyair-conditioned.Onher return I will have a camp bed in her sitting room as that is also air-conditioned.Itisatnightthattheheatreallybothers.

Thursday22ndMayIwenttotheClinic.PickinguptherequiredphrasesofHindustaniisquiteeasybutunfortunatelytheyalwaysseemtoproducelongandvolubleanswerswhichismostawkward!IgatherfromthepapersthatMummyandDaddyaregettingalongalrightandeverythingseemstobegoingquitesmoothlywhichisarelief.[WegotboththeIndiannationalpressandtheoverseaseditionsoftheBritishpress.]

Tuesday27thMayI had one of the ‘three times a week’ Hindustani lessons. The teacher getsterribly enthusiasticand stays forhoursandhours. It isquite funand Ibadlywanttolearnbut itgetsmoreandmorehopelessandmuddlingat themomentandIfeelIshallsoondrivebothpoorMrLalandmyselftodrink!IwentwiththeColvillestoapartygivenbyPanditjiandtheExternalAffairs.

Wednesday28thMayPanditjihassentmehisGlimpsesofWorldHistoryand thebookof lettershewroteforIndira,togetherwithaverysweetnote.Itwasextremelykindofhimtotroubleastheyarealmostunobtainablenowandsoveryexcitinghavingthem.

Thursday29thMayIwenttotheClinicwhereeverythingwasasbusyandhecticasusual.

Friday30thMayOfcourse,aswithallMountbattendeparturesorarrivals, thisoneupseteverymadeplanand threweveryone intocomplete turmoil.First itwas tobe today,then tomorrow, now today only at 9:30am instead of 6:00. But that soonchanged to10:30as thepilotwent sick, thenhegotbetterand itwasbackat8:00.ThenthreatenedsandstormsstalledplansforlandingatAmbalaorAgra.They finally turned up at Palam at 10:20 but having sent signals to put theBurma Star Party of 2,000 ahead by one day, and as all the invitationswere

already out chaos was renewed. It was great fun hearing all their news andaboutPatriciaandJuniorwhosoundflourishing.

Saturday31stMayIwenttotheCanteen,whichisusualonaSaturday.WewenttoareceptiongivenbytheChineseAmbassador,thefirstofficialpartytobegivenbyanEmbassyinIndia.WentontoafarewellcocktailpartygivenbytheScotsFusiliers,whoofcourse,havenowjustreceivedorderstostayon!

Myparentsinarelaxedmomentbeforegoingriding.

TheMountbattenPlan:

June1947

Junewas characterised by a galvanisation of effort on the part of the InterimGovernment after the announcement of theMountbattenPlanon4th June andthedate for theTransferofPoweron15thAugust.Butwhereasat first itwasexpectedthatallwouldbeamicableoverpartition,relationsgraduallyworsenedbetweenCongressandtheMuslimLeaguethroughoutthemonth,andindeedinthe months leading up to partition. Daddy settled down to a regime oforganisationandspeed,MummythrewherselfintomakingsurethattheIndianmedical and social welfare organisations would be ready for the exit of theBritish.Themonthbeganwithmyfather’sreturnfromLondonwheretheyhadapproved all the amendments to the plan and both Attlee’s Cabinet andWinston’sOppositionhadagreedtopushlegislationthroughassoonaspossible.This allowed my father to return to India victorious and able to press aheadurgentlywiththemovesthatwouldleadtoDominionStatusforbothIndiaandPakistan.ThefirstthingthatwasneededwastomeetandgettheIndianleaders’agreement (ofcoursehealreadyhad that fromNehru), andsecondly itneededannouncingtothecountryandthewiderworld.

Sunday1stJuneDaddycamehome[fromLondon]withthenewsthatatlastallseemssettled.PhilipandLilibet[PrincessElizabeth]soonwillnotbeabletodenytherumoursaboutthemorignorethe‘DailyMirror’polls!

Monday2ndJuneThe talks with the Indian leaders went on all morning so that one wascontinually bumping into them round corners and there were crowds ofpressmen and photographers outside. However, they soon marched out inprotestastheycouldlearnnothing.Everyoneisgoingroundwithrathersetandglazed expressions as all the usual last minute dramas occur and there havebeen several instances when the entire plan was nearly wrecked by variouspeople.

On3rdJunemyfathercalledameetingwiththeIndianleaderstodiscusstheways that twoDominionswithin theCommonwealth couldbe accommodated.Heaskedfortheiragreementbymidnight.OnlyJinnahnearlystymiedtheplan,sayingthathewouldneedtogettheagreementoftheMuslimLeague.MyfatherpersuadedJinnahthatifhecouldn’tgivehisverbalagreementatthemeetingthenextday,myfatherwouldatleastgetanodoftheheadfromhimtosignalthathewouldnotrocktheplan.

3rdJune:MyfatherbroadcastingacceptanceofthePlanoverAllIndiaRadio.

Tuesday3rdJuneThis morning part of the plan, which is at the moment dead secret and onlyknown to the actual leaders, appeared word for word in the newspapers.Leakagesseemalmostimmediateandcompletelyuncontrollable.Intheeveningthe announcement was broadcast simultaneously in London and Delhi. FirstDaddy spoke, an explanation of the course of events and an appeal for co-operation,thentheannouncementwasreadoftheplanforDominionStatusbyAugust for two self-governing authorities of Pakistan and Hindustan, thepossible partition of the Punjab and Bengal and the reason for the failure tomakeaunified Indiapossibleowing tocompletedisagreement.FinallyNehru,Jinnah and Baldev Singh (for the Sikhs) and then an entire repetition inHindustani.

Aftergettingtheleaders’agreement(andJinnah’snod)onthe4thJune,therewasabigpressconferenceatwhichmyfatherspokeeloquentlywithoutnotes.Myfather’sattitudebythe3rd/4thJunewasthatPartitionwasanabsurdideabutinevitable as the Indians wanted independence and couldn’t agree. But, he

believedfirmly,theymustbetheonestomakeitwork.The 4th June happened to fall on Gandhiji’s day of silence. Although his

approvaloftheplanwasnotnecessarytoputitintoeffect,myfatherknewthatifGandhipreachedagainstitthentherecouldbeappallingcivilunrest.Luckilyhis subsequent interview with Gandhi went well and he sadly accepted theinevitabilityofPartition.

3rdJune:ThesevenleadersaccepttheTransferofPowerPlanintheViceroy’sstudy.Clockwise:Mishtar,BaldevSingh,Kripalani,Patel,Nehru,myfather,JinnahandLiaquat.

Wednesday4thJuneDaddygaveanenormouspressconferencetoovertwohundred,thefirst tobegiven by aViceroy. It reallywas a tremendous success, although at first theywereallrathersuspiciousandpuzzledby theobviously friendlyattitudeof theproceedings.

‘Ifbothofus–HinduandMuslim–cannotagreeonanythingelse[asidefrompartition]thentheViceroyisleftwithnochoice.’Gandhiprayermeeting4thJune1947

Myfatherwrotetomysisterafewdayslateron11thJunethatthe2nd/3rdJunehadbeentheworsttwenty-fourhoursofhislife.

Thursday5thJuneIwenttotheClinicandspentthreeandahalfhectichourstryingtodealwithanunendingstreamofpatientsinthemostappallingheat,althoughofcourseone

feelsitfarlessifonereallyistoobusytohavetimetothinkaboutit.Onedoctorisawayandtheothertwoaresicksoitwasallratherdesperate.ImanagedtogetholdofoneofAndyTaylor’s[SurgeontotheViceroy]assistantstocopebuthewon’tbeabletocomeforlongastheyareverybusyattheViceregalClinictoo.

Friday6thJuneTheHindustaniteachercameagain.AlthoughIhavebeenassuredthecontrary,it certainly seems just as complicated asmost other languages, the only thingbeing that the majority of the people don’t speak it in any way correctlythemselves.

Saturday7thJuneMummyandIwenttolookatoneofthebasementroomswhichmightbesuitablefortherecreationhallwearetryingtostartforallthedomesticstaff.IwenttotheCanteenasusual.

Tuesday10thJuneIwentwithMummy toa small blind school just outsideTughlukkhabad.Theyhad nice light buildings and the pupils, as with most blind people with theirsensitivefingers,weredoingthemostbeautifulspinningandweaving.IhadanUrdulesson!

Wednesday11thJuneMr Naqshbahd came to discuss the Caravan of India and youth activities ingeneralwithme.

Thursday12thJuneIspentthemorningattheClinic.TherewasabigdinnerpartytocelebratetheKing’sbirthdayandatwhichweallgotextremelyhotandverybored.Wewouldhavechosenthehottestsummerthattheyhavehadouthereforoverseventy-fiveyearsinwhichtocomeout!

Meanwhile there was a group of people who were not involved in thediscussions about the transfer of power – namely the Princes,many ofwhomwerefriendsthatmyfatherhadbeenintroducedtoin1921onhistripasADCtothe Prince ofWales. My father’s intention was that the Princes would eitheraccede to India or to Pakistan in return for amodicum of independence. The

wolves got to them in the end but he did at least secure them a few years ofprotectionandindependence.Theplanwasnotmeeting impassibleresistanceamongtheranksofPrinces,

with the exception of Kashmir (which had a Hindu ruler but was mainly aMuslimstate)andHyderabad(whichhadaMuslimrulerbutwasmainlyHindu).NehrubeingaKashmiriwas intentontravellingtoKashmirhimself tosee theMaharaja,butmyfatherrealisedthedangersinherentinthatplanandluckilywecouldtakeupalong-standinginvitationtovisitthePrinceourselves.TherewasthereforeapoliticalexpedienttoourtriptoKashmir–toconvincetheMaharajatoaccepttheplan–andsaveNehruhumiliation.InalettertoMaryIwrote:‘[wespent]fivewonderfuldaysinKashmir.Itis

justas lovelyasit isalwaysdescribed,hillsandlakesandgorgeouscolouring.WesawthefamousShalimarGardens(andwereremindedofthePaleHandsILovedpoem)andwerestayinginSrinagarontheDalLake,butwewereactuallystayinginthePalacesoeverythingwasratherorganisedandweweren’tabletowanderabout.However,Isawmyfirstblackbearwhichwasexciting.’

Friday13thJuneWearegoingup toSimla fora fewdaysbeforegoingon toKashmirwhich islovely.Weleftatlunchtimeandconsequentlynearlydiedofheatattheairport.We are a very small party and are going to have only a few people tomealswhichwillbenice.PetercameupwithusforaholidayasheleavesforEnglandquitesoonnow.Wehadaverynicedriveupintheopencar.

Saturday14thJuneI went into the town with Freddie [Captain Burnaby-Atkins, ADC] and haddrinks and iceswith theHoppers [some youngAmerican friends].We had totake rickshaws back since, as usual,wewere terribly late for lunch andminenearly ran down poor old Doctor Loh [who later became the First ChineseAmbassadortoIndia].Wegotoutandrescuedhimandhewasdelightedtoseeusandhewasquitebyhimself.

Sunday15thJuneMummyandI tookDrLoh toMashobra.Asaresultof theexpeditionheverysweetlysentmeabookforwhathecalled‘lightsummerreading’butasitwasconversationsbetweenGoetheandEkermannIwasnotsurethatIagreed.

SACSEA/Viceregal‘YorkMW102’.

Monday16thJuneDaddy andPeter had to leavewhichwas a great pity, butMummy and I arestayingonfortwomoredaysandheispickingusuponthewaytoKashmir.

Tuesday17thJuneOneofthenewladyclerks,acharminggirlcalledMissFellowes,suddenlyfellillaftershehadonlybeenhereafewdays.TherewasanextraordinarystoryinwhichsheappearstohavebeentakenbytheWVS[Women’sVoluntaryService]toasolely Indianhospitalwhereshesubsequentlycouldnotbe found.FinallytracedbySusanChance[LordIsmay’seldestdaughter],shehadtobetakeninanopen truck, screaminganddelirious through thestreetsofOldDelhi.Andyhasbeendoingeverythingpossibleever sinceand shewas recovering slightlywhenweheardtodaythatshehaddied.Itreallyistootragic,especiallyforthefamilywhowereontheirwayout.

Wednesday18thJuneWeleftat five in themorningandmotoreddowntoAmbalawhereDaddyandtheYorkpickedusupandflewontoKashmir.They have an extremely tricky airfield there and one has to fly through themountain passes, with some peaks 26,000 feet high, and then down into the

valley.However,we landedquitesafely justbefore lunchandweremetby theMaharaja.

WedrovewiththeMaharajatoGulabMahalandmettheMaharaniTeraDeviandtheYuvraj,theirson,theCrownPrince.Hewentontobecomeveryfamous.HewasknownasTigerandhelaterbecameaministerintheIndiangovernment,and theGovernor ofKashmir. ‘Tiger ofKashmir’was a remarkableman.HemarriedabeautifulNepaleseprincesswhowasveryusefulandhelpfultoo.Butatthispointhewasonlysixteen.WehadlunchatShalimarGardensthenwentontoNishart,whichwasevenmorelovelywithwonderfulfountains.

Thursday19thJuneSpentalldayatthetroutstreamatThricker.TheMaharani and the boy, Tiger, did not come. The latter is extremely nice,sixteenyearsold,butveryillwithanunknownboneformationthatmakeshimwalk painfully. Daddy is trying to persuade them to send him to a Londonspecialist.

Friday20thJuneTheMaharanihasbeenoutofpurdaforsometimebutisveryshyalthoughverysweet.Shedoesagreatdealforthepeopleandispopular.However,itisreallyjust like living in the times of Henry VIII, the entire thing centres round theruler, to all outward appearances, and the nervous tension of such anenvironment is quite awful.However, he has arranged everything forMummyandDaddypainstakinglyanddowntothelastdetailandisextremelyhospitable.Wewent toDrapahama, themost lovelywildvalley surroundedby forest-cladhills. I sawmy firstblackbearwhichwas thrilling.Daddywentvainlyafter itandmadeusallappallinglylateforabigdinner.

WewerekeptbusythroughoutourstayandatnopointdidtheMaharajaallowfor a conversationwithmy father about ‘accedence’.My parentswere drivenmadbythis.

19thJune:MyparentsinKashmir.

TheShalimarGardens.

21stJune:IntheMaharajah’sboatontheLakeatSrinagar.

Saturday22ndJuneThepalaceisontheDallakesoyesterdaywentoutinHH’sshikara.Therowerschant and shout out to each other and call out the various strokes whichincluded the Lord Sahib, the Lady Sahib and the Miss Sahib and which arecaricaturesofthepeopleconcerned.WefishedatNambalbeyondThricker.HH didn’t come, said he’s suffering from colic [which we gathered was a

diplomatic illness.Thewholepurposeof thevisithadbeentopersuadehimtomakeuphismindtojoineitherPakistanorHindustan–hisvacillationprovedtobeaprecursortothewholeKashmirproblem.]AfterdinnertheMaharanishowedusherjewellery–astonishing.Daddyupsetboth thedinnerpartiesbyunknowingly leaningagainst thebellat tablewhichrangsolidlyfortenminutesandruinedtheband’sperformance.

Myfather’sfrustrationanddisappointmentatnotgettingtheMaharajatomakeadecisionhasbeenvindicatedovertheyearsbytheongoingterritorialdisputesintheregion.

Monday23rdJuneWeflewbacktoDelhi,ittookaboutthreeandahalfhours,ofwhichthelast45minutesterrible.Verysickandcompletelyoutonarrival.Togetherwiththat,thevarioussuddenchangesofaltitudeandtemperaturewehavehad,aslighttouch

of fever. I had to retire to bed feeling very ill. Monty [Field-MarshalMontgomeryofAlamein]arrivedjustpassingthroughonhiswaytoAustralia.

Tuesday24thJunePeterMurphy left thismorning for his journey home on an oiler, the story ofwhichwewilldoubtlessneverbeallowedtoforget.DaddyhadaspecialbadgemadefortheKitmagarbehindMonty’schairchairthatinsteadofMofBsaidMofA.Montywasextremelypleased.

