Saturday, July 21, 2012

Fort St. George in Chennai

The ‘white-town’ of Chennai, like the white town of  Mumbai and Kolkata, was the part of the city where Europeans lived and worked. These parts of the city were often better planned and cleaner than the ‘native-town’.

Officially known as Fort St. George, this white-town was the first English fortress in India, founded in 1644. The city of Chennai grew around this fort. Today it is the administrative headquarters for the legislative assembly of Tamil Nadu state.
 

The first building to be seen on entering the Fort through the sea Gate is the Neo-Classical Secretariat, which is today the seat of the Government of Tamil Nadu. Behind it lies the Legislative Council Chambers. With their handsome Classical lines and facades embelished with gleaming black pillars, these impressive buildings, built between 1694 and 1732, are said to be among the oldest surviving British Constructions in India.

Photo source: Wikipedia

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