The Uttara Ganabhaban ( bn, উত্তরা গণভবন, Uttora Gonobhobon, Northern People's House) is an 18th-century (1734) royal palace also known as Dighapatia Palace ( bn, দিঘাপতিয়া রাজবাড়ী, Dighapotiya Rajbari) as it was formerly the seat of the

Dighapatia Raj Dighapatia Raj (sometimes called ''Dighapatia Raj Paribar'' literally ''Dighapatia Royal Family'') was a zamindari in present-day Rajshahi, which was ruled by this dynasty of 7 generations of Rajas from early 18th century till the mid-20th centu ...

, an aristocratic landed estate in the

East Bengal ur, , common_name = East Bengal , status = Province of the Dominion of Pakistan , p1 = Bengal Presidency , flag_p1 = Flag of British Bengal.svg , s1 = East ...

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

. It is a fine example of a jomidar bari (

country house An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...

). It was built by Raja Doyaram who was the Dewan (minister) of Rani Bhavanee. It has a round clock on its front gate with a large bell and a clock room. The clock was imported from Italy. It also has a beautiful garden full of various foreign trees and Italian marble stone statues of women. It is located near Natore town in

North Bengal North Bengal ( bn, উত্তরবঙ্গ/উত্তর বাংলা) is a term used for the north-western part of Bangladesh and northern part of West Bengal. The Bangladesh part denotes the Rajshahi Division and Rangpur Division. Gen ...

. It serves as the principal residence of the Bangladeshi Prime Minister in the northern part of the country. It has been used as a ceremonial site for receiving foreign ambassadors.

History

There has been a house on the site since the early 18th century, when the

Nawab of Bengal The Nawab of Bengal ( bn, বাংলার নবাব) was the hereditary ruler of Bengal Subah in Mughal India. In the early 18th-century, the Nawab of Bengal was the ''de facto'' independent ruler of the three regions of Bengal, Bihar, a ...

rewarded Dayaram Roy for suppressing a rebellion. Roy was awarded the title of Jagirdar and given the

zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as ...

i of vast tracts of land in Jessore,

Rajshahi Rajshahi ( bn, রাজশাহী, ) is a metropolitan city and a major urban, commercial and educational centre of Bangladesh. It is also the administrative seat of the eponymous division and district. Located on the north bank of the Padm ...

, Bogra and Mymensingh. When the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts ...

enforced the

permanent settlement The Permanent Settlement, also known as the Permanent Settlement of Bengal, was an agreement between the East India Company and Bengali landlords to fix revenues to be raised from land that had far-reaching consequences for both agricultural met ...

in Bengal, the Roys were recognised as landed

Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, ...

s. They were avid followers of European influence, fashion, art, and culture. Their palace was developed on the outskirts of Natore in the 19th century. The town of Natore served as the headquarters of

Rajshahi Division Rajshahi Division ( bn, রাজশাহী বিভাগ) is one of the eight first-level administrative divisions of Bangladesh. It has an area of and a population at the 2011 Census of 18,484,858. Rajshahi Division consists of 8 district ...

in the Bengal Presidency, and thus was an important administrative centre. Following Partition in 1947, the estate was formally abolished during major land reforms in East Bengal. On 24 July 1967, it was designated as a gubernatorial residence by

Abdul Monem Khan Abdul Monem Khan (28 July 1899 – 13 October 1971) was a Pakistani politician who was the longest serving governor of East Pakistan during 1962–1969. Early life and education Khan was born in Humayunpur village of Bajitpur Upazila, Kishore ...

, the Governor of

East Pakistan East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Scheme, One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India ...

. The palace was used by President

Ayub Khan Ayub Khan is a compound masculine name; Ayub is the Arabic version of the name of the Biblical figure Job, while Khan or Khaan is taken from the title used first by the Mongol rulers and then, in particular, their Islamic and Persian-influenced ...

as a retreat when Bangladesh was a part of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-la ...

as its eastern wing. After the

independence of Bangladesh Independence of Bangladesh was declared on 26 March 1971, celebrated as Independence Day, from Pakistan. The Independence Day of Bangladesh is celebrated on 26 March when Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared the Independence of Bangladesh. The Bangladesh ...

, Prime Minister

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sheikh Mujibur Rahman ( bn, শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান; 17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), often shortened as Sheikh Mujib or Mujib and widely known as Bangabandhu (meaning ''Friend of Bengal''), was a Bengalis, Beng ...

, the

founding father The following list of national founding figures is a record, by country, of people who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e. ...

of the Bangladeshi republic, declared the palace as his official residence in northern Bangladesh on 9 February 1972. It has since been used by successive Bangladeshi

heads of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, ...

for holding cabinet, political and diplomatic meetings outside the capital.

Uttara Ganabhaban Museum

Uttara Ganabhaban Museum is located in Uttara Ganabhaban of Natore district. The museum was established on March 9, 2018. At least one hundred items of historical interest have been found in the archives at Uttara Ganobhaban. Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam inaugurated the museum.

Gallery

দিঘাপতিয়া রাজবাড়ি সামনের দিকে পাশ থেকে.jpg, Side view of Uttara Ganabhaban দিঘাপতিয়া রাজবাড়ির সামনের কামান.jpg, Historic cannon outside Ganabhaban অন্দর মহলের আঙিনায় অবস্থিত মূর্তি ১.jpg, Statue in courtyard নারী মূর্তি ৪.jpg, Statue in courtyard Dighapatia Rajbari Garden Tub.jpg, Decorative urn in Ganabhaban garden দিঘাপতিয়া রাজবাড়ি মন্ত্রিসভা.jpg, Ministerial conference chamber নাটোর গণভবন ৮.jpg, Bust of a former Raja Uttara Gonobhavan.jpg, Renovation work at Uttara Ganabhaban, 1975

References

{{Bengal Zamindars Natore District Official residences in Bangladesh Prime ministerial residences Palaces in Bangladesh Indo-Saracenic Revival architecture

History

Uttara Ganabhaban Museum

Gallery

See also

References