Victoria & Abdul

by Shrabani Basu

  There is no record of how Lady Lansdowne reacted to the Munshi, who was travelling back to India on holiday on the same ship. Karim, still a youth of twenty-six, would have been polite and gentle and informed her that he was carrying a letter for the Viceroy from the Queen. The ship arrived at the port of Bombay on 18 November and the Munshi alighted carrying a sword and a gun, both with permission from the Queen.18 The Viceroy had ensured his smooth passage so he was not troubled by any authorities.

  The Queen missed her Indian companion and wrote to her daughter Vicky in Germany:

  My good Abdul Karim’s departure is vy. inconvenient as he looked after all my boxes – letters etc. besides my lessons and I miss him terribly! 4 months is a long time; I have such interesting and instructive conversations with him about India – the people, customs and his religion, das geht mir alles sehr ab …19

  The Viceroy had, meanwhile, confirmed from the provisional government that the grant of land for Karim would be above Rs 600 as the Queen had desired. The land had been identified in the suburbs of Agra and the Viceroy sent a telegram to the Queen to say he looked forward to meeting both Abdul Karim and John Tyler in Agra. In a separate letter to Lord Cross, the Viceroy confided:

  Did she [the Queen] tell you that I had obtained a grant of land for her Munshi, Abdul Karim, in the suburbs of Agra to the value of Rs 600.00 a year. The arrangement would be a most unusual one if the case was that of an ordinary employee of the state, but there is perhaps nothing very unnatural in the Empress of India desiring to reward a favourite servant in this manner. At any rate Her Majesty had set her heart upon obtaining this concession for him.20

  The Munshi had informed the Queen about his safe arrival in India and she waited eagerly for news about the meeting between him and the Viceroy. Like a nervous mother sending her son out on his first day to school and hoping he would make a favourable impression, the Queen waited to hear from Lansdowne. On 21 November she wrote to him:

  By this time the Viceroy will doubtless have seen her good Munshi, who went in the same ship with Maud [Lady Lansdowne], and they had such a quick and good passage. The Queen Empress hopes and trusts that this time the fatigue and heat have not tried her, as they did the first time.21

  The Queen was in a flurry of excitement at the prospect of the meeting. ‘Thanks for kind reception for Munshi Abdul. Trust allow him and father to attend levee tomorrow,’ she telegrammed. But she was informed by return telegram that it would be inappropriate for the Viceroy to include Karim and Dr Wuzeeruddin in the levee, as it would upset protocol and other senior officers would be left out. She replied immediately the same day: ‘My mistake about levee. Quite understand. Most grateful for kind distinction for Munshi.’22

  The next day she sent another excited telegram: ‘Was not aware when I telegraphed about Munshi and father that it was Durbar. Understand that father cd not attend that though he might attend platform. Much gratified at your giving Munshi place with your staff.’

  The Munshi had updated her by telegram about his reception by the Viceroy. He had been to the Viceroy’s Durbar and stood in a special enclosure with the Viceroy’s staff. Important Indian zamindars and landed gentry from Agra and the vicinity had watched him take his place. Though his father, Dr Wuzeeruddin, had not been invited, the Munshi had been welcomed as a member of the Queen’s personal Household. His standing in Agra society had been firmly established.

  The Queen was delighted. Another telegram to the Viceroy followed the same day: ‘Accept warm thanks from me and Munshi for great kindness to him today.’23 A few days later she thanked him again, both for the land and the courtesy shown to Karim. It was clear that the Queen longed to be in India. She craved to see the Taj Mahal in Agra and her beloved Abdul standing proudly at the Viceroy’s Durbar. She had read the Viceroy’s description of Bombay with eagerness and her heart ached that it was not possible for her to ever go there. ‘The Queen is jealous of all that he [the Viceroy] has seen, for she would give anything to visit India! But she fears her age puts a bar to it, though really the journey is wonderfully quick now, and it is said will still be shortened in time.’

  Being able to present her Munshi to the Viceroy had given the Queen immense satisfaction. The Viceroy, however, had had a few headaches trying to balance his Queen’s demands with the strict formality and protocol of the British Raj.

