Occasional Paper - 4 (Revised) from the Library Raj Bhavan, Kolkata
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Occasional Paper - 4 (Revised) from The Library Raj Bhavan, Kolkata 23 February, 2007 B ARRACKPORE , W E S T B E N G A L Fifteen miles up the Hooghly River from Calcutta lies Barrackpore, summer residence of the Viceroys in the days before the capital was transferred from Calcutta to Delhi. The surviving buildings include Government House itself, a classical mansion of 1813, and a number of smaller buildings and monuments including the grave of Lady Canning, all set in what were once well-manicured riverside gardens. A prominent surviving feature of the grounds is one of the largest Banyan trees in India, under which outdoor receptions used to be held. The building shown here is, (I think), Flagstaff House, used by the Viceroy’s Private Secretary and later by the Commander-in-Chief. I made this drawing a picnic lunch on the lawn in front of the house. [Black and white impression of a water colour and text by Sir David Goodall former High Commissioner for Britain in India from ‘Remembering India’ (Scorpion Cavendish Limited, London, 1997)] 1 This issue revises the earlier OP-4, chapter in Kolkata details of the carrying a list of books pertaining to earlier locations of the statues in the British Governors General of India, city. Governors General and Viceroys of More importantly the Governor India and Governors of Bengal, that found that the statue of Peel in are available in our Library. Flagstaff House was not that of This OP - 4 carries jottings from our Prime Minister Peel but of his son, Governor’s diaries pertaining to the William Peel. This revised issue statues of British personages now corrects that entry. housed in Flagstaff House, The Governor has also given us a Barrackpore, with some notes by Note written on an item in the him on the subjects of those statues. Indian Museum, Kolkata and on the These were written by him on two John Andersons connected with February 1, 2007. We also carry a our State - the first being the one checklist of the bird species seen at who set up the IM at its present Flagstaff House by the Governor's location and the second, the wife, Smt. Tara Gandhi. Governor of Bengal (1932-1937), The need for revising OP-4 arose who supervised the building of the from the fact that we subsequently Governor’s House in Darjeeling. got from INTACH’s regional Librarian Anyone interested in visiting Flagstaff House, Barrackpore to see the statues described in this OP-4 would be welcome to write to Brig. Amar Chatterjee, Comptroller of the Governor’s Household, Raj Bhavan, Kolkata-700 062 in order to fix a mutually convenient date and time . 2 CONTENTS 1. Jottings from the Governor’s Diary on Flagstaff House’s ‘Raj’ Statues — by Gopalkrishna Gandhi .... 4 2. Bird Species at Flagstaff House, Barrackpore— by Tara Gandhi .... 36 3. The Two John Andersons — by Gopalkrishna Gandhi .... 37 4. List of Books by and on Governors-General of India/ Viceroys & Governors-General and Governors of Bengal .... 44 3 Jottings From The when the weather in Calcutta Governor's Diary. become too stifling. That retreat became complementary to Government House (the present Raj Here from the cares of Government Bhavan, Kolkata) in the same way released as the Viceregal Lodge, Simla, was Indian Governors their ease enjoy, to become complementary to the Viceroy's House (now Rashtrapati In pleasures Bhavan) in New Delhi. By the contrast much increased Their intermediate moments they But large as that structure is, it is employ. nowhere near as large as it might Wellesley first stampt it his. He was have been if Lord Wellesley the the boy For making ducks and builder of the Governor's house in drakes with public cash, Calcutta had had his way. Without Planned a great house that time the knowledge of the East India might not destroy; Built the first Company's Directors, he had floor, prepared bricks, beam and planned an enormous palace in sash And then retired, and left it in Barrackpore and even started work this dismal hash. on it. He had also 'dallied with the idea of constructing a straight Tom Ray the Griffin, 1824 avenue to connect the two (from The Story of Government Government Houses'! The expense House, 1935, by N.V.H. Symons, of that design, going through a M.C., I.C.S.) thickly populated part of Calcutta daunted even Wellesley's sense of Flagstaff House in Barrackpore was grandeur and was dropped. not the 'country' residence of Governors General or of Governors The mansion in Barrackpore was in the pre-Independence era. They built in slow degrees by his used the handsome building beside successors, namely, Lord Hastings the river which now houses a police (1813-1823), who dismantled the