Wednesday25thJuneStaff investitureincludingknighthoodforGeorgeAbell.Wehadall thestaff todinner,thereweremorethan40,almosthalfofthemgirls.Saturday28thJuneMrKearneytheCanadianHighCommissionerandvariousmillionairescametolunch.

200caseseverymorning:howeverthedoctorskeeponcomingandgoingwithcontinual changing about, it upsets everything and would be far moresatisfactoryifonlywecouldgetapermanentdoctor.

At theclinic thecaseswewerebeginning to seeweremostlywounds–manycausedbySikhkirpans,ratherthandisease.

Monday30thJuneIwenttotheClinicinthemorning.InowactasakindoftaxiservicepickingupanddroppingaMrsAnnandandthewifeoftheear,noseandthroatspecialistwho have both started working there. We are getting quite a number of newhelperswhichisluckyaswenowhavetodealwithupto

The next problem to rear its head was that of splitting the army. At first itseemed that it could be accepted thatMuslims andHinduswould continue tofight together but thatwas toprove toooptimistic, aswasmy father’s ideaofmeetingtherisingtensionsintheProvinceswithforce.Theydidn’tknowit,butthey were entering a most incendiary and harrowing phase as the ProvincialAssembliesofBengaland thePunjabhadvoted forPartition.My fatherneverdoubtedthatPartitionwasaprescriptionfordisaster.Itwas acceptable only because no alternativewas available, but he and the

Indian leaders had underestimated the hatred that would lead to the tit-for-tatkillingsandhowquickly theSikhswouldbearoused toviolence.Furthermorehisstaffwereill:

Miévillehadthrombosis;Ismaydysentery;Brockmanwasalsoinvalidedandmyfatherdescribedhimselfaslooking‘haggard’.

RisingTensions:

July1947

Themonth began badly as my father had expected to become the Governor-GeneralofbothIndiaandPakistan,butonthe1stJulyJinnahputpaidtothoseplansbyannouncingthathewouldbecomeG-GofPakistan.Thisleftmyfathertodecidewhether toaccept theoffer tobecomeG-GofIndiaandthereforegoagainsteverynon-partisanplanhehadstood for inhis tenure. Indeedhis lateracceptance of the governor-generalship of India did tarnish his impartialreputation and kindled persistent rumours that hewas anti-MuslimLeague.Aletter to Patricia dated 5th July signalled just how depressed hewaswith thesituation:‘Ihaveboobed’,hewrotemournfully.Itwastheonlytimeheadmittedit.

Gandhi’slettersenttomymotheron18thJuly1947.

Mymother(andperhapsStaffordCripps)wastheonlypersontobegmyfathertoleaveIndiaafter15thAugust.Everyoneelseadvisedhim–orinthecaseofCongressbeggedhim–tostay.On7thJulyIsmayandCampbellJohnsonflewtoLondontoseetheCabinetandgettheiradvice.ItwasdebatedintheCabinetandtheyagreedheshouldstayon–asdidChurchillandtheKing.Back in India, the constant brawling between Congress and the Muslim

LeaguemeantthattwoCabinetshadtobesetup.MyfatherwasatthehelmasChairman, but he was very keen not to be called to arbitrate – again he wascertainthatIndiaandPakistanneededtolearntocopewiththeirownproblems.

Tuesday1stJulyI went off round the Bodyguard lines with Mummy and Daddy early in themorning…DaddygavethemashorttalkinHindustanihavinglearntitupinthebathaloudfordayspast!Theyreallyareremarkablyfinemenbutslightlyshadycharacters. The other day one came up to Paddy, the Commandant, with therequest thathewould‘granthimasmall favour’andsaythathehadreturnedfrom leave one day earlier than in actual fact. He was hotly followed by thepolice demanding his arrest formurder!However, it is quite possible that hewasframed.

The learned speech was typical of my father who would want to touchsomethingintheheartsoftherankandfile.

Wednesday2ndJulyYesterday theAmericanAmbassadorcame topresenthiscredentialsandhavelunchwithus.IhadaHindustanilessonandwenttotheCanteen.

Thursday3rdJulyIspentmostofthemorningattheClinic.PanditjicametolunchwithMrsPandit.ShehasbeenappointedAmbassadortoRussiaandwillbeleavingsoon.SheistakingLekhawithherwhichshouldbefascinating forherassomuch isdiscussedaboutRussiaandso little is reallyknown.Daddy has had a calendar distributed to most offices saying ‘ …days left totransferofpower’,soastoimpressituponthevariousgovernmentdepartments,as it ishorrifyinghowquickly timepassesand15thAugust isnot very faroffnowincomparisonwithwhatremainstobedone.

Saturday5thJulyI went to the Canteen as usual leaving Mummy to go off and have tea withGandhijiatBanghiColony![CertainlyafirstforaVicereine.]

Thefamouscalendarshowingthenumberofdaysuntilthetransferofpower.

TheofficersoftheBodyguardwithmyfather,ColonelCurrie,theMilitarySecretaryandmyselfastheirWelfareOfficer.

Withtensionrising,thePunjabBoundaryforcewasputinplaceunderMajor-General Pete Rees (made mostly of non-partisan Ghurkas). At this time theMuslim League suggested strongly that it should be the UN that divided thePunjab and Bengal but Nehru would not agree. On the 8th July Sir CyrilRadcliffe arrived in India fromLondon to prepare the boundaries between thetwodominions.Hewasfamedforhisprobity.HehadneverbeentoIndiabefore(somethingwhichwould ensure his impartiality, it was reasoned).He did notstaywith us but in another house on theEstate so thatmy fatherwas seen tohavenoinfluenceoveranyofhisdecisions.

Wednesday9thJulyTheStaffhavegivenDaddyandmeababymongoose. It isquiteadorablebutsmells tohighheaven.It isonlyaboutsix inches longandthreeweeksoldbuttheyaresaid togrowabout twofeetwithanother foot for the tailandbecomequitetame.KrishnaMenonhasbeenappointedHighCommissionerfortheUKandsowill

beleavingattheendoftheweek.IwenttotheCanteen.

Gandhiji’sPrayerMeeting

Thursday10thJulyTheannouncementofPhilipandLilibet’sengagementhasbeenmadeandhasreceivedaveryenthusiasticandsweetwelcome.In the evening Krishna [Menon] took me to Gandhiji’s prayer meeting. Wecalled on him first in his little quarter in Banghi Colony, a very small butbeautifully kept room. He wanted to know all about the ‘happy event’ whichturned out to be the engagement. (He showed me his three wise monkeys inivory.Oneoftheveryfewpossessionshestillkeeps).The[prayer]meetingwasfascinating.A large crowd, as always, and a remarkable atmosphere. A verse from theKoran (it is a universal prayer meeting) and an Arabic hymn chanted, twominutes silence and the usual fortyminute discourse. The awe inwhich he isheldandthepowerofhispersonalityarequiteextraordinary.

ThewholemeetingofcoursewasinHindiandIcouldnotunderstandaword,butyoulookedat thecrowdandsawnotonepersonfidgeting.Everybodywasabsolutelysilentinraptattention.MymotherhadbeentoteawithGandhijiatBanghiColonybeforeofcourse,

butitwasconsideredinappropriateformyparentstoactuallyattendoneoftheprayermeetingsasitmighthavebeenthoughtthattheyweresupportingoneoftheHinduleadersandcouldhavebeencriticisedbytheMuslimLeague.I,ontheotherhand,wasnotanimportantenoughfigureforittomatter.IwenttothemeetingwithKrishnaMenon(whohadbeenwithGandhijifora

longtimeandofcoursehadbeenamemberoftheLondonCountyCouncil).Wedrove in one of the Viceregal cars, picked up Krishna, then went to BanghiColony where we walked across to see Gandhi’s quarters. It was near thesweepers’colony,thepoorestcolonytherewas.HavingmetGandhijithere,wewalkedoutontotheplatformwithhim.Itcannothavebeenmorethanahundredyardsfromhisroom.Peoplewerealreadysitting,keepingtheirplacessoastobeabletolistentohim–ifyougotupandleftyourplaceofcourseyoulostitatonce.Therewerethousandsofpeopletherebutitwasverycalm.Gandhijicametohaveanumberoftalkswithmyfather.Ononeoccasionhe

remarkedthatViceroy’sHouse,whichhereferredtoasapalace,wouldhaveto

beturnedintoamuseumorcollegeafterwehadgone.Itwasfartoobigforonemantolivein.Myfatherreplied,‘Gandhiji,IndiawillbethelargestdemocracyinAsia.Theeyesoftheworldwillbeuponher.TheHeadsofStatewillcometovisit and youwill need to entertain them and to impress them. Themanwholivesinthishousewillnotbeaprivateperson,hewillberepresentingIndia,andheshouldliveaccordingly.’It was not long before Gandhiji returnedwith another anxiety. He toldmy

father that hewasworried that once they assumed power theministerswouldbecomearrogant.Hewasplanningawaytoensurethattheyremainedhumble.Gandhijisaidthathekeptaspinningwheelandspuneveryday.Hefeltthattheministers should devote one day a week to gardening and housework. ‘ButGandhiji,’myfatherreplied,‘theywillscarcelyhavetimetocompletetheworkontheirportfolios.Theywillneverhavetimeforhouseworkandhoovering.’

Saturday12thJulyWewentridingontheRidge.Whenwewerealmosthome,MummyandDaddycontinuedonahead.Stillratherunsafeinthesidesaddle,IpulledtheAceuptogoslowerandhe,bothimpatientandstillunusedtothesaddle,startedbucking.UnconsciouslyactingasImighthavedoneastride,Islippedmyfootoutofthestirrupandeventuallyhittheground.Itisquiteafallasonegoesrightupandovertheotherside.Iwasknockedoutandtakenhomebruisedandconcussed.

Sunday13thJulyEveryonehasbeenverysweetandsentcountlessmessages,includinganenquiryfromGandhijiafterhis‘naughtyfriend’asthoughIhadwantedtofalloff!AnditwasevenreportedinTheStatesmanandtheEnglishpaperswhichsoundsasthoughIslippedoff,verymortifying,theymightatleasthavesaid‘thrownfromhorse’.Myheadachehasalmostgone.

Friday18thJulyMummyandDaddy’s silverwedding. Some lovelypresentsandcountless verytouchingmessages… In the evening theygaveadinnerparty foronehundredguestswhichwasuniqueinthatallthemembersoftheCabinetcameaswellasMembersofCongress,theMuslimLeagueandMinoritiesaccompaniedbytheirladiesandvariousrulingPrincesofthemostdiverseviews.

Myparentswereextremelytiredbythistimeandthereweremanyarguments.However, they were too accomplished at their jobs to let it show publicly.AmericandiplomatGeorgeMerrill and theGovernor of theUnitedProvinces,SirFrancisWyliedecidedoneeveningwhentheywerewatchingmyparentsatapartyfortheiranniversary,that‘inallhistorynorevolutionhadperhapsbeenputthroughwith somuchgrace.’ Itwasa testament to their consummate skillsofshowmanshipandtheirrespectforeachother.

18thJuly:Myparentsontheirsilverweddinganniversary.

20thJuly:MyparentsinspectingriotdevastationinLahoreinthePunjab.

MotherandfatherwithSirEvanJenkins.

Sunday20thJulyMy parents flew to Lahore to see Sir Evan Jenkins and inspect the riotdevastationthere.

A letter arrived fromAttlee dated 17th July: ‘My dear Dickie. I have readyour last report with very great interest. You are managing to jump a lot ofawkwardhurdles.OurdebateontheBillwentverywell,theoppositionplayedupwell andhelped toget it through…Iwasglad that somanywelldeservedtributeswere paid to you by everybodywho spoke. I know too that it iswellrecognisedthatEdwinahasplayedagreatpartincreatingthenewatmosphere.

We are all very grateful to you for carrying on for this next stage. I am veryconsciousthatIputyouintobatonaverystickywickettopullthegameoutofthefire.Fewpeoplewouldhavetakenitonandfew,ifanycouldhavepulledthegameroundasyouhave…’

nextimage:ThelettertomyfatherfromPrimeMinisterAttlee.

TheChamberofPrinces

‘ThePrincesaredividedanduncertain,baffledbythepaceofevents.’

AlanCampbell-Johnson

At this time there were 565 separate states and provinces ruled over by thefeudalPrinces.HinduCongressdidnotwanttheirindependencetoremainafterpartition as it wouldBalkanise (segregate) India.My father,whowas a close

friendofmanyof thePrincesandwho,asacousinof theKing-Emperor,waswellrespectedbythem,realisedthatnotonlymusttheynotimpedethegreatergoodbyrefusingtoacceptthenewdominions,butthathecouldhelptoprotectthem if they acted while he still had the power of the Viceroy. He thereforedecided topersuade them,or push them if necessary, to accede toPakistanorIndiaonreasonabletermswhichwouldensurethattheyretainedprivilegesand,albeitverylimited,independence.ButitwasaskingalotofthepowerfulPrincestosurrenderthatpowervoluntarily.V.P. Menon, my father’s star aide (who had helped him redraft the

MountbattenPlan inSimla afterNehru’s ‘bombshell’) hadhelped todraft thissolution for the princely states, allowing them to accede to either India or toPakistan,bothofwhich,asDominions,wouldstillhavetheKingasHeadoftheCommonwealth.TheChamberofPrincesassembledon25thJuly,headedbyBaldevSingh,the

leaderoftheSikhswhowasaverysplendidlookingman,verycourageousandwhospokeverywell.TheleadersincludedBhopal(theMuslimrulerofaHinduState), who agreed to accede. He was an old friend of my father, but theargumentsoverpartitionruinedtheirfriendship.AlsopresentweretheMaharajaofJodhpur(whotheatricallybrandishedarevolverinafountainpenatmyfather–bothheandmy fatherwere in theMagicCircleand thepen isnow in theirmuseum);and theNizamofHyderabad (theMuslim leaderofamainlyHindustate), India’s largest state– the sizeofFrance–with16millionpeople,whovacillatedinhisdecisiontoaccedeuntilthelastmomentin1948.

25thJuly:MyfatheraddressingtheChamberofPrinces.

My father appeared at the conference resplendent in full uniform anddecorations. During his speech, which was delivered with great sincerity andpassion,hespokewithoutnotesandwas,inthewordsofV.P.Menon,thevery‘apogeeofpersuasion’.AlotoflobbyingfollowedbutafterabigPrinces’lunchonthe1stAugusthehadpersuadedmostofthem–withofcoursetheexceptionofKashmir.TherewasanotherdramaticmomentwhenoneofthePrinces’dewans(Chief

Minister)whohadbeensentwithoutabrief,pleadedthathedidn’tknowhowtoanswermyfather’s request toaccede.Myfather thinkingquickly,pickedupaglasspaperweight infrontofhimandheld italoftsaying, ‘Iwill look intomycrystal…’Therewasalengthypausewhileno-onesaidanything.‘HisHighnessasksyoutosigntheinstrumentofaccession,’myfathersaidwithgreatportent.Of course this served to break a lot of the tension that had pervaded theconferenceandbroughtsomewelcomelaughtertotheproceedings,whichwereotherwiseextremelydistressingformostwhoattended.

Friday25thJulyTheJinnahscametodinner.

ItwasatthisdinnerpartythatGeorgeAbellcametotheconclusion,ashetoldAlan Campell-Johnson, that Jinnah’s ‘attitude to the Sikh situation wasperilously unsound’. My mother was also becoming frustrated by him; shevented her feelings in her diary: ‘He has already becomemeglo-maniac… soGodhelpPakistan.’

Saturday26thJulyPanditji,hisdaughterIndiraandherhusbandandMrsPanditcametodine.

WhilediningwiththeMaharajaofGwaliorweadmiredhissilvertrain,whichcircled thedining tabledeliveringport,brandy,cigarschocolates to thedinnerguests. The controlswere in front ofHisHighness, and if a guestwas out offavour they might find that the train sped away before they could helpthemselves.

TheMaharajaofGwalior’ssilvertrainset.

