British Influence on Indian Architecture The establishment of the British empire in India greatly impacted the kind of architecture in the country. The British arrived in India in the year 1615 and the 18th century they had overthrown all the smaller independent kingdoms like the Marathas and the Sikh empires. They brought in contact with the West, which changed the artistic tastes, leading to current modern architecture firms. Just like the Mughals before them, architecture became a symbol of power and stature with the British. The Mughals too built monuments like the Taj Mahal and palaces in different parts of the country. The European colonizers created architecture that represented their mission of conquest, dedicated to either the state or religion. The key British architects of that time include Robert Fellowes Chisholm, Charles Mant, Henry Irwin, William Emerson, George Wittet, and Frederick Stevens, Col. James A. Fuller. The Indo-Saracenic Revival, also known as the Indo-Gothic, Mughal-Gothic or Neo-Mughal, was a movement started by the English architects in the late 19th century. It drew from Indo-Islamic and Indian architecture and combined them with the styles popular in Britain such as NeoClassical and Gothic styles. Public offices, clock towers, administrative buildings, colleges and town halls were often built on a grand scale, using tons of concrete, cement, steel and brick. This was done to showcase the invincibility of the British empire to the rest of the world. Victoria Terminus now called Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus showcases a blend of Victorian Italianate Gothic Revival architecture with that of the conventional Mughal style. Architects in Mumbai consider this to be a fine combination of two styles of architecture, and a symbol of Mumbai. It was once the headquarters of ‘Great Indian Peninsular Railway’, and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the busiest railway station in India. The second half of the 19th century saw many new structures being constructed such as the Rajabai Clock Tower, modelled on the Big Ben in London, Mumbai University, Mumbai’s Town Hall now known as Asiatic Library.
The major cities that were colonized were Madras, Bombay, Calcutta, Delhi, Agra, Karachi, Bhopal, Agra, Nagpur and Hyderabad. The Victoria Memorial in Calcutta is a symbol of the British reign and was built as a tribute to Queen Victoria’s rule. The plan of the building consists of a central large dome, with colonnades separating the two chambers. The memorial stands on 26 acres of garden surrounded by reflective pools. ‘Chepauk Palace’ in Chennai (erstwhile Madras) was the first Indo-Saracenic building. Many buildings in Chennai including the ‘Madras High Court’, ‘Chennai Central Station’ and the ‘Victoria Public Hall’, have been declared as heritage buildings. Other prominent buildings featuring colonial style architecture are the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, the Mysore Palace, the Mumbai GPO, the Khalsa College in Amritsar and the Chennai Central Station. If hearing about all these amazing architectural marvels inspires you to redesign your dream home, look for architects near you now!