COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE –II

Monumental –Governor’s house, Calcutta , Mayo hall, Museum, Central

college Bangalore .
DC office , Mysore palace ,Examples from Hubli, Dharwad, Karnataka
Civic spaces around Mysore palace .
Domestic bungalows from Calcutta, Chennai , Bangalore
 GOVERNOR’S HOUSE - CALCUTTA
PLAN-Ground floor
• Architect -Capt Charles Wyatt
• Built : 1799-1802
• Residence for British governors general till 1911
• ARCHITECTURE : Neo –classical with Baroque
overtones, similar to Kedleston hall
• The main front with its elegant
classical portico is approached by a grand set of stone
steps.
• The central part then curves forward into sturdy
three-storey
pavilions at each end.
• Two further matching pavilions curve out behind
from the same central block.
• The plan comprises a central core with four radiating
Basement plan
wings.
• The state rooms located in the central core are
accessed from the outside by a flight of grand steps
on the north.
• On the south is another portico surmounted by a
colonnaded verandah with a dome above.
• The four wings accommodate the various offices and
residential quarters along with four sets of staircases.
 GOVERNOR’S HOUSE - CALCUTTA

View from North gate

• The plan of the wings allows for a great deal of natural ventilation in the spaces while also
permitting views across the gardens.
• The entire compound is surrounded by a balustraded wall with a grand arched gateways.
• The Raj Bhavan covers an area of 84,000 sq. ft. and is surrounded by a compound covering an
area of 27 acres.
• The Raj Bhavan has 6 gate ways one each on North & South and 2 each on East & West.
• The 4 gates on the East & West have a grand arch ways topped with a lion. The minor
archways on the side are topped with Sphinx.
• The best view of the Raj Bhavan is obtained from the North Gate, the main gate. A long walk
past a Chinese cannon leads to a flight of stairs to the portico crowned with the triangular
pediment supported by six ionic pillars.
• The House stands in a garden of about six acres.
• Before it there is an interesting cannon shaped as a dragon, placed here by Lord
Ellenborough as a trophy of the Chinese war.
• The public orceremonial rooms occupy the main portion of the building:
 GOVERNOR’S HOUSE - CALCUTTA

View from South gate

• The private accommodation for the Viceroy's family and staff are in the wings.
• The ordinary entrance is from a passage beneath the ceremonial stairway The residential
portion is divided into four suites. The Prince of Wales Suite in the north-west wing of the
first floor is where the President, Vice-President and the Prime Minister of India and heads of
state of other nations stay during their W.Bengal visit
• The Wellesley Suite is located on the second floor in the north-eastern wing,
the Dufferin Suite is on the second floor of north-west wing, and the fourth suite is
the Anderson Suite.
• However, the names of these suites to Indian names. Eg. Rabindranath Tagore kaksh, Sagar
kaksh, Kanchenjunga kaksh and Vivekananda kaksh
 • A heritage area/ precinct is an
CIVIC SPACES AROUND MYSORE PALACE aggregate of buildings, streets, and
open spaces that, as a whole has a
special character that distinguishes it
from its surroundings.
• The most imposing and majestic
building in Mysore is the Ambavilas
Palace, which is the focal point of the
city
• The Palace that stands on the site of
the former Fort represents the
physical hearth of the city of Mysore.
• The Palace and its group of building
viz. temples, landscape and public
space within fort forms a distinct
style of architecture within the
premises.
• The palace complex includes twelve
hindu temples. The oldest of these
was built in the 14th century and the
most recent was built in 1953
• The significance of heritage precincts
is based on ( 1) Historical (2)
Architectural (3) Environmental
aspects
• Amba vilas palace precinct has more
than 85% of heritage bldgs of very
high significance.
• Being associated with intangible
heritage like Dasara and being used
as a museum.
CIVIC SPACES AROUND MYSORE PALACE
Mysore Palace complex
Mysore Palace
 Mysore Palace

THE FORT
• The original walls were built under Wadiyars in 1524.
• Gradually the defensive glacis was flattened and defensive
ditch filled but the stone walls are intact.
• Over time mud walls heve been replaced with stone
• Later Tipu had pulled down to rebuild but was killed before
his plans fruitified.
• Originally the fort area had houses but were moved out in
1910
 MYSORE PALACE

