The Rawal Pindi Camp and Darbar. (Britain and Russia on the precipice of a full-scale European war) 1885

This is from the height of the "Great Game"—the intense 19th-century geopolitical rivalry between the British and Russian Empires for supremacy in Central Asia.

A second edition pamphlet titled The Rawal Pindi Camp and Darbar, reprinted directly from the columns of The Punjab Times between March 7th and April 18th, 1885.
Printed locally in Rawalpindi by the Egerton Press.

Published During the Brink of an Anglo-Russian War

As detailed on the opening text page this massive military camp of exercise (involving nearly 19,000 men and 60 guns) was organized for the historic meeting between the British Viceroy of India, Lord Dufferin, and the Ameer of Afghanistan, Abdur Rahman Khan.

The text notes that this grand military display was designed to "shake off any impressions His Highness may have formed of Russian supremacy." Exactly as this camp was being assembled in March 1885, the infamous Panjdeh Incident occurred—a violent clash where Russian forces seized Afghan territory just across the border. This booklet captures a moment when Britain and Russia were on the absolute precipice of a full-scale European war, with Afghanistan caught squarely in the middle.

A Rare Example of Front-Line Provincial Printing

From a bibliographical standpoint, ephemeral regional imprints from 19th-century British India are notoriously difficult to find in any condition. Rather than being a polished, retrospective history printed months later in London, this was produced by The Egerton Press in Rawalpindi as events unfolded. It represents rapid-response provincial journalism, preserving the exact local troop movements, division orders, and brigade setups (such as those commanded by Lieutenant General Sir M. A. Biddulph listed) as they were read by officers on the ground.

The Grand Rawalpindi Durbar of 1885

The Darbar (or formal diplomatic assembly) documented here was a legendary logistics triumph, despite being plagued by torrential rain and mud. The British used the occasion to shower the Ameer with gifts—including heavy artillery, rifles, and monetary subsidies—successfully securing his allegiance as a "buffer" against the Russian advance. This meeting laid the diplomatic groundwork that eventually led to the formal boundary demarcations of Afghanistan's northern borders and, later, the Durand Line.

Wrappers torn and creased with loss; 28 pages.
150mm x 240mm

R1,000