Government House, Kolkata,
at dawn, 1979.
Government House, where
Governors-General and Viceroys ruled India as though they were
Emperors.
Built by Lord Wellesley, in 1803, the land cost £71,000,
the structure cost £87,000 and the furnishings cost £18,000.
It was based on Kedleston Hall, three miles north-west of Derby,
the home of the Curzons
who later provided one of the most illustrious Viceroys.
At Kedleston there are
two projecting wings, the other two were never finished,
Government House was given all four. Every succeeding incumbent
made some addition to the building.
It is now called Raj Bhavan and is used by the Governor of Bengal.
It remains almost unchanged.
Taken from the roof
of the Great Eastern Hotel, Dalhousie Square.
Kedlestone Hall, Derbyshire.