Curzon Hall

For The 1898 building of the same name in Sydney, Australia, see Marsfield, New South Wales.

Curzon Hall
কার্জন হল
Front view
General information
Status	In use
Location	Shahbagh Thana, Dhaka
Country	Bangladesh
Coordinates	23.727389°N 90.401902°E / 23.727389; 90.401902
Groundbreaking	19 February 1904
Owner	University of Dhaka

Curzon Hall is a British Raj-era building and the home of the Faculty of Sciences at the University of Dhaka, located in Shahbagh.[1]

The building was originally intended to be a town hall and is named after Lord Curzon, the Viceroy of India who laid its foundation stone in 1904.[1] Upon the establishment of Dacca University in 1921, it became the base of the university's science faculty.

History

Curzon Hall in 1949

In 1904 it was decided to shift Dhaka College to Nimatoli. Therefore, it is planned to construct this building as a college library near the proposed site for relocation. As a library, the building was named after the Governor General of British India, Lord Curzon, by the princes of Bhawal Estate who paid 0.15 million rupees. On 19 February that year, Lord Curzon came to Dhaka and laid its foundation stone. The following year, as the partition of Bengal was finalized, a new province called East Bengal and Assam was formed with Dhaka as its capital. As a result, the importance of Curzon Hall increased at that time.[2] The construction of Curzon Hall was completed in 1908.[3] After the abolition of the Partition of Bengal in 1911, Dhaka College classes started in Curzon Hall.[2] After the establishment of the University of Dhaka in 1921, Curzon Hall was transferred to the university and it included in the science department of the university.[4] During the Bengali Language Movement, 1948–1956, Curzon Hall was the location of various significant events. After the Partition of India in 1947 that formed the country of Pakistan, Urdu was chosen to be the sole state language. In 1948, the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan chose Urdu and English as the only languages to be used to address the assembly, which was protested within the assembly on the grounds that the majority of the people spoke Bangla and not Urdu.[5] Students of the university objected instantly to the actions of the Constituent Assembly,[5] and it was in Curzon Hall that they declared their opposition to the state language policy.[1]

Facilities

Botanical Garden, Department of Botany, University of Dhaka

The Botanical Garden of the university is located on the premises of Curzon Hall, and is used by students and faculty for teaching botany and for scientific studies with plants.[6]

Architecture

Architecture of the structure

One of the best examples of Dhaka's architecture, it is a happy blend of European and Mughal elements, particularly noticeable in the projecting facade in the north which has both horse-shoe and cusped arches.^[citation needed]

Gallery

• 
  Department Of Physics
• 
  Department Of Chemistry
• 
  Corner view
• 
  Corridor
• 
  Detail
• 
  Windows in front of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
• 
  Foundation plaque

References

1. Perween Hasan (2012). "Curzon Hall". In Sirajul Islam and Ahmed A. Jamal (ed.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
2. "ঢাকা জেলা". Bangladesh National Portal. Archived from the original on 8 July 2020.
3. "কার্জন হল: ১১২ বছরের ঐতিহ্য". Prothom Alo. 28 October 2016.
4. "ঐতিহ্যের প্রতীক কার্জন হল". Daily Sangram. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
5. Bashir Al Helal (2012). "Language Movement". In Sirajul Islam and Ahmed A. Jamal (ed.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
6. Zia Uddin Ahmed (2012). "Botanical Garden". In Sirajul Islam and Ahmed A. Jamal (ed.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.