hospital. beginnings of Wellesley's palace, Lord Auckland (1835-1842), Lord Governors General and Viceroys Lytton (1876-1880) who had the spent some days in that 'big' house exterior staircase built, Lord Ripon 4 (1880-1884) and Lord Minto (1905- the variety of birdcalls coming from 1910) who had it electrified, re-laid all directions, the grace of its trees (a the floor in the drawing room and tamarind on its side is particularly had the whole house refurbished. remarkable) and the walk down to the river. The great banyan beside that house What has particularly captured and has served as a mute witness to the held my attention is its group of history of that house and was used twelve 'Raj' statues which are, really as an outdoor pavilion in which speaking, the house's only true meals were served to British royalty, 'residents'. They were shifted to the apart from the Governor General present site, I am told, in 1969, himself. Local belief has it that during Governor Dharma Vira's Mangal Pande was hanged on this 'time'(1967-1969). Thus far, my tree, after his daring retaliation to attempts to find the records that the greased cartridge in 1856-7. explain the whys and wherefores of that decision have not yielded much After independence, the great fruit. But I am sure with a little more mansion was given over to the State research I will get to the full facts. Government and Flagstaff House became the Governor's Barrackpore Half of the statues and all the residence, popularly but unhappily equestrian ones, are located in the still called 'Latbagan'(the Latsahib's Flagstaff House grounds near the Garden). This bungalow had earlier Cenotaph. Modelled like a Greek been the residence of the Private Temple, this exquisite structure was Secretary to the Governor General. erected by Lord Minto (Governor- General from 1807-1813) to Governors of West Bengal have commemorate 24 officers who fell been visiting it as their 'retreat' ever in the conquest of Java and since the large mansion was made Mauritius in 1810 and 1811. In over for public use. But they do not 1844 Governor General Lord find the time to visit Flagstaff House Ellenborough added a tablet in the quite much as they would like to. Cenotaph to commemorate officers Whenever my wife and I have been who fell in 1843 in Gwalior during a able to spend a day or a day and a disputed succession of the Scindias. half there, we have been calmed by Napier's militarily far more the peace that permeates its gardens, significant capture of Sind, with its 5 share of casualties, took place Also, Flagstaff House in around the same time but I gather Barrackpore has a fairer balance that Ellenborough's personal friction between the Common Crow and with Napier did not permit the fallen birds of other feathers. In their dead of Sind to be honoured in this present location, the siftings that the Cenotaph! statues receive from birds perched on them are not those of that On a visit to Flagstaff House on audacious bird alone! January 31 and February 1 this year, as my wife saw and counted as As statues go, I could see, all of many as twenty nine species of birds them were in a good state of in the Flagstaff House garden, I preservation though some expert spent some hours wandering about cleaning - before too long - with a the statues, making their soft agent would be a good idea. acquaintance and (begging their pardon for staring) looked at them I will describe the statues, one by close and hard. I perched myself one. whenever necessary on a chair (which a patient member of the staff carried for me from statue to statue) Near the Cenotaph, stand five for a better view. At one point, statutes among jamun, jack and quite presumptuously, I clambered neem trees, including that of King on to the statue's pedestal to better George V. observe some features that were out of eye-range from ground level. King George V All the statues looked quite happy in The King stands majestically on the those precincts, enjoying the relative front steps of the Cenotaph. It is calm of the gardens and the breeze really quite a handsome work, one from the river. They seemed to that would do justice to a high prefer the relative privacy of the pedestal at the end of any grand road place and the genuinely interested that commands a view from far, visitor's gaze, over the noisy neglect inviting a slow progression to its (and worse) which their original presence. perches in the heart of the city must have been their lot for years. 6 But His Majesty is perspiring The right hand holds up a pendant, beneath his heavy crown of gold ! to examine which I had to resort to Rain has left streaks - entirely the ungainly manouevre of climbing removable - on the patinaed head up on the pedestal to His Majesty's which look like streams of sweat.