Information on National Library (Kolkata, West Bengal) - History & Architecture

The National Library is regarded as the first public library in India. Supported by the British East India Company, National Library is the largest library in the entire Indian region. It is situated at Kolkata of West Bengal. National Library is also termed as Belvedere Estate and comprises an assortment of about 2271000 books. It also contains huge collection of manuscripts, journals and newspapers. Due to its unique importance, National Library is assumed as the cultural hub of India.

National Library Architecture

National Library was traditionally the house of the 'Lieutenant Governor of Bengal'. The building that accommodatesNational Library was initially constructed as a royal house. Its design is based on Italian architectural style. The present National Library is regarded as a symbol of imperial power in India. It was created on a majestic scale with high curvedentryway, extensivegrasslands and decorativegalleries. National Library also comprises magnificent greeneries, having ranges of flowers and extensive stretches of green lushes. The park of National Library is undeniably exceptional and one of the most significant feature of the park is that some of Rabindranath Tagore's writingswere based on the background area. The enormousestate of National Library covers about 130 acres of land. Presently, it is considered as the 2nd largest library in Asian continental. The building of national Library is a beautiful house designed with distinctive English architectural style of 19th century. It has impressive scenery over outstretchedstructure. The rooms on the ground floor of the library is used for collecting and storing the books. The grand rooms of the library are based on woody floors and typically used for the purpose of studying. The building of the library has wide regal stairs with arched supports.

National Library History

There is a significant history behind the creation of National Library. Traditionally, National Library was known as Calcutta Public Library which was established in the year 1836. Calcutta Public Library was traditionally not regarded as government organisation. According to historical belief, the original building of Calcutta Public Library was created by Azim-us-Shaan in the year 1700 AD. Afterwards, Dwarkanath Tagorebecame the first owner of the library. In the year 1850, the British government took the authority of Calcutta Public Library and turned into an official house of Lieutenant Governor of Bengal. However in later phase, the library begun to gather various Indian and British books. The government also provided contributionson a regular basis in order to fund the stock of the library. Afterwards, Colonel Curzon found that the library was not being utilised properly owing to low accessibility as well as low facilities. Thus, he had merged Calcutta Public Library with Imperial Library. Together, the merged library was known as Imperial Library which opened for the public in the year 1903. After gaining independence, Indian government changed the name of Imperial Library to National Library. The National Library first become accessible for public in the year 1953.

National Library Tourism Importance

Irrespective of rich historical importance, National Library has not been promoted as a tourism place. National Library is basically a great place for researchers and book lovers, rather than the vacationers. Nevertheless, travellers who are interested in history can enjoy this library as it can provide great knowledge regarding the British rule in India. Furthermore, the stimulating inner environment along with great architecture makes it a must visit place for tourists in Kolkata.