TheTransferofPower:

August1947

The date for the transfer of power came around all too quickly.We had onlybeeninIndiaforalittlelessthanfivemonthsandtheIndiathatwehadknownforthatshorttimewasabouttochangeforever.Ofcourse,atthetime,everyonewasfartoobusytoreflectuponthetruesignificanceofevents.Itwasatimeofexcitement and rawnerves.When the timecame,mydiarypages for the14thand15thofAugustoverflowedandIresortedtofillinginthebackpagesofthebookinordertocaptureasmuchofthemomentouseventsasIcould.

GuardsofHonourandsomedismountedBodyguardbeginningtoformupforCeremonialdeparture.

Myfather’sADC,SayedAhsan,wasaMuslimandthereforewenttoworkforJinnah.Itwasatthistime,whenheandtheMuslimsentriesandpolicestartedtoleave, that I really began to understand what partition would mean for thecommunities.

Saturday9thAugustImmediatelyafterbreakfasttherewasareviewofthegarrisoncompany,andtheViceregal and C-in-C sentries and police, who are all Muslims, and so areleavingforPakistanandwillhavetobereplaced.

Sunday10thAugustPlayed with the mongoose who is very tame now and quite intoxicating andalwaysrunsaboutinmyroomswhenIamthere.It isdevelopingintoratheramenace,asitchewsupeverything.

Monday11thAugust

ItwasaterribledayattheClinic,veryovercrowdedandeveryonehotanddampandextremelycross.TheNetherlandsAmbassador came topresenthis credentialsand therewasalunchpartyforthemallafterwards.Eric[Miéville]wasthereandseemedmuchmorecheerfulalthoughstillfarfromwell.

Tuesday12thAugustI hadaHindustani lesson, but it is verydifficult now that I havedoneall theactual grammar but still do not know enough words to be able to makeconversation.Wedothelessonswithoutbooks,andasthereisnothingelseoneis terribly tempted to lapse into English. As all the servants speak such goodEnglish it is therefore not a case of being able to learn through absol-utenecessity,andthemoreonepractisesthelesstimethereisattheClinic.

9thAugust:GroupwithFieldMarshallAuchinleckandOfficersoftheViceroy’sGarrisonCompanyafterthefarewellparadeinDelhi.

Aletterwrittentomyfatherbyhiscousin,KingGeorgeVI.

Wednesday13thAugustWe all flew to Karachi for the preliminary transfer of power ceremonies. Itseemed so strange to be greeted at the airport by Sayed Ahsan [my father’sformerchiefADC]TheJinnahswereinverygoodformandtheycertainlyhavethemostlovelymodernGovernmentHouse.However,everythingwasofcourserather chaotic and poor Sayed was obviously having to run the whole show.Whenwefirstarrived,thetown,predominantlyHinduinitself,wasflyingmainlyCongressflagsbutthePakistanStarandCrescentwereeventuallysubstituted!TherewasabigdinnerpartyandreceptionanditseemedsoqueermeetingtheScottsandYakubandvariousothermembersofourstaffwhomweknewwellbutwhoofcoursehaveleftus.

Thursday14thAugustWewenttotheCeremonyattheConstituentAssemblyandMummyandDaddydroveback instatewith theJinnahs, inopencars. IdrovewithBegumLiquatandtherewerequite thickcrowdsandcriesof ‘Quaid-e-AzamZinderbad’and‘Mountbatten Zinderbad’. Immediately afterwards we flew back to Delhi inorder to be in time for the ‘MidnightMysteries’! Tomorrowbeing in itself aninauspiciousdaywehavetohavepartoftheceremoniesatmidnight.ThereforePanditji and Rajendra Prasad came after themeeting of the Assembly to askDaddytoacceptthegovernor-generalship.WetoastedtheKing-EmperorforthelasttimeanddranktheViceroyoutandtheGovernor-General in. By midday we said goodbye, Miss Jinnah embracingMummy and Mr Jinnah still emotional, declaring his eternal gratitude andfriendship.

The14thAugustwastheactualdayofindependence.Jinnah’spersonalitywascoldand remotebut ithadamagneticqualityand the senseof leadershipwasalmost overpowering. He made only the most superficial attempt to disguisehimself as a constitutional Governor-General and one of his first acts afterputting his name forward was to apply for the authority to hold immediatedictatorialpowersunknowntoanyconstitutionalGovernor-GeneralrepresentingtheKing.HereindeedwasPakistan’sKing-Emperor,ArchbishopofCanterbury,Speaker and PrimeMinister concentrated into one formidableQuaid-e-Azam.(Jinnahhadveryeffectivelyquashedmyfather’shopesofbecomingGovernor-GeneralofPakistan– inanattempt to retainabalancedposition towardsbothcountries–backinJuly.)Theproceedingswereoverwithinanhourandthenwedroveawayinstate,arrivingbackatGovernmentHouse.Jinnahwasanicyman,butonthisoccasionheshowedemotion.Heleantover

to my father, put his hand on his knee and said with evident feeling, ‘YourExcellency, I’m soglad togetyouback safely.’Therehad supposedlybeenabomb thatwas tobe thrownduring theprocessionaldrive.My father thought,‘Whatdoyoumean?Igotyoubacksafely.’WethenflewbacktoDelhi.BeforetheConstituentAssemblymet,myfather

wassittingathisdeskwaitingforNehruandRajendraPrasadtocometoinvitehimformallytobeGovernor-General.Therewasanhourortwowherenothinghappened.My father suddenlybecameaware that, asViceroyof India,hehadhadenormouspower,butinaboutanhour’stime,asaconstitutionalGovernor-General,hewouldhaveverylittle indeed.Itseemeda terriblewaste to let thispowerslipawaywithoutmakingsomeuseof it.Thenhe remembered thathisdearfriendtheNawabofPalampurhadlongentreatedhimtomakehiswife,the

Begum,a‘Highness’.TheColonialOfficehadalwaysrefusedbecauseshewasAustralianandtheysaiditwasinapplicable–eventhoughshewasenormouslypopular in the state and continued to do wonderful work there. Somy fatherthought,‘Ah,withthelastpowerremainingtomeIshalldrawupaninstrumentand make the Begum of Palampur a Highness.’ And he did so with greatsatisfaction.AfterthemeetingoftheAssembly,wetoastedtheKing-Emperorforthelast

timeanddranktheViceroyoutandtheGovernor-General in.Whentheycamewith the invitation to my father, Nehru also presented him with an imposingenvelope that he said contained the list of the names of the new government.Aftertheyleftmyfatheropenedtheenvelopeandfoundablankpieceofpaper–intherushofeventssomeonehadstuffedinthewrongpieceofpaper.

13thAugust:MyparentsarriveatKarachiandarereceivedbyJinnah’snewADCSayedAhsan,untilrecentlytheViceroy’sNavalADC.

14thAugust:ArrivingattheConstituentAssemblytotransferpowertothenewDominionofPakistan.

Friday15thAugustIndependenceDay.Swearing-inceremonyintheDurbarHall.Daddysworn-inas the first Governor-General of India by the new Chief Justice, Dr Kania,beforehimselfswearing-inthemembersoftheCabinet.DaddyhasbeencreatedanEarl,soMummyisaCountessandIhavethecourtesytitle‘Lady’beforemyChristianname.Lovely!

Theentryinmydiaryforthe15thAugustrunstofourpages(notsurprisingly)and the last two arewritten in tiny handon the blank pages at the end of thebookasitwassoimportantthatIgoteverythingdownforthismostimportantofdays.

Mummyworea longgold lamédressanda littlewreathofgold leavesonherhead.With thegolden thronesandgoldencarpetsand the redvelvet canopiesover the thrones spot-lit itwas very sumptuous.The trumpeters in scarlet andgold had heralded a splendid entrance. At the end of the ceremony the greatbronzedoorswere thrownopenand ‘GodSave theKing’was followedby the

new Indian national anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana’ – and the new Indian flag,which Panditji had described to us, was flying. Then Mummy and Daddy,escortedbytheBodyguard,droveinthestatecarriagedowntotheConstituentAssembly.IwasalreadysittingwiththestaffbutwhenthecarriagearrivedtheCouncilHousewasentirelysurroundedbyaquarterofamillionfrenziedpeoplechanting ‘JaiHind’.With the laughing, cheering crowd already engulfing thecarriage,it lookedasthoughitwouldbeimpossibleforMummyandDaddytomaketheirentrance.Panditjiandothergovernmentleadershadtobesummonedto help calm the crowd and tomake a passage for them.Daddy read out theKing’smessagetothenewDominionofIndia.Andthenhegaveanaddressthatresultedinprolongedcheersbecause,asoneIndiansaid,‘Hisgiftforfriendshiphastriumphedovereverything.’

MyfatherreceivingapurportedlistofthenewCabinet(thepaperturnedouttobeblank!).

Midnight14th/15thAugust:PrimeMinisterNehruandthePresidentoftheAssembly,RajendraPrasad,reporttakingoverpower.

ThenthePresidentof theAssembly,RajendraPrasad,readoutmessages fromother countries, and gave an address in which he said, ‘Let us gratefullyacknowledgethatwhileourachievementisinnosmallmeasureduetoourownsufferingandsacrifices,itisalsotheresultofworldforcesandevents,andlastthoughnot least it is the consummationand fulfilmentof thehistoric traditionanddemocraticideasoftheBritishrace.’HefollowedwithtributestoMummyandDaddy.Aftertheceremonytheycouldnotgetoutofthedoorsforsometimeas thecrowdswerestill so thick.Theyclappedandshouted themselveshoarsewithcriesof‘PanditMountbattenkijai,’‘LadyMountbatten’,‘JaiHind’andallthepopularcriesfortheleaders.Drivingalong,someevenrecognisedmeandshouted‘MountbattenMissSahib’oreven‘MissPamela’andwhentheydidnotknowwhoonewastheycheeredoneforbeing‘Angrezi’.Intheafternoonwewenttoafêtefor5,000children.Itwasterriblyhotand,ofcourse, very, very noisy but the children and their young parentswerewildlyenthusiastic.Ienjoyedhandingoutsweetsbutdidnotenjoythesightofafakirapparentlybitingtheheadoffasnake.

WehadtorushbackfromOldDelhiinordertochangefortheFlagSalutationParadeinPrince’sPark.Theprogrammehadbeenarrangedweeksbeforehand,

grandstands had been built and military parades organised, but no one hadanticipatedtheenthusiasmofthecrowds.MyparentsweretodriveinstateandIwentaheadwithCaptainRonnieBrockman–whohadbeenPersonalSecretarytotheViceroyandwouldnowbePersonalSecretarytotheGovernor-General–his wife and Muriel Watson, my mother’s Personal Assistant, and ElizabethWard,mymother’sPersonalSecretary.TheParade,however,wasnon-existent.The grandstands were buried under a sea of people and the only sign of theparadewasarowofbrightpugarees(turbans)somewhereinthecentre,themenstillstandingatattentionbecausethecrowdwassocloselypackedthattherewasnotroomforthemtostandatease.Therewasnoceremonyatall,butitwastheday of the people of India and farmore impressive than any pageantry couldhavebeen.Wefoughtourwayonfootfromthecars towhatwouldhavebeenthestandshadtheynotbeenburiedunderfivehundredthousandpeople.Therewasnoroomtoputafootdown.Therewasnopossiblespacebetweenpeople.Infact, itwas rainingbabies!Lotsofwomenhadbrought theirbabieswith themandtheywerebeingcrushed,sotheythrewthemupintheairindespairandyoujust sort of caught a baby as it came down.And some people had comewithbicycles.Therewasnoquestionofputting thebicyclesdown: theywerebeingpassedroundandroundoverhead.Panditjicametorescuemeandledmetothetinyplatformthatsurroundedthe

flagstaff.Hegrabbedmebythehand,butIsaid‘Icannotcome.WheredoIputmyfeet?Icannotwalkonpeople.’Hesaid,‘Ofcourseyoucanwalkonpeople.Nobodywillmind.’Ofcourse,nobodymindedhimwalkingonthembutIhadhigh-heeled shoeswhichwouldhurt a lot. Sohe said, ‘Well, take those shoesoff,thennobodywillmind.’Andhewalkedoverhumanbodiesthewholeway,andtheextraordinary thing is thatnobodydidmind.SoI tookmyhigh-heeledshoesoff,andheandIliterallywalkedoverthelaughing,cheeringpeopleseatedontheground.InthiswaywereachedtheplatformwhereIjoinedtinyManibenPatel,Vallabhbhai’s daughter. Panditjimade her andme standwith our backsagainst the flagstaff as he was afraid we might be knocked over in all theexcitement.Thestatecarriagefinallyincheditswayintosighttogetherwithitsown crowd and we and the whole platform were buried under a mass ofshouting,pushing,sweatingpeople,butincrediblygoodtemperedandfriendly.

15thAugust:CeremonyofthetransferofpowertothenewDominionofIndiaintheConstituentAssemblyCouncilChamber.

The carriage could not get near, neither could the bodyguard escorting it.Daddy had to remain standing up in the carriage and salute the flag at adistanceof twenty-fiveyards.Panditjihad travelledbackoverpeople to try tomakeapassageforthecarriage.Havingfailed,hethencouldnotgetback,soDaddyhauledhimintothecarriagewherehesatonthehood.Andtheyendedup having to drag four women, a child and a press photographer into thecarriageastheywereindangerofbeingcrushedunderitswheels.Itfinallyleftwithmostofthecrowdrunningalongbesideit,MummyandDaddystandingupwavingandpeoplehangingontothecarriagecheeringandshakingthembythehand and throwing flowers and flags into it. The final tally was the PrimeMinisterridingonthehoodandtenrefugeescrammedinsidewithMummyandDaddy.When the bits of us that remained arrived back at what is now GovernmentHouseIwasbruisedfromtoptobottom.Butonenevermindedabit.Everybodywas so thrilledand excited that nothing couldhavemattered.We immediatelywentouttoseethefireworkdisplaysandilluminations.Afterwardstherewasabig Independence Day dinner party for over one hundred, followed by areception for 2,500, each one ofwhomwas presented toMummy andDaddy.

Quite tiring!All the state roomsanddrawing roomswere openand the partyoverflowed into theMoghul Gardens which were flood-lit and festooned withfairylights,andblissfullycool.

ReturningfromtheFlagRaisingCeremonywithNehruandotherswehadsavedfrombeingcrushedbyanenthusiasticcrowd.

LeavingtheConstituentAssemblyon15thAugust1947.

PartII

TheFirstGovernor-GeneralofIndia

ChronologyofEvents

August–September1947 RiotingthroughoutIndiaandPakistan,asrefugeesfrombothcountriesseeksafepassagetotheirnewhomelands.

29thAugust MountbattenstraveltoSimlafora10-daystay,formallysignifyingMountbattenhandingthereinsofleadershiptoCongress.

5thSeptember MountbattenaskedtoheadupanEmergencyCommitteefollowingspirallingviolenceandcivildisobedience.

6thSeptember NewsreachesDelhithatGandhi’ssinglepresenceinCalcuttaismiraculouslykeepingthepeacethere.

13thSeptember PamelastartsworkingintheMapRoomtohelpwiththecrisis.October–December FirstKashmirWar.9th–24thNovember MountbattenstraveltoEnglandforPrincessElizabeth’swedding.24thNovember EmergencyCommitteedisbanded.December–31stJanuary Mountbattensstarttheirhectictouroftheprovincesandstateswiththe

intentionofvisitingallofthembeforetheyleave.13th–18thJanuary1948 Gandhi’slastfast.20thJanuary FirstattemptonGandhi’slife.30thJanuary Gandhiassassinated.31stJanuary Funeralandcremation.1stFebruary FirstGovernors’ConferenceafterPartition,nowwithIndianGovernors.14thAugust IndependenceceremonytakesplaceinKarachi,Pakistanwith

Mountbattenspresent,whothenflybacktoDelhifortheIndianindependenceceremonies.JustbeforemidnightMountbattenformallyinvitedtoactasIndia’sfirstGovernor-General.

