New Delhi

In 1911 the British Raj decided to move the capital of India to Delhi, finding Calcutta, the current capital, to be overly congested and not centrally located. With tremendous symbolism, the British decided to construct ‘New Delhi’ on south and southwestern outskirts of the old Mughal capital.

The preeminent British architect, Edwin Landseer Lutyens, assisted by Herbert Baker, was tasked with planning this grand endeavour. The present map presents the Lutyen’s master plan for New Delhi as it stood in 1912, a design that was largely followed as construction proceeded over the next 18 years. Lutyen’s plan literally projects British imperial power over the existing Indian landscape. A profoundly powerful image, it shows in bold red lines the network of broad boulevards, running between grand edifices literally overwhelming all aspects of the countryside, which is presented in pale blue. Indeed, the new imperial city literally bulldozed ancient villages and plowed over farms that had been worked for centuries. At the same time, it strategically preserved an integrated import Mughal monuments, such as Humayun’s Tomb, into the new city, symbolically legitimizing British power by showing it as the rightful successor to the Mughal imperial mantle.

In spite of any controversy, it must be recognized that New Delhi was one of the greatest masterpieces of urban planning ever undertaken. The broad, strategically intersecting avenues created a sense of majesty befitting the capital of a vast and magnificent country, in addition to aiding transportation and security. Lutyens also invented the ‘Delhi Order’ of neoclassical architecture that merged traditional Indian styles and motifs with European forms. New Delhi featured magnificent edifices, such as the Viceroy’s Palace (today the Rashtrapati Bhavan), the Parliament, the Secretariat Building, Connaught Place and the India Gate.

‘Lutyen’s Delhi’ was largely completed by 1930 and New Delhi became the capital of British India in 1931. The grandeur and ambition of the city was fittingly adopted as the capital of the Republic of India in 1947.