The Great Partition with Yasmin Khan and Alex von Tunzelmann

‘At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.’

India's partition in 1947 is a defining moment of the 20th century – it was a seismic upheaval that saw the biggest empire the world has ever seen come to an end and 400 million Indians liberated from the British Empire. It led to the creation of the two new nation states of India and Pakistan (and, later a third, Bangladesh).

Join historians Yasmin Khan and Alex von Tunzelmann as they look at the politicians and playmakers who shaped this event, the impact it had on ordinary lives (including the death and displacement of millions as they fled their homes as refugees), and the reverberations of Partition that can still be felt in the present day.

This In Conversation event will be followed by a live audience Q&A.

Yasmin Cordery Khan is a historian and author. Her books include The Great Partition and The Raj At War and her debut novel, Edgware Road, was published in 2022. She is an Associate Professor of History at the University of Oxford. @OxfordYasmin

Alex von Tunzelmann is the author of five books, including the internationally bestselling Indian Summer: The Secret History of the End of an Empire. Her most recent book, Fallen Idols, has been shortlisted for the Wolfson History Prize 2022. @Alexvtunzelmann

What’s Online is a series of talks, in conversation events and webinars delivered by our experts and special guests. Events last approximately one hour, including an audience Q&A.

This event will be presented on Microsoft Teams. You do not need a Teams account to join an event, and can select the Join anonymously option to join from your browser if preferred. If you are accessing the event from a mobile device, you will need to download the Teams app. For the best experience we recommend using either a laptop or desktop computer.

You will receive a reminder email, including a link to join in advance of the event. For more information on attending a Teams event, please visit: https://bit.ly/3hWNWwn

(Image credits: Eugenie von Tunzelmann and Fran Monks)