OLDEST SURVIVING MONUMENT IN BENGAL

According to Hindu mythology “Triveni Sangam” is the confluence of three rivers and the point of flowing together is treated as sacred place. Tribeni in Hoogly district in eastern Bengal is at the meeting of Bhagirathi-Hoogly, Jamuna and Saraswati River. The name of the town derived from the meeting of these three rivers. These three rivers are different from the river of same name in North India and several streams of the same name in the eastern Bengal.

Monuments in Tribeni which include Zafar Khan Gazi’s mosque and tomb are considered to be the earliest surviving monuments of Muslims in Bengal. Tribeni a small riverside village in the district of Hoogly, was one of the earliest Muslim settlements in Bengal. From their base here, the Muslims pressed inland and established control over a wide area between Burdwan and Hoogly. The mosque of Zafar Khan Ghazi bears the Arabic chronogram 1298, but several later inscriptions can also be found which suggest that the mosque was remodeled over time, although the simple rectangular plan is probably original.

 The influential phase of Muslim architecture in Bengal began in the later part of the 13 century in the newly conquered regions of Tribeni, Chhoto Pandua and Satgaon in the District of Hoogly. Tribeni, an important centre of Hindu culture was conquered by Zafar Khan Gazi. Zafar Khan was the military commander of the region during the governorship of Ruknuddin Kaikaus (A.D.1292-1302). The masjid, build in 1298 within a century of Delhi Sultan Qutbuddin Aibak’s (of Qutb Minar fame) military general Md. Bhaktiyar Khilji’a take over Bengal in 1204.

The Archaeological Survey of India has done a fabulous job for rehabilitating what were once ruins. The tomb was probably used as a Madrasa or Muslim centre for learning.The stone inscription in Arabic calligraphy reads: (according to an inscription dated A.H.698/A.D. ) “ Zafar Khan, the lion of lions, has appeared, by conquering the towns of India in every expedition, and by restoring the decayed charitable institutions. And he has destroyed the obdurate among infidels with his sword and spear, and lavished the treasures of his wealth in (helping) the miserable.”

The Mosque of Zafar Khan Ghazi is the earliest known example of Mosque architecture in Bengal, and “ is certainly the oldest in Bengal”. Marking the earliest phase of Muslim  building activities, it incorporates fragments of non-Muslim monuments. R.D.Banerjee is of opinion that “the mosque of Tribeni was most probably a Vaishnava temple.” Unmistakable Hindu workmanship is evident in the mutilated figures in some of the architectural fragments used a phenomenon to be observed in the Zafar Khan Mosque. 

Joseph David Beglar wrote in his report for the Archaeological Survey of India (1872-73) that the tomb had been built using material taken from Hindu temples. “The temple….must have been of the style of the beautiful and profusely temples… which are ornamented internally throughout with scenes from the Ramayana and others.” The list of Ancient Monuments in Bengal (1896) says of this building, “The building is oblong, containing two nearly square chambers, each about 30 feet in length and breadth…there is no doubt that many of the material are of Hindu workmanship, as numerous stones, especially those which form the lintels and doorposts, are covered with carvings representing living creatures.” 

 “There are five mihrabs in the qibla wall, the most striking being the central one. Tastefully carved multifoil brick arch of the central mihrab is supported by slender stone pillars of some Hindu temple. The predominant motif of terracotta art in the mihrab is an interwoven and swinging creeper imitated undoubtedly from the luxurious plant life of Bengal. The qibla wall is beautifully decorated by well-proportioned rectangular panels neatly carved with floral designs.”

 

In some form or the other, this monument presents a significant change from the stone post-and-lintel temples belonging to the Pala-Senas to the brick dome-and-arch strictures which are favored by most of the Bengali Muslim rulers. The bases and stone columns used here to provide support to the sandstone and brick arches and domes are possibly reused from temples. 

A few yards to the east of the mosque, outside an open country-yard, are two square rooms arrayed east-west adjacent to each other. The western room holds two graves: Zafar Khan Ghazi, his wife and two sons, while the eastern room exhibiting four graves placed on a masonry platform, consists of Gazi’s third son and grandsons. The walls are constructed by using old temple materials including rectangular stone pieces while the rooms do not possess any roof. The western room’s northern door is constructed by using Hindu frame as evident from the carved Hindu figures while the eastern room exhibits sculptured scenes linked to the Mahabharata and Ramayana. Several other stone sculptures are there, which are fixed at the other face of the plinth.

