Development of

Colonial
architecture in
India
British Colonial Era: 1615 to 1947
The British arrival in 1615 overthrew the Mughal empire. Britain
reigned India for over three hundred years and their legacy still
remains through building and infrastructure that populate their former
colonies.
The major cities colonized during this period were Madras, Calcutta, Bombay,
Delhi, Agra, Bankipore(Patna),Karachi, Nagpur, Bhopal and Hyderabad.

St Andrews Kirk, Madras

1. It is renowned for its colonial beauty. The building is circular in form and is
sided by two rectangular sections one is the entrance porch.
2. The entrance is lined with twelve colonnades and two British lions and motto
of East India Company engraved on them.
3. The interior holds sixteen columns and the dome is painted blue with
decorated with gold stars
The Victoria Memorial ,Calcutta
It is the most effective symbolism of British Empire, built as a monument in
tribute to Queen Victoria’s reign.
The plan of the building
consists of one large central
part covered with a larger
dome.

Colonnades separate the two chambers.

Each corner holds a smaller dome and is floored with
marble plinth.
The memorial stands on 26 hectares of garden
surrounded by reflective pools
 Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus,Mumbai

The station building is designed in the High Victorian Gothic style of architecture.
The building exhibits a fusion of influences from Victorian Italianate Gothic Revival
architecture and traditional Indian architecture. The skyline, turrets, pointed
arches, and eccentric ground plan are close to traditional Indian palace
architecture

The centrally domed office structure has a 330 feet long platform connected to a
1,200 feet long train shed, and its outline provides the skeleton plan for building.
VT's dome of dovetailed ribs, built without centring, was considered as a novel
achievement of the era.
The interior of the building was conceived as a series of large rooms with high
ceilings
The columns of the entrance gates are crowned by figures of a lion
(representing Great Britain) and a tiger (representing India).

The main structure is built from a blend of India sandstone and limestone,
while high-quality Italian marble was used for the key decorative
elements.

The main interiors are also decorated with Italian marble and polished Indian
blue stone. The stone arches are covered with carved foliage and
grotesques.

Internally, the ceiling of the booking hall was originally painted blue, gold and
strong red on a ground of rich blue with gold stars. Its walls were lined
with glazed tiles
Gateway of India

•The architect George Wittet combined the elements of the Roman

triumphal arch and the 16th-century architecture of Gujarat Its
design is a combination of Hindu and Muslim architectural styles;

•The arch is of Muslim style while the decorations are of Hindu

style.

• T he gateway is built from yellow basalt and reinforced concrete.

•The stone was locally obtained, and the perforated screens were
brought from Gwalior.

•The gateway faces out to Mumbai Harbour from the tip of Apollo
Bunder.
Portuguese: 1498 to 1961
• The interior of Goan -Portuguese houses consisted of elaborate patterns
created with tiles imported from Europe and a false ceiling installed of
wood.
• The walls are painted with bright colours contrasting to the earthy
coloured furniture.
• The walls were made out of mud or laterite stone and coloured with
vegetable and natural dyes.
• Gateposts and compound walls were craved with great detail.
• The Portuguese - Catholic houses faced the street with unique
large ornamental windows opening onto verandas.
• Bold colours were painted on houses constructing distinct
identity, allowing the sailors to recognize their houses from
sea.
• The covered porches and verandas were designed for
socializing contrary to the Hindu styled housing.
• Front doors were lined with columns, and railings were
popular in embellishment
 Se Cathedral, Velha Goa

The architecture style of the

Se Cathedral is Portuguese-
Manueline. The exterior
is Tuscan, whereas the interior
is Corinthian.

•The Se Cathedral's tower houses a large bell known as the "Golden Bell" on account of its rich
tone.
•The main altar is dedicated to Catherine of Alexandria, and there are several old paintings on
either side of it.
•On the right there is a Chapel of the Cross of Miracles, where a vision of Christ is said to have
appeared in 1919.
• There are six main panels, on which scenes from the life of Saint Catherine are carved. There is
a huge gilded reredos above the main altar.
Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Pondicherry

This 100 years old historical church is 50 mts. long 48 mts. wide and 18 mts. high
with Latin rite cross shape in aerial view is in Gothic style.

Statues of the four evangelists were erected, beneath which there are four lamp
posts describing their lives and the inviting Jesus and the twelve apostles on the
front facade. The church illuminated inside and out with chandeliers, focus and flood
lights.
Delhi:
The architectural styles of the British period in Delhi are represented by the Central
Secretariat, Parliament House or the 'Sansad Bhavan' and the President's House or
Rashtrapati Bhavan, formerly the British viceroy's house combine the best features of the
modern English school of architecture with traditional Indian forms.