February–May Mountbattenfamilycontinuetheirtourschedule.20thJune LastStateBanquet.20thJune TheMountbattensreturntoEngland.

RiotsandRefugees:

August–November1947

FollowingaphonecallfromV.P.Menon,wecamebacktoDelhi.Wethoughtatfirst thatNehru andPatel had requested thatmy father return tohelp, but thisturnedoutnottobethecaseandtheywerefurious.However,veryquicklytheycameroundtotheopinionthatmyfathercouldhelpandheimmediatelysetuptheEmergencyCommittee.Mymotherlaunchedintoactiontotackletherefugeeproblems where she could, taking in another 5,000 people on the Estate andputtingthewholeoftheGovernor-Gerneral’shouseontightrationsofspamandcabbage soup. Shewrote in her diary that ‘Pammy has become quite fond ofSPAM!’ although Imust admit that I thought bully beef was better. I startedworking as Pete Rees’s PA in the Map Room... Meanwhile Gandhi, purelythroughhispresenceinCalcutta,galvanisedpeaceacrosswhatcouldhavebeenthemostincendiarycity.Myfathercalledhima‘onemanboundaryforce...’

October1947:Indianrefugeescrowdontotrainsinoneofthelargest

Saturday16thAugustIwentwithMummyandPanditjitowatchhimhoisttheflagontheRedFortinOldDelhiwhileacrowdofatleast800,000peoplewatchedbelow.Hespoketothemandtheysangpopularnationalsongsandtherewereguardsofhonour.ThisafternoonDaddyshowedtheleaderstheRadcliffeAward[followingSir

Cyril Radcliffe’s recommendations for the boundary lines] and there was aconferenceintheCouncilChamber.Liaquat (Ali Khan who is now Premier of Pakistan) came to dinner asdiscussionsareresultinginthemhavingtocallaconferenceinAmbaladuetothe terrible conditions in thePunjab. This is all added to the profoundworryresultingfromtheBoundaryCommissionAward.

‘HertouroftheBombayslumswascharacteristicofherthoroughnessandservestoexplainthe

tremendouspopularityshehasgainedforherselfwiththehumblerIndianpeople.’

AlanCampbell-JohnsononLadyMountbatten

Sunday17thAugust

Weleft forBombayat five in themorning inorder toarrive in time tosee thefirstcontingentofBritishtroopsembarkonthe‘Georgic’at10o’clocktoreturnhome.GovernmentHouse is a series of charming little bungalowswith PointBungalowlookingoutoverthesea.WewenttoabigreceptionattheTajHotelgivenbyKher,thenewPremierofBombay.Therehadbeennopublicityaboutitbut oncewewere insideword got round that the newGovernor-Generalwasinsideanda crowdnumbering threequartersofamilliongatheredoutside. Ittook us over an hour to drive back through the cheering crowds, a distancewhichhadtakenfifteenminutesbefore.

IstayedinBombaytoaccompanymymotherandalsoIhadanappointmentof my own to meet Dinkar Sakrikar. I had been told that he would be verydifficulttogetholdofbecausehehadonlyjustbeenreleasedfromprison.Ihadalsobeenwarnedthathemightnotwanttomeetmeandthathewouldcertainlybe averse tomeetingatGovernmentHouse consideringwhat it stood for.ThechaosthatfollowedthearrivalcausedmegreatembarrassmentbutagainIwasamazedbytheIndiancharacter.

5thSeptember1947:ArmedsoldiersjoinMuslimrefugeesastheycrowdoneoftheveryfewmodernvehiclesonthetrektotheMuslimstateofPakistan.

Monday18thAugustDaddyhadtoreturntoDelhi.I went with Mummy and Lady Colville on an exhausting but extremelyinteresting tour in themorning.We visited theBombayMothers andChildrenWelfare Society’sCentre and then its school. Then theNaigumSocial ServiceCentre,andtheMatungacamp,wherealltheworkersliveinthemostappallingslumconditions.ThenontotheUniversitySettlementforGirls,theTataInstituteof Social Services and the Siva Sadar domestic college, all in monsoondownpours,soweendedupsoakingwetandcoveredinmud.Dinkar Sakrikar, the student leader connected with the Asian and CongressStudents’ConferencesIhavebeentryingtocontact,cametohaveteawithmeandbroughthalf-a-dozenotherstudentswithhim.

In spite of the students having been kept for twenty minutes in the guardhouse,whileIwaswonderingwhytheyweresolate,theycouldnothavebeenmore charming and friendly. They were only released after I had telephoneddowntotheADC’sroomseveraltimesaskingthemtoringthroughtothepolicebox. It turnedout that thepolicewhodetained themwere thevery sameonesthathadarrested themand theyhadallhadaveryenjoyable time reminiscing

together,whichcouldonlyhappeninIndia.

Tuesday19thAugustDinkar Sakrikar’s student friends called for me in the early morning with anenormouscarcovered inDominion flagsand tookme to see their institutions.Wewent to the bigG.S.MedicalCollege and then toBombayUniversity andfinallytotheJ.J.SchoolofArts,whichwasfascinating.Torebackdrippingwithbouquets,garlandsandpresentsonlytofindthatwecouldnotflyowingtothebadweather.

Wednesday20thAugustWe spent a quietmorning reading andwriting and saying goodbye to all theGovernorsandwiveswhoaresailingforEngland.Eric[Mieville]arrivedonhiswaybacktoEngland,whichisverysadbuthereallyisnotatallwell.Wewereabletotakeoffatmid-day.

Friday22ndAugustIntheeveningwehadPanditjitodinnerwiththeauthor,produceranddirectorofthefamousfilmhewantedtosee,NeechaNagan.ItisbeingfoughtoverinthelawcourtsbutitisverygoodandreallythefirstseriousIndianfilm.

Saturday23rdAugustSpentthemorningwritingandplayingwiththemongoosewhohasbecomethegreatest‘timewaster’.Wehadlunchatthepool.IntheeveningIwenttotheCanteen.WehadthefirstIndianstohavecomeinforalongwhile.Theywereveryself-consciousbuthopefullymorewillcomeasthey are starting to mix and the prices have been lowered so as to be moreaffordableforthem.

Sunday24thAugustIspentalargepartofthedaybattlingbetweenafirmRonaldDaubenytryingto‘Comptrol’eighthundredapplicantsintofortyvacancies(theservantswhohaveleft forPakistan)andatearfulandunbelievingLilaNandintentongettinghisyoungerbrother,AmlaNand,ajob.(Wesucceeded.)

Mymotherleftonathree-daytourwithRajkumariAmritKaur,theMinisterforHealth,aChristianandlong-timediscipleofGandhi.MyfatherandIdidatleastgettospendalittlebitoftimetogetheralone–araretreatindeedastherehad been precious few moments like that in the last five months. Mummy

reported thehorrors–herPA,MurielWatson,called it the‘placeof thedead’and was quite upset. They found mass hysteria and no trust in the PunjabBoundaryForce.Mymotheralsomanaged to securean interviewwithMasterTaraSinghwhowas‘atlastbeginningtotrembleatthewrathhehadsoreadilyinvoked’ in the Sikh community. My father’s executive responsibilities wereover as the PunjabBoundaryForce and the JointDefenceCouncil’s authorityover it had been wrapped up, so we went to Simla to reinforce the idea inCongress’s mind that his day-to-day contact with government was over. Myforlornprediction thatmyparentswouldprobablybeworkingwasprescient–mostfamilymealsweretakenwiththemlookingatpaperworkontheirknees.

Monday25thAugustIworkedattheClinic.MummyisleavingforLahoreandAmritsartomorrowtoseetherefugeecampswhicharesaidtobeincompletechaos.ThesituationinthePunjabandBengalisreallyterrible.Ihopeshesurvives.BaldevSingh,onhistourround,wasshotatbythepoliceinmistakeforaraidingparty.

Tuesday26thAugustI went for a long ride with Daddy in the morning. And we had meals aloneupstairswhichwasnice.

Wednesday27thAugustMummyranguplastnighttosaythatshewasstayingadaylongersothatshecangotoRawalpindiandAmritsarasthesituationissoappalling.Bikaner came to dinner as well asWalterMonckton and Biddy Carlyle, nowLadyMonckton.

Thursday28thAugustIwenttotheClinicasusual.Thentherewasaterriblelunchparty–veryheavyweather with long silences and completely mute non-Englishspeaking womenandmyHindustaniquiteinadequate.Mummycamebackwiththemosthorrifyingandheart-rendingaccounts.

Friday29thAugustWe left to spend ten days in Simla. A very welcome holiday for all and welldeserved forMummyandDaddyalthough I amafraid that theywill probablyworkallthesame.Theriverisinfloodnowwhichmakesthejourneyverycomplicatedandtedious.

WeflewasusualtoAmbalawherewepickedupDaddyashehadgoneonaheadfor the conference at Lahore [the Joint Defence Committee Conference todiscussthefateofthePunjabBoundaryforce:55,000troopshadtriedtocontroltheslaughterwithlittleresult],wewentbytraintoKalkaandthentherailcar.Therestofthepartyhadgoneonbyroadbutwereheldupwheneverthe‘RoyalTrain’passedthepointswheretherailwayclosestheroad,sotherewasalotofhilariouswaving,cheeringandsaluting.

Saturday30thAugustIt really does feel wonderful to be in Simla again and it seems quiteextraordinaryhavingeveryonesogoodtemperedagain.

‘Lazedinbedallmorning!’LouisMountbatten’sdiaryentryon

thefirstmorninginSimla

MummyandIwereveryenergeticandwalkedMizzyformilesandmilesupanddownthehills.Wehavealsobroughtthemongooseinhislittlewoodenbox,loudlyprotesting.Butheisinfineformnowasheisincurablyinquisitivefornewplaces.Wewent to see ‘JaneStepsOut’ at the famous little SimlaAmateurDramaticCompany’stheatre.Itwasverygood.

Sunday31stAugustThenearlyengagedcouple,SarahIsmayandWentyBeaumont,cametodinner.HeisleavingforBombaytobecomeComptrollerADCtotheColvilles.

Monday1stSeptemberTheChief,orratherSupremeCommanderFieldMarshallAuchinleck,cametolunchwithhissisterCherryJacksonandhersonwhoisnow‘theAuk’s’militarysecretary.IntheafternoonwewentshoppinginSimlaandthenforadriveroundJackoHillbutgotignominiouslystuckroundanarrowbendandhadtobaleoutandwalkbackformilesthroughthetownwhichwasmuchmorefun!

Our happy relaxed holidaywas short-lived.We had only been in Simla forthreedayswhenthebadnewsstartedtofloodin:firstlytheshockingnewsofthecarnageonthetraintakenbySarahandWenty,andthenthehorrificnewsofthedeath of our old Treasurer and his wife and son brought the horror of thetroublesveryclose.

NewscamethroughthatthetrainSarahandWentywentdownonwasstoppedandattacked(thefirstontheSimlaline)and150Muslimswerekilled.Theonlyone to survive wasWenty’s bearer, hidden under their seat. They swore thattherewasno-oneelseinthecompartment.

Tuesday2ndSeptemberLast night the oldTreasurer’s sonwas killed returning from college inDelhi.AgainstallpersuasionhisparentsleftforDelhibytrainthismorning.TheywerebothmurderedonthewayinspiteoftheHinduchaprassiwiththemharanguingthecrowdontheirbehalfthattheywerecitizensoftheUnionofIndiawithfifty

years government service. He himself arrived naked, stripped as a suspectMuslim.Thereseemsnoendtoitallasitisjustretaliationafterretaliation.Butone can hardly expect them to keep their senses when they have experiencedsuch atrocities. Unfortunately it is always the wrong people who suffer.However,thesituationinBengalisbetteralthoughthePunjabisstillterrible.

1stOctober1947:PuranoQilafortressrefugeecampwherethousandsofMuslimswhohadfledtheirhomesinterrorofHinduattacksweretryingtosurviveuntiltheycouldorganiseaconvoyforthelong

marchtotheWestPunjab,whichhadbecomeMuslimPakistan.

Wednesday3rdSeptemberLastnightwehaddinnerwith theAuk.ComptonMackenziewas thereandwewatchedcolouredfilmsofhistripstoNepalandTibetincludinggoodclose-upsofatiger.ThiseveningJimandIwenttodinnerwithShouShouandMoumou,twoofthemarrieddaughtersoftheTikkaRaniofKapurthalaandverycharming.

Thursday4thSeptemberV.P.rangupatlunchtimetosaythatthesituationisdeterioratingandtheyfeelitwouldhelpifDaddycamebacktogiveadviceatonce.Weneverseemtohavemuchluckwithourholidays.All proposed tours have been cancelled and it has been announced that wewouldneithergivenorattendsocialgatheringsorentertainments.

Inspiteofthis,InippedouttohaveteawithShouShouandMoumouandtheycamebackandhaddinnerwithus.I had a very sweet letter from Lilibet about bridesmaids’ dresses and thewedding.

Friday5thSeptemberWemotoreddown toAmbala inanopenpolicecarasours is still somewherebetweenDelhiandKarachiasithasneverreturnedfromtheceremony.Wewereaverymake-shiftpartyaswetooknoMuslimdriversorservantsandmostoftheADCsandstaffweredriving.MyLilaNandisinhiselementlookingaftertwoExcellencies.We are now faced with the problem of getting eighty Muslim servants andpersonneldownaswellas150HindusandtheEuropeanstaff.TheyaregoingintrainsunderarmedescortoftheBodyguardandthenflowninbatches.

Saturday6thSeptemberThenews fromCalcutta is thatGandhiji’spresence there ismanaging tokeepthepeace–whicheveryonedescribesasamiracle.

Sunday7thSeptemberTherewasastabbingontheEstatetoday.

Campbell-Johnsonwriteson8thSeptember,thathewastoldbyPeterHowes,the chiefADC, that amongall theADCs, ‘attendanceofLadyMountbatten ishardly themost popular [as] it usually involves assisting her to bring into thelocalinfirmariesanybodiestheymayseeinthestreets.Sheisnotdeterredfrom[doingso]evenwhenpassingthroughareaswheresnipingisgoingon.’

Monday8thSeptemberIcouldnotgo to theClinicasDaddysaid if Iwentout I should takeaguard(which I naturally would not do as they are needed desperately everywhereelse).Anyway,theCanteenisclosedandwehaveveryfewpatientsattheClinicasno-onecangetaboutnow.

Tuesday9thSeptemberMummy spentmost of her time tearing round the hospitals trying to get themguards, foodand fuelandhelpwith therefugeecommittee.Daddywent toseeGandhijiwhoisreturnedfromCalcutta.

Wednesday10thSeptemberFood is now the immediate and major problem. The shops are mostly shutbecauseofthecurfewandwhenopenhavenosuppliesbecausethereisnowaytheycanbebroughtinandallthelabourersandworkershavetakenflight.IwentwithMummytosee therationingcentrewherewe try to feed the5,000peopleontheEstate.Whentheydogettheirfoodtheyoftencan’teatitasthereisnofuel.Inthehouseallmealsareverymeagreandourrationswillonlylastforaweekastherearenosurplusstores.LordListowel arrived [SecretaryofState for India]–not a verygood time tochoosebut at least hewill get first-hand informationwhich is invaluable at atimewhennewspaperscaresarerampant.

