Sarkar, Jadunath (1870-1958) historian. Jadunath Sarkar was born on 10 December 1870 in village Karchamaria, under Singra upazila of Natore district. Son of Rajkumar Sarkar, a zamindar of Karchamaria, he graduated with Honours in English and History in 1891 and stood first class first in MA in English in 1892. He got the premchand roychand studentship in 1897, and his essay, India of Aurangzeb was published in 1901.
In 1893, Jadunath joined Ripon College, Calcutta as a teacher in English literature. In 1898, he joined the Provincial Education Service and was posted at presidency college, Calcutta. In 1917, he joined the History Department of Banaras Hindu University and in 1918 was nominated to the Indian Educational Service and was transferred to Ravenshaw College, Cuttack, to teach both English and History. In 1926, on retirement from government service, Jadunath was appointed Vice Chancellor of Calcutta University. He was offered a second term on 7 August 1928, which he refused.
Jadunath Sarkar
Jadunath's father was attracted to the Brahmo religion. It is difficult to say how much Jadunath was drawn to it. He had published a summary English translation of the chaitanya charitamrita (17th century) of krsnadasa kaviraja. The Brahmos never claimed Jadunath as one of them.
Jadunath was against those nationalist Bengali writings which tried to refute the current English view that the Bengalis were cowards. As a result, Jadunath had often been dubbed a supporter of the English. Such a view of Jadunath gained momentum when the British Government knighted him. His words of praise for the English, whom he thought to have been instrumental in bringing progress in India, further strengthened this view.
The historical works of Jadunath can be divided into two broad types. In the first category were his major works, such as History of Aurangzib (5 Vols, 1912-1958), Shivaji and His Times (1919), Mughal Administration (1920), Later Mughals (ed., 1922, 2 Vols.), Fall of the Mughal Empire (4 Vols, 1932-38), Military History of India (1960) etc. The other category included all his translations into English and Bangla of the Persian and Marathi documents as well as innumerable articles in English and Bengali, reviews, forewards etc. His published Bengali articles numbered 148, much less than his English articles which numbered 365. He had only four Bengali books while the number of his English books, including those edited by him, was thirty-one. It is difficult to formulate Jadunath's concept of history since he had rarely written on the subject. It is also difficult to determine why Jadunath veered to the medieval history of India after studying English literature.
In nineteenth century Bengal, two historical concepts were confronting each other. One derived from the writings of English historians from the end of the eighteenth century. The second came from Bengali nationalistic writings, which often created heroes in Bengal and against which Jadunath had written often. Such writings, particularly against the historicity of the 'freedom fighter' pratapaditya strengthened the view that Jadunath was pro-English.
In 1893, Jadunath joined Ripon College, Calcutta as a teacher in English literature. In 1898, he joined the Provincial Education Service and was posted at presidency college, Calcutta. In 1917, he joined the History Department of Banaras Hindu University and in 1918 was nominated to the Indian Educational Service and was transferred to Ravenshaw College, Cuttack, to teach both English and History. In 1926, on retirement from government service, Jadunath was appointed Vice Chancellor of Calcutta University. He was offered a second term on 7 August 1928, which he refused.
Jadunath Sarkar
Jadunath's father was attracted to the Brahmo religion. It is difficult to say how much Jadunath was drawn to it. He had published a summary English translation of the chaitanya charitamrita (17th century) of krsnadasa kaviraja. The Brahmos never claimed Jadunath as one of them.
Jadunath was against those nationalist Bengali writings which tried to refute the current English view that the Bengalis were cowards. As a result, Jadunath had often been dubbed a supporter of the English. Such a view of Jadunath gained momentum when the British Government knighted him. His words of praise for the English, whom he thought to have been instrumental in bringing progress in India, further strengthened this view.
The historical works of Jadunath can be divided into two broad types. In the first category were his major works, such as History of Aurangzib (5 Vols, 1912-1958), Shivaji and His Times (1919), Mughal Administration (1920), Later Mughals (ed., 1922, 2 Vols.), Fall of the Mughal Empire (4 Vols, 1932-38), Military History of India (1960) etc. The other category included all his translations into English and Bangla of the Persian and Marathi documents as well as innumerable articles in English and Bengali, reviews, forewards etc. His published Bengali articles numbered 148, much less than his English articles which numbered 365. He had only four Bengali books while the number of his English books, including those edited by him, was thirty-one. It is difficult to formulate Jadunath's concept of history since he had rarely written on the subject. It is also difficult to determine why Jadunath veered to the medieval history of India after studying English literature.
In nineteenth century Bengal, two historical concepts were confronting each other. One derived from the writings of English historians from the end of the eighteenth century. The second came from Bengali nationalistic writings, which often created heroes in Bengal and against which Jadunath had written often. Such writings, particularly against the historicity of the 'freedom fighter' pratapaditya strengthened the view that Jadunath was pro-English.
(1st of 3rd part)
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