It is surprising to notice that the structures neither conform to a Muslim tomb nor a Hindu temple. It can thus be assumed that the structure was constructed on a temporary plan by using reshuffled temple materials. The unsettled form of occupation of the region by the Muslims of the period adheres to this suggestion.

Sources:

1.    “Pre-Mughal Mosques of Bengal” by M. M. Chakraborty. New Series, Vol.VI.

2.    “Indo-Muslim Architecture in Bengal” by S.K. Saraswati. Vol. IX.1941.

3.    “An Account of the temple of Triveni near Hughli” by D. Money.

4.    “Indian Architecture (Islamic Period)” by P. Brown.

5.    “Revised List of Ancient Monuments in Bengal” A.S.I.1987.

6.    “Bengal District Gazetteer” Hooghly, L.S.S.O’Malley.

7.    “ASI Bengal Report” 1888, by J.D. Beglar.


 Research & Picture Courtesy - Santanu Roy.

ROXBURGH HOUSE

The dilapidated Roxburgh Building and the herbarium (storehouse of dried plant), that boasted one of the richest collection of plant specimens anywhere, and the library in front of it in a restricted area of the Indian Botanic Garden in Shibpur, which went to ruin after they were abandoned in the 1970s, but unless urgent measures are taken to restore both the heritage buildings will fall to pieces.

The sprawling garden on the banks of the Hoogly opposite Metiabruz was founded by Colonel Robert Kid in 1787, and William Roxburgh was its first salaried superintendent between 1793-1814. The building named after him was constructed around1794, and although initially it served as Roxburgh’s residence, he subsequently constructed a plant house and the library in the dilapidated house opposite it. Roxburgh was a pioneer in botanical studies in India and he has written “Flora Indica”, once the bible for botanists studying Indian flora.

Little is known about the early life of Robert Kyd. He was born at Forfarshire may have studied medicine at Edinburgh. He joined the Bengal Engineers as an ensign in 1764. He become a lieutenant a year later, a captain on 3^rd April,1768 major on 29^th May,1780, and lieutenant-colonel by 7^th December ,1782. He was then made a Secretary to the Military Department of inspection in Bengal and continued in that post until his death.

Kyd was interested in horticulture and owned a private garden in Shalimar near Howrah. He proposed the idea of a botanic garden to the then Governor General Sir John Macpherson, who passed on the idea to the Court of Directors of the East India Company. His idea was that it should help in finding alternate sources of food to prevent famines and to identify plants that might be commercially useful. The plan was approved on 31^st July 1787 and Kyd was made an honorary Superintendent. Kyd made a request in his will that he be buried without any religious ceremony in the botanical garden that he founded, but was instead in South Park Street cemetery.

Much development in Botany took place during British Empire in India. Linnean system of “Binomial nomenclature” was introduced only in 1778 by the natural historian engaged with the British East India Company. During this period, botanical gardens were being founded in every significant city in India to study the natural history of plants. Many botanists and surveyors were recruited by East India Company to report and record Indian flora. One such botanist of this period and the founding father of Indian botany by his contemporaries was William Roxburgh.

William Roxburgh was born on June 29^th 1751. He matriculated at Edinburgh University in 1771-72 to study surgery under Dr. Alexender Monro. Further he was also the student of Dr. John Hope, professor of botany and “Materia-medica” .John Hope was the curator of the Edinburgh botanical garden as well an experimental physiologist. Roxburgh reached Chennai in 1776 as an assistant surgeon in the East India Company’s Madras General Hospital. At Chennai he turned his attention to botany. For the period 1776-1793 he worked at Coromandel Coast, during this period he also met Johann Gerhard Konig (who introduced binomial nomenclature in India). In 1789 he was appointed as natural historian of East India Company. 

 He moved to Kolkata to be the superintendent of the Botanic Garden, the present Indian Botanical Garden at Shibpur, Howrah. He was instrumental in introducing many plant and species to India and simultaneously he sent many species to Kew, London. His voluminous work, “Flora Indica” was published after his death. Roxburgh left for England from Kolkata in 1813 at the age of 62 spending some 37 years in India. He died at Edinburgh in 1815.

