Calcutta, India

From Encyclopediak

Calcutta, the former capital of British India and the present capital of the Province of Bengal, situated on the left bank of the IIugli River, about 80 m. from the sea. The suburbs are extensive, and the large town of Howrah is connected with Calcutta by a pontoon bridge. There are several beautiful gardens and drives, including the Botanical Gardens, the Maidan, or park, which includes Ft.William, the race course and the Red Road, where the elite of Calcutta take their evening drive. The Chowringliee, facing the Maidan, is one of the famous streets of the world. Among the prominent buildings are the large fortress, Ft. William, the Government House, the arsenal, the long row of buildings lining the Strand, among which are the custom-house, the new mint and other government offices; there are also Hindu temples, mosques, churches, pagodas, the court of justice, the Writers' Building, the town hall, the Bank of Bengal, the Jesuit College, the university, museums and theaters. Because of the great number of its fine buildings Calcutta is frequently called the "City of Palaces." The many educational institutions make ample provisions for liberal, technical and religious instruction. Steamship, railway and telegraph lines maintain direct communication with the principal towns of India and with important European, especially British, ports. The city is the center for about one-third of the Indian trade. The industries are shipbuilding and the manufacture of sugar; cotton, rice, wheat, opium, jute, gunny bags, coffee, hides, tea, indigo, seeds and raw silk are exported. Calcutta was founded by Job Charnock of the English East India Company in 1690. The original Ft. William was built in 1696 and the three villages of Sutanati, Kalikata and Govindpur were purchased two years later. In 1756 the ruler of Bengal, Surajali Dowlah, captured the city after a two days' siege, and his prisoners were thrown at night into the notorious "Black Hole," only a few surviving the terrible sufferings. After eight months Clive, assisted by Watson, recaptured it, and peace was concluded. In 1902 Lord Curzon erected a monument to commemorate this event; a black marble slab now covers the site of the Hole. Calcutta was made the capital of Bengal in 1772 and was the seat of government for India until the coronation of George V at Delhi in 1911, when that city was made the capital. Population, 1,122,313. See DURBAR.