VICTORIA MEMORIAL:
Victoria Memorial The memorial at the southern end of the famous race course of Kolkata. After the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, at the age of 94, the white marble stone building was built for her memorial. Lord Curzon plans to build this monument. His original plan included a monument in the midst of a huge garden, as well as building a museum with rich memorials of British rule in India.
The foundation stone of this building was laid on 4 January 1906, the fifth King George of India, and Prince of Wales and later King Eighth Edward, inaugurated on 28 December 1921, during his visit to India as Prince of Wales.
A monumental structure rich in many features has been shown in the mausoleum. For example, Italian statues, Mughal dome, using white marble like Taj Mahal, high open pillar sections. In all, it is a wonderful example of the colonial architectural style. In India, colonial architectural styles were formed in the true mix of Indo-Islamic style with European style. European colonies in India as well as British rule have a profound influence on India's architecture. Architectural manifestations of this style can be found in church, barracks, castles, residential and administrative buildings etc.
The British introduced new technical styles in architecture in India, which was completely different from the way Indians used it. Victoria Memorial is the best example of European architectural style in India. It gave guidance to modern architecture in independent India.
Sir William Emerson, President of British Institute of Architecture, plans and designs this building. Vincent J Esch, however, supervised its construction as a superintendent architect. He was Assistant Engineer of Bengal Nagpur Railway. Emerson gave him the responsibility of setting up a sketch on the original design of the building in 1902. The Victoria Mammials were responsible for the construction of M / s Martin and Company of Calcutta.
However, the main task of building a memorial was to move very fast. When Curzon left India in 1905, his work could not be exactly the beginning. The reason behind this slow pace is that after Curzon who came with Viceroy's responsibility in India, he did not show much enthusiasm about the memorial like his predecessor; Besides, there is a long process of scrutiny in the construction of the building. The construction of the sub-structure of the plan began in 1904 and the foundation stone was set up in 1906. The construction of the building's overhead structure began four years later in 1910. In the meantime Isch himself established himself as the best architect of Calcutta. He was then officially appointed as Superintendent Architect of the project.
Sir William Emerson developed the Victoria Memorial design following the Italian Renaissance architectural style, although it has similarity with the Taj Mahal. Though Emerson interprets it as Western design, it also shows Indian characteristics. Lord Curzon expressed strong opinion from the beginning to build it on white marble stones. In addition, the effect of the Taj Mahal in its formation is visible; For example, its domes, the surrounding clustered octagonal domes, the lofty entrance hall, the open square, the dome covered corner towers etc. Even the similarities between these two architectural motifs exist. Like the Taj Mahal, it is also built for the memory of a emperor.
Victoria Memorial is installed on 64 acres of land, in large open areas surrounded by lawns, ponds, bulls and trees. There is probably no other such pleasant and open area in Calcutta. The length of the building is 103.02 meters, the width is 69.49 meters, and the height of the 'Angel of Victory' is 56.08 meters. The statue is 4.88 meters high. The total amount collected for the construction of the memorial was Rs. 1,05,00,000. The trader community and the voluntary contributions from Indian princely states. It is said that a 27-kilometer long train was needed to carry the complete building material of the building. The total weight of the building is estimated to be 80,300 tons and the total measurement of the marble is 450.24 cubic meters. Marble was collected from Makrana in Rajasthan. From here, emperor Shahjahan collected marble for Taj Mahal. The total value of the marble with the cost of transportation at the initial stage was estimated to be 25 lakh taka. Later, if the Indian Railways did not claim transport charge, the cost of marble would be reduced by 2 lakhs.
The Victoria Memorial is comprised of 25 galleries. Queen's Hall is the center of attraction. Maharani's declaration on all the walls of His paintings of various events such as his paintings, such as the throne of his throne, his marriage, the baptism of his son and successor, the marriage of the prince, his residence in Fogmore, etc. decorated the gallery. Some of the materials used by the Queen, such as his piano used in his childhood, his table and chair used for writing daily letters in Windsor's palace, his last letter written to Indian subjects etc.
The Memorial Museum also has a portrait of the famous British citizens coming to India in different times; For example, Macaulay, Kipling, Bishop Heber, William Hikey. Some Indian people have also made a place here in their own capacity. Among them, Keshab Chandra Sen, Michael Madhusudan Dutta, Rabindranath Tagore and his grandfather Dwarkanath Tagore Some documents are preserved here, including Nandkumar's fraud related documents, for which he is sentenced to death unjustly. There are also memorable memoirs of British imperialism, such as the bust of Queen Mary, the fifth George and others, the French cannon occupied by the Battle of Plassey in 1757.
The main interesting thing in the Victoria Memorial is that the Queen of Victoria is a huge idol. On the other side, there are two construction water bodies. Many rulers of India were presented in Roman style, presented in stone statues, such as Lord Clive, Warren Hastings, Cornwallis, Wellesley and Lord Dalhousie.
Emerson's design is further characterized by the addition of many more. Vincent Eisch's main contribution is the foundation design changed by innovative ideals. However, he also supervised the construction of the main entrance sculptures, designing the northern part of the magnificent bridge, the gates and garden decorations. The sculptures on North Porch are built as symbols of maternity, wisdom and education. The sculptures surrounding the main dome are known to art, architecture,
is the Lion-Capricorn statue. From this statue, four streams of water flow in four directions, which are symbols of Indus, Ganges, Jamuna, and Krishna in India's four main rivers.
The Victoria Memorial continues to bear many memories of many paintings, ancient costumes and British rule in India. In all, there are around 3,500 such insights. Victoria Memorial is one of the main attractions of Kolkata tourism.
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