  The Viceroy had arrived at Agra station on 21 November to a red carpet welcome. The military band played on the platform as he alighted with his wife and regular entourage. Standing in the ring to greet him was the Governor of the North-West Provinces, Auckland Colvin, and other officials, including John Tyler. But the Munshi was not allowed to welcome the Viceroy. Though John Tyler had applied in advance on his behalf for permission for him to meet the Viceroy at the station, Colvin had rejected it on the ground that only persons of ‘high official positions or native personages of rank’ were allowed on the platform.

  Lansdowne, learning of this, was quick to make amends and asked Tyler to invite Karim to meet him personally that afternoon. Karim, dressed in his turban and impressive clothes and proudly wearing the medal of the Eastern Star, was produced for an audience with the Viceroy. He handed him the letter sent by the Queen and later that day had an interview with Lady Lansdowne. The Viceroy was impressed with the young man and thought he looked ‘very smart’. That evening the Viceroy was holding a levee, and with the Queen’s request in mind, he issued an order that the Munshi could attend it with members of the Viceroy’s staff. However, protocol required that Karim make an application to the Deputy Commissioner for permission to attend the levee and he had not done so. By the time the Viceroy realised this, it was too late for his staff to contact Karim and he missed the levee.

  The Viceroy wanted to make sure that the Munshi did not miss the Durbar, as he had already missed two previous functions. He sent a message to the Munshi through Tyler to invite him to attend the Durbar with the Viceroy’s staff. Since Karim’s position as Munshi did not give him the right to be included amongst the regular ‘Durbaris’, the Viceroy thought that this was the proper course to adopt. All officials below a certain rank were excluded from these and the admission of any person of lower standing would be resented by the rest. However, as Karim held an appointment in the Queen’s Household, ‘it seemed only natural and proper that he should, upon such an occasion, attend upon your Majesty’s representative with the members of his staff ’, the Viceroy later explained to the Queen.

  Karim’s father, Dr Wuzeeruddin, however, had to be excluded from the Durbar. Local officials at Agra informed the Viceroy that Dr Wuzeeruddin’s position did not entitle him to be included among the Durbaris since no official drawing less than Rs 3,000 a year was admitted and nearly all the tehsildars, or local magistrates, were excluded under this ruling.

  Though the Viceroy had been happy to meet the Munshi and had been impressed by him, he was less pleased with John Tyler. After a lengthy conversation with the superintendent of the jail, he felt that Tyler seemed to be dissatisfied with the manner in which he had been treated and also underrated the value of the Queen’s gift to Karim. The Viceroy felt that Tyler was inclined to think there was a conspiracy against him, though he himself had never detected any animus against him from Auckland Colvin. He felt it was ‘very unfortunate’ that Tyler little appreciated all that had been done for him and that he spoke about the grant of land to the Munshi, in his presence, with indifference.

  Feeling strongly about this, the Viceroy felt it was his: duty to tell your Majesty that a grant such as that which has been made to Abdul Karim, is most rarely bestowed in this country, and then only to officers of very long and meritorious service. As an illustration he may mention that quite recently one of the men who at the peril of his life, and under a withering fire helped to blow up the Kashmiri Gate of Delhi in the Mutiny, received, on his retirement from the service, a grant of land yielding only Rs 250 for life. Abdul Karim, at the age of 26, has received a perpetual
grant of land representing an income of more than double that amount in recognition of his services as a member of your Majesty’s Household.

  The Viceroy does not for a moment, question that services rendered to the Queen Empress should receive special and signal recognition, but he must protest against such rewards when they have been given at your Majesty’s express desire, being underrated, or spoken of as if they were not of serious importance.

  He felt that judging from the language used by Tyler, it was clear that the gentleman did not sufficiently recognise the consideration with which he and Abdul Karim had both been treated.

  The Viceroy enclosed a seating plan for the Durbar and said he had given the Munshi a special place between the Viceroy’s staff and the ‘distinguished visitors’.

