Tara Wali Kothi

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Tara Wali Kothi
तारा वाली कोठी
Lucknow Album (18) - Tara Khothe or Star house.jpg
Tara Kothi in 1874 by Darogha Ubbas Alli
Tara Wali Kothi
Alternative namesStar House
General information
Location Lucknow, India
Coordinates 26°51′13.4″N80°56′23.3″E / 26.853722°N 80.939806°E / 26.853722; 80.939806
Current tenants State Bank of India
Construction started1832
Opened1841

Tara Wali Kothi was an observatory commissioned in 1832 by King of Oudh Nasir-ud-Din Haidar Shah. [1] It was not functional until 1841 when Colonel Richard Wilcox, a Royal Astronomer, was appointed.

Contents

It contained several excellent instruments. On the death of Wilcox in 1847, the establishment was dismissed, and the instruments disappeared during the Mutiny. It was said that once a brass pillar stood in central chamber through the roof.

The building was the headquarters of the Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah of Faizabad during the Indian Rebellion of 1857, and the insurgent council frequently held its meetings there. [2] Later it was occupied by the Imperial Bank of India, being restored for use as a bank but, in October 1923, it was flooded for 15 days. Mr. Davis then the occupant bank manager, his staff and clients used boats to ferry them back and forth. Some years later, it was used for as a local court of civil justice.

Martin Gubbins described it as a handsome classical design building, protected by a regular guard of native infantry.

Lucknow, viewed from the Observatory, Illustrated London News Lucknow. Photographed from the Observatory - ILN-1858-0102-0001.jpg
Lucknow, viewed from the Observatory, Illustrated London News

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References

  1. "Nasir". 10 April 2009. Archived from the original on 10 April 2009. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  2. "Imperial Gazetteer2 of India, Volume 16, page 190 -- Imperial Gazetteer of India -- Digital South Asia Library". Dsal.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2 February 2021.