BENGALURU: A few hundred metres away from the bustling Kalasipalyam bus stand in a palace that served as a summer retreat for Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan. The palace stood witness when the Sultan was defeated by the British and his pet toy a tiger mauling a British officer was shipped to Britain to amuse the white sahibs and today an effigy stands in its place.
The palace, situated within the fort walls of Bengaluru, was a retreat built for the Mysorean ruler. The construction of the magnificent palace was commenced by his father Nawab Hyder Ali Khan in 1781 and was completed by Tipu Sultan in 1791.
“In 1759, Bangalore was gifted to Hyder Ali for his role in defeating the Marathas and other enemies of the Mysore army,” says historian Arun Prasad.
Then, this area was enclosed by a mud fort built by Chikkadevaraja Wodeyar I in the 17th century, to safeguard Bengaluru from being ransacked by the Marathas. The original fort surrounding the palace was oval with a series of round bastions and tall gateways piercing the massive wall from cardinal directions and a dry moat all around.
It covered a large area from the present Mysore Bank circle to the KIMS Hospital and from corporation circle to the Binny mill.
Hyder Ali re-built the oval fort with two entrances in the north and south. “There are no remnants of the Mysore gate in the south. The remnants of the Delhi gate in the north are still seen.”
Architecture
The palace is a two-storeyed structure but you may not be able to make that out from the open courtyard in the front. Lofty pillared facade and arches that fly over them block the view of the first floor. “The first floor in the palace had some private rooms of Tipu Sultan,” says Prasad. “The projected balcony facing the open courtyard was where Tipu used to address the audience.”
Built on a stone plinth, the facade has gigantic fluted wooden pillars connected by wooden beams. Cusped arches and brackets spring off the 160 pillars in typical Indo-Islamic style. The walls and wooden ceilings of the entire palace are painted in floral motifs. There is an enclosed private space below that houses a museum.
On either side of the palace are the beautiful gardens. The main palace was to the east of the existing building and next to the Venkataramanaswamy temple. “Hyder Ali planned a palace within the fort next to Venkataramana temple,” says Prasad.
The British forces under the leadership of Lord Cornwallis damaged the fort during the third Mysore war against Tipu Sultan in 1791. He captured Bengaluru but handed it back to Tipu Sultan due to Srirangapattana treaty where they entered into negotiations to end the conflict.
After Tipu’s death, it passed on to the hands of the British.
Various Offices
This palace or the ‘Abode of Happiness’ and ‘Envy of Heaven’, as described by a stone inscription, was constructed by Hyder Ali for the court proceedings to administer the affairs of the territory. Over the years, the structure has served many purposes.
“In 1808, when Mysore Maharaja visited Bangalore, he addressed the people at the palace,” says historian Prasad. “In 1831, the state administration was shifted to the palace. The palace was that huge. Now, only a part of the whole structure can be seen. After the High Court was built, the state administration shifted there in 1868,” says Arun Prasad.
There was also a proposal to destroy the entire fort in 1864 which was later stalled after protests by the Anglo-Indian community.
The palace functioned as a secretariat until 1867.
The rooms on the ground floor have been turned into a small museum showcasing various achievements of Tipu Sultan.
Here stands a replica of Tipu’s Tiger, which is in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. It was his favourite toy specially made to satiate his hatred for the British.
The design is believed to be inspired by the incident when Hector Munroe was killed by a tiger. Tipu was defeated by Munroe once.
The headquarters of Mysore Boys Scout, the forest department and the police functioned from the palace for some time.
The palace has been declared a structure of national importance under the ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act 1958.
Life and Times of Tipu Sultan
Sultan’s Toy
Tipu possessed a curious mechanical toy - a life-sized wooden effigy of a tiger mauling a British officer. The sound from the wooden instrument was produced from an organ with a row of keys. As you turn the handle attached to the body of the tiger, the roar of a tiger and the soldier crying in despair could be heard. Tipu used to keep this toy in his Ranga Mahal. Although the apparatus was made in India, the mechanism is attributed to the French. The toy is now at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.