Wetookanextra5,000peopleintotheEstateandfoodsupplieswereshort.Whenmymother flew up to the Punjab in the worst of the riots she took

CaptainJimScott–oneofWavell’soldADCs–andanIndianADCwhohadbeen lent by the Army. They were driven from Viceroy’s House to PalamAirporttobegreetedwithamessagefromtheGovernorofthePunjabwhohadtelephoned,andasignalhadbeensentalso,sayingthatitwasimperativeshedidnottravelasthesituationwastoodangerous.Butmymothermerelysaidthatitwas imperative that she go, theywere already late and so theymust take offimmediately.Afteracoupleofhours theywerecirclingover the landingstripandsawan

enormousnumberofpeople, a lotof themSikhswith their religiousweapons,thekirpan.Everybodywasmillingaroundinagitation,protestorswereshriekingand it became immediately apparent that it was a very disturbed, threateningcrowd.When they landed, Jim Scott looked at the young officer and patted his

revolver;headmittedthathehadneverhadtoshootinanger,butthismighthavetobethefirsttime.Mymotherrushedaheadandastheywatchedhalfadozenleaders detached themselves from the crowd and headed towards herwith thecrowdfollowing.ThetwoADCssaidthattheysawdanger,theysawanger,theywereabsolutely terrifiedand,althoughshehad forbidden them togowithher,theywereabouttoleapforwardandfollow.At thatmomentmymotherheldouther armsand the leaders stopped for a

moment.Shemovedonandtheyputtheirweaponsdownandputtheirhandsouttoher. ‘Shesawlove,shedidn’tseedanger,’washowtheydescribed it. ‘Andthe crowd saw love.And they hugged and they embraced and everybodywashuggingandembracingandtheytookher into thecampand,shedid theworkshe came out to do in the camp.’ They said it was the most extraordinary

performance, that therewas no question that shewas afraid or being brave, itwasjustshehadajobtodo.Inalettertomymotherdated10thSeptember,SarojiniNaidu,thedaughterof

hermother’soldfriend,andGovernoroftheUnitedProvinces,wrotetoher:‘Nowomaninyourplacehaseverputherselfintouchwiththepeople...thelastoftheVicereinesiscreatingherownimmortalityintheheartsofsufferingIndia.’

Thursday11thSeptemberYesterday,wewenttoseeMartin[Gilliat]inhospital.TuesdaynightheandAlanCampbell-Johnson[went]toseewhethertheguardshadatlastbeenputoutsidethehospitalswhentheywereshotatbyasentry–overenthusiasticwithregardtothe‘shootonsight’orderswhichareinforce.ThedriverwaskilledoutrightandMartinwaswounded,however,luckilynotverybadly…Spentmostof thedaycatchingglimpsesofMummyandDaddy tearing inandout.

Thisincidentreallydrovethemessagehometousallthatweshouldbeverycarefulandmymotherwastoldshemusthaveanescort.OneeveningshecamebackfromoldDelhiandsaid‘Dickie,IdoactuallythinkyouarerightbecauseIwas quite frightened to see I was being followed by a car with the mostterrifyingruffiansinit,withtheirriflesstickingout...’Myfatherhadtosmiletohimself,becausethatcarwasasecuritycarwithplainclothespolice.

Friday12thSeptemberThe situation inDelhi seemsmuch better now and almost under control.Theshopsandofficesareopeningandveryfewincidentshavebeenreported;butthecurfewisstillverystrictandthestreetsalmostdeserted.LordListowelandpartyleftafterhavingbeenfedentirelyonspamandbullybeef.

Saturday13thSeptemberIspentthemorningwritingandthenintheafternoonstartedmyfirst‘job’.General Pete Rees (of Gurkha fame from the Burma Campaign, where hecommanded the Dagger division) has arrived. He had been commanding theBoundaryForce but this has now been disbanded.He has now set up aMapRoom, a sort of war room for information and conferences to deal with thepresentcrisis.(HewillheadtheMilitaryEmergencyStaff).However,veryfewofhis staff have arrived, just two British officers and four Indian. He has nosecretaryandonlyapart-timestenographer.AsheisswampedwithworkDaddyhastoldmetohelpout.Ispenttheafternoontelephoning,typinglistsandnotes,

sendingmessagesandbeingtheGeneral’sdogsbody.Ratheralarmingtobeginwithbutveryinterestinganditfeelssogoodtobedoingsomething.

Sunday14thSeptemberWeworkintheMapRoomfromninetooneandtwotosix,includingSundays.Ihadtotypelettersandpapersandmakearrangementsandalotoftelephoning.Afterdinnerafilmwasshowninthecinema,whichwedoasoftenaspossible.Tonightitwas‘TheWeb’whichwasexcellent.Thatwasareliefasitwasoneofmyselections.

Monday15thSeptemberTheconferencesintheMapRoomhavebeenreducedinnumberastherereallywere toomany.Nowthereare justCabinetonesonevendays, twoaweek fortheDiplomaticCorpsandalthough there isadailypress conference,GeneralRees only conducts one of these each week. I only attend the Cabinetconferences.The‘undilutedaccounts’areobviouslyextremely interesting. It isdifficult getting used to all the Army terms and having to cope with GIs andGIIIsetc.whenoneisgivenastringof initialsoverthetelephoneit ishardtoturnitintoanindividual.Anywaythetelephoneisnotmuchuseasnearlyalltheoperatorshavegoneandsomosthavebeendisconnected.

Tuesday16thSeptemberIspentmostofthedayworkingintheMapRoom.Choleraandafewcasesofsmallpoxhavebrokenoutintherefugeecampsandweallhadtohavecholerainoculations.IwentwithsomeofthestafftohavedinnerwiththeIsmays.Veryenjoyableandmassestoeatastheyhavepaidnoattentiontorationing–reallyrathernaughtyunderthepresentcircumstances,butIsupposethatwearerationedparticularlystrictlyasthestaffissolargethatitdoesmakecateringdifficult.

October1947:ThebodiesofthosewhowerekilledintheriotsinNewDelhiareloadedintotrucksduringalullinthefighting.

Wednesday17thSeptemberIhavehadtogiveuptheClinicandtheCanteenforthetimebeingastheydon’tfit inwith theMapRoomhours.MrLalcame to seemeabout theHindustanilessons as they are going to be difficult to arrange, particularly as he cannotcomeduringcurfewhours.DaddyandIwentforashort,quietrideinthegroundsasthehorsesarenotfitastheyhavehadtobeturnedoutasfodderissoscarce.Nevertheless they were maddening through lack of exercise. I went with theGeneral to a cocktail party given by Major Thakar, one of our staff, who isleavingforChinaasMilitaryAttaché.

Thursday18thSeptemberA Dr Eugene Bartlett, head of all the American YMCAs, was down in thearrangements as staying.But he has arrived and could not have beennicer –whichisaverypleasantsurprise–althoughjustwhyheisstayingno-onecanquitemakeout!Oneoflife’sendlessknittingcampaignshasstarted.Thisoneisfortherefugees,against thecomingweather.Theneedlesarehome-madewoodenonesandthe

dyefromthewoolcomesoffonone’sfingerssoatleastitisdifferent.

Friday19thSeptemberBothPrimeMinisters,LiaquatandPanditji,cametosupper.

Sunday21stSeptemberMummyandDaddyflewoffwithPanditji,VallabhbhaiPatel,RajkumariAmritKaur, Pug Ismay and Alan C-J to survey the movement of refugees in thePunjab.

Monday22ndSeptemberTheEmergencyCabinetismakingurgentmovestodefendtherefugeetrainsasthehorrorstoriesgetworseandrumoursonlyfueltheviolence.

Tuesday23rdSeptemberCholera has broken out in Amritsar and all trains passing there have beencancelled. There are horrible stories around of trains which set off withthousandsofpassengersarrivingwithmerelyhundredsalive.

Tuesday30thSeptemberTherewasasenselessattackon thedefencelesspatients inahospital inDelhitoday.

TheCreationofLadyEarnestine

AtthebeginningofOctoberIwrotetomyfriendMaryinEngland:‘Forthepastsixweekswehavebeen livingon spamandbully beef,Delhi has beenundermartial law in all but name, and the refugees keep pouring in to a citywherethere is no means of receiving them. Delhi has been bad but it is nothingcompared to the situation in the Punjab. It is heartbreaking to see so muchdestroyed in so little time thatwill take so long to rebuild, and all for no realreason.Itissenseless,butoneseesnoendexceptbygraduallywearingitselfoutasitisjustretaliationafterretaliation.AMilitaryEmergencyStaffhasbeensetupunderGeneralReesandthereisa

MapRoom todealwith thepresent situation, gathering in all information andcopinggenerallyandgivingconferences to theCabinet, theDiplomatsand thePress.Ihavemyfirstjobtoonow!TheywereveryshortofstaffandsoIamthePA to theGeneral, typing all his letters andpapers, telephoning, fixing thingsgenerallyandgettingthoroughlybewilderedbyallthefunnyterms!However,itis extremely interesting and great fun but the hours are quite long being fromninetosix(withanhouroffforlunch)everydayincludingSunday,butthe“six”ismoreoftensevenoreightasworkjustseemstopourin.’

30thOctober:WithscoutsanddelegatestotheInternationalLabourOrganisation(ILO)ConferenceinDelhi.

Indeed,soseriouswasIbythis timethatwhenmysisterandbrother-in-lawarrivedinDecembertheyrenamedme‘LadyEarnestine’.TheprogressionofmyemploymentfromtheCanteenthroughtheClinictoPeteRees’sPAintheMapRoom, andmy endless tourswithmymother, andmeetingwith students hadmouldedasternlyseriouseighteen-year-old!In spite of this I was severely rebuked by the Prime Minister for being

frivolous on one particular occasion. In the same spirit as people flocking tonightclubs to raise their spirits in wartime London, the Commander-in-Chief,General‘Kipper’Cariappa,startedanightclubinhishouse,towhichtheADCstookme one night. It wasmy first taste of nightclubbing and I loved it. ButPanditjigottohearandwasshocked.Hecloseditdownimmediately.

Thursday2ndOctoberWehadquiteahecticdaywithworkpouringinattheofficeandthetelephoneringingceaselesslybutneverfunctioningwhenonecametousingitoneself!

Monday6thOctoberMummyandMurielhaveleftforJullandurandAmritsar.

Saturday11thOctoberWelefttospendafewdaysinSimlawhichwillbelovely.WearejustgoingupaloneexceptforPeterHowes,andwillbestayingattheRetreatatMashobra.WestoppedoffattheLawrenceRoyalMilitaryCollegeatSanawanonthewaytocelebrateitscentenary.

Saturday8thNovemberTheNizamofHyderabadhasasked for another delay in signinghis standstillagreementuntilwearebackfromLondon!

Sunday12thOctoberIt really is glorious being up in the hills again and Mummy and Daddy areactuallyabletotakealittlerestwithnobodytogetatthemallthetime.WewentforalongwalkandmetsomeofthemulecaravanscomingalongtheTibetroad.WeboughtTibetanandNepaleseornamentsandjewelleryandboxesfromsomepeddlers.TheCaptainof theGurkhaGuard isstaying in thehouse.He isa twenty-one-year-old boy from Ilford called Peter Pring. Extremely self-possessed andadoredbyhisGurkhas.

Monday13thOctoberVisited the famous Bishop Cotton School which is really the only firstclasscivilianschoolinIndiaforboysofeverynationalityandcreed.SpentpartoftheafternooninViceregalLodgegardenandthenIhadtogotoateagivenbytheSimlabranchof theCaravanof India. In the eveningweaccompaniedDaddywhenhepresentedashieldtotheSimlaADC.

Friday24thOctoberBadnewsfromKashmirasreportssaythatNWFPtribesmenaremarchinguponSrinagar.

Monday27thOctoberIndian troops have been sent to Kashmir to face the invasion of tribesmen.MummyleftforatourofrefugeecampsinWestBengal.

Thursday30thOctoberAttendedtheInternationalLabourOrganisationconferenceinDelhi.

Saturday1stNovemberDaddyhasflowntoLahoretodiscusstheKashmircrisiswithJinnah.

Sunday2ndNovemberMaharajaofBikanercame todinner.Hegaveaspeechwitha filmdescribingabouttherefugeesinhisState.

Therewas somuch trouble at this time thatmyparentswereworried aboutleaving togo toPrincessElizabeth andPhilip’swedding,where Iwas tobe abridesmaid. They were persuaded to go in order not to draw attention to thecrisis.

Tuesday4thNovemberMummyandDaddyareworriedaboutthetriptoEnglandfortheweddingandwhether it should be cancelled because of the Kashmir crisis. Baldev Singh’sreport from the front to theDefenceCommitteewasnotat all goodabout thesituationthere.

Sunday9thNovemberWeflewbacktoLondonforPhilipandLilibet’sweddingonthe20thatwhichIamtobeoneoftheeightbridesmaids.RajagopalachariwillbeActingGovernorGeneralinDaddy’sabsence.

WereturnedtoDelhion the24thafterahecticandamazingtendays.Wehadtakenwithus,asagiftforPrincessElizabethandPhilipfromGandhiji,apieceofwhitefabricwhichhehadwovenespeciallyfor them–whenthegiftsweredisplayedlaterQueenMarywashorrifiedtodiscoverwhatshetooktobea‘loincloth’.BackinDelhimyfatherwroteinhisdiary,‘Lovelytobehome.’

Friday28thNovemberTheEmergencyCommitteemetforthelasttimetoday.

11thNovember:WeweremetatNortholtbyPhiliponarrivalinLondonforhiswedding.

ToursPartI:

December1947–January1948

WebeganourtouralongwithPatriciaandherhusbandJohn:weplannedtovisitJaipur, Bombay, Gwalior, Bikaner, Bhopal, Nagpur, Madras, Allahabad,Dehradun, Lucknow, Cawnpore, Calcutta, Orissa, Assam, Trivandrum,Travancore, Cochin, Udaipur, Mashobra, Simla, Patna, Gwalior, Mysore,Ootacamund, Bangalore, Jodhpur and Bundi, taking in a dizzying plethora ofschools,colleges,hospitals,institutesandtemplesalongtheway.Ourfriendsalsostartedtoarriveaswehadinvitedthemoutthinkingthatthis

wouldbeaquietperiod,hencewehadYolaandKayNortoninDecember,andBunnyandGinaPhillips inJanuaryandlaterMalcolmSargent–unfortunatelymymotherwassobusywithhervariouscausesshefounditverydifficulttofindtimetoseeherfriends.

TheMaharajaofJaipur,orJai.

Friday12thDecemberToJaipur forJai’sSilverJubilee.Wewatchedaparadeof theJaipurGuardsand Infantry. They are extremely smart and are drilled by NCOs from theBrigadeofGuards.JaiisamajorintheLifeGuards.Heandhisregimenthadafinewarrecord;awonderfulvisit(hecametothegadiwhenhewastenyearsold).Daddyplayedhis firstgameofpolo in8years.Daddymet themanwhotaughthimtoplayinJodhpurin1921!

Sunday14thDecemberDaddyinvestedtheMaharajahwiththeGCSI[GrandCommanderoftheStarofIndia]attheDurbar.The celebrations were magnificent with many other Princes attending. Jailooked marvellous bedecked in jewels, but it was quite a shock to see himsacrifice a goat during the religious ritual. And having onlymet the beautiful

AyeshaitwasasurprisetofindthatintheZenanashe,asThirdHerHighness,isverymuchthejuniorhostess.BeautifulJoDidi,SecondHerHighness,istheseniorMaharani.WhenJaiwas14hewasmarriedtoaprincessfromJodhpur,12yearshissenior,andhewasatthesametimebetrothedtoherniece,JoDidi,thenonly5.Theyweremarriedwhenshebecame12.FirstHerHighnessdied3yearsagobutIverymuchlikedherdaughter,Mickey,whoismyage,andherson Bubbles who is 16. SecondHer Highness has two boys, Joey and Pat, acoupleofyearsyounger.

Peggy D’Aremberg and a friend of hers came out for the jubilee and theybroughtahairdresserwiththem.Myfatherwasverycross,thinkingitverybadformwhentherewerestarvingIndiansallaround,andtheriotswerehappening.Other guests included Yola and Kay Norton who had once found her bearerlooking through a keyhole into her room;when reprimanded, he replied quiteobviously,‘butifIdon’t,howdoIknowwhentogoin?’

12thDecember:MyfatherinspectingtheGuardofHonour,1stJaipurInfantryonarrivalattheMaharajah’sPalace.

Thursday18thDecemberWereturnedtoDelhi.PatriciaandJohnhavearrivedforalongvisit,whichislovely.

Sunday28th-Monday29thDecemberAveryenjoyablevisittoGwalior–forthefamoustigershoot.

