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Rashtrapati Bhawan (Viceroy Palace)-Best Known Monument
of British Empire
 The
Viceroy Palace remains Lutyens most significant
achievement. It is befittingly the crowning glory of the
British Empire and architecture in India. Today, it is
perhaps India’s best known monument after the Taj Mahal
and the Qutub Minar. Bigger than the Palace of
Versailles, it cost a whopping £12,53,000 and now houses
the President of India. It is unquestionably a
masterpiece of symmetry, discipline, silhouette, colour
and harmony. of course, it has come in for much
criticism too but that has mostly been limited to the
imperial intent behind it rather than its architecture.
¤ Picturesque Location
Better known now as the Rashtrapati Bhawan, the
sprawling palace straddles the crown of Raisina Hill and
is the focal point of New Delhi. The majestic Rajpath
(earlier Kings Way) leads up to the palace on Raisina
Hill and here comes into view the one fatal flaw in
design. Lutyens and Baker had a major showdown about the
height of the slope approaching the palace which was at
that time caricatured as the ‘War of the Gradient’.
Lutyens wanted the palace to come into view as one
climbed Raisina Hill. Unfortunately, Baker
miscalculated. The palace disappears from sight till
only the copper dome is visible. Furious with Baker,
Lutyens said he had ‘met his Bakerloo’.
The palace is flanked by the two Secretariats and the
three together, open into a huge square called the
Viceroy’s Court where the Jaipur Column stands tall. The
Viceroys Court, which frames the main entrance to the
house, has lateral entrances on the axis of the Jaipur
Column. Here the levels were reduced artificially and
cascades of steps are flanked by huge sandstone
elephants and ranks of imperial lions modelled by the
sculptor C.S. Jagger.
¤ The Attractions of The Palace
The main entrance is approached by a broad flight of
steps which lead to a 12-column portico. Do notice the
enormous projecting cornice or chajja, a Mughal device,
which blends so effortlessly with the classical style of
the monument. Lutyens’ ability to smoothly incorporate
light oriental touches is all the more remarkable given
his active and profound dislike for Indian architecture.
The most outstanding feature of the House – you can spot
it while you are still a kilometre away – is the huge
neo-Buddhist copper dome that rises over a vast
colonnaded frontage. Beneath the dome is the circular
Durbar Hall 22.8m in diameter. The coloured marbles used
in the hall come from all parts of India. The Viceroy’s
throne, ceremonially placed in this chamber, faced the
main entrance and commanded a view along the great axial
vista of Kingsway (now Rajpath). At present the hall is
the venue of all official ceremonies such as the
swearing in of the Prime Minister, the Cabinet and the
Members of Parliament. It is in this very chamber that
the President annually confers the Arjuna Awards for
Excellence.
The columns at the front entrance have bells carved into
their capitals. Lutyens reasoned that ‘the ringing of
bells sound the end of an empire and stone bells never
sound’. Despite this, the empire came to an end a brief
16 years later.
¤ The Great Interiors
The principal floor comprises a magnificent series of
state apartments. The State Drawing Room is
barrel-vaulted and plainly treated with domestic
fireplaces. The State Ballroom is enriched with Old
English mirror glass. The State Library is based on the
form of Wren’s St Stephen’s, Walbrook. The State Dining
Room is lined with teak panelling enriched with the star
of India. The concept of Imperial order and hierarchy
permeates the entire house.
Marble staircases flanking the Durbar Hall provide
access to the private apartments above. There are 54
bedrooms together with additional accommodation for
guests. Lord Irwin, its first occupant, ‘kept losing his
way’ but insisted that "in spite of its size, it was
essentially a liveable-in-house."
¤ Mughal Garden
To the west the palace overlooks an enormous Mughal
garden designed by Lutyens. Here the principles of
hierarchy, order, symmetry and unity are extended from
the house into the landscape. A series of ornamental
fountains, walls, gazebos and screens combine with
scores of trees, flowers and shrubs to create a paradise
so delightful that Indians called the garden ‘God’s own
Heaven’. The Irwins supervised the planting of the
garden which grew in tropical profusion softening the
formal pattern of lawns and waterways. Popularly known
as the Mughal Garden, it is open to public every spring
but be prepared for the tight security check.
¤ The Glory of The Palace
After India became independent, the sheer size of the
building overwhelmed its new keepers. Mahatma Gandhi
suggested it be turned into a hospital. Thankfully,
nobody took him seriously. The Durbar Hall served as a
museum for several years till the building which now
houses the National Museum was completed.
Here’s what Mark-Bence Jones remarked about life at the
Viceroy’s House in his book Palaces of the Raj. Do note
the then-and-now comparison he makes on a later visit to
the palace, long after the British had gone.
"Then there were the banquets held during sessions of
the Chamber of Princes, when every other guest at the
long table was the ruler of a State. The gold plate
glittered in its crimson-lined niche, the lustres
glinted, the scarlet and gold khitmagars moved deftly
against the teak-panelled walls, and from an adjoining
room came the music of the Viceroy’s band."
"In India that replaced the Raj, Lutyens’ Palace has
managed to keep some of its glory. …As the home of a
modern democratic President, it is certainly on the
large side, but the Indians have been wise enough to
maintain a Presidential establishment worthy of the
setting. Scarlet-clad guards still sit on their chargers
beneath the stone sentry boxes, khitmagars in white, red
and gold line the corridors." |
