View source for Fort St. George (Chennai)

{{Short description|Fort in Chennai, India}}
{{Other uses|Fort St. George (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=December 2018}}
{{Infobox military installation
|name = Fort St. George
|native_name = 
|owner = [[Indian Army]]
|partof =  [[Tamil Nadu]]
|location = [[Chennai]], [[Tamil Nadu]], [[India]]
|image = [[File:Fort St. George, Chennai 2.jpg|270px]]
|caption = Fort St. George, the seat of [[Government of Tamil Nadu]]
|map_type = India Chennai
|map_size = 270
|map_caption =
|type = [[Fort]]s
|coordinates = {{coord|13.079722|80.286944|type:landmark_region:IN-TN|display=inline,title}}
|code = 
|built = {{start date and age|1639}}
|builder =   [[British East India Company]]
|materials = 
|height = {{cvt|45|m}}{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}
|used = [[Government of Tamil Nadu]]
|demolished = 
|condition = Good
|open_to_public = 
|controlledby = [[Government of Tamil Nadu]]
|garrison = 
|current_commander = 
|commanders =
|occupants = [[Tamil Nadu legislative assembly|Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly–Secretariat]]

|battles = 
|events = 
|image2 = 
|caption2 = 
}}

[[File:Plan de Madras pris par les Francais en 1746.jpg|315px|thumb|Plan of Fort St. George made during the French occupation of 1746–1749, with East at the top]]
[[File:Fort St. George, Chennai.jpg|315px|thumb|An 18th-century coloured [[engraving]] of the fort]]
[[File:Fort St. George.jpg|thumb|right|315px|Corner of Fort St. George showing the spire of [[St. Mary's Church, Chennai|St Mary's Church]], where in 1753 [[Robert Clive]] married [[Margaret Clive|Margaret Maskelyne]], the younger sister of the [[Astronomer Royal]], [[Nevil Maskelyne]].<br>Photo {{circa|1905}}.]]

'''Fort St. George''' (or historically, '''White Town''')<ref name="Wheeler1881">{{cite book|author=James Talboys Wheeler|title=The History of India from the Earliest Ages|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vk1HAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA489|year=1881|publisher=N. Trübner|pages=489–}}</ref> is a fortress at the coastal city of [[Chennai]], [[India]]. Founded in 1639, it was the first [[English overseas possessions|English]] (later [[British Empire|British]]) fortress in India.<ref>Roberts,  "History of the World" (Penguin, 1994)</ref> The construction of the fort provided the impetus for further settlements and trading activity, in what was originally an uninhabited land.<ref>{{cite news|last=Muthiah |first=S |title=A centenary's links with Chennai |date=12 August 2002 |url=http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/mp/2002/08/12/stories/2002081200230300.htm |access-date=6 September 2002 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031028141848/http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/mp/2002/08/12/stories/2002081200230300.htm |work=[[The Hindu]] |archive-date=28 October 2003 }}</ref> Thus, it is a feasible contention to say that the city (formerly named Madras) evolved around the fortress.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.iloveindia.com/indian-monuments/fort-st-george.html|title=Fort St George - Fort St. George Chennai, Fort Saint George Chennai Tamil Nadu India|access-date=26 October 2009|archive-date=17 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017170621/http://www.iloveindia.com/indian-monuments/fort-st-george.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The fort currently houses the [[Tamil Nadu legislative assembly]] and other official buildings.

