Gandhi's Interpreter: A Life of Horace Alexander

Horace Alexander was an English Quaker who negotiated relations between Indian nationalist leaders and the British Government in the years before the transfer of power. Alexander was Gandhi's trusted intermediary; at the same time, he enjoyed the confidence of British Conservative ministers and Labour representatives.

Alexander avoided publicity so successfully that his role has almost entirely escaped the attention of historians, including his efforts to prevent the outbreak of the Second World War. This beautifully written biography relates the development of Alexander's commitment from its origins in Quaker pacifism and optimistic liberal ideology to its attempted realization of a humane and just international order. As Geoffrey Carnall demonstrates, Alexander believed in Gandhi's ideas and sought to interpret them in terms that were comprehensible to the West.