In the post independence era, public buildings in Delhi began to show a utilitarian bias and
a search for a synthesis of Indian and Western styles; the attempt, however, has not always
been successful, as is evident from the Supreme Court building, the Science Building, which
is a conference hall and the government ministries.
The Children's Building representing a children's centre and Rabindra Building, a fine arts
centre show a trend toward a new style, using modern materials. Along the Yamuna riverfront,
memorials set in flowering gardens have been built for such 20th century national leaders as
Mahatma Gandhi - Raj Ghat, Jawaharlal Nehru - Shanti Vana, and Lal Bahadur Shastri - Vijay
Ghat.
The British followed various architectural styles - Gothic, Imperial, Christian, English Renaissance
and Victorian being the essentials.
In 1911 King George V passed an order declaring that the capital would be moved
from Calcutta to Delhi. The city was planned systematically, combining 20th century
architecture. Sir Edward Lutyens was responsible for the overall plan of Delhi, and his tour de
forte is Rajpath, approached by a 3.2-km long road flanked by the imposing buildings of the two
Secretariats, which were built by Herbert Baker.
The Rashtrapati Bhawan is built of brown stone and is truly an appropriate home for the
President of the second largest democracy in the world. Yet, it wasn't Lutyens or Bakers, who
built the rest of Delhi, as it's commonly believed. Most if its structures were designed by an
unknown Englishman called Robert Tor Tussell, who built Connaught Place, Eastern and
Western Courts, Flagstaff House, where Jawaharlal Nehru lived later on and the thousands of
public buildings, post offices, officer's bungalows and public buildings.

St Martin's Garrison Church is the final British piece of architecture and one of the most
important ones because it represents the end of a search for a definitive style of over 200
years. Looming out of the ground and made of three and a half million red bricks, theChurch is
a huge monolith with a high square tower and deeply sunken window ledges, exquisitely
reminding of Dutch and German architecture.
India gate

connaught place
Lucknow:

British architecture in Lucknow, though it was mostly constructed during colonial times, also
finds reflection in some of the older Mughal and Nawabi constructions.

The Europeans had mercantile associations with Lucknowfrom the time of Akbar and Jahangir,
and thus their influence had been a constant factor since those days.

A French trader had built a mansion, popularly called Farangi Mahal during the days of Mughal
rule, though there is no evidence of any churches being built in Lucknow during the Mughal era.

General Claude Martin, a French fortune-seeker who was favoured by Nawab Asaf Ud Daula,
settled in Lucknow and built, in 1794, an impressive palace on the right bank of Gomti River at
the outskirts of the city.

He might have constructed a chapel in the vicinity, but it seems to have been destroyed in 1857,
as was the case with his tomb. Following these early periods in Lucknow, significant European
architecture is to be seen in Lucknow, most of it dating back to the Colonial period. These
constructions, especially the churches, are of historical and architectural importance.
Christ Church
This beautiful church was built by the British during the last decade of the nineteenth century or
the early part of twentieth century.

It is situated in the posh locality of Hazratganj, not far from Raj Bhavan. Following the
conventional plan, it has beautiful railings at the roof level, besides a three-storeyed square
tower and tall spire crowned by a metallic cross.

The church has the additional feature of an engaged, five-storeyed pointed tower. The doors and
windows have Gothic arches with arabesque frames for stained glass panels.

The prayer hall of the church is very impressive for its spaciousness and lofty recessed arches
supported on tall circular pilasters.

It also has a beautifully designed wooden altar. The elegant window behind the altar has stained
glass panels depicting holy figures.
Husainabad Clock Tower

This is the most striking landmark of old Lucknow. Being one of the
early British monuments in the city, this square brick tower was
built in 1881 at the cost of rupees one lakh and seventeen
thousand.

It is decorated with arches, projecting galleries, parapets and floral

moulding. The 78-meter high Clock Tower is the tallest one of its
kind. According to historical records, the blueprint of the Tower
was prepared by Mr. R. Byne and the large clock was assembled by
Mr. J.W. Besison from Lingate Hill, London.

The clock's components are made of gunmetal, and its principal

wheel has a diameter of 8 meters. It has a 4.6- meter long
pendulum, which is made from an alloy of iron and zinc.

This alloy acts as a thermostat and maintains the length of the

pendulum in changing weather. There is a clock on each face of the
tower.

On its top is a beautiful brass weather clock. Installed before the

advent of electricity, it was provided with two large copper
lanterns, which were lit at night and could be lowered by a rope
Vidhan Sabha (The Council House)
This imposing Indo-European building is now the Vidhan Sabha. Its foundation was laid in 1922
by Sir Harcourt Butler, the then Governor of the United Provinces. Built with carved grey Chunar
sandstone blocks, the circular building was completed in six years at the cost of rupees eighteen
lakhs. Most of the money came from the Taluqdars of Awadh, who made lavish donations.

The modern double-storeyed monument is rightly considered to be one of the finest specimens
of Indo-European architecture in the state. The facade of the edifice is in the form of a crescent
with projecting galleries, and large Gothic arches. The central ribbed dome, crowned by a
cupola, is remarkable for its delicately carved motifs. The tri-arched facade of the portico is also
notable for its size and symmetry. Since independence, it has housed the Vidhan Sabha. The
emblem of Uttar Pradesh -consisting of the bow and arrow of Arjuna, the hero of
the Mahabharata, the rivers Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati, and the traditional pair offish-was
carved on a white stone slab.