A Nabob's Pleasure - This isn't your Usual Colonial Architecture

While reading the March issue of Marg magazine, I was pleasantly surprised to see an article, A Delhi Nabob's Pursuit Of Pleasure: The Transformation of Build-heritage into a Pleasure Retreat, on the East India Company's Delhi Resident, Thomas Metcalfe 's (1795-1853) building activities. He was a memorable character in Dalyrmple's The Last Mughal, and the father of the revengeful Theo Metcalfe, who massacred a number of natives during the revolt of 1857. Thomas represented the last of a dying breed of Englishman; one who appreciated local arts and culture and incorporated elements of Mughal life into his own. He wasn't as extreme as some Nabobs before him such as David Ochterlony who dressed in Mughal clothes, kept harems, and probably was more comfortable with speaking Urdu than with speaking English.

Metcalfe built three major buildings - Ludlow Castle, Metcalfe House and Dilkusha. He built them as his claim to English nobility, and as a rival and a parallel to Bahadur Shah Zafar II's Mughal's buildings. All three were pulverized during the revolt, and the Marg article tries to makes sense of what's left. Dalyrmple writes that Metcalfe House, called Jahan Numa (World Showing), was "an expansive and palatial Palladian bungalow, on the banks of the Yamuna, north of the city." While Dilkusha (Delighter of the Heart), a country house, was a "converted octagonal Mughal tomb near Mehrauli." Dalyrmple adds, " both Metcalfe's houses were surrounded by extensive gateways; both were deocrated with follies, and even, in the case of Dilkusha, a lighthouse, a small fort, a pigeon house, a boating pond and an ornamental ziggurat." The idea of combining Mughal and English architecture with European sensibilities is fascinating. Having ancient ruins as part of the estate, added a Romantic feel to it. However the internal rooms were quite English: There was a library of over 25,000 books, a Napoleon Memorabilia room, and an oratory. The house was essentially an art gallery, with numerous paintings and art objects on display.

The author of the Marg article, Jyoti Sharma, seems to equate Thomas with the other Nabob's such such as David Ochterlony and Willam Fraser. However, Thomas was far less a true Nabob than the others before him. Based on Dalyrmple's writing, Thomas clearly followed English patterns of behaviour, such as following a very rigid daily schedule and wearing English clothes tailored by his London tailors. The design and architecture of Dilkusha are ample evidence of his strong Western tastes and life-style. The Mughal elements are "just for show." Thus Thomas is a symbol of the changing attitudes of the English towards India. He is a transitional figure; he fits between the Nabobs with their harems and future English leaders with strict Victorian sensibilites and a passion for religious conversions.