Saturday3rdJanuary,1948PrivateinvestitureforsmallpartyontheNewYear’sHonourslist.To add to her GBE, whichMummy got at the end of 1947, she now has theBrilliantStarofChina.Campbell-JohnsonandVernongottheCIEandRonnieBrockmantheCSI.

Sunday4thJanuaryBurma Independence Day. Daddy and the Ambassador took part in aparticularly elaborate presentation with much pomp and ceremony in theDurbar Hall. Daddy presented the Ambassador with an historic BurmeseTaktaposhandcarpet.Healsoannounced thathewouldbepayinganofficialvisittoBurmainMarch,whenhewouldhandovertheimmensethroneofKingTheebaw,thelastKingofBurma.

Saturday10thJanuaryA largedinnerparty forall thePrinces towhomDaddyhasbeen speaking intwoconclavesthisweek,oneforthemajorandanotherfortheminorPrinces.Thiswasmyfather’slastattempttoseethatthePrinceswereleftassecureas

possible and that theywouldbewell enough informed to look after their ownfate.Theyfeltratherdesolatewhenmyfatherleftandwonderedhowtheywouldcopewithbeingpartofthefutureinaverysocialist-mindedstate.Myfatherhadencouraged themtomake themselvesavailable forseniorpositions. Indeed theMaharajahofJaipurbecameambassadorinSpainandthenbecameRajpramukh– the senior Governor over a huge province. And Patiala became the ChiefMinisterinPatialaState.Severalindeedwerethusemployed.OneofthejuniorPrinces,whowasafavouriteofmyfather’s,wastheRaoRajaofBundi.Hewasahandsome,gallantyoungmanwhohadwonanMCinthewar.MyfathertookusonabriefvisittoBundiin1948andwasalwaysgladtoseehim.However,onone of his later visits, after India had become a republic, he was at a formaldinner party atwhatwas nowPresident’sHouse and he noticedBundi, as anADCtothePresident,notseatedattableashewouldhavebeenasanADCin

our time, but standing behind the President’s chair. After dinner my fatherreceived a message asking whether His Highness could see him. My fatheragreed with some trepidation, expecting Bundi to complain, instead of whichBundi thanked him for having encouraged him to offer his services to thePresidentandtosayhowproudhewasthattheyhadbeenaccepted.

PsittingnexttotheMaharajahofKapurthalaattheDurbarintheCityPalace,Jaipur.

About ten years later Bundi was in England and my father invited him tolunchatBroadlands.Afterlunchtheyweresittingtalkinginthedrawingroom.Bundi suddenly leant towardsmy father,whoalso leant forward, thinking thatBundiwished to say somethingvery confidential.ButBundi leant further andfurther until he fell down dead at my father’s feet. My poor father was soastonished and appalled that the only thing he could think of doing was totelephone the Queen for help. When she answered he said, ‘I have just hadBunditoLunch.’‘Howishe?’askedtheQueen.‘Dead,’repliedmyfather.Butofcourse,shewasmagnificentandshesavedthesituation.ThentherewasthenewsofGandhiji’sproposedfastsbecauseofhisdistress

that Congress were withholding fifty-five crores from Pakistan’s partition ofassetsasasanction.Hisfastswereincrediblypowerfulsocialcatalysts,asAlanCampbell-Johnsonwroteonthe12thJanuary,‘YouhavetoliveinthevicinityofaGandhifasttounderstanditspullingpower.Thewholeof[his]lifeisastudyin the art of influencing the masses, and judging by the success he hasachieved…hemustbeaccountedoneofthegreatestartistsinleadershipofalltime.’ItwasdecidedthatwewouldstillalltraveltoBikaneronthe14thbut,asamarkofrespectforthefast,therewouldbenostatebanquet.

MyparentsandJai–officialinvestiturephotograph.

GroupphotographtakenaftertheDurbar.

Monday12thJanuaryAfterGandhiji’sprayermeetinghecameroundtoseeDaddytotellhimthatat11o’clocktomorrowwillbeginanotherofhismajorfasts,hisdecisionmadeinthefaceofthecommunalhatredwhichhehasfoughtallhislifetoremovefromsociety.Itwouldonlyend‘ifandwhenIamsatisfiedthatthereisareunionofheartsofallcommunitiesbroughtaboutwithoutanyoutsidepressurebut fromanawakenedsenseofduty.’

‘Gandhi...mustbeaccountedoneofthegreatestartistsinleadershipofalltime.’

AlanCampbell-Johnson

Wednesday14thJanuaryApartyof28flewtoBikanertostaywiththeMaharajah.Daddyfirstmethimwhenhewas7andHiruwas5andthen4yearslateratthecoronationofKingGeorgeV.BothofthemservedonthestaffofthePrinceofWalesforhisvisittoIndiain1921/22.A60-pageprogrammehasbeenpreparedforourvisitbuttheStateBanquethasbeencancelledoutof respect forGandhiji’s fast.Wedrovestraight to Gajner, HH’s shooting estate, where a mile-long lake has beencarvedoutoftheRajputanadesert.WhenwearrivedattheLagoonTerracetheprogrammeread‘TheMasteroftheHouseholdwilltakethenecessarystepstoensure that thecrowsandotherbirdsarenotallowedtosettleon the treesonthe Lagoon Terrace for at least a week beforehand and special caremust betakenaboutthisonthedayofthelunch.’Intheafternoontherewasavastduck

shoot.We had dinner in a silklined and carpeted shamiana and thenwatchedHH’ssportingfilmsfromaroundtheworld.

StateelephantsparadeattheCityPalace.

Thursday15thJanuaryAt 7:30 this morning we had the famous imperial sand-grouse shoot. 30,000birds flewoverduringthemorning.Theyaredifficult toshoot, flyingvery fastandswerving inalldirections. In theafternoonwedrove25miles toLallgarhPalaceinBikaner.BeforedinnerwegatheredintheDurbarHallwhereDaddyinvestedHHwiththeInsigniaoftheGCSI.TheassemblednoblesandcourtierslookedveryfineintheirredandyellowDurbardress.

Friday16thJanuaryAreviewoftheBikanerStateArmyincludingatrotpastoftheCamelCorpsandagalloppastof theDurbarLancers.TheBijeyBatteryonparadeservedwithgreat distinction in Daddy’s Burma Campaign and fought in the battles ofKohimaandImphal.WethenvisitedtheFortwherewesawregaliagiventotheBikanerrulersbyMoghulEmperorsandwewereshownbeautifullyilluminatedSanskrit and Urdu manuscripts. Afterwards we drove through the city pastenthusiastic crowds. In the evening we watched a tournament in which theBodyguard and the Camel Battery gave an excellent musical ride and drivefollowedbytorch-litclub-swinging.Wethenreturnedforalargedinnerpartyin

theDurbarHall.

Saturday17thJanuaryWeflewbacktoDelhiandMummyandDaddyimmediatelycalledonGandhijiatBirlaHouse.Theyfoundhimveryweak.Buthegreetedthemwithatwinkleinhiseyeandsaid,‘Ittakesafasttobringyoutome.’

Sunday18thJanuaryGandhijihasbrokenoffhisfastasCongresshasdecidedtopaythecroresandtheyhavepersuadedhimthathisotheranxietieshavebeendealtwith.

MyfathertakingthesaluteatthefarewellparadeofBritishtroopsinDelhiinfrontofGovernmentHouse.

John,Patriciaandmeattheparade.

Lefttoright:John,Patricia,myfather,Bikaner,mymother,theRajKumarandme.

Tuesday20thJanuaryMummyrushedroundtoBirlahousetoseeGandhijiafterabombexplodedinthe gardenas hewalked to his prayermeeting.Gandhiji seemed very relaxedaboutthewholeaffair.Friday23rdJanuaryWevisitedBhopal,whoseNawabisDaddy’soldfriend,Hamidullah.

Friday23rdJanuaryWevisitedBhopal,whoseNawabisDaddy’soldfriend,Hamidullah.

Tuesday27thJanuaryWevisitedNagpurandthenflewondowntoMadraswhichwetouredandwentuptothehillstation,Ootacamund.TheGovernorSirArchibaldNye,tookusoutriding.Wewerewarnedtofollowhiminsinglefile,alonganarrowbank.Daddywasona large,clumsyhorsewhichmissed its footingandheendedup in thebog. He was pulled clear but it took an agonising time to remove Daddy’sbeautifulbutsoddenleatherboots,madebyMaxwelltohugthelegs,andtogethimintomorningcoatandtophat.

Friday30thJanuaryWearrivedbackinDelhi.

23rdJanuary:HamidullaKhan,theNawabofBhopalwithmymother.MyfatherwithBhopal’sdaughterandtheNawabofPataudi.

Gandhi’sAssassination:

January1948

Such was Gandhiji's standing in India that my father had made sure that ameetingwiththegreatmanwasoneofthefirst thingsontheagendawhenwearrived.As themonthsslippedby,Gandhi'spoliticalopinionsbecameeclipsedbythoseofCongressandtheMuslimLeague,buttheaurathatsurroundedhimwasnomorediminishedforthat.Ihadtheincrediblegoodfortunetoattendoneof his prayer meetings andmeet him on several occasions. I, like the rest ofIndia, revered him. His assassination brought the whole of the nation to astandstillandweallfelttheblowcruelly.

Gandhi’sbodybroughtoutofBirlaHouse.

Gandhiji’sAssassination

Friday30thJanuaryDaddy,Patricia,JohnandIarrivedbackinDelhithisafternoonfromavisittoMadras. Mummy stayed on to complete her engagements. A couple of hourslater I was standing in my bedroom with the radio turned on when suddenlytherewasanannouncement:Gandhijihadbeenassassinated.Icouldn’tbelieveit.Iwasdumbstruck,buttheannouncementcontinued.Hehadbeenshotwhilehewaswalkingtohisweeklyprayermeeting.Bynow,tearswerepouringdownmyface.

IhadonlymethimafewtimesbutIfeltasthoughIhadlostamemberofmyfamily.AndsodideveryoneelseinIndia.Bapu, theFatherof theNation,wasdead. The whole of India seemed to have come to a complete standstill witheveryoneengulfedbyhorrorandgrief.ButmyfatherdashedtoBirlaHouse.Ashegotoutofthecar,someoneinthecrowdshoutedouttohim,‘AMuslim

did it.’My fatherhad thepresenceofmind to shoutback, ‘You fool, itwasaHindu!’ In fact, no one knew who the assassin was. But my father feltinstinctivelythathisreplywastheonlywaytopreventadisastrouscivilwar.He was immediately taken to Gandhiji’s room, where the body had been

placed. My father told us that he stood in silent homage and then went intoanotherroomwherethemembersoftheCabinethadgathered.Hetoldthemthatat his last interview, Gandhi had said that his dearest wish was for areconciliation between Panditji and Vallabhbhai Patel – he had been verydistressed by their bitter disagreements. Panditji and Sardarji immediately anddramatically embraced. My father came back greatly relieved at thisreconciliation.Of course the next preoccupation was Nehru’s safety. The new India now

reliedonhim–hewasthepivotandvitalasmuchthestrongestman.Myfatherwas convinced that therewasn’t a sole assassin because they had found threepeople carrying grenades only three days earlier and my father thought thatNehruwasthetarget.

17thJanuary:MahatmaGandhiatBirlaHouse,NewDelhi,duringhisfinalfast.

Healso thought it essential thatNehrumusthave time toworkoutwhathewasgoing tosay inhisbroadcast. In fact, theslightly impromptu toneand theraw voice were verymoving. Panditji’s broadcast to the nation was followedimmediately by Vallabhbhai. Patel spoke very well but no one who heardPanditji’sspeech–‘Thelighthasgoneout’–willeverforgetit.

Saturday31JanuaryMummyflewbackinthenightandarrivedintimeforbreakfast,afterwhichwedrovetoBirlaHouse.

Gandhi’sbodyhadbeenplacedonabalcony.Helookedveryserenewithhishead restingonacushionof flowers,butwithouthisglassesheseemed ratherunfamiliar–very smalland frail. Itwasheartbreakingandofcourseeveryonearoundhimwasweeping.MyfatherandPanditji tried theirbest tocontrol thechaoswhenhisbodywasbroughtdownfromthebalconyandplacedonthebier.

TheCongressflagcoveredthefuneralcarriage,whichwaspulledbysailorswiththeGovernor-General’s bodyguard as escort. The procession to Raj Ghat, theburningground,alargeopenspaceonthebanksoftheriverJumna,woundsixmileslongthrougholdandNewDelhi.Theroutewaslinedbysoldiers,sailorsand airmen. It must have taken a lot of organisation in the few hours sinceGandhidied. In fact, a speedycremationwas theHinducustomandwaswhatGandhihadwished.Once the cortège had moved off we drove back to Government House –

because itwould takehours for it to arrive at theRajGhat – and then set offthereourselvesbyaroutewhichwouldavoidthefuneralprocession.Nehruwaswalkingwithit–thefamily,alltheCabinet,allhispoliticalassociates,includingall the ‘20 anna congressmen’, all barged in – no protocol was observed andtherewasslightchaos.

ThefuneralprocessionmovingdownKingsway(note:DomeofGovernmentHouseonskyline).

OurfamilyseatedinfrontofGandhi’sfuneralpyre.

Thepyresetalighttocriesof‘Gandhiisimmortal!’

WhenwearrivedatRajGhat,wewereapartyofsometwentypeople.TherewerealsoallthevisitingGovernorswhohadcometoDelhifortheGovernor’sconference. Then there was the Diplomatic Corps. We were standingimmediatelyinfrontofalowplatformonwhichlogswerepiledforwhatwouldbecomethefuneralpyre.Realisingthatoncethefuneralcortègearriveditwouldallbesuchahugecrowd,myfatherinsistedthattheVIPssitcrossleggedontheground–hewasafraid that theymighthavebeenpushed into theflamesoncethe funeralgotunderwayandemotions ranhigh. Itwasanextraordinary sightseeingthecortègeinthedistanceandthenarriving:thepressofpeoplewassohugethatofcoursetheyhadbeenabletobreakthroughtheservicemen’slines.A vast crowd followed and became part of it, adding to the enormous crowdalreadyassembling.Verysoontherewereaboutsevenlakhs–700,000people.Gandhi’sbodywasplacedonlogswhichwerebuiltuphigher,thensacredoils

andgheeweresprinkledonitandGandhi’ssonlitthepyre.Itwasahorrifyingmomentwatchingabelovedbodybeingconsumedbytheflames,butstrangelyenoughthehorrorsoonworeoffandonealmostfeltarejoicingwitheveryoneinthe crowd trying to press forward and throw flowers. Then there was horroragainassomeofthevillagewomenrushedforwardhystericallytotrytocommit

sutee. But mercifully they were prevented. It really did become a scene ofwonderandrejoicingastheflamesengulfedhimandthecryroseup,‘Gandhiisimmortal!’By this time thecrowdhadbecomesoemotional thatmyfatherstoodup to

assess the situation and decided that if hewas going to get all theVIPs backaliveastrategicwithdrawalwouldbeinorder–sohetoldustomakeahumanchainanddiscreetlymakeour exit.Recognisinghim inhisnavaluniform, thecrowdveryconsideratelyparted forusandwewereable toget through to thecars.

ToursPartII:

February–May1948

AftertheshockofGandhiji’sassassinationthecountrywasinmourning,butlifeat Governor-General’s House was as busy as ever. The first Governors’ConferencetotakeplaceafterthetransferofpowergatheredattheHouse.Therehad been no time to cancel it after Gandhi’s death so most attended thecremationwith us.More friends came to stay andwe took up our hectic tourschedule again, including an official trip to Rangoon to return the throne ofTheebaw.AtleastinMaywecouldgoonelasttimetoSimlaandMashobraandwecouldtakePanditji,bynowadearfriend,andatthistimeindesperateneedof a break from theweight of the country’s problems. Themonth endedwithwhatseemedtobehundredsoffarewellpartiesbeforeourplanneddepartureinJune.

