The Bengal Hurkaru and Chronicle, 1845

World News in Indian Newspapers brings together numerous editions of three Anglophone newspapers that were published in India during the period 1782–1908: The India Gazette (1782–1834); The Bengal Hurkaru and Chronicle (1822–1866); and The Bengal Times (1876–1908).

These newspapers appealed to colonial administrators, businessmen, and merchants, all of whom had a keen interest, naturally, in regional and international trade. Editors and reporters therefore sought to provide readers with an overview of notable political, military, economic, scientific, and social trends, as well as their potential impact upon commodities, stocks, and other investments.

Subjects covered range from the American Revolution and the Crimean War, to British parliamentary debates on the India Act of 1858. Much coverage was devoted to the industrial and pharmaceutical developments of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Suffice to say that Britain, France, India, Ireland, the United States, and China received the most editorial attention, although items regarding other nations also feature.

These mid-nineteenth century publications cover the recurrence of political, economic, and social turmoil in Ireland, France, and China, including reports on the Revolutions of 1848, Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel’s relationship with the Orangemen of Ulster, and the opium trade with China. The trade of indentured Indian people also caused a great deal of controversy. 

Newspapers: The India Gazette (1829–1843); The Bengal Hurkaru and Chronicle (1829–1856).