CHATTAR MANZIL
AT
LUCKNOW
It is located on the right bank of river Gomti is a lofty building that is quite popular for its Chatar or Umbrella, which glitters at the top of the building when sun rays fall on it. This structure is also popular by the name of Umbrella Palace.
This is how the building got its name from its
enormous parachute. The structural design of the building is a combination of
Italian and French architectural style. It is a five storeyed building which
has two storeys below ground level while the rest are above it.
The construction of Chattar Manzil was
commenced by Nawab Saadat Ali Khan (1798-1814) and it was Ghazi-ud-din-Haider
who later modified it. It served as a royal palace for the kings of Awadh till
Wajid Ali Shah shifted his residence to Qaiserbagh.
There were two
octagonal towers to which the basement was connected for proper air
ventilation. Two telescopes from England were placed at the roof top of the
building for astronomical purposes.
The palace had
a state-of-the-art garden which according to the British tourists was way far
better than the garden of Khalifa Harun Rasheed. It is also said that when the
palace was being constructed, it was attacked by Raja Chet Singh of Benaras.
The imposing building has large underground
rooms and a dome surmounted by a gilt umbrella.The Palace has gone through many
owners including the Nawabs of Awadh Saadat Ali Khan and Wajid Ali Shah, and
the British and changes since its construction was started in the 1780s.
It
served as a palace for the rulers of Awadh and their wives. Later during the
Revolt of 1857 the building became a stronghold of the Indian revolutionaries.
A
portion of it was destroyed by Britishers during the war of 1857. After the war
of 1857 the government had allotted the building to an American NGO which used
it as a club for recreation purposes, till 1947, the Chhatar Manzil was used as
the United Services Club.
Post
Independence, this building was allotted to the Council of Scientific and
Industrial Research which used it as Central Drug Research Institute since
1950, but now it has been vacated by CDRI.
Government
of Uttar Pradesh plans to set up two museums and a library at the Palace after
its renovation and conservation by the State Archaeological Department.
By Air
Lucknow airport is 14 km away from
the city. Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Jaipur and Mumbai are connected
to Lucknow by daily flights. Delhi is the closest international airport, 497 km
away.
By Train
Most major cities in India are
connected to Lucknow by rail. Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Thiruvananthapuram,
Chennai, Kolkata and others are directly connected to Lucknow.
By Bus
Wide network of roads connect
Lucknow to most major cities in the country. Major highways like NH 24, NH 28
and NH 56 pass through Lucknow. Private buses ply regularly from major cities
like Agra, Kanpur, Allahabad, Delhi and Dehradun.
From lucknow 4.3km distance to reach chattar palace
0 comments:
Post a Comment