As I’ve been on something of a Seven Years’ War kick of late, working my way through the collected works of Francis Parkman, it occured to me this weekend that now would be a great time to hunt up my biography of Robert Clive in order to get the Subcontinental angle on the matter.
I proceeded to start rooting around my library, only to discover after a thorough search that I don’t actually have a biography of Robert Clive. This struck me as extremely strange because I would have sworn both that I had asked for recommendations among the llamaphiles and port swillers before and that I had acted on said recommendations. Apparently not, though.
Sigh. Another neuron dead and gone.
Thus, I’m afraid I will have to ask again: Can anyone recommend a good biography of Robert Clive?
Thankee!
The Port Stands At Your Elbow 
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May 27, 2009 at 1:20 am
basilseal
Try “Clive: The Life and Death of a British Emperor” by Robert Harvey or for fun you can read G. A. Henty’s “With Clive in India” a “Boy’s Own” story…
May 27, 2009 at 2:31 am
Robbo
Yes, that seems to be the only real choice. Harvey seems to be to biographers of Clive what Bobby Burns was to Scots poets: one of a kind.
May 28, 2009 at 1:20 pm
Old Dominion Tory
There are plenty of previously published books about Clive, Robbo. Admittedly, some are a tad old, but there are some newer books, too. Just check the catalog of a near-by university and see if your local system can secure them through interlibrary loan.
Also, if you’re enjoying reading about the Seven Years War, then I heartily recommend Battle for Empire: The Very First World War by Tom Pocock. In it, you’ll find a stunning chapter on the Indian theater.
May 28, 2009 at 1:57 pm
Robbo
Yes, and of course A.T. Mahon writes extensively about the naval aspect of the war, including in the Indian theater. It struck me that this would be a fitting time to dip back into his magnum opus on sea power.