ThePrimeMinisterdoingYogi.Heusedtodohisearlymorningtelephonecallslikethis

3rdFebruary:ConferenceofGovernorsoftheIndianProvincesafterIndependencewiththeirwives,SeniorStaffandHouseParty.

Sunday1stFebruaryMostoftheGovernorsareherefortheGovernors’Conferencetomorrow.

AtthefirstoftheGovernors’Conferences,whichnowtookplacewithallIndianGovernors,wehadaveryformallunchparty.MymotherwasworriedthatoneoftheGovernorsappearednottobeeatingatall,sosheaskedhisADCtofindoutwhy.Wouldhelikedifferentfood,ishevegetarian,whatcanwegivehim?Soshesentamessage,‘WouldHisExcellencylikeaneggoristheresomethingwrong?’Ofcoursethereweresomanydifferentdietarystipulationsinmeetingsof this sort in India – you had ribbons on the backs of the chairs to denotesomeonewhowasvegetarian,orHinduwithnobeef,Muslimwithnopork.Butmaybewe’dmadeamistakeandhecouldn’teatwhatwehadpreparedforhim.The young officer went over to his Governor and there was a whisperedconversation,theofficerdisappearedoutofthediningroomandcamebackwithasmall,carefullywrappedparcelwhichhehandedtothekitmagartoputonthesilver salver with whispered instructions to take it to the Governor.UnfortunatelythekitmagarmisunderstoodwhichofthemanyGovernorsitwasforandpresenteditwithgreatceremonytotheGovernorofBombay,sittingonmymother’s righthand.TheGovernorofBombaywasSirMaharajSingh, anextremelyeducatedcosmopolitanGovernor,andhewasslightlystartledbythesalverbeingpresentedtohim.Heunwrappedtheparceltodiscover...apairoffalseteeth!Theteethwerequicklywrappedupagainandtakenroundthetabletotheirrightfulowner,whowasalovelyman,theGovernorofOrissa,DrKhaju,

agreatscholarwhoalsousedtowritedetectivestorieslikeSherlockHolmes.Hewasdelightedtoreceivehisteethwhichhepoppedin,andthereafterheatewithrelish.

9thFebruary:MyparentswithNehruinahowdahonanelephantproceedingtotheMela–Allahabad.

9thFebruary:SomeofthemillionbathersattheConfluenceoftheGangesandtheJumna.

AlsoatthatfirstIndianGovernors’lunch,mysisterPatriciahadquiteatoughtimetalkingtoherneighbourbutshehadstruggledonandultimatelyheseemedvery appreciative of what she was telling him. She had been describing theceremonyof PrincessElizabeth’s recentwedding toPhilip. She had describedtheenormousenthusiasmofthecrowds,thepageantry,andwhatafantasticdayithadbeen.ShewasappalledtodiscoverlaterthattheGovernorinquestionhadapproached my mother at the end of lunch and relayed that her charmingdaughterhadbeentellinghimallaboutherwedding.

Monday9thFebruaryTotheMelawithNehruatAllahabad.

Thursday12thFebruaryGandhi’s ashes were scattered after a service of memorial at the CathedralChurch of Redemption.Daddy read a lesson andwe sangGandhi’s favouritehymnsincluding‘AbidewithMe’.

Friday13thFebruary

WevisitedthefamousDoonSchoolatDehradun.Whenweleft,carslineduptoshinetheirheadlightsontherunwaytoallowustotakeoff.Friday5thMarchPatel suffered a heart attack, the general concensus is that it comes after thestrainhehasbeenundersinceGandhiji’sdeath.Hisdoctorshaveinsistedthatheremoveshimselffromallgovernmentmatters.ThiswillbedifficultasheandNehruaresuchkeyfigures.

Monday8thMarchWe set off on tour again, this time toCalcutta,Orissa, Rangoon, andAssam.OurscheduleisincrediblytightandMummyandDaddywillbeverybusy.Theschedulehasbeenprintedupinfourdifferentcolouredbooks.Asaparty(includingstaff)wenumberabout50.

Tuesday9thMarchAfteraverybusydaywehadafamilydinnerattheoldestgolfclubintheEast,foundedin1829.

6thMarch:AfterinvestitureinDurbarHall.

7thMarch:MyfatherleavingDelhiUniversity(wearingthegownofaDoctorofScience)withmymotherandNehru.

Wednesday10thMarchToOrissawhereweweremetby theGovernorDrKhaju.Whilewewere theretheNavalADC,LieutenantPranParashar’sover-enthusiasmgotusintoserioustrouble.Wewerevisitingatempleandthepriestwarnedthatwewouldnotbeallowed into theHolyofHolies.Pranwasoutragedonourbehalf.ExplainingthathewasaBrahminofamuchhighercastethanthepriest,hesweptusintothe forbiddenarea.Thenextmorning,aswewerereading thenewspapers,wesaw the headline: ‘Temple closed for purification after being polluted byGovernor-General’sVisit.’

Thursday11thMarchRangoon.AllBurma’simportantGovernorspresent.

Saturday13thMarchReturned from Rangoon to Calcutta. Went to exhibition. Mummy did a finalrecordingforAllIndiaRadiotosaygoodbyetothepeopleofWestBengal.

On 21st March Alan Campbell-Johnson wrote in praise of my mother’sceaselessactivityinherleadershipoftheUnitedCouncil.Herecordedthat,sincetheendofAugust1947,shehadmadeten‘majortoursuptotheendofJanuary,carryingout seventy inspectionsof individual refugeecampsand fifty toursofhospitals.AllthisisontopoftheMountbattens’generaltourschedule,inwhichtheyarestill trying tocompletea five-yearViceregalprogress inninemonths.

Duringafurthertentourstostatesandprovincesshehaspaidsixty-sixvisitstohospitals, social-welfare centres, colleges, training establishments etc. It is aprodigiouseffortofbodyandspirit,andhascapturedtheimaginationofIndiaasonlythepropagandaofdeedscando.’

10thMarch:MyparentswithHEDrKhaju,GovernorofOrissa,atGovernmentHouse,Cuttack.

MyparentshavingovershoesfixedbeforevisitingthetempleinOrissa.

13thMarch:NagaTribesmenarrivetodowardanceatShillong.

Between20thMarchand5thAprilwevisitedKapurthala,Travancore,CochinandUdaipur.

Sunday20thMarchTheMaharajaofKapurthalais76andhasbeenonthegadisincetheageof5.HehasseenmanyViceroysandVicereinescomeandgo.AttheStateLuncheonwelcoming Mummy and Daddy he stood up and bade everyone ‘drink to thehealthofLordandLadyWillingdon.’

AfterKapurthalawespenttwenty-fourhoursinUdaipurandsawthebeautifullakewithitsunusedpalaceandthecitypalace.TheMaharanasofUdaipurweretreated with great veneration because they refused to visit Delhi when theMoghulsoccupiedit.PrinceslikeJaipurbowedverylowbeforetheMaharana.Whenwevisited, therulerwasoldandfrailandacripple.Hewasa tiny littleman.MymotherandIvisitedtheHaremtopayourrespectstotheMaharani–aspecialdispensationonthepartofHisHighness.WewereescortedbytheChiefMinister.Hewhisperedthathewasherbrotherbuthadnotbeenallowedtoseehersinceherwedding(aboutfortyyearsbefore!).Asourplanetookoff,ourlastglimpsewasoftheMaharanabeingliftedhigh

into the air on his chair by his retainers to get him out of the dust of ourslipstream.

AttheendofMarch,theconductor,MalcolmSargentarrivedtostay.HewasonhiswaytoTurkeybutunfortunatelymymotherwassobusyworkingthatshedidn’thavethetimetoseehimwhenhefirstarrived.Onthe1stAprilwetookhimtoseesomeIndianmusicanddancing–hewasfascinatedbythefactthatthey all played perfectly in time without a conductor. Unfortunately he gotdysentryandwasunabletoflyontoTurkeywhichwasfortunateforusbecausehe could stay longer – we had a party by the pool on the 16th April whenPanditjidemonstratedhisyogaposturestandingonhishead–apositionwhichhepractisedeveryday–heeventookphone-callslikethis.AfterMalcolmleft,mymother went to see Panditji and from this moment on, as her demandingwork schedule began to ease slightly, their friendship blossomed. She invitedhimtocomewithusinMaytoMashobra.

24thMarch:ThefamilyandstaffonLakeTrivandrum.

12thApril:LeavingBodhGayaTemple,Bihar.

12thApril:GoingtovisitthetreeunderwhichenlightenmentcametoGautamaBuddha.

16thApril:JawaharlalNehruatGovernmentHousepool.

Friday7thMayToBunditostaywithRaoRajaofBundi.

Saturday15thMayWewereabletogoupthegloriousHimalayasforastayatSimla.Saturday21stMayWegaveagardenpartyfortheEastPunjabdignitaries.Thebandplayed,andthedress,ofcourse,wasmorningcoatsandtophatsandourbesthatsandwhiteglovesandacrowdofbeautifulsarisandshalwarkameez.

Monday24thMayWe visited Patiala. The 6’4” Maharaja is truly magnificent with beard andpugaree.Wewatchedacricketmatch. Ifaboundary ishit theballdisappearsdownthemountainside.Greatlossofballs.

Tuesday25thMayWereturnedtoDelhi.

Sunday30thMay

Therearegoingtobethreeweeksoffarewellparties.MummyvisitedthetwogreatrefugeecampsofKurukshetraandPanipatwhichstillshelter300,000people.OneoftheIndianADCswhoaccompaniedhersaidthathehadneverseenanythinglikeit.Therefugeesgatheredroundherintheirthousands,intearsatsaying‘goodbye’toher. Inmanyothercamps,refugeescollected theirPiceandAnnas tobuyarailwayticketforoneofthemtocarryasmallgifttoherasatokenofgratitude.

7thMay:ShootingpartyinBundi:myfathertouchingthearmofourhost,Bahadur,MaharajahofBundi.

15thMay:MyparentsandNehrusettingoffonanexpeditiontoNarkendafromMashobra(behindcar–HeadGardener,Reader).

Nehru,myparentsandmelookingatabearonadriveinSimla.

Breakfastat‘TheRetreat’atMashobrawithNehru.

‘TheRetreat’inMashobranearSimlatakenduringourlaststay,13th-17thMay.

Departure:

June1948

Wehadbeenonan incredible journeywithIndia,whichhadchanged thesub-continent,andhadalastingeffectonmyfamily.Afterall thathadhappeneditwashardtobelievewewereleaving.

WaitingtoleaveGovernmentHouse,withPanditji,mymotherandRajaji.

Salutingasthebandplays‘GodSaveTheKing’onarrivalatthefarewellpartyforover2000staff.

Sunday20thJuneOur last day,we drove toOldDelhi through dense crowds along theChandiChowk. Apparently no Viceroy had driven down it since an assassinationattemptonLordHardingein1911.WewerecheeredallthewaytotheGandhigrounds [Raj Ghat]. A crowd of 250,000 had gathered there and the samenumberwerestilltryingtogetin.AFarewellAddresswasgivenonbehalfoftheDelhiMunicipality.

Thefarewellpartyforall2000staffwasenjoyedbyall.Somanypeoplehadcome out to say goodbye to us. The entertainment included variousperformances,watchedbymyfamilyandsurroundedbyfriendsandstaff.

P,IndiraGandhi,myparentsandNehruataperformanceintheMoghulGardensatthefarewellpartyfortheentirestaff.

Our lastStateBanquetwasheld this evening. Itwashostedby theCabinet inGovernmentHouse. Panditji said ofDaddy: ‘You came here, Sir,with a highreputation, but many a reputation has foundered in India. You lived herethroughaperiodofgreatdifficultyandcrisis,andyetyourreputationhasnotfoundered.That isaremarkable feat.’He thenspokeaboutMummyashaving‘thehealer’stouch.Whereveryouhavegone,youhavebroughtsolace,youhavebroughthopeandencouragement.Is itsurprising,therefore, thatthepeopleofIndiashouldloveyouandlookuptoyouasoneofthemselvesandshouldgrievethat you are going?’He evenmentionedme as ‘coming straight from school,and possessing all the charm she does, did grown-up person’s work in thetroubledsceneof India’.Hereferred to thepublicdemonstration inOldDelhithismorning,saying‘IdonotknowhowLordandLadyMountbattenfeltonthatoccasion, but used as I am to these vast demonstrations here, I was muchaffected, and I wondered how it was that an Englishman and Englishwomancould become so popular in India during this brief period of time…A period

certainly of achievement and success in some measure, but also a period ofsorrowanddisaster…Obviouslythiswasnotconnectedsomuchwithwhathadhappened,butratherwiththegoodfaith,thefriendshipofallEnglishmenandwomen, and indeed of all the people in theUnited Kingdom to the people ofIndiaandtheloveofIndiathatthesetwopossessed…Youmayhavemanygiftsand presents but there is nothing more real and precious than the love andaffectionof thepeople.Youhaveseenyourself,SirandMadam,howthat loveandaffectionwork.’MummyandDaddyrepliedverymovinglyandthentheywerepresentedwith

asilvertrayinscribedwiththesignaturesofalltheGovernorsoftheProvincesandtheMembersoftheCabinet.Finally,Daddypresentedthemagnificentgoldplate which the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths and Silversmiths hadpresentedto theKingEmperorGeorgeVforuse inhisViceroy’sStateDiningRoominNewDelhi.DaddysaidthathedidthisattheKing’sexpresswishasasymbol of friendship. The evening ended with a reception for seven thousandguests.

PhotoinscribedbyRajagopalachariformyfather’sbirthdayathisreceptionatGovernmentHouse.Thecaptionreads‘DearMagician,ThuswasIinductedintotroublebyyou,Raja.’

Threeofthe100servantsreceivingmyparentswithSalaamsonenteringtheStateDiningRoomwhichwastakenoverfortheeveningbytheGovernmenttogivethefarewellbanquet.

Generalviewofthefarewellbanquetshowingtheusual104atthemaintable.NotetheUnionJackandIndianFlagconcealingtheGoldPlate.

MyfatherpullsbacktheflagstomakeasurprisepresentationoftheKingEmperor’sGoldPlateonbehalfoftheKing.

FarewellCeremony

WhenthetimecametoleavemymotherandIwereveryemotionalandsad.ItwashorribletosaygoodbyetopeoplelikeRajaji,whowassucceedingmyfatherasGovernor-General.BecauseIndiansareanemotionalpeopleit’sverycatchingand it is incrediblyhard tokeepa stiffupper lipwhen somebodyhugsyou infloodsoftears.ButthemomentI’llneverforgetiswhenwegotintothecarriageandwereabouttodriveawaywithamountedbodyguard.

MymotherandIwatchingmyfatherinspecttheGuardofHonour.

Monday21stJuneWeleftGovernmentHousewiththeBodyguardliningthestepsandescortingthecarriage.Butaswewereabout tomoveoffoneof thehorses jibbed.Someonecalledout:‘Eventhehorseswon’tletyougo’andthecrywastakenupbythecrowd.By the timewehad theofficial farewells atPalamAirport,RajajiwasweepingandMummyandIwerefindingitveryhardtoholdbackourtears.

‘IwonderedhowitwasthatanEnglishmanandanEnglishwomancouldbecomesopopular

inIndiaduringthisbriefperiodoftime.’NehruattheMountbattens’last

StateBanquet

We arrived back at Northolt on a warm summer’s evening and the PrimeMinister,Philip, theIndianMinisterofFinance,KrishnaMenon, theBBCandvariouspressphotographersandagenciesweretheretomeetus.

Despitethetributesandshowofaffectiononourdeparture,noteveryonewaskeen to welcome us home.Winston Churchill and many in the ConservativeParty and beyond blamedmy father for the loss of life that had taken place.Churchillwasnever to forgivehim for ‘giving away theEmpire’ and cut himdead at everyBuckinghamPalaceGardenParty.They thought everything hadbeingdonetooquickly,butmyfatherknewthatonlyhistorycouldbethejudge.Myparentshad the loveof the Indianpeopleand the thanksofCongresswhoknewthattherewasnowayofcontainingtheriotingwithoutmovingquicklytotransferpowertoIndiaitself.

