The Retreat Building is the official retreat residence of the
President of India
The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu ...
at
Chharabra,
Shimla
Shimla (; ; also known as Simla, List of renamed Indian cities and states#Himachal Pradesh, the official name until 1972) is the capital and the largest city of the States and union territories of India, northern Indian state of Himachal Prade ...
, in the state of
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...
.
[Official website of the President of India]
Presidential retreats. Retrieved 11 February 2022.["The Retreat, a treat for India's Presidents"]
''The Tribune'', 21 June 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2022. The President stays at the building for at least two weeks during summer and conducts official business. It is located 13 km away from the city Shimla and is a thousand feet higher than the Shimla Ridge Top, which is part of the
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
.
The other presidential homes are
Rashtrapati Bhavan
The Rashtrapati Bhavan (, rāsh-truh-puh-ti bha-vun; ; originally Viceroy's House and later Government House) is the official residence of the President of India at the western end of Rajpath, Raisina Hill, New Delhi, India. Rashtrapati Bh ...
in
New Delhi
New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
, and
Rashtrapati Nilayam
Rashtrapati Nilayam (literally the "President's House") formerly known as Residency House is the official retreat of the President of India located in Hyderabad, Telangana, where the President stays for at least two weeks during winter and condu ...
in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
,
Telangana
Telangana (; , ) is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian subcontinent, Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India b ...
.
History
The building was originally constructed by the then Medical Superintendent of Simla, whose name is not known (referred to merely as Mr. C____ in ''Simla Past and Present'' by Edward J. Buck). The Retreat was taken on lease from Raja of Koti by
Lord William Hay. During this period, the local population called it "Larty Sahib Ki Kothi", i.e. house of Mr. Larty, as Lord William Hay was named by locals. The lease deed contained stipulations that: the two roads from Simla and Mashobra village should, in the interest of native population of Koti State, be open to the public; no trees should be felled; and no cattle be slaughtered on the grounds. The lease of the Retreat was then taken by
Sir William Mansfield,
Commander-in-Chief, and then By
Sir Edward Buck in 1881. In 1896, Raja of Koti used his right of preemption and took the possession of the estate. Thereafter the Retreat was consigned to the government on permanent lease by Raja of Koti. The
Earl of Elgin
Earl of Elgin is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1633 for Thomas Bruce, 3rd Lord Kinloss. He was later created Baron Bruce, of Whorlton in the County of York, in the Peerage of England on 30 July 1641. The Earl of Elgin is the ...
was the first
Viceroy of India
The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...
to have used the Retreat as a viceregal residence. Lord Elgin secured use of the Retreat for future viceroys and constantly spent his weekends there.
[Edward J. Buck, ''Simla Past and Present'', Thacker, Spink and Co. (1904), pp. 177-180.]
Design
The architecture and the picturesque surrounding of the place make it a major tourist attraction in Shimla. The outstanding feature of this building is that it is purely a wooden structure with dhajji wall construction. This building has an area of .[
]
See also
* List of official residences of India Below is a list of official residences of India.
Union
State
Union territories
See also
* Raj Bhavan
* Raj Niwas
References
{{reflist
Official residences in India,
Lists of government buildings, India
Lists of buildings and structures ...
* Rashtrapati Nilayam
Rashtrapati Nilayam (literally the "President's House") formerly known as Residency House is the official retreat of the President of India located in Hyderabad, Telangana, where the President stays for at least two weeks during winter and condu ...
* Rashtrapati Niwas
The Rashtrapati Niwas (), formerly known as Viceregal Lodge, is located on the Observatory Hills of Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India. It was formerly the residence of the British Viceroy of India. It houses some of the most ancient articles and ...
* Rashtrapati Ashiana
Rashtrapati Ashiana is an official retreat of the President of India located in Dehradun, Uttarakhand. Established as a summer camp for horses in the Governor General's Bodyguard, the Ashiana was built in 1920 as the residence of the unit's com ...
References
Official residences in India
Presidential residences in India
Buildings and structures in Shimla
{{India-gov-stub