Dr. William Roxburgh was a botanist who made immense contribution to the study of Indian botany and is regarded as many as the father of Indian botany. He was also interested in meteorological impacts on droughts and famine, and therefore, recommended for food, tree plantation in the countryside and in public land.

Dr. Tin Robinson in his PHD thesis mentioned abount a short review of the Calcutta Botanic Garden written in 1971 wherein it was mentioned, “William Roxburgh was one of the greatest botanists of his time, and during his term converted the garden in its character from its original economic purpose to the service of scientific botany.” He is often referred as “The father of Indian Botany”.

Sources :

1.    “The Botanic Garden” by Dr. Anis Mukhopadhyay.

2.    “The Bengal Obituary”, Publisher : W. Thacker & Co.

3.    Wikipadia, Robert Kyd & William Roxburgh.

4.    “Annals of Royal Botanic garden, Calcutta,” “preface” by George King.

5.    “The European discovery of the Indian Flora”. By Desmond Ray,Oxford University Press.

6.    “Botanic Garden Heritage House by Sanjoy Mondal,The telegraph.29^th Sept,2008.

              Reasearch  -  Santanu Roy.
               Picture Courtesy - Sudip Ghosh.

LITTLE “AWADH” IN KOLKATA

Metiabruz is an epitaph to Wajid Ali Shah, the last Nawab of Awadh. Yet this hinterland of Kolkata has today obliterated all memories of the deposed ruler who created a beautiful and bustling township their after he was released from house arrest by the British at Fort William. The echoes of the poetic names this colorful ruler gave to places of worship, palaces and bungalows he constructed there in the latter half of the 19^th Century have died down. Only the large Sibtainabad Imambara on Garden Reach Road (Now Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Road) and Shahi Masjid, the Nawab’s personal chapel has survived.

Nawab Wajid Ali Shah was the tenth and last Nawab of the state of  Awadh in present day Uttar Pradesh in India. He ascended the thorne of Awadh in 1847 and ruled for nine years. His Kingdom, long protected by the British under treaty, was eventually annexed bloodlessly on 11^th February 1856- days before the ninth anniversary of his coronation. The nawab was exiled to Garden Reach in Metiabruz, then a suburb of Kolkata, where he lived out the rest of his life off a generous pension. He was a poiet, playwrite, dancer and great patron of the arts. He was widely credited with the revival of Katthak as a major form of classical Indian dance.

Wajid Ali Shah succeeded to the throne of Awadh when its glory days were at its peak and passing. The British had annexed much of the kingdom under the treaty of 1801, and had impoverished Awadh by imposing a hugely expensive, British –run army and repeated demands for loans. The independence of Awadh in name was tolerated by the British only because they still needed a buffer state between their presence in the East and South, and the remnants of the Mughal Empire to the North.

Wajid Ali Shah was most unfortunate to have ascended the throne of Awadh at a time when the British East India Company has determined to grab the coveted throne of prosperous Awadh, which was “the garden, granary and Queen-province of India”, though before Britain come into full control, his predecessors and successors were one of the major threats to the Mughal Empire.

In different circumstances perhaps, he might have succeeded as a ruler because he had many qualities that make a good administrator. He was generous, kind and compassionate towards his subjects, besides being one of the most generous and passionate patrons of the Fine Arts. When he ascended the throne, he took keen interest in the administration of justice, introduced reforms, and reorganized the military department. Wajid Ali Shah was widely regarded as a depraved and detached ruler, but some of his disrepute seems to have been misplaced. The main case for condemnation comes from the British Resident of Lucknow, General Sleeman who submitted a report highlighting maladministration and lawlessness supposed to be prevailing there. This proved to be the trigger the British were looking for, and formed the official basis for their annexation. Recent studies have, however, suggested that Awadh was neither as bankrupt nor as lawless as the British had claimed. In fact, Awadh was for all practical purposes under British rule well before the annexation, with the Nawab playing little more than a ostensible role.