GatheredoutsideGovernmentHousewaitingtofinallyleave.

AnemotionalfarewellfromthenewGovernor-General‘Rajaji’(Rajagopalachari).

Frontrow:Philip,myfather,ShanmukhamChetty,Attlee,mymother,KrishnaMenon,IndianHighCommissioner.

Myfather,ShanmukhamChetty,IndianMinisterofFinance,UKPrimeMinisterAttleeandmymotheratNortholtRAFstation.

Overleaf:RoyalIndianNavalGuardofHonourfromHMSDelhi,whichwasbeingcommissionedintheUKwhenwereturnedfromIndia.

EpilogueWhenIleftIndiatoreturntoEnglandIwas18yearsold.IfeltIwasreturningtoacountrywhereIknewhardlyanybody.Allmycomingoutintotheworld,andmeetingpeoplemyownage,anddiscussingallthethingsthatmatteredsomuchwhenyouarethatage–politicsandreligionandboyfriendsandeverything,hadhappenedwithIndiangirls.IfeltfarmoreIndianthanEnglish.Maybethismadeit possible for Indians to feel the same way about us. Therefore, one feltaccepted.Onewasinacountryandonewasdoingsomething;onefeltpartofit.But I think itwould have been very difficult not to. I do not think you reallycouldhavelivedthroughthattimeandremainedanonlooker.

KeyFigures

ABELL,George(laterSirGeorge):PrivateSecretarytotheViceroy

AMRITKAUR,Rajkumari:Gandhi’sSecretary,MinisterforHealthintheGovernmentoftheDominionofIndia

AUCHINLECK, Field-Marshal Sir Claude: Commander-in-Chief in India until 15th August; SupremeCommanderadministeringpartitionofIndianarmyuntil30thNovember1947

BALDEV SINGH, Sardar: Sikh leader; Member for Defence in the Interim Government, Minister forDefenceintheGovernmentoftheDominionofIndia

BHOPAL,TheNawabof:RulerofBhopalState;ChancelloroftheChamberofPrincesuntilMay1947

BIKANER,TheMaharajaof:RulerofBikanerState

BRABOURNE, Lord and Lady, Patricia and John: Elder daughter and son-in-law of Earl andCountessMountbattenofBurma

BROCKMAN,Ronnie,CaptainR.N.:PersonalSecretarytotheViceroy,PrivateSecretarytotheGovernor-GeneralofIndiafrom15thAugust1947

CAMPBELL-JOHNSON,Alan:PressAttachétothelastViceroyandtothefirstGovernor-GeneraloftheDominionofIndia

COLVILLE,SirJohn:GovernorofBombayuntilAugust1947,ViceroyduringMountbatten’sabsenceinLondon

CURRIE,Douglas,Colonel:MilitarySecretarytotheViceroyandtotheGovernor-GeneralofIndia

GANDHI,Mahatma,Gandhiji:‘Bapu’(FatheroftheIndianNation)

GILLIAT,Martin,Major:DeputyMilitarySecretarytotheViceroyandtotheGovernorGeneralofIndia

HOWES,PeterLieutenantCommander,R.N:SeniorADCtotheViceroyandtotheGovernorGeneralofIndia

ISMAY,‘Pug’,LordHastings:Chiefof theViceroy’sStaffandof theGovernor-Generalof India’sstaffuntilDecember1947

JAIPUR,Maharajaof:‘Jai’,RulerofJaipurstate

JAIPUR,Maharaniof:‘Ayesha’JENKINS,SirEvan:GovernorofthePunjabuntil15thAugust1947

JINNAH, Mohammed Ali (Quaid-e-Azam): President of the All India Muslim League, first Governor-GeneraloftheDominionofPakistan

JINNAH,Fatima:Jinnah’ssister

KATJU,Dr:GovernorofOrissaafterAugust1947

KAPURTHALA,TheMaharajaof:RulerofKapurthalastate

KASHMIR,TheMaharajaof:RulerofJammuandKashmirstate

KRIPALANI,Acharya:PresidentofCongress

LIAQUAT, Ali Khan: General Secretary of the All India Muslim League; Member for Finance in theInterimGovernment;PrimeMinsteroftheGovernmentoftheDominionofPakistan

MAHARAJSINGH,Sir:GovernorofBombayafterAugust1947

MENON,V.Krishna: Prominent in India League,Member for Paddington on LondonCounty Council,Nehru’sRepresentativeinEurope,HighCommissionertotheUnitedKingdonfromAugust1947

MENON, V.P.: Reforms Commissioner to the Viceroy; and from July 1947 Secretary of the StatesDepartment,GovernmentoftheDominionofIndia

MIEVILLE,SirEric:PrincipalSecretarytotheViceroy

MONCKTON,SirWalter:ConstitutionalAdvisertotheNizarofHyderabad

NEHRU,PanditJawaharlal, ‘Panditji’:MemberforExternalAffairsandCommonwealthRelations in theInterimGovernment;Vice-PresidentoftheInterimGovernment;PrimeMinisteroftheDominionofIndia

NYE,SirArchibald:GovernorofMadras

PANDIT,MrsVijaylakshmi,‘Nan’:Nehru’ssister,AmbassadortoRussiaandtotheUnitedNations

PATEL,SardarVallabhbhai:Member forHomeAffairsand for InformationandBroadcasting,and fromJuly 1947 for States in the Interim Government; Deputy Prime Minister for the Dominion of IndiaPATIALA, Maharaja of: Ruler of Patiala State, and from May to August 1947 last Chancellor of theChamberofPrinces

PRASAD,Dr.Rajendra:MemberforFood&AgricultureintheInterimGovernmentandPresidentoftheConstituentAssemblyRAJAGOPALACHARI,Chakravarti‘Rajaji’:MemberofIndustriesandSuppliesintheInterimGovernment;GovernorofBengalafter15thAugust1947andfirstIndianGovernor-GeneraloftheDominionofIndia21stJune,1948

REES,Major-GeneralT.W., ‘Pete’:Commanderof thePunjabBoundaryForceJuly toSeptember,1947;HeadoftheGovernor-General’s(India)MilitaryEmergencystaffSeptembertoDecember1947

UDAIPUR,Maharana:RulerofthestateofUdaipur

WARD,Elizabeth:LadyMountbatten’sPrivateSecretary

WATSON,Muriel:LadyMountbatten’sPersonalAssistant

WAVELL,Earl:ViceroyofIndiawhomLordMountbattensucceeded

GlossaryAngrezi:English/BritishBapu:literally,'Father'

Bearer:avalet

Chaprassi: an officemessengerDhoti: a long, unstitched clothwound about the lower part of the bodyDurbar:literally,KingscourtGadi:athrone

Howdah:aseatplacedonthebackofanelephantJaihind:asalutation,literally,'VictorytoIndia'

Jirga:decisionmakingassemblyKijai:asalutation,literally,'Praise'

Kirpan:ceremonialswordwornbySikhmenKitmagar:afootman

Mahatma:'GreatSoul'

Mela:festival

Nawab:MuslimrulerornoblemanPandit:alearnedman,oftenaKashmiriBrahminPuthan:tribeofNorthWestFrontierinIndiaPugaree:atypeofturbanRajGhat:RoyalburialgroundSutee:theHindupracticeofawidowthrowingherselfonthefuneralpyreSyce:agroom

Taktaposh:RoyalbedsteadZindabad:'Longlive'

Index

Thepagenumbersinthisindexrefertotheprintedition,pleaseusethesearchfacilityonyourdevicetofindthebelowkeywords.

Ahsan,Sayed,Lieutenant135,138AidesdeCamp60AllahabadMela203-4,205Auchinleck,SirClaude135,161-2AvroYork20,107

BaldevSingh103,128-9Beaumont,Wentworth161,162Bengal,Partition113,160Bikaner,visitto188-90,189bodyguards44,44-5,116,118-19,132Bombay,visitto156-8Brabourne,JohnandPatricia172,187,189Brockman,Ronnie144Bundi,RaoRajaof185-7,214Burma,independence184Burnaby-Atkins,CaptainFreddie107

canteen,PMat79-81,159,169CaravanofIndia95-7,96-7,105,173Chance,MrsSusan108Churchill,Winston,onindependence229-30ClinicandDispensary,PMat80-1,89,113,169

Delhi62riots164,165,171,171

Elizabeth,Princess&PhilipMountbatten,Lieutenantengagement102,120wedding175-7,176,204

flyinginIndia42-3,108,111-12

Gandhi,Indira21,130,174Gandhi,Mahatma(‘Gandhiji’)atViceroy’sHouse64,66,67,69-70friendshipof68,69prayermeetings120-2,121fasts187-8assassination194-6funeral192,196,197cremation197-9,198,199ashesscattered205

GeorgeVI14,16,136-7

Governors’Conferences26,76-8,77,202-3,202

heat,effectsof61-2,94-5,198Hicks,India9Howes,Peter164,172Hyderabad,problemsof106,129

independenceseealsoTransferofPowerCeremoniesboundaries120Britishtroopsleave186-7Burma184Churchillon229-30MountbattenPlan88,92,95,100,102-4,103Pakistaniassets187-8,190partition104,153passingofBill124,126urgencyof24,26

IndiaDominionStatus102TransferofPowerCeremony143-7,145,147,148-9

IndianCongressParty23-4,70Ismay,Sarah161,162

Jaipur,Maharajaof131,178,180,182,183Jinnah,MohammedAli74-6,75andMuslimLeague75-6MountbattenPlan102

reactiontoindependence139-41

KashmirLMvisits108,109,110-11partitionproblems106,111,130

Kashmir,Maharaniof108,110-11Kashmir,Yuvrajof108,110KrishnaMenon92-3,120

LadyIrwinCollege26,28,58Lahoreriots124,124

lettersreproducedAttleetoMountbatten124-5,126-7GandhitoEdwinaMountbatten114GeorgeVItoMountbatten136-7MountbattentoAttlee15

Liaquat,AliKhan103,156Listowel,Earlof166Loh,DrChiaLuen107,108

Menon,V.P.128Mountbatten,Edwina,Countess18,36,47,49,131,150,183andNehru20-3swearing-inceremony46,47,48,48andfortuneteller48-50silverwedding122-3,123Clinic165visitsPunjab166-8

UnitedCouncilleadership208-9leavesIndia220-3,220-9,225-9death22,83

Mountbattenfamilytree6,13,17-18Mountbatten,Louis,Earl9,13,36,150,183seealsoMountbattenPlanappointedViceroy14-16,25-6departureforIndia19-20takesupappointment23arrivalinIndia42-6,42,43swearing-inceremony46,47,48,49meetsGandhi69-70meetsNehruandJinnah70,72-3,74-6visitsNorthWestFrontier82-5,83visitsPunjab84-5,84

meetsNehruandKrishnaMenon88-9Kashmirproblem106,111silverwedding122-3,123addressesChamberofPrinces129-30,129Pakistaniindependence134-5,138-41,138,139,140Governor-General142-3Earldom143Indianindependence15,143-7,147,148-9visitsJaipur180,180,181,182visitsBikaner188-90,189visitsOrissa207,207leavesIndia220-3,221,222-9,225-9returnstoUK230,230-4

Mountbatten,LadyPamela10,27Indianimpressions26,28pets28-33,29,31studentleaders46,156-8eighteenthbirthday79canteen79-81,159,169ClinicandDispensary80,81,89,113,169Hindustanilessons95,134CaravanofIndia95-7,96,97,105,173Gandhi’sprayermeetings120-2,121courtesytitle143essentialclericalwork168-9‘LadyEarnestine’172PrincessElizabeth’sbridesmaid163,176leavesIndia220-1,226-7,226,228-9returnstoUK234,234MountbattenPlan88,92,95,100,102-4,103MuslimLeague24DirectActionDay24,25Jinnahand75-6andPartition120

Nand,Lila54-5,159,164Nehru,Jawaharlal(‘Panditji’)27,71,150,200meetsMountbattens20-1andEM20-3character70,72-3LMconsultswith88-9MountbattenPlan103,104Gandhi’sassassination195

Neola(mongoose)28,29,30,32,72NorthWestFrontier,riots82-5

Pakistannameproposed24DominionStatus102assetspaid187-8,190

Palampur,Nawabof142Parashar,P.N.207Patel,Maniben146Patel,Vallabhbhai73,74,103,206Prasad,Rajendra141,142princelystates,pre-independence39

PrincesChamberof128-30,129

post-independence34,106,128-30,185

PunjabBoundaryForce120,159,161

Partition113refugees160,170riotsin84-5,84,124,124Sikhcommunity159

QuitIndiamovement24

Radcliffe,SirCyril120Rajagopalachari,Chakravarti222,229Rees,Pete168,169refugees154attackson170Delhi165Punjab160,166-8,170

Retreat,The,Mashrobra216

Sakrikar,Dinkar156,158Sargeant,Malcolm211-12Scott,CaptainJim166ShalimarGardens110,111Sikhs159-60SimlaseeRetreat,TheViceregalLodgeTaylor,ColonelAC105TransferofPowerCeremoniesDelhi143-7,145,147,148-9Karachi134-5,135,138-41,138,139,140

ViceregalLodge90post-independencevisits160-3,173-4,213-14pre-independencevisits88-9,90-3,93,107-8

Viceroy’sHouse50-2,51,54dailyroutineat55,58,60DurbarRoom52MoghulGardens59,61staff44-5,54-5,56-7StateDiningRoom53

Ward,Elizabeth145Watson,Muriel144-5,159Wavell,Countess40,44Wavell,Lord24,40Wavell,LadyFelicity44-5

Picturecredits

AlloftheimagesinthisbookandthecoverimageweresourcedfromtheBroadlandsArchive,withtheexceptionofthefollowing:Corbis/Bettmann25,154,157,195;Corbis/CondéNastArchive178;Corbis/Hulton-DeutschCollection73,171;DavidDuncanDouglas/HarryRansomHumanitiesResearchCenter.TheUniversityofTexasatAustin117;GettyImages/MargaretBourke-White52,165;GettyImages/JamesBurke131;DavidHicks59;DanaHyde51;PhotoDivision/PressInformationBureau,MinistryofInformation&Broadcasting215bottom;RIBALibraryPhotographsCollection53;SuperStock/AgeFotostock111.Weapologiseinadvanceforanyunintentionalomissionorneglectandwillbepleasedtoinserttheappropriateacknowledgementforanycompaniesorindividualsinanysubsequenteditionofthiswork.

Bibliography

AlanCampbell-Johnson,MissionwithMountbatten,Atheneum1951LarryCollinsandDominiqueLapierre,FreedomatMidnight,HarperCollins1975PhilipZeigler,Mountbatten:theOfficialBiography,PhoenixPress1985InterviewwithLadyPamelaHicksrecordedbyBRNandafortheNehruMemorialMuseumandLibrary,14thOctober1968

Acknowledgements

OurheartfeltthanksgotoKateOldfield,withoutwhomthisbookwouldnotexist,andwhomadethewritingofitsuchapleasureformotheranddaughter.WearegratefultoDr.ChrisWoolgar,HeadofSpecialCollectionsoftheHartleyLibrary,Universityof

Southampton,andparticularlytohisseniorarchivist,KarenRobson.AndtoLordBrabourne,ournephewandcousinwhoistheChairmanoftheTrusteesoftheMountbattenarchives.WealsowishtothankLotteOldfieldforhereyeandenthusiasm.Andthankstoalltheinvisiblehandswhomakebookspossible,especiallyKateBurkhalter,forholdingit

alltogether,AnnaCheifetz,MichaelWicksandinparticularPollyPowell.

MiniatureStarofIndiabroochgivenasan18thbirthdaypresenttoPamelaMountbattenbyherfather

FirstpublishedintheUnitedKingdomin2007byPavilionBooks

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Publisher:KateOldfieldEditor:KateBurkhalterDesigner:LotteOldfieldIndexer:DerekCopsonMaps:WilliamSmutsDigitalEditor:GineySapera

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