A Division of the Spoils

A Division of the Spoils

First edition (UK)
Author	Paul Scott
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Genre	Historical novel
Publisher	Heinemann (UK) William Morrow (US)
Publication date	5 May 1975
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages	640 pp (hardback edition)
ISBN	(hardback edition)
OCLC	1529968
Dewey Decimal	823/.9/14
LC Class	PZ4.S428 Di PR6069.C596
Preceded by	The Towers of Silence
Followed by	Staying On

A Division of the Spoils is the 1975 novel by Paul Scott that concludes his Raj Quartet.

The novel is set in the British Raj. It follows on from the storyline in the The Jewel in the Crown, The Day of the Scorpion, and The Towers of Silence. Many of the events are retellings from different points of view of events that happened in the previous novels.

The story is set in 1945 and 1947 in several locations throughout India, prior to and after Indian independence, particularly in an unnamed province of northern India. The province shares characteristics with Punjab and the United Provinces. The names of places and people suggest a connection to Bengal; however, the physical characteristics place the setting in north-central India, rather than in northeast India. The province has an agricultural plain and, in the north, a mountainous region.

The capital of the province is Ranpur. Another large city in the province is Mayapore, which was the key setting in The Jewel in the Crown. The princely state of Mirat is a nominally sovereign enclave within the province. Pankot is a "second class" hill station in the province which serves as a headquarters for the 1st Pankot Rifles, an important regiment of the Indian Army, who fought the Axis in North Africa. During the cool season, the regiment moves to Ranpur, on the plains. At Premanagar there is an old fortification that is used by the British as a prison. Another town, Muzzafirabad is the headquarters of the Muzzafirabad ("Muzzy") Guides, another Indian Army regiment, as well as the Bishop Barnard mission.