==History==
The [[East India Company]] (EIC), which had entered India around 1600 for trading activities, had begun licensed trading at [[Surat]], which was its initial bastion. However, to secure its trade lines and commercial interests in the [[spice trade]], it felt the necessity of a port closer to the [[Straits of Malacca|Malaccan Straits]], and succeeded in purchasing a piece of coastal land, originally called ''Chennirayarpattinam'' or ''Channapatnam'', where the Company began the construction of a harbour and a fort. The fort was completed on 23 April 1644 at a cost of £3,000,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Keay|first1=John|title=The Honourable Company A History Of The English East India Company|date=1991|publisher=HarperCollinsPublishers|location=Great Britain|isbn=978-0-00-743155-7|page=69|edition=1993}}</ref> coinciding with [[Saint George|St. George's Day]], celebrated in honour of the patron saint of [[England]]. The fort, hence christened Fort St. George, faced the sea and some fishing villages, and it soon became the hub of merchant activity. It gave birth to a new settlement area called [[George Town, Chennai|George Town]] (historically referred to as Black Town), which grew to envelop the villages and led to the formation of the city of Madras. It also helped to establish [[Kingdom of England|English]] influence over the [[Carnatic region]] and to keep the kings of [[Arcot]] and [[Srirangapatna]], as well as the [[France|French]] forces based at [[Pondicherry]], at bay. In 1665, after the EIC received word of the formation of the new [[French East India Company]], the fort was strengthened and enlarged while its garrison was increased.<ref name="Wheeler1996">{{cite book|first=James|last=Talboys Wheeler|author-link=James Talboys Wheeler|title=Madras in the Olden Time|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WWZK3tZ8P4UC|volume=1|year=1861|location=Madras|publisher=J. Higginbotham|page=72|isbn=9788120605534|access-date=28 October 2016|archive-date=1 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101020901/https://books.google.com/books?id=WWZK3tZ8P4UC|url-status=live}}</ref>

According to the 17th-century merchant and traveller [[Thomas Bowrey]], Fort St. George was:

<blockquote>without all dispute a beneficial place to the Honourable English India Company, and with all the Residence of theire Honourable Agent and Governour all of their Affaires Upon this Coast and the Coast of Gingalee, the Kingdoms also of Orixa, ([[Orissa, India|Orissa]]) Bengala ([[Bengal]]), and Pattana ([[Patna]]), the said Governour and his Councell here resideigne, for the Honour of our English Nation keepinge and maintainneinge the place in great Splendour, Civil and good Government, Entertaineinge nobly all Foraign Embassadors, and provideinge great quantities of Muzlinge ([[Muslin]]) Callicoes ([[Calico]]) &c. to be yearly transported to England.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bowrey|first=Thomas|author-link=Thomas Bowrey|editor-last=Temple|editor-first=Richard Carnac|editor-link=Sir Richard Temple, 1st Baronet|title=A Geographical Account of Countries Round the Bay of Bengal, 1669 to 1679 |url=https://archive.org/details/ageographicalac00bowrgoog|year=1895|page=[https://archive.org/details/ageographicalac00bowrgoog/page/n39 4]|publisher=Printed for the Hakluyt Society}}</ref></blockquote>

The Fort is a stronghold with {{convert|6|m|ft|adj=mid|-high}} walls that withstood a number of assaults in the 18th century. It briefly passed into the possession of the French from 1746 to 1749, but was restored to [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]] under the [[Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748)|Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle]], which ended the [[War of the Austrian Succession]].

The Fort now serves as one of the administrative headquarters for the [[Legislature of Tamil Nadu|legislative assembly]] of [[Tamil Nadu]] state and it still houses a garrison of troops in transit to various locations at South India and the [[Andaman and Nicobar Islands|Andaman]]s. The Fort Museum contains many relics of the ''[[British Raj|Raj]]'' era, including portraits of many of the [[Governors of Madras]]. The fort is maintained by the [[Archaeological Survey of India]], with the administrative support of the Indian Army.<ref>http://asichennai.gov.in/downloads/list-of-colonial-buildings.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920115911/http://asichennai.gov.in/downloads/list-of-colonial-buildings.pdf |date=20 September 2020 }} {{Bare URL PDF|date=March 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/business-group-may-adopt-fort-st-george/article24648187.ece | title=Business group may adopt Fort St. George | date=10 August 2018 | first=Dennis S. | last=Jesudasan | newspaper=The Hindu | access-date=28 December 2018 | archive-date=9 November 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109042032/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/business-group-may-adopt-fort-st-george/article24648187.ece | url-status=live }}</ref>