  Before the Viceroy left Agra, he made it a point to receive both Karim and his father privately. Lady Lansdowne, too, gave an interview to the Munshi’s wife and mother-in-law, who were brought to the camp with much secrecy and ‘many precautions for the strict observance of the purdah rules’. Lansdowne informed the Queen that ‘Abdul Karim looked extremely well and was very smart’.24

  The Queen read the letter several times, absorbing each detail of the events in Agra. She filled with pride at the Viceroy’s praise for Karim, but was equally upset about what she had learnt about John Tyler, the man she had worked so hard to promote. She was also nervous that Tyler’s behaviour and his remarks could reflect badly on the Munshi and wanted the Viceroy to have no misconceptions about him.

  On 27 November the Viceroy informed Lord Cross how he had delicately secured the position of the Munshi at the Durbar:

  I have had a great deal of correspondence with HM [Her Majesty] by letter and telegram about the position to be accorded to her Munshi, who is now here on leave. His status in HM’s household did not entitle him to be included amongst the regular Durbaris, but I got over the difficulty by giving him a place next to my own staff and close behind my seat. This arrangement, I am glad to learn, has given HM satisfaction. I bestow an excessive amount of recognition upon the Munshi, who as you know, has got a grant of land to the value of Rs 600 per annum permanently, a very liberal mark of Her Majesty’s favour.25

  His final despatch to Cross from Agra was equally tongue-in-cheek:

  I have arranged to see the Queen’s Munshi and his father privately before I leave, and Lady Lansdowne is, I fancy at this moment, engaged in interviewing the Munshi’s wife and her mamma, who are to be smuggled into the camp with the utmost secrecy. I think you will agree with me in considering that the family should be well satisfied with the recognition which they have received.26

  Lord Cross replied:

  I felt quite sure that you would do nothing to cause the Munshi, Abdul Karim, to lose his head. I always told the Queen that I was sure that you would do what was right, and no more, and that I could not myself say what was right and proper, and what was not, but that I left it all to you, and that the Queen might rest quite satisfied.27

  It was the first time the Viceroy of India had been asked to meet an Indian clerk, who had once been no more than a humble servant. It was clear to him, however, that the Queen held the Munshi in high regard and the Viceroy did not want to upset her, even though he clearly found her demands trying.

  The Queen replied to him by telegram on 16 December: ‘Received kind letter of 26th and am most grateful for kindness to Munshi.’ The Viceroy’s letter, however, needed to be responded to in full. The Queen sat at her desk in Windsor Castle, missing as she always did on these occasions, the reassuring presence of Karim by her side, and replied to Lord Lansdowne. After thanking him once again for his kindness to Karim, she added:

  But she wishes to express to him how much she regrets the extraordinary behaviour of Sir J Tyler, who had nothing to do with the Munshi at all on this occasion. He was a personal friend of Dr Wuzeeruddin, and when the Queen Empress asked Sir John Tyler, after the Colonial Exhibition in 1886, to procure her 2 Indian attendants, Abdul Karim and another excellent man, but of very inferior class were sent over and only engaged for a year. It was the Queen’s own selection. On account of the intelligence, education and very high character of the Munshi that the Queen engaged him as her Munshi and clerk early in 1888, and persuaded him to remain permanently with her, which he hesitated to do on account of the separation from his parents and family to whom he is devotedly attached. He has written and telegraphed to beg the Queen to thank the Viceroy for his and Maud’s great kindness to him and his family.

  The Queen Empress is entirely satisfied and pleased with what the Viceroy has done, but she trusts that the unfortunate language of Sir John Tyler has not given the Viceroy a bad opinion of the poor Munshi, as he really is a most excellent, high principled and gentlemanlike young man, worthy of the kindness and distinctions which have been bestowed on him. Sir John Tyler did express his gratitude to the Queen for all that had been done for himself, but he is a very irascible man, with a violent temper and a total want of tact, and his own enemy, but v. kind-hearted and hospitable, a very good official, and a first-rate physician. He has, from his knowing so many people all over India, been very useful in procuring servants for the Queen, all of whom have turned out extremely well.

