Esplanade & Fort St George British Era Madras, 1872 Photo
A rare 1872 photo shows the vast Esplanade and a portion of Fort St George in Madras (Chennai). A corner of Fort St George is visible on the left. Beyond that the River Cooum can be seen flowing in white. The vast expanse of the Esplanade (maidan) is adjacent to the Fort and in the foreground where the tents are pitched. A tree-lined earthen road is seen just beyond the tents leading from left to right.
This is probably today’s NSC Bose Road, it was originally known as the Esplanade Road, later China Bazaar Road. Partly visible in the foreground is the North Beach Road now the Rajaji Road. Later the Madras High Court would come up on the Esplanade land adjacent to Fort St George. Parry’s Corner would probably be the area where the tents are pitched. Mountains are seen beyond the River Cooum (on the left). These should be the Little Mount and St Thomas Mount near Guindy.
Did you know – the original meaning of esplanade was a large, open, level area outside the fort or city walls to provide clear fields of fire for guns.
Past posts – 11 Picture Postcards On Raja Ravi Varma Oil Paintings., Writer’s Building Calcutta – Old Postcard 1900., Proposed Expansion Of The Bombay Port, 1904 Print., Rolls Royce Car Advertisement India, Old Print 1910.