Balarama-Jayaram Gateway is
the northern gate way to the
Mysore Palace. Just outside
the gate are two old temple, VIEW FROM NORTH GATE
Kote GanapathyTemple and
Kote AnjaneyaTemple facing
Jayachamarajendracircle

• It is a three-story stone structure with marble

domes, and has a 145-foot five-story tower.
• The palace is surrounded by a large garden. The
entrance gate and arch hold the emblem and coat
of arms of the kingdom of Mysore, around which
is written the kingdom's motto in Sanskrit:
 Mysore Palace

PUBLIC DURBAR HALL

• A marble staircase leads to 1st floor

Grand Durbar Hall (1938)
• A part of main palace enclosed on 3
sides and open on eastern side
• Magnificently proportioned , clear
ht of 15.424 mts above G.lvl and hall
(74.68 X24.38 )
without intermediate pillars

KALYANA MANTAPA
Kalyana mantapa with stained glass
ceiling
Ceremonial hall with wrought iron
pillars
A predominant peacock motif (persian
influence ) on the stained glass ceiling
Gombe Thotti
(european influence)

Portriat gallery
The Royal House of Mysore' (Royal silk collections by
the Wodayar of Mysore) showroom and sales outlet
attached to the Mysore Palace complex (european
influence)
Maharajas Residential Museum.

Balconies of the Residential Museum

Path between the main palace and the

Residential Museum
DEPUTY COMMISSIONER’S OFFICE
Mysore -1895
 Deputy commissioner’s office Mysore

• The Imposing monument was where the mysore

representative assembly held its sittings
• 2 storeyed ornate structure of 30,000sft was
completed in 1895.
• At that time 92 acres open space was attached to it
reduced to a couple of acres now.
• This colonial style building, with a frontage of
roughly 300 feet is characteristic of arches of
varying shapes round headed & flat segmented,
each with a floral key stone together with
Corinthian pilasters, opening into the verandahs.
• Pediments with Corinthian pilasters end the wings.
• The key feature is arcaded verandahs with Tuscan &
Corinthian pilasters and molded motifs, running all
around on both the floors & leading into high ceiling
inner room and halls.
• The central block ends with a cut off pyramid,
repeated in two wings, on which sits a wrought Iron
tiara-like crown. This design allows good
ventilation and light and the high ceiling keeps the
interior cool during summer days
COLONIAL BUNGALOW IN
BANGALORE
 COLONIAL BUNGALOW IN BANGALORE

Monkey Doric
top with columns
trellis
work
COLONIAL BUNGALOW IN BANGALORE
 COLONIAL BUNGALOW IN BANGALORE

parapet

Rain
water Doric
drain columns
pipe

Closely spaced wooden

rafter beams supporting
verandah roof slab
COLONIAL BUNGALOW IN BANGALORE
 COLONIAL BUNGALOW IN BANGALORE

Detail of fanlights , Binfield , 87 Richmond road

Porch
detail
 COLONIAL BUNGALOW IN CHENNAI

Ajmer
92/32, Periyar EVR (Poonamallee High Road)Road, Kilpau
• The South Indian Export Company (SIEC), founded by DeClermont and
Donner, was one of the old trading houses of Madras. Located at a vital
intersection of George Town, it was in its time an exporting agent to
several companies of repute,
• Dewan Bhadur V. Shanmuga Mudaliar (1874-1953) was the dubash of the
Company. This position involved being a representative for the Company
and the dubash or agent was entitled to a share of the earnings.
• Ajmer was built in 1931 for Shanmuga Mudaliar’s daughter. Her husband,
Rao Bahadur Kachapikesa Mudaliar, succeeded his father-in-law to the
position of dubash at SIEC.
• A large and stately house, Ajmer probably acquired its North Indian name
from Shanmuga Mudaliar having had to interact with several Muslim
families dealing in hides and skins.
• The curved sunshades and the projecting balconies are interesting features
of the house. Today, Kachapikesa Mudaliar’s son, T.K. Singaram, and his
family live in the house.
COLONIAL BUNGALOW IN KOLKATTA
• Colonization brought us, a mix-bred form of architecture, born off traditionalism and
colonialism.
• The analysis of the traditional house in the purely contemporary environment, with its
19th century British décor characterized by British cornices, dual pillars etc. with some
genuinely Indian thematic spaces such as the courtyard is pure ingenuity.
• This not only responded nicely to the context but also to every hook and corner of the
life of people living within,
A Case study

