West Bengal-Related Lists - Kolkata-Related Lists, Places of Interest in Kolkata, List of Constituencies of the West Bengal Vidhan Sabha (Paperback)

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 29. Chapters: Kolkata-related lists, Places of interest in Kolkata, List of constituencies of the West Bengal Vidhan Sabha, List of districts of West Bengal, List of Kolkata Presidencians, List of people from West Bengal, List of University of Calcutta people, List of IIM Calcutta alumni, Governor of West Bengal, List of airports in West Bengal, List of Chief Ministers of West Bengal, List of Governors of West Bengal, List of airports in the Kolkata metropolitan area, List of educational institutions in West Bengal, List of state highways in West Bengal, List of festivals of West Bengal, List of rivers of West Bengal, List of museums in West Bengal. Excerpt: Kolkata has been nicknamed the City of Palaces. This comes from the numerous palatial mansions built all over the city. During the British colonial era from 1700-1912, when Kolkata was the capital of British India, Kolkata witnessed a spate of frenzied construction activity of buildings largely influenced by the conscious intermingling of Neo-Gothic, Baroque, NeoClassical, Oriental and Islamic schools of design. Unlike many north Indian cities, whose construction stresses minimalism, the layout of much of the architectural variety in Kolkata owes its origins to European styles and tastes imported by the British and, to a much lesser extent, the Portuguese and French. The buildings were designed and inspired by the tastes of the English gentleman around and the aspiring Bengali Babu (literally, a nouveau riche Bengali who aspired to cultivation of English etiquette, manners and custom, as such practices were favourable to monetary gains from the British). Today, many of these structures are in various stages of decay. Some of the major buildings of this period are well maintained and several buildings have been declared as heritage structures. Conservation efforts are patchy a...