Kolkata was originally three villages that were developed by the British East India Company into a colonial city and capital of British India until 1911. It grew rapidly in the 19th century as a center of both British imperial rule and Indian cultural awakening known as the Bengal Renaissance. Problems from rapid urbanization began affecting Kolkata in the 1930s and it remains an example of the challenges faced by developing world cities.

1. History of Calcutta
Presented by:
•Tirth
•Deep
•Avnish
•Jaiveer

2. Introduction
• Kolkata, formerly known as Calcutta in English, is the
capital of the Indian state of West Bengal and is
located in eastern India on the east bank of the River
Hooghly.
• The city was a colonial city developed by the British
East India Company and then by the British Empire.
Kolkata was the capital of the British Indian empire
until 1911 when the capital was relocated to Delhi.
• Kolkata grew rapidly in the 19th century to become
the second city of the British Empire. This was
accompanied by the development of a culture that
fused European philosophies with Indian tradition.
• The city is also noted for its revolutionary history,
ranging from the Indian struggle for independence to
the leftist Naxalite and trade-union movements.

3. • The Calcutta was labeled as "Cultural Capital of
India", "The City of Processions", "The City of
Palaces", and the "City of Joy", Kolkata has also
been home to prominent people such as Thakur
Shri Ramakrishna Paramhamsa, Maa Sarada
Devi, Swami Vivekananda, Rabindranath
Tagore, Subhas Chandra Bose, Kazi Nazrul
Islam, A. C.
• Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Maulana
Abul Kalam Azad, Prabhat Ranjan
Sarkar, Mother Teresa and Satyajit Ray.
• Problems related to rapid urbanization started
to plague Kolkata from the 1930s and the city
remains an example of the urbanization
challenges of the developing nations.

4. Some images of Calcutta in
medieval period

5. Establishment of English
trade in Bengal
• There is a long chain of events behind the
arrival of the British East India Company in
Bengal. These incidents are documented in
numerous records of the East India
Company and by several authors.
• These documents tell the story of how the
English were severely beaten and wiped out
from Bengal several times by the forces of
the Delhi Emperor and how each time they
came back to Bengal to continue their trade.

6. • The agents of the East India Company first
visited the provinces
of Bengal, Bihar and Odisha, for trade during
the period of Ibrahim Khan ,
the Subahdar(Governor) of Bengal at the
time of Delhi Emperor Jahangir.
• In 1634, a Farman (royal decree) was
obtained from the Emperor Shah
Jahan which allowed them to establish a
factory in Bengal and allowed the company
agents to reside at Pipili, Odisha.

7. The story of permission to
establish a factory in piply
and Odisha
• There is a story behind the reason why emperor
allowed the company to establish factory at
piply, Odisha.
• Two years later, the daughter of the Emperor
was severely burnt and a doctor named Mr.
Boughton was sent from Surat for her
treatment.
• He was able to successfully treat her burns and
in reward the Emperor allowed the company to
establish factory at Pipili, Odisha, and for the
first time the English ships arrived at an eastern
port.

8. Some snaps of factory

9. • The name came into being when Job
Charnock asked a farmer the name of the
area around Hooghly River. The farmer
misunderstood due to language problems
and thought that he was referring as to
when he harvested his paddy.
• He proudly replied "Kal Kaata " meaning I
cut it yesterday." Job Charnock thought that
the name of the place is Calcutta.

10. • The area where the city is now located was
originally inhabited by the people of three
villages: Kalikata, Sutanuti and Gobindapur.
• However, the boundaries of the three villages
gradually became less distinct, and before the battle
of Plassey, the city could be divided into four
different sub-areas: European Kolkata (Dihi Kolkata);
a residential village with some sacred spots
(Gobindapur); a traditional Indian market (Bazar
Kalikata or Burrabazar); and a riverine mart
concentrating on cloth trade (Sutanati).
• After the battle of Plassey in 1757, the British
started rebuilding the city with the idea of making it
the capital for their empire.

11. The fall of Calcutta to Siraj
ud-Daula
• When the Seven Years' War broke out, owing to their
constant rivalry with the French, and the fall of Madras to
the forces of Dupleix, early in 1756 the British authorities
in Calcutta began repairs to the fortifications of old Fort
William, which were extremely decayed.
• This irritated the new Nawab of Bengal, Siraj Ud Daulah,
who viewed it as a threat to his sovereignty. Calcutta,
which fell after a short siege on 20 June 1756, during
which the Governor and many other officials escaped
down the Hooghly River, leaving the remainder of the
garrison and the Eurasian population of Calcutta to their
fate. This is now known as the Siege of Calcutta.
• It is said that 123 Britons later died in the Black Hole of
Calcutta after his victory.

12. The Bengal Renaissance
• In the time of British India, Calcutta was regarded
as "the second city of the British Empire” and was
aptly renamed "City of Palaces" and the Great
Eastern Hotel was regarded as the "Jewel of the
East".
• Calcutta at that time was famous for its "Baboo
Culture", a mixture of English Liberalism,
European fin de
siecle decadence, Mughal conservatism,
and indigenous revivalism, inculcating aspects of
socio-moral and political change

13. • . This culture was fostered in its wake by
theZamindari system, the Dayabhaga
System the Hindu Joint Family System,
the Mitakshara System, the Muslim Zenana
System, the Protestant spirit of free capitalist
enterprise, the Mughal-inspired feudal
system and the Nautch. This also fostered
the Bengal Renaissance, an awakening of
modern liberal thinking in 19th century
Bengal, and which gradually percolated to
the rest of India.