SITE INFORMATION:
Built by: Late Prabhat Nath Bose
Built during late 19th century
Place: Halisahar, West Bengal
CLIMATE:
Hot and humid.
Rainfall avg.1600mm
Humidity 65-98%
The harsh humid conditions cause stuffy conditions interiors.
RESPONSE OF BUILT ENVIRONMENT
Resisting heat gain
Facillitating heat loss
Micro climatic response
SITE ANALYSIS:
 SITE ANALYSIS: • The site is oriented in the
north-east direction.
• Back side faces pond
(Durgapukur).
• The house faces a public
park which fulfills the
greenery requirement of
the locality.
• As the site plan shows, this
house is the only central
courtyard house in the
precints.
• The house has an l-shaped
layout which has been
transformed into a central
courtyard layout with a
niched corridor and a
durga puja mandap.

CLIMATIC RESPONSE:
The climate of the place is predominantly hot and humid which can generate stuffy and
uncomfortable conditions. Hence it is important to generate solutions by two methods:-

RESISTING HEAT GAIN -

 • Balconies running both around the ground and the
first floor acts as buffer-spaces, which moderates
the outside extremities of climate.
• The pale colouration of the walls increases surface-
reflectivity and reduces input thermal coefficient.
• The orientation of the building is such that it
provides shading to the internal faces of the house
resulting in reduction of heat gain.
• Using bamboo chaunches under the roof, which
provides excellent insulation, carries out the
thermal insulation of the roof

FACILITATING HEAT LOSS

Ventilation is done by placing two windows and two doors in front of
each other at the room level.
As a block the cleverly placed central courtyard acting as the Air Sink
distributes and ventilates air.
To reduce the humidity is one of the key factors for generating comfort
conditions.
The humidity generated by the micro-climate of the pond is barred
entry into the premises of the house by not providing any fenestration
on the pond side.
ZONING IN THE INTERIOR
• While analyzing the house, the entrance has been deliberately divided into
two from the road itself into a public and a private entrance.
• The public entrance leads to the courtyard, the public baithak and the puja
area which are either public or social, then it leads to the study, the dining,
and the kitchen, which are semi private.
• The other entrance leads upstairs through the staircase to the private baithak
[which has a parallel conversational sitting layout],the bedrooms and the most
private of them all, the zenana quarters.
• On a more vertical approach, the ground floor is a cluster of public, social and
semi private spaces, whereas the first floor is totally dedicated to private
spaces
SPECIAL ISSUES:
1. DURGA PUJA MANDAP:

1. Actual view of mandap

2.Section cutting through Apses
• This sort of thematic space is trademark of 19th century zamindar houses of
West Bengal and remains in focus for 10 days of the year.
• The space consists of three apses, the central one for Goddess Durga and
the side ones for other dieties.
• The apses are fronted by three grand arches, signifying the scale of
importance.
• There is also a pavilion for the women of the house to see the puja, as they
were not allowed to participate in it.

Elevation of Balcony
Section through Balcony
• This balcony on the front side is the only place from which the women of the house can
see the outside.
• Supported by 5 isosceles timber trussed right angles, this may be the only structure
which shows no signs of aging.
• Two brick pillars on the ends support shed on top of it.