<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">
File:Fort St George Madras 1858.jpg|Fort St. George in 1858
File:In the Fort, Madras (MacLeod, p.124, 1871) - Copy.jpg|In the Fort, Madras (MacLeod, p.&nbsp;124, 1871)<ref name=MacLeod>{{cite book|last1=MacLeod|first1=Norman|title=Peeps at the Far East: A Familiar Account of a Visit to India|date=1871|publisher=Strahan & Co.|location=London|url=http://books.googleusercontent.com/books/content?req=AKW5QadleVqcjfjXdbL76hLpHAlKGquS182cWZd25oDvHR0IWujwaV1l7F_v1EzHArXZcnWj3BCM-XsUlMsYj7__NZpsDu5ZTBjIEa-Je4nUviK_cS0zTCcmeWuZVce-2hlBmT0VXBzakDA55LhS7Ks7poEMlLrKnXJcMpjQup_ghtwNoJh69hUdujOZGqcU2xTzda2aMzjOgJdRtY_0_PdT9-GwCL2TmJUKyQ8Txmh1vXVRqmh8Za66nRaLrcfn3r-fz3ojiUlW_9Jn7R8VCgYAeiOWENYfQYyhGtgO9GCRXWMIQNfZiPo|access-date=2 November 2015}}</ref>
</gallery>

===The church===
[[St. Mary's Church, Chennai|St. Mary's Church]] is the oldest [[Anglicanism|Anglican]] church in India. It was built between 1678 and 1680 on the orders of the then Agent of Madras [[Streynsham Master]].<ref>{{cite book|first=James|last=Talboys Wheeler|author-link=James Talboys Wheeler|title=Madras in the Olden Time|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WWZK3tZ8P4UC|volume=1|year=1861|location=Madras|publisher=J. Higginbotham|page=104|isbn=9788120605534|access-date=28 October 2016|archive-date=1 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101020901/https://books.google.com/books?id=WWZK3tZ8P4UC|url-status=live}}</ref> The tombstones in its graveyard are the oldest English or British tombstones in India. This ancient prayer house solemnised the marriages of [[Robert Clive]] and Governor [[Elihu Yale]], who later became the first benefactor of [[Yale University]] in the United States.

===Museum===
The Fort Museum, which is the only ticketed institution of the  Archaeological Survey of India in the complex,<ref>https://www.goibibo.com/destinations/chennai/places-to-visit-in-chennai/fort-st-george-7368689592210220682/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105160832/https://www.goibibo.com/destinations/chennai/places-to-visit-in-chennai/fort-st-george-7368689592210220682/ |date=5 November 2018 }} {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2022}}</ref>  exhibits many items of the period of English and later British rule. This building was completed in 1795 and first housed the office of the Madras Bank. The hall upstairs was the Public Exchange Hall and served as a place for public meetings, lottery draws and occasional entertainment. These relics are reminders of British rule in India. The objects on display in the museum are the weapons, coins, medals, uniforms and other artefacts from England, Scotland, France and India dating back to the colonial period. Original letters written by Clive and [[Lord Cornwallis|Cornwallis]] make fascinating reading. One set of quaint period uniforms is displayed for viewing, as well. However, the ''pièce de resistance'' is a large statue of [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Lord Cornwallis]].

The [[National Flag of India]] was designed by [[Pingali Venkayya]] and adopted in its present form during the meeting of the Constituent Assembly held on 22 July 1947, a few days before India's independence from Britain on 15 August 1947. The first ever flag flown after the independence is stored in the third floor of the museum. The public are allowed to see but not to touch or take photographs.

The museum is mentioned in the novel ''[[The Museum of Innocence]]'', by the Turkish Nobel Laureate [[Orhan Pamuk]].

<gallery widths="200" heights="160">
File:Ra 2012 018.JPG|Victoria Memorial Hall
File:Indian Embassy in London wall plaque (4).jpg|Coat of Arms of Madras Presidency depicting Fort St. George
</gallery>

===Wellesley House===
The first floor of the building includes the Banqueting Hall, which holds paintings of the Governor of the Fort and other high officials of the administration. The cannons of [[Tipu Sultan]] decorate the ramparts of the museum. The {{convert|14.5|ft|order=flip|adj=on}} statue stands at the entrance near a stairway in the museum. This statue was created by Charles Bank in England to be brought to India. The pedestal of the statue is carved with a scene depicting Tipu Sultan's emissary handing over Tipu's two sons as hostage in lieu of a ransom he was unable to pay to the British. The house takes its name from [[Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley|Richard Wellesley]], Governor General of India, and brother of the [[Duke of Wellington]].

===Flagstaff===
The flagstaff at the fort is one of the tallest in the country. Made of [[teakwood]], it is {{convert|150|ft|order=flip}} high.<ref>{{cite web
  | title = Fort St. George, Chennai
  | publisher = Maps of India
  | url = http://www.mapsofindia.com/chennai/places-of-interest/famous-monuments/fort-st-george.html
  | access-date = 12 Jan 2013
  | archive-date = 23 January 2013
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130123073723/http://www.mapsofindia.com/chennai/places-of-interest/famous-monuments/fort-st-george.html
  | url-status = live
  }}</ref>

==Namakkal Kavignar Maligai==
{{Main|Namakkal Kavignar Maligai}}

Namakkal Kavingar Maligai is a 10-storeyed building at the campus and is the power centre of state secretariat. It houses offices of the secretaries and departments. Between 2012 and 2014, the building was renovated at a cost of {{INRConvert|280|m|year=2014|lk=r}}, with additional facilities like centralised air-conditioning and new electrical wiring system.<ref>{{Cite news 
  | last = Mariappan 
  | first = Julie 
  | title = Jayalalithaa opens renovated exterior of Namakkal Kavignar Maligai 
  | newspaper = The Times of India 
  | location = Chennai 
  | publisher = The Times Group 
  | date = 10 July 2014 
  | url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Jayalalithaa-opens-renovated-exterior-of-Namakkal-Kavignar-Maligai/articleshow/38138328.cms 
  | access-date = 7 February 2015 
  | archive-date = 14 July 2014 
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140714233334/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Jayalalithaa-opens-renovated-exterior-of-Namakkal-Kavignar-Maligai/articleshow/38138328.cms 
  | url-status = live 
  }}</ref>

===In recent years===
The entire complex is administered by the Department of Defence. The fort building is a three-storeyed one housing the offices of the chief minister and other ministers, the chief secretary, home ministry, treasury, etc. The remaining offices are housed in the 10-storeyed Namakkal Kavingyar Maaligai, which houses more than 30 departments.<ref name="MalaiMalar_CMToOpenRenovatedBuilding">{{Cite news 
  | title = புதுப்பிக்கப்பட்ட நாமக்கல் கவிஞர் மாளிகை: ஜெயலலிதா நாளை திறந்து வைக்கிறார் 
  | newspaper = Malai Malar 
  | location = Chennai 
  | language = ta 
  | date = 9 July 2014 
  | url = http://www.maalaimalar.com/2014/07/09082855/renewed-namakkal-kavignar-mali.html 
  | access-date = 7 February 2015 
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150207105816/http://www.maalaimalar.com/2014/07/09082855/renewed-namakkal-kavignar-mali.html 
  | archive-date = 7 February 2015 
  | url-status = dead 
  }}</ref>

The Fort St. George complex housed the administrative buildings of the [[Government of Tamil Nadu]] till March 2010. The [[Legislature of Tamil Nadu]] and the secretariat (with headquarters of various government departments) were situated in the fort. The fort itself was open to the public however only to a certain area. The main building or the secretariat was open only to government officials and the police. The cannons and the moat which guarded this old building have been left untouched. In 2010 the legislature and the secretariat moved to a [[Tamil Nadu legislative assembly-secretariat complex|new location]] and the old assembly complex was converted into a library for the [[Centre of Excellence for Classical Tamil|Central Institute of Classical Tamil]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Old Assembly Chamber to turn reference library|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/article452459.ece|access-date=13 June 2010|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|date=11 June 2010}}</ref> Following the 2011 assembly elections and the return of [[Jayalalithaa|J Jayalalithaa]] as the Chief Minister of the State, the Tamil Nadu Assembly and the Secretariat have been restored to Fort St. George.<ref>{{cite news|title=New secretariat in Chennai to be converted into hospital|url=http://www.deccanherald.com/content/184792/secretariat-chennai-converted-hospital.html|access-date=19 August 2011|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304062007/http://www.deccanherald.com/content/184792/secretariat-chennai-converted-hospital.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Other monuments==
An arch commemorating the diamond jubilee of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is under construction near the Fort on Rajaji Salai close to [[Napier Bridge]]. The structure is a replica of Fort St. George's façade. The arch will be rectangular in structure with a height of {{cvt|41|ft|order=flip}} and a width of {{cvt|80|m}} being built at a cost of {{INRConvert|13.3|m}}. The structure will be a mix of old and modern architecture, inspired by the frontage of Fort St. George. The legend 'Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly diamond jubilee commemorative arch' would be inscribed in English and Tamil, in addition to the words '60 years'. The chief minister J Jayalalithaa laid the foundation stone for the arch on 30 October 2012. Earlier, the arch was planned to be constructed close to the entrance of Fort St. George, but was later relocated beyond the prohibitive zone, as per [[AMASR Act]]. A public interest litigation (PIL) was filed in the [[Madras High Court]] opposing the move stating that the arch would choke Rajaji Salai that leads to the High Court. However, the petition was dismissed by a division bench on 9 January 2013.<ref>{{cite news 
 | last = Sasidharan 
 | first = S. 
 | title = Work begins on Assembly arch 
 | newspaper = The Deccan Chronicle 
 | location = Chennai 
 | date = 19 February 2013 
 | url = http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130219/news-current-affairs/article/work-begins-assembly-arch 
 | access-date = 22 Feb 2013 
 | archive-date = 20 February 2013 
 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130220124706/http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130219/news-current-affairs/article/work-begins-assembly-arch 
 | url-status = dead
 }}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|India}}
* [[Heritage structures in Chennai]]
* [[History of Chennai]]
* [[List of Tamil Nadu Government Estates, Complexes, Buildings and Structures]]
* [[Tamil Nadu legislative assembly-secretariat complex]]
* [[Timeline of Chennai history#17th century|Timeline of Chennai history (Section: 17th century)]]
* [[Fort William, India]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Fort St. George}}
* [https://archive.org/details/letterstoftg175859madr/page/n4?q=%22Cape+Breton%22 Letters to Fort St. George]
* [http://indiahistoryspeaks.blogspot.com/2007/12/british-and-tamil-jab-they-meet-fort-st.html Paintings of Fort St George]
* The University of Houston Digital Library has a [http://digital.lib.uh.edu/cdm4/browse.php?CISOROOT=/p15195coll29 collection of historical photographs from the magazine ''India Illustrated''].

{{Chennai Topics|left}}
{{Forts in Tamil Nadu}}
{{Forts in India}}

[[Category:1644 establishments in the British Empire]]
[[Category:1644 in India]]
[[Category:British forts]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Chennai]]
[[Category:Forts in Tamil Nadu|St. George]]
[[Category:Heritage sites in Chennai]]
[[Category:History of Chennai]]
[[Category:Properties of the East India Company]]
[[Category:Tamil Nadu Legislature]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Chennai]]
[[Category:Trading posts in India]]