Where to visit Once the capital of the kingdom of
Oudh, Lucknow is one of the few cities of India that retains a strong Mughal
flavour. The tombs, gardens, and palaces -- commissioned by Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula
and whose treasury eventually went bankrupt financing this effort -- dot
the town. Though these buildings were not built on as grand a stage as
some of the other Mughal buildings of India, their elegance nevertheless
awes. Of interest too are the buildings that played a prominent role during
the Mutiny of 1857, especially the Residency.
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Bara Imambara The
Bara of Great Imambara -- an imambara is the tomb of a Shi'ite Muslim
holy man -- was built in 1784 by Asaf-ud-Daula as a famine relief project.
The central hall of the Imambara, 50 metres long and 15 metres high, is
one of the largest vaulted galleries in the world and the roof has been
put together with interlocking bricks without using a beam or a girder.
An external stairway leads to an upper floor laid out as an amazing labyrinth known as the bhulbhulaiya, where a guide may be useful in finding one's way around . From the top there's a fine view over the city and of the Aurangzeb Mosque. Entry is Rs 10 and includes a visit to the ancient well or baoli and to Rumi Darwaza. There's a mosque with two tall minarets in the courtyard of the Imambara but non-Muslims are not allowed in. To the right of this, in a row of cloisters, is the baoli, the 'bottomless' well. The Imambara is open from 0600 hours to 1700 hours. |
Rumi Darwaza Beside
the Bara Imambara and also built by Asaf-ud-Daula, this huge and finely
designed darwaza or gate is a replica of one in Istanbul. 'Rumi'
, derived from the name Rome, is the term Muslims applied to Istanbul when
it was still Byzantium, the capital of the eastern Roman Empire.
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Hussainabad ImambaraAlso known as the Chota, or small Imambara it was built by Muhammad Ali Shah in 1837, to serve as his own mausoleum. Thousands of labourers worked on the project to gain famine relief and the end result was a fantastic-looking tomb. The large courtyard encloses a raised rectangular tank with small imitations of the Taj Mahal on each side. One of them is the tomb of Muhammad Ali Shah's daughter. The other that of her husband.The main building of the Imambara is topped with numerous minarets and domes -- the main one is golden. Inside are the tombs of Ali Shah and his mother. The nawab's silver throne and other paraphernalia of state are here. The watchtower opposite the Imambara is known as Satkhanda, or the Seven-Storey Tower, but it actually has four storeys because construction was abandoned at that level when Ali Shah died in 1840. The Imambara is open from 0600 hours to 1700 hours. |
ResidencyResidency Built in 1800 for the British Resident, this group of buildings became the stage for the most dramatic events of the 1857 Mutiny or Uprising and the Siege of Lucknow. The British inhabitants and Indian loyalists of the city all took refuge with Sir Henry Lawrence in the Residency upon the outbreak of the Mutiny, expecting relief to arrive in a matter of days. In fact it was 87 days before a small force under Sir Henry Havelock broke past the besiegers to the remaining half-starved defenders. But once Havelock and his troops were within the Residency the siege immediately recommenced and continued from September 25 to November 17, when final relief arrived with Sir Colin Campbell. The Residency has been maintained exactly as it was at the time of the final relief, the shattered walls scarred by cannon shots. Even since Independence little has changed apart from the lowering of the Union Jack that flew night and day from one of the towers... and the unveiling of an Indian Martyrs Memorial directly opposite the Residency. There's a model room in the main Residency building which is worth visiting to get your bearings from the rather tatty model. Downstairs you can see the cellars where many of the women and children of the British soldiers lived throughout the siege. However the officers and their families, according to the British caste system of those days, occupied the more comfortable but riskier quarters upstairs. The cemetery at the nearby ruined church has the graves of 2000 men, women and children, including that of Sir Henry Lawrence, who tried to do his duty, according to the famous inscription on his weathered gravestone. It is advised not to visit the cemetery alone, as local troublemakers make it their business to harass tourists. The whole place has the atmosphere that would lend itself to a film set and indeed during the winter months there is a son-et-lumiere show here. There are no set opening hours for the Residency but the model room is open only from 0900 to 1730 hours. Admission is Rs 10 to the Residency gardens, to the model room, except on Fridays when it's free. |
