Curzon Hall (কার্জন হল)

Curzon Hall stands at the southern edge of the University of Dhaka campus, near Shahbagh and the Doel Chattar roundabout in central Dhaka. Lord Curzon, Viceroy of India, laid its foundation stone on 19 February 1904, during the period when Dhaka was being prepared as the capital of the new province of Eastern Bengal and Assam after the 1905 partition of Bengal.

It was planned as a town hall, but when the partition was reversed in 1911 the building lost that purpose. After the University of Dhaka was founded in 1921, it became home to the university's science teaching, and today it houses the Faculty of Science. In 1952 students gathered around it during the Language Movement, which adds to its place in national history. The building was completed in 1908.

The building is made of bright red brick and is known for mixing European forms with Mughal details. Its front has horseshoe and cusped arches, projecting balconies, a central entrance bay and small domed kiosks, or chhatris, on the roof line. The arched verandas shade the interior, and the long facade faces a wide lawn and a pond with old trees.

The lawn and pond are favourite spots for students, photographers and families, especially in the cool season and around the spring festival of Pohela Falgun and Valentine's Day.

Curzon Hall is a working university building, so visitors can see the exterior and grounds but should not enter classrooms. There is no entry fee. Weekends and late afternoons are quieter.

Who paid for it, and what was it first used for?

The Bhawal Estate princes paid 150,000 rupees to have the building named after Lord Curzon. Records differ on its first purpose: some describe a town hall, others a library for Dhaka College. After the partition was reversed in 1911, Dhaka College held its classes here until the University of Dhaka took the building over in 1921.

The building is classed as Indo-Saracenic Revival, the style British architects in India used to dress European building plans in Mughal and Islamic detail. Curzon Hall is one of the best examples in Bangladesh, and its red brick and white trim make it one of Dhaka's most photographed facades.

Student protests here in 1948

Curzon Hall has a direct link to the start of the Bengali language movement. In 1948, after the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan chose Urdu and English for its proceedings, students gathered here and declared their opposition to the state language policy. That protest grew into the movement that led to the killings of 21 February 1952, now marked worldwide as International Mother Language Day. The Central Shaheed Minar, built to honour those who died, is a short walk away.

Nearby campus sights and the book fair

Curzon Hall fits easily into a half-day walk around the old university quarter. The Three Leaders' Mausoleum and Doel Chattar sit just to the south, and the Bangla Academy, home of the February book fair, is about ten minutes away on foot. During the book fair in February, the area is crowded every evening, so come in the morning for clear photographs of the facade.