PLANS, ELEVATIONS AND SECTIONS:

GROUND FLOOR PLAN FIRST FLOOR PLAN

FRONT ELEVATION

SECTION THROUGH
NICHED CORRIDOR
 MAYO HALL -BANGALORE
• Mayo Hall is a government building located in the center of Bangalore, a 2 storeyed building made of
brick and mortar . The Mayo hall architecture is Neo classical or greco roman style adopted for public
buildings by british
• It was built to honor the memory of Lord Mayo (Richard southwell Bourke), the 4th Viceroy of India.
• One of the most elegant public buildings of the era in Southern India." Several Greco-Roman elements
and influences are apparent in the building: architrave and pediment windows, key-stoned arches,
balustrade ledges, beautiful consoles, Greek cornices, Tuscan columns, and wooden floors.
• Inside the building, framed pictures of the British nobility and notable citizens can be found in the hall. On
the first floor, Italian chandeliers and ornate furniture were installed.
• Mayo Hall houses several departments of BMP . The government's Kempegowda Museumis located on the
upper floor. It was established in 2011, the museum has Kempegowda's statue as well as artistic
renderings from his time
• The army that defeated Tipu Sultan in the 4th Mysore War was relocated from the swamps
of Srirangapatana to the more temperate Bangalore in 1809
• When visitors enters the building, they can view the floor plan of the museum's first floor gallery. The
impressive wooden stairs that lead to museum have old paintings of Bangalore and its nearby forts, made
by British surveyors.
• Its ornamentation has both decorative and constructive elements emphasising both horizontality and
verticality of the structure.
• The transitions between bays are marked by alternating curved and pointed pediments.
 MAYO HALL -BANGALORE

architrave and pediment windows,

Greek cornices

balustrade ledges,
 MAYO HALL (1875 -1893) BANGALORE

Central bay
Decorative ornamented
arch with Aedicule
keystone

Classical entablat
Supported by
corinthian colum

Simpler openings
on ground floor
Balustrated ledge

• .
WEST FACADE
 • In contrast openings on ground floor are
MAYO HALL -BANGALORE noticeably simpler ; window tops are flat and
frames have minimal ornamentation.On the
whole the upper levels with its sheer amount
of detailing and volume present a contast to
the lower levels
• The Mayo hall building image is not of purely
power or grandeur but built to a smaller scale
• Since this building was to function as a civil
public office it is approachable and elegant.
• Columns span only one level as the portico
under it.
• No collonade nor a imposing flight of steps

Window on south side

MAYO HALL -BANGALORE
 GOVERNMENT MUSEUM -BANGALORE

• Government Museum , Bangalore (1865) by the Mysore State with the guidance of
Surgeon Edward Balfour who founded the museum in Madras and supported by the Chief
Commissioner of Mysore, L.B. Bowring is the second oldest museum in South India.
• An archaeological museum and has a rare collection of archaeological and geological artifacts
old jewellery, sculpture, coins and inscriptions including halmidi ,earliest kannada inscription.
• The museum was first established at the Cantonment's jail building. It continued to function
there for 13 years until 1878.
• The new museum (the current structure) was planned and built in 1877[ by Col. Richard
Hieram Sankey, the Chief Engineer of Mysore State at that time.
• The building is a historic Neo Classical British period colonial building that is among the most
famous heritage buildings of Bangalore.
• The museum is flanked by the Visvesvaraya Industrial And Technological Museum and the
Venkatappa Art gallery.
• The museum is located centrally on Kasturba road.
GOVERNMENT MUSEUM -BANGALORE
• The museum has two
• The museum has a model
• The museum is built in
1877 in the neoclassical
architectural style. It has
two porticos on either
side, Corinthian columns,
circular arches,
sloping eaves and
prominent
sloping parapet walls
exhibition floors which are
divided into 18 galleries.
The galleries cover sections
that span sculpture, natural
history , geology, art, music
and numismatics.
of Srirangapatna the fort
of Tipu Sultan . There is a
slab in the museum from
Tipu's times that has
12 persian couplets. The
museum also showcases
various old musical
instruments
GOVERNMENT MUSEUM -BANGALORE
 CENTRAL COLLEGE -BANGALORE

Famous
Bengalureans
such as former
Lokayukta Santosh
Hegde was a student
here

. An old spiral
metal staircase is
now rusty
 • Gothic architecture The • Central College Bangalore (1858) is
High Court, Central one of the oldest colleges in India. This
Library and Central college was originally affiliated
College were built to University of Mysore part of Mysore
around the same time, State .
thus owing to the • The Central College, Bangalore was
structures looking started in 1886 by the British
similar. government to award University
Degrees
• Central college’s red buildings, long
arches and green cover, the college
takes visitors back to a time when the
British ruled.
• The 65-acre campus, which has been
• By 1875, the strength of reduced to 43-acres now as some
the institute began to buildings were taken over by the
grow, and it was renamed government for official purposes.
Central College when it • in 1858, they started the Bangalore
became a first-grade High School with just five students,
marking the advent of the modern
college.
education system in the city.
• By 1901, hostels were • The primary objective of these
built on campus for Christian missionaries was to impart
outstation students. high-quality education, and they
established many institutions in the
Cantonment and Petah areas, along
with printing presses for educational
purposes.
 • Central University
is one of
Bengaluru’s most
remarkable
structures. The
building is painted
pompeian red (the
colour said to be
associated with
the Queen of
England), and is
constructed in the
Central College on Palace Road Long arches along the building, a feature Gothic style of
of Gothic architecture architecture.
• CV Raman
announced his
Nobel award
winning findings in
the physics block
at Central College

Wooden staircases have been Classrooms still have the wooden beams and
retained amphitheatre seating
 • .
EXAMPLES FROM HUBLI & DHARWAD

• Chalukyas ruled Dharwad during 12th century

• Later Dharwad became a part of the Vijayanagara empire. After the fall of the Vijayanagara
empire(1453 AD), Bijapur's Adil Shah captured Dharwad and built a fort.
• The fort area was called MannaKille, and later Nazratabad. With this fort , the strategic
importance of Dharwad increased and it thus became part of everyone's empire, Auranjeb,
Shivaji ,Auranjeb's son Mu Azam, Peshwe Balaji Rao, Hidar Ali, Tipu Sultan and finally British.
• During the 19th century the British started English Medium school in Dharwad in 1848 and in
1856, started town municipality. Later in 1863, the Bassel Mission organization started
another school. In 1867 British opened another school, Varmal school, which later on
became known as Training college. In 1883, the municipality area expanded with more
nearby districts being added.
• The British government also established the Railway station in 1888
• The Karnataka Vidyavardhaka Sangha was established in 1890. The Sangha brought people of
Dharwad together to excel in various fields like art , music , drama , culture and freedom
struggle and united all kannada speaking population and formation of karnataka.
• During the early 20th century, importance of Dharwad increased and it soon became a
center of freedom struggle , participated actively in Khilafat and Quit India movements.
Basel Mission memorial church

 This is the oldest church in Dharwad, established in 1845 by the Basel

Missionaries.
 The church is known as Hebich Memorial Church or Basel Mission Memorial
Church.
• A simple yet beautiful Gothic structure with lot of open space around it.
• The structure is almost in its original condition except for the rear portion which
was widened to create more space inside. Arched windows with stained glass
shutters.
 KARNATAKA VIDYA VARDHAKA
SANGHA
• The prestigious institution was set
up on July 20, 1890, for the cause
of Kannada language and culture.
• It has been the launching pad for
not only freedom movement and
State unification movement, but
also several other agitations
including the famous Gokak
Movement .

BVB College of Engineering and Technology Hubli

(BVBCET)
 • Loco, Carriage and Wagon
workshop at Hubli was established
in 1885 under Southern Mahratta
Railway (SMR) headquartered at
Dharwar .
• After Bangalure , Hubli is
considered as the second most
important city of Karnataka.
• Hubli –Dharwad municipal
corporation is one of the few
municipal corporations that look
after not one but 2 cities.

Wurth memorial
church -CSI

General offices of southern Mahratta railway at Hubli –

Dharwar.Now this heritage building is called Karnataka
college Dharwad(KCD)
 Teachers’ training college , Dharwad
• One of the British time buildings
of Dharwad.
• This group of buildings were
built to accommodate railways
offices but with change of plans
the buildings were used as army
barracks.
• Then the buildings were given
to run a college for training
teachers.. which still continues.
• The uniqueness of the main
Teachers’ training college , Dharwad building is a pair of towers - the
twin towers of Dharwad.

HOSTEL BUILDING