  Though Sir A Colvin may not have said anything to the Viceroy against Sir John Tyler and his friends, the Queen must tell him frankly that he is very much disliked for his overbearing manners, and that he is ill-disposed towards Sir John Tyler and those who he imagines are Sir John’s friends. The Queen thinks it was very wrong of him, and not respectful towards herself, though he might have been right au pied de la lettre, in not allowing Munshi Abdul Karim to be at the station to present the letter the Queen Empress had entrusted him with, and she is sure that Sir John Tyler’s asking for it was the excuse for the refusal. That protection has been rather a misfortune to the family, though it was v. kindly meant.28

  The Queen’s reading of the situation was clearly from the letters and telegrams she had received from Karim after the eventful meeting with the Viceroy. Karim would have filled her in on all the gossip, the reason for his refused entry at the station and the kindness shown to him afterwards by the Viceroy and his wife. Co-ordinating Karim’s presentation to the Viceroy long-distance had quite exhausted the Queen and she retired to Osborne for the family Christmas, hoping that Karim had made his mark on the Viceroy and would soon be rewarded with land.

  The Munshi was to return from India in February. The Queen hoped he would be able to complete all the paperwork and leave with the land registry documents. She telegraphed the Viceroy on 17 January saying she hoped the land grant would be settled before the Munshi sailed out on 21 February. As was her style, a further telegram followed within a few days on 26 January: ‘Trust deed will be executed before 18 February when he leaves Agra.’29

  The Viceroy replied the same day: ‘Collector Agra has been instructed to put Munshi in possession and deed will shortly be executed.’

  Lord Lansdowne also responded in full to the Queen’s explanation of why Sir Auckland Colvin disliked Tyler and why the Munshi was being wrongly judged by his association with Tyler: ‘It would no doubt have been better for Abdul Karim and his family if they had not been quite so ostentatiously “protected” by Sir John,’ wrote Lansdowne. ‘Your Majesty has summed up that gentleman’s strong and weak points in language which exactly meets the case.’

  Though the business of the land grant for Karim had nearly been tied up, the Queen was still feeling uneasy about a few things. These had bothered her through the Christmas break and the start of the year at Osborne, and they were concerning the Viceroy’s letter about Tyler. She decided to put pen to paper once again and wrote to the Viceroy to tell him that she could not help feeling a good deal annoyed, as she had wished that her ‘good young Munshi’ would make the most favourable impression on the Viceroy, something he deserved for ‘his character, education and excellence’, but she was afraid that the Tyler episode may have actua
lly done him harm in the Viceroy’s eyes. She reiterated that the Munshi himself was deeply grateful to both Lord and Lady Lansdowne and that he was shy and nervous and had no one to befriend him at Agra, but Sir John Tyler, on the occasion of his presentation. He was, however, quite aware of ‘the want of circumspection on his poor friend’s part’.30

  The Queen thanked the Viceroy for expediting the execution of the grant of land and said it should be settled before Karim’s departure from Agra. Another letter followed on 6 February. The Queen was calmer now and delighted that Karim had received his grant. She was also looking forward to his return even more than ever before. Soon she received the final telegram on the subject which had consumed her for over eight months: ‘Deed of transfer duly executed and handed to Abdul Karim.’31 The Queen replied immediately: ‘I am very much pleased!’32

  Making every effort to satisfy the Queen, Lansdowne ensured that the deed was delivered to Karim before he left for England. The affair of the Munshi’s land had finally been settled. Karim would return to English shores a man of property. Nonetheless, a cautious Lord Cross wrote to Lord Lansdowne: ‘I only hope that his [the Munshi’s] head will not be turned when he gets back, but I feel quite sure that on this head you will have been careful.’33

  7

  INDIAN AFFAIRS

  His property papers sealed and signed, the Munshi returned to Windsor in early March and the delighted Queen resumed her Hindustani lessons immediately. However, Ahmed Husain was not having such a good time. His constant complaints against the Munshi had annoyed the Queen and she delicately suggested to him that he should return to India as he was not keeping in good health in Britain. Husain agreed, but wanted a few favours. He had learnt that the Munshi was allowed to carry arms in India and he demanded the same privilege. The Queen wearily requested Ponsonby to secure a permit for Husain to bear arms in India, as a special favour from her. Ponsonby wrote to Lord Lansdowne, explaining the situation: