Delhi Durbar 1877, Proclaiming Queen Victoria As Empress of India.
Rare old photo from 1877 showing the Delhi Durbar of 1877, honouring Queen Victoria as the Empress of India. The photo shows a panoramic view of the 1877 Delhi Durbar. Victoria born in 1819, was one of the longest-ruling British Monarchs. She ruled for 63 years, from 1837 to 1901 and this period was known as the Victorian era.
By the act of the British Parliament, she was conferred with the additional title “Empress of India” in 1876. Lord Lytton, the Viceroy, decided to hold a durbar on 1st January 1877. In which he proclaimed Queen Victoria’s additional title of “Empress of India”. A large number of people, ten thousand or more attended the ceremony, which was more than expected by the organizers.
Viceroy Lord Lytton read out the proclamation in English and Urdu. The dignitaries included Maharajas, British governors, heads of administration, and so on. The long ceremony was said to have concluded with a 101-gun salute to the sovereign. Ten years later in 1887, the country would again celebrate Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee. There would be two more Delhi Durbars one in 1903, and the other in 1911. The Delhi Durbar was variously known as the Imperial Durbar, Imperial Assemblage, Proclamation Durbar, and so on. Click on the photo for better view.
Did you know – besides a 101 gun salute for Victoria, in the colonial era the salute for the Viceroy was thirty-one guns. Other important chiefs were given 21, 19, 17, 15, 11, and 9 gun salutes depending on their relationship with the colonial raj.
From the collection – 1964 M. Suriyamoorthy Charcoal Art Abstract (#13)., King-Emperor George V In Bombay, 2 Postcards 1911., The Outskirts Of Delhi Jama Masjid – Old Print 1800s., Fort At Coylan – Antique Map / Plan 1764.