The army was composed mostly of British officers, while the purse strings are firmly under the control of the East India Company. In his book “ Awadh under Wajid Ali Shah”, G. D. Bhatnagar gives the following assessment of this unfortunate prince: “ Cast by providence for the role of an accomplished dilettante, he found himself a misfit for the high office to which he was elevated by chance. Wajjid Ali Shah’s character was complex. Though he was a man of pleasure, he was a neither an unscrupulous knave nor a brainless libertine. He was a lovable and generous gentleman. He was a voluptuary, still he never touched wine, and though sunk in pleasure, he never missed his five daily prayers. It was the literary and artistic attainments of Wajid Ali shah which distinguished him from his contemporaries.”

Metiabruz of today would have been an unknown place if Nawab Wajid Ali Shah wasn’t exiled here. Metiabruz at present in Garden Reach, once used to be an isolated piece of land adjacent to the Hoogly River. It was mainly used by the traders of East India Company as their relaxation spot between their trade ventures by sea route. It was only after 1856, when Nawab Wajid Ali Shah the then Nawab of Awadh, Lucknow was exiled in Metiabruz by the British Government, this place transformed dramatically. Metiabruz ment fort made from mud ( In Urdu matia mean mud and bruz mean fort). Soon his royal house in Metiabruz started to bustle with activity, Awadhi language, art, music, dance, singing, poetry, smell of atar (fragrance made from flowers) are populist style of living.

If Kolkata, a colonial city established by the profit seeking British has earned fame as the countries cultural capital, it owes much to Wajid Ali Shah, who physically brought “Thumri” from Awadh and firmly planted it in the soil of Kolkata. Thus began Kolkat’s romance with classical music. His court had musicians like Ali Baksh Khan and Badal Khan who imparted training to many classical music exponents from the city, finding patrons among the Zamidars and princes.

Songs and stories often lie tucked away between the pages of old books. You need to retrieve them at regular intervals, brushing away the dust that so often coats bookshelves in India. A book Titled “Naajo” by Wajid Ali Shah, translated from the original Farsi (Persian) into Devanagari by Yogesh Praveen, and published by the Uttar Pradesh Sangeet Natak Akademi more than two decades ago. Both a poet and composer, he wrote prolifically and said to have authored a hundred books, of which 40 from part of valuable collections and holdings. For his ghazals he reserved the pen name “Akhtar”, but when composing thumri, he became “Jaan-e-Aalam Piya” or “Akhtar Piya”. Some of the nawab’s thumri compositions find place in the pages of “Naajo” along with khayal, dadra, compositions, as well as folk repertoire. While the preface as well as information about the compilation has been authored in Persi, the song texts are in Urdu, Braj Bhasha, Avadhi, Bangla, Punjabi, Khadi and even the Marwari dialect. The author includes compositions by great masters like Tansen, Baiju Bawra and Gopal Nayak with due acknowledgement.

An illustration from the title page of “Musammi Ba Banni” written by Wajid Ali Shah, a book on Kathak dance lithographed at Matiabruz, Kolkata, in the manuscripts collection at the Portrait Gallery at Victoria Memorial, Kolkata. The city also got a taste of Awadhi cuisine, rich, spicy yet light on the stomach. The signature Awadhi Biriyani, Nargisi Kofta, Tunde and Gelawati Kebabs are some of the delights prepared by the chiefs and cooks of the erstwhile Nawabi kitchens.

His another major contribution of today’s Metiabruz is the introduction of Hindustani Darjees or tailors. At that period of time there were very few tailors in Bengal who had the artistic skill and concept to match the talent of these Hindustani darjees from Lucknow. Gradually, these darjees became so famous in Bengal that they started getting orders from Bengali Zamindars, Babus and even British Officers. As time passed on holding the hands of these skilful  darrjees, Metiabruz became one of the prominent centers of fashionable garment making in Eastern India. Now around 56% of the total youth in Metiabruz is into the business of garment manufacturing. Bulk shipment of garment produced from Metiabruz is now sent to neighboring countries like Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka every month.

With an intention to create a similar Lucknow in Metiabruz where his people would live happily along with him he went ahead to create a zoo in Metiabruz, the first of its kind in Eastern India. The zoo spread across acres of land had different species of animals besides expensive and exotic birds brought from various parts of India, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, England etc. With the passage of time this vast area of Zoo has been totally engulfed by the Hoogly River.

