The Museum and Town Hall

 

The ‘Museum’ in this picture postcard was part of what is today known as the ‘Town Hall’ in Shahjahanabad/’Old’ Delhi. The Town Hall was in the news recently and I believe plans to turn it into a heritage hotel have been shelved for the time being. An opportune moment for a post, I'd say. 

 

After subduing the rebels in 1857 and securing Delhi, British authorities constructed the Town Hall with its museum, library and research institute. A sizeable area replete with Mughal buildings was demolished and, in its place, came neo-classical columns and a statue dedicated to Queen Victoria. All of these were reminders of European dominance and superiority in the aftermath of the fighting. The back of this postcard also presents a grim reminder of some British attitudes at the time and is racist to say the least (see image below).  

 

I’ve come across newspaper reports from the 1860s in which it is noted that the masonry /rubble from the Akbarabadi Mosque (built in 1650 but destroyed in 1858 after the capture of Delhi) was used to construct the Town Hall. This is again more evidence of the kind of heated atmosphere that prevailed after the Rebellion and the violence through which the Institute/Town Hall was birthed. 

  

See you next Friday for more on Delhi’s history.