Sikandar Bag

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Sikandar Bagh, 1858. Silver albumen print by Felice Beato
Interior view of Sikandar Bag, 1858. Body parts of the defeated Indians lie in the inner courtyard, silver albumen print by Felice Beato

Sikandar Bag (also written Sikandar Bagh , Sikandra Bagh or Secundra Bagh ; Hindi : सिकन्दर बाग़ , sikandara bāġ ; Urdu : سِکندر باغ; Eng .: Sikandara Garden ) is a park with a villa, which is located on the outskirts of Lucknow , Uttar Pradesh , India. The building was built as a summer home by the Nawab of Oudh , Wajid Ali Shah (1822–1887). The complex bears the name of the Nawab's favorite wife, Sikander Mahal Begum . The building and grounds are now used by the National Botanical Research Institute of India.

Establishment and Importance

The garden was laid out around 1800 as a royal garden by Nawab Saadat Ali Khan and expanded in the middle of the 19th century by Wajid Ali Shah, the last nawab of Oudh. During the Indian uprising of 1857 , the villa and property were the scene of one of the most violent fighting between insurgent Indians and British troops. During the siege of Lucknow , the garden and palace were defended by hundreds of sepoys while they were besieged by British troops. The building was overrun on November 16, 1857 by troops led by Sir Colin Campbell . The British fallen were buried in a mass grave on the property. The Indian dead were left there. At the beginning of 1858 the British photographer Felice Beato took one of the most famous photos of the uprising of 1857, showing the ruins of the building. In the inner courtyard are the decayed body parts of the Indian fallen.

Over the years cannonballs and swords, muskets, and rifles have been unearthed on the property. They are on display today at the National Botanical Institute of India as a reminder of the uprising. There is also a statue in the garden commemorating Uda Devi. The Indian fought together with the besieged soldiers. Legend has it that she hid in a tree top and shot British soldiers from there. She was killed during the fighting in November 1857.

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