All that remains of the 31 years that the Nawab spent at Metiabruz since his exile in 1856 is a sprawling Imambra (Sibtainabad Imambara) and a private mosque (Shahi Masjid) that he built 10 years after arriving here. Shahi Masjid on Iron Gate Road once part of the Kings Palace complex. Its narrow entrance is squeezed between high factory walls. The cockscomb-like stucco ornament on the mosque roof is in perfect harmony with its elegant proportions. The Imambara is like a miniature, though less ornate, model of the grand Bara Imambara at Lucknow that was built by Wajid Ali’s great grandfather Asaf-ud-Daulah in 1784. However this Imambara also has its rich slice of history, including tazias that date back to Wajid Ali Shah’s times. The Nawabs grave, as that of his son and many of his descendants, are located inside the Imambara.

The Imambara’s restoration plan was drawn up by the Archaeological Survey of India, which submitted a copy to the State Government with a request for funds for this heritage structure. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation, which got to know of this, promptly offered to fund the restoration project. “The heritage and culture of Awadh was one of the richest and most cosmopolitan in the world. A slice of that remains in Kolkata and we are duty bound to preserve it.” Said Municipal Commissioner Mr. Alapan Bandhopadhya.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that BNR House in Garden Reach is the prettiest of all the bungalows on the bank of Hoogly. It belongs to the South Eastern Railway (once known as BNR) and is close to its Red headquarters building, but unlike the later it is exquisite and small. It was constructed in 1846 and its design was apparently inspired by the Temple of Winds of Athens. The later was also the inspiration behind Metcalfe Hall on Strand Road. The agents of BNR used to live here once, but served as home for many eminent personages, the most famous of them being Wajid Ali Shah, The nawab of Awadh. The nawab arrived in Kolkata on May 6, 1856, and after his release from Fort William, he was allotted this building as his residence. In those days, it is said, it was called Parikhana, the Garden Reach area was called Muchikhola then.

The other important person who called this house his home was Sir Lawrence Peel, the chief justice of India in the 1850s. Sir T.R Wynne , the first agent of BNR, lived in the house from1897 to 1902 along with Lady Wynne, his children and grand children. Earlier these premises also housed the Central Hospital. The building is raised on a solid but ornamental basement and columns that are 36 feet in height and 28 in number. Originally the rear of the building had six more pillars, which have been demolished.

The piece of information is hard to believe, but that is what is written on the plaque at the historic Imambara. The plaque reads: “National Flag (replacing the British flag, Union Jack) was unfurled on this monument 27 years after Independence on 26^th January 1975 by Mr. S. M. Abdullah, chairman, Garden Reach Municipality, organized by Prince Nayyer Quder, the newly appointed first nationalist trustee of King of Awadh’s Trust.” 

Sources :
      1.  " Awadh under Wajid Ali Shah" by G. D. Bhatnagar.
      2.  " The literary & cultural contribution of W.A.Shah" by Kaukub-Quder
                   Sajjad Ali Meerza.
      3.  " The Naturalistic King" by Shakunt Pundey. 
      4.  " The last King in India" by Rosie Llywellyn Jones.
      5.  " Kolkata's tie with Wajid Ali Shah" by Ajanta Chakraborty.
                   Business standard Suppliment, 12th Oct,2014.
      6. " Lost splendor" by Soumitra Das. The Telegraph, 12th Jan.2015. 22nd Mar.
                  2009, 15th Dec.2005. The Times of India ,25th March,1990.
      7. "Swansong of a poet-king" by Soumitra Das. The Statesman, 5th July,1982.
      8. http://www.Kolkataonwheels.com/articles-details/nabab-wasjid-ali-shah.html.            9. http://livemint.com/Leisure/fkiqMWKNpq3YtWozVk7C2N/
          theLucknow-lament.html?utm source=copy.
    10. "Kolkata off the beaten Path" by Goutam Mitra.
    11. "The King of Hearts" by Rudrangshu Mukherjee, 26th July,2014 
            Business Standard supplement.
    12. "Annexation of Oudh" by Mirza Ali Azhar.
    13. "Nawabs of Oudh & Their Secularity". By B.S. Saxena.
    14.  BNR building Photo Coursey www;//skyscrapercity.com/showthread
           .php?t=436029&page=118.


  Research  -Santanu Roy.
   Picture Courtesy - Sudip Ghosh.