Tears On The Soul of The British Residency Lucknow, a photo by firoze shakir photographerno1 on Flickr.
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The Residency is actually a group of buildings that were built in 1800 A.D by the then Nawab of Oudh, Nawab Saadat Ali Khan. It was constructed in order to serve as the residence for the British Resident General who was a representative in the court of Nawab. The palace was rather a sleepy residence for decades but then came an incident, which put it on the world map.
The year 1857 will always be mentioned in the chronicles of history because of its dramatic sequence of events. The year saw the Sepoy Mutiny, which is also sometimes referred as 'The First War of Indian Independence'. Lucknow also became one of the seats of that uprising. The Residency became one of the most talked about battlement during the siege of Lucknow. The mutineers laid the siege on The Residency in early June that year. Nearly all the Europeans who resided in the city of Awadh took shelter in Residency. It is said that as many as 3500 people sought shelter during the siege. The siege continued for more than 140 days.
The saga of the siege of 'The Residency' will go down in the history of India as a brave effort done by handful of Men, women and children to thaw the efforts of mutineers. The residence of the palace held together during the continuous shelling that lasted for a month. The canon balls withered the walls of residency but the palace held miraculously. Sir Henry Lawrence who bore the responsibility 3500 human lives undertook the defense and counter initiative. The brave-heart fall on the last days of siege. The reinforcement force rescued the palace after 5 months.
Even since Independence, little has changed. A brooding silence engulfs the ruins and one almost expects the ghosts of the dead to suddenly materialize and flit across the rooms. The cemetery at the nearby ruined church has the graves of 2000 men, women and children, including that of Sir Henry Lawrence who died defending the empire. There is a weathered epitaph near the grave of Sir Lawrence that reads " Here lays the son of Empire who tried to do his duty".
The British Residency of Lucknow is a famous historical landmark of this place. It is now in ruins and has been declared a protected monument by the Archaeological Survey of India. The people of Lucknow tell intriguing stories of British who fled from their homes to seek shelter in these red buildings. Only a 1000 inhabitant survived this tough ordeal. On November 17th, the British troops led by Sir Colin Campbell defeated the Indian forces.
Today, the British Residency of Lucknow serves as a government office. The Residency also has a museum that is well-maintained by the authorities.
The redbrick ruins are now surrounded by lawns and flowerbeds, the Residency has been maintained as it was at the time of the final relief and the shattered walls are still scarred by cannon shot. Besides the main Residency building, there was the Sheep house, Slaughter house, Sikh square, Dr. Fayrers house, Banqueting hall, the Treasury house, Begum Kothi, the church, mosque, Imambara and the native hospital etc. are still present and pull masses of visitors each year.
The Model Room, a part of the main Residency Building, which housed a model of Residency as it was before the 1857 War, has now been converted into a full-fledged Museum displaying the original model of Residency, old lithographs, photographs, paintings, documents and period-objects, besides a diorama of Residency siege, giving an accurate visual account of the freedom struggle of 1857 in a chronological and systematic way. Besides, a gallery showing the excavated objects has also been added. A building steeped in and a symbol of the tumultuous past of our country is a heritage sight and should feature on the top of your 'must-visit' travel list!
courtesy
www.buzzintown.com/article-review--the-residency-lucknow-...
