I told friends who met me at
Bangalore Palace that I felt like I was on the set of
Downton Abbey (a British period drama featuring the lives of an aristocratic family and their servants) when approaching this tutor style palace, complete with fortified towers and turrets.
Actually what is now known as
Bangalore Palace was not the domicile of some British dynasty but, built in 1862 and owned by Reverend Garrett, a Principal of a High School in Bangalore. I don’t know, but it kind of surprises me that a Principal would have the funds for a 35 room residence with floor space of 45,000 sq ft (4200 sq m) on a sprawling 454 acre (183 ha) property. I guess educator salaries have taken a dive over the last 1.5 centuries =) As the story goes, this residence was eventually purchased by British authorities in charge of educating a young prince.
While areas of this palace show its age and look worn, it is still splendid with an interior decorated with elegant wood carvings, columns, and relief paintings on the ceiling. Some of the 35 rooms open to visitors include a ballroom, residences, and decorated hall from where the king addressed assemblies. A screened area at one end of the hall provided an area where ladies could watch assembly proceedings in private. I was particularly impressed by the collection of over 30,000 19th-20th century art work and photos hanging on the palace walls!
Visitors are allowed to walk through several courtyards and their adjoining rooms where the Maharaja and servants resided. One of the courtyards contained bright colored ceramic tile flooring and benches that looked more like it belonged in a Spanish palace than Indian. I guess the Spaniards don’t own the rights to brightly colored ceramic tile =) Never the less, it was a nice place to relax during the tour.
