Delhi as the National Capital of India

 12th December 1911: Delhi as the National Capital of India (Significance of 12th December for Delhi). 

Delhi has always been of the greatest historical significance which dates back thousands of years. The momentous sites in the city have witnessed many significant royal events that have shaped the historical legacy of the sub-continent. Unfortunately, few of them are still ignorant to us and stand quietly in one corner serving as the memento from the pages of the past. 

On 12th December 1911, King George V announced Delhi as the National Capital of India, replacing Kolkata at the Coronation Park which is situated near Burari towards Nirankari Colony, 2.5 km away from Kingsway Camp in North Delhi. 

The site marks the place where the declaration to shift British India’s capital from Calcutta to Delhi was made, and the coronation of King George V as Emperor of India on December 12, 1911, took place. 

The site was developed as the venue to hold the Durbars, or imperial pageant, in Delhi under the supervision of the British Raj, a concept which was adopted from Mughal rulers by the Britishers. Three Durbars were held by the British monarchy during a period of forty years in the park which was held near a ridge where the Britishers emerged victorious during the Indian rebellion of 1857. Also, the park emphasized the grandeur of the British monarchy to the native rulers and the people who attended the Durbars which was celebrated in full decor. 

In 1877, Queen Victoria has proclaimed the Empress of India at this site and in 1903, the coronation of her son Edward VII was celebrated here. Both occasions called for the summoning of Delhi Durbar, a spectacular show where Nizams of Hyderabad, Gaikwad of Baroda, Begum of Bhopal, Prince of Sikkim/ Burma, etc were gratified to greet the new masters. 

Sixty feet tall figure of King George V. Designed by Edwin Lutyens, the statue originally stood in front of India Gate which was brought to this ground in the ’60s. 

On 12th December 1911, the 57-acre venue witnessed the third and final Delhi Durbar which was attended by King George V himself. Sitting on a golden throne, under a golden umbrella, the king declared the transfer of “the seat of the Government of India from Calcutta to the ancient capital of Delhi.” 

It is said that the National anthem was First sung at this place when Delhi was announced the National capital. 

By the way, do you know how Kingsway Camp got its name? Because the place serves as the way from where the king passed to reach the Coronation Park. 

Standing here I realized that Delhi has been the center of a succession of mighty empires and powerful kingdoms. Numerous ruins and places scattered throughout the territory offer a constant reminder of its history

Location: India

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

British Police Officer John Saunders was Killed by Indian Revolutionaries

Image
17th December 1928: British Police Officer John Saunders was killed by Indian revolutionaries.  On 17 December 1928, Bhagat Singh and an associate, Shivaram Rajguru, fatally shot a 21-year-old British police officer, John Saunders, in Lahore, British India, mistaking Saunders, who was still on probation, for the British police superintendent, James Scott, whom they had intended to assassinate. They believed Scott was responsible for the death of popular Indian nationalist leader Lala Lajpat Rai, by having ordered a lathi charge in which Rai was injured, and, two weeks after which, died of a heart attack. Saunders was felled by a single shot from Rajguru, a marksman. He was then shot several times by Singh, the postmortem report showing eight bullet wounds. Another associate of Singh, Chandra Shekhar Azad, shot dead an Indian police constable, Chanan Singh, who attempted to pursue Singh and Rajguru as they fled.  After escaping, Singh and his associates, using pseudonyms, publicly owned
Read more

National Consumer Day

Image
24th December 1986: National Consumer Day Every year the 24th of December is observed as “National Consumer Day” and the significance of this day is that on 24th December in the year 1986, the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, had received the assent of the President of India.  The Consumer Protection Act, 1986 is considered to be a historic milestone in the consumer movement in the country. Every year the observance of this day provides an opportunity for highlighting the importance of the consumer movement and the need to make the consumer more aware of their rights and responsibilities.  The awareness of consumer rights and duties is more important in rural areas and the responsibility of this rests with all of us, and more particularly with the government agencies. The state government has to play a vital role in promoting the welfare of consumers and protection of their rights. As a week-long observance of National Consumer Day, the Nagaland Voluntary Consumers’ Organisation(NVCO) la
Read more

Goa's Liberation Day

Image
 19th December 1961: Goa's Liberation Day Goa Liberation Day is observed on 19th December every year in India. The occasion marks the day Indian armed forces freed Goa in 1961 from, 450 years of Portuguese rule.  The Portuguese first arrived in Goa in 1498 under the able guidance of explorer Vasco da Gama when he first landed in Calicut on the eastern western shores of India. They were very much happy with the discovery and establishment of Cape of Good Hope which turned out to be a very profitable trading route for them.   The Portuguese colonized several parts of India in 1510 but by the end of the 19th century Portuguese colonies in India were limited to Goa, Daman, Diu, Dadra, Nagar Haveli and Anjelica Island.  The Goa liberation movement, which sought to end Portuguese colonial rule in Goa, started off with small scale revolts, but reached its peak between 1940 to 1960, ending when India invaded Goa in 1961.  After the failure of diplomatic efforts with the Portuguese, a milit
Read more