Old Filth (2004) By Jane Gardam

While American readers can (normally) understand the notion of imperialism -- admit it or not, we are stellar practitioners of it -- we don’t readily acknowledge the notion of empire building.  We view global dominance as something that just happened because we are good guys, not something that was built.  The British Empire on the other hand didn’t just happen, it was built.  The process usually (always?) began with the military, but colonial administration was the crowning achievement – pun intended.

“The Empire on which the sun never sets” required a colossal bureaucracy to run it; that bureaucracy is often referred to as the “Raj,” a term originally coined to describe the British rule of India, but its application eventually grew to cover the administration of the entire global empire, from Hong Kong to Singapore, Ceylon, India, Rhodesia, South Africa and more.

Old Filth, is a by-product of the Raj.  The title is the nickname of a colonial barrister stationed in the then British colony of Hong Kong.  The moniker stands for “failed-in-London-try-Hong Kong.”  The book is part of an entire genre of British literature often called “children of the Raj.”

Written by Jane Gardam, it is a biography of a fictional Sir Edward Feathers, a Brit who was born in China, where his father was part of the colonial administration.  Eddy, as was the case with most foreign born children of Raj bureaucrats, was sent back to England (Wales actually, because it was cheaper) for his education.  He was sent to a boarding school, along with other Raj children, at a very young age because his mother had died during his birth.

Gardam’s fascinating tale is about how this virtual orphan, with a father far more interested in the Empire than in his own son, managed the English education system, and qualifies for Oxford.  But, as he is set to enter Oxford, Britain is becoming the next target in World War II, with German planes bombing the country, at first, uncontested.  What happens next makes for a great read. 

In time, Eddy will graduate from Oxford, tire of England, and relocate to Malaysia in pursuit of his father, lost when the Japanese captured Singapore where his father had fled to “because it was invincible.”  Eddy goes on to establish a legendary reputation as a foreign-service barrister in Hong Kong, before retiring back to England.  Much of the book is told in flashback. 

Recommendation:  I canceled appointments to devote more time to reading this book, that’s how much I enjoyed it.