I actually don't think that Kipling was a a simple jingo and a racist, as he is, or at least was, often painted. But the Blimps who did hold those attitudes misunderstood RK (to an extent, anyway) and he became a sort of tin god to them. By the time he was hobnobbing with Royalty he was well insulated from argument and criticism. And he paid a terrible price - his son's death.   

George Orwell, who was not noticeably right wing, defended Kipling. And of course Pete Bellamy's Kipling work changed a few attitudes - I suppose mine included.