History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

Indo-Saracenic Architecture Influence of Mughal Architecture on British style

Term Paper for History of Architecture (AP131)

SHREYA GERA
Roll Number: 39 Sushant School of Art and Architecture

ABSTRACT

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History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

The Indo-Saracenic ws an architectural style movement by British architects n the late 19th century n British India. t drew elements frm native Indo-Islamic nd Indian architecture, nd combined t wth the Gothic revival nd Neo-Classical styles favoured n Victorian Britain. Indo-Saracenic Confluence of different architectural styles had been attempted before during the mainly Turkic, Delhi Sultanate and Mughal periods. Turkic and Mughal conquest n the Indian subcontinent, introduced new concepts in the already rich architecture of India. The prevailing style of architecture was trabeate, employing pillars, beams and lintels. The Turkic invaders brought n the arcuate style f construction, wth its arches and beams, whch flourished under Mughal patronage nd by incorporating elements f Indian architecture, especially Rajasthani Temple architecture Local influences ls lead to different 'orders' f the Indo-Islamic style. After the disintegration f the Turkic Delhi Sultanate, rulers of individual states established their own rule nd hence ther own architectural styles, whch was heavily influenced by local styles. Examples f these re the 'Bengal' nd the 'Gujarat' schools. Motifs such s chhajja, corbel brackets wth richly carved pendentive decorations) , chhatris nd minars (tall towers) were characteristic f the Mughal architecture style, whch ws t become lasting legacy f the nearly four hundred years f the Mughal rule and hence there was a decline in Mughal Architecture when Shah Jahan ws succeeded by hs puritanical son, Aurangzeb, wh hd n soft spot fr art nd architecture.

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History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

By the early 19th century, the British had made themselves the virtual masters f the Indian Subcontinent. However, t usher n new era, the British 'Raj', new architectural tradition hd t be founded. Hence they contemplated marriage between the existing styles f India wth imported styles frm the West such s Gothic Neoclassical nd Art-Deco, Gothic even more s becuse ther design philosophy ws inclined towards grand scale. The following are the principal Characteristics of Indo-Saracenic Buildings Onion (Bulbous) Domes Overhanging Eaves Pointed Arches, Cusped Arches, or Scalloped Arches Vaulted Roofs Domed Kiosks Many Miniature Domes, or Domed Chatris Towers or Minarets Harem Windows Open Pavilions Pierced Open Arcading.

PAPER

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History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

INFLUENCE OF MUGHALS ON INDO - SARACENIC

The British should not carry into India a new style of architecture, but rather should follow the examples of those whom they had supplanted as conqueres, the Muslims, who seized upon the art indginous to the countries conquered, adapting it to suit their own needs and ideas As stated by T.Roger Smith in An Imperial Vision- Indian Architecture And Britains Raj by Thomas Metcalf. British actually did not develop their own architectural style. The development of Indo - Saracenic during colonial period was the amalgamation of Mughal and Hindu architecture combined with gothic revival. Since Britishers want to legitimatize their rule, they decided to justify their presence by relating themselves to the previous rulers, the Mughals. Thomas Metcalf stated that in the architecture, the British sought to incorporate their view of Indias past into their own building, and so represent Britains Raj as legitimately Indian, while at the same time constructing a modern India of railways, colleges, art galleries and law courts. Chepauk Palace (C.1768) in Chennai designed by Paul Benfield is said to be the first Indo- Saracenic building in India, referred to as licentious eclectic incorporating elements and motifs of Hindu and Islamic precedents. The other outstanding examples are spread across the country - Muir College at Allahabad; Napier Museum at Thiruvananthapuram; the Post Office, Prince of Wales Museum, University Hall and Library, Gateway of India in Mumbai; M.S. University, Lakshmi Vilas Palace at Baroda; the General Post Office, Law Courts, Museums and the University Senate House in Chennai; the Palaces at Mysore and Bangalore.

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History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

Influences of the Indo-Saracenic wave can also be seen in Lutyens design for the Viceroys residence (now Rashtrapati Bhavan) in New Delhi where also a combination of Mughal and European styles was employed.

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History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

British emerged as composite architectural style fitted for modern building. As precedent and justification for this 'reconstruction' of Indian architecture, the British looked back to the work of the Mughal and other medieval Indian builders. The architecture of those centuries they saw as a blend of Hindu and of Muslim elements; hence most appropriately called 'Indo-Saracenic'. This melded style reached its height in seventeenth-century Bijapur, if not even earlier, in the fifteenth century Pathankindoms of Gaur and Mandu. The buildings of this era, as contrasted with the ornate structures of later rulers, were, in their view, 'more restrained and flexible', simple yet dignified, eminently suited both to decorative elaboration and modern needs. The prevailing style of architecture was trabeate, employing pillars, beams and lintels. The Turkic invaders brought in the arcuate style of construction, with its arches and beams, corbel brackets with richly carved pendentive decorations (described as stalactite pedentives), balconies, kiosks or chhatris and minars. In the 1870s, when the Government decided to build at Ajmer a school for the education of the Rajput, the latter, when consulted, announced their preference for a European classical style of architecture. The British proceeded nevertheless to put up an Indo-Saracenic building. The onion shaped domes, chatris, harem windows, all these architectural styles are an influence of Mughal architecture representing the influence of Indias past and Mughals dominance. The symmetry in plan also shows the architectural feature of Mughals.

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History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

MAYO AJMER COLLEGE, BY MAJOR C.MANT National Art Gallery Designed by Henry Irwin and made of red sandstone. It is symmetrical in plan and is topped by pillars and chatris as is observed in BulandDarwaza of Fatehpursikri.

NATIONAL ART GALLERY, BY HENRY IRWIN.

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History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

Victoria Memorial The Memorial is compared with TajMahal. There is a certain resemblance with, more than the details mentioned which, lends the building a pervasive Indian character. It arises, first, from the material. The Memorial is built of white marble, and in the event the stone was brought from the same quarries in Makrana, Rajasthan, that supplied Shah Jahan. There is also a correspondence in the forms: the great dome, clustered with four subsidiary, octagonal domed chattris, the high portals, the terrace, and the domed corner towers. There is even some correspondence in the function: like Shah Jahan, Curzon conceived the building as a memorial to an Empress and as a powerful visual statement. This linking of the Mughal and British periods is sustained by the collection of exhibits within.

English wonders had prolonged itself for much long period, spreading itself to every remote corner in the country thereby creating masterpiece architecture influenced from the past of India, finding its way into all sorts of public buildings such as railways, post offices, high court etc.

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History of Architecture (AP313) | Term Paper | 2013

Bibliography
1. THOMAS R. METCALF.An Imperial Vision: India Architecture and Britain's Raj ISBN 0-571-15419-0 2. Marshall, P. J. The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire. s.l. : Cambridge University Press, 2001. ISBN: 0521002540, 9780521002547. 3. Peter Scriver, Vikramaditya Prakash. Colonial Modernities: Building, Dwelling and Architecture in British India and Ceylon.

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