Hindu School is a state government-administered school in

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

(Calcutta), India. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest modern educational institution in Asia (then known as ''Hindu College''). The institution played a key role during

Bengal Renaissance Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

period. It is located on College Street, in the vicinity of Hare School, College Square, Presidency University,

Sanskrit College The Sanskrit College and University (erstwhile Sanskrit College) is a state university located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It focuses on liberal arts, offering both UG and PG degrees in Ancient Indian and world history, Bengali, English, Sa ...

Calcutta Medical College Calcutta Medical College, officially Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, is a public medical school and hospital in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It is the oldest existing hospital in Asia. The institute was established on 28 January 1835 ...

and the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a public collegiate state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered one of best state research university all over India every year, ...

History

With the establishment of the Supreme Court of Calcutta in 1773 many

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

showed eagerness to learn the English language. David Hare, in collaboration with

Raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested f ...

Radhakanta Deb Raja Sir Radhakanta Deb Bahadur ( bn, রাজা রাধাকান্ত দেব; 10 March 1784 – 19 April 1867) was a scholar and a leader of the Calcutta conservative Hindu society, son of Gopimohan Deb of Shovabazar Raj who was the a ...

had already taken steps to introduce English education in Bengal. Babu Baidyanath Mukhopadhya advanced the introduction of English as a medium of instruction further by enlisting the support of Sir

Edward Hyde East Sir Edward Hyde East, 1st Baronet (9 September 1764 – 8 January 1847) was a British Member of Parliament, legal writer, and judge in India. He served as chief justice of Calcutta from 1813 to 1822. He was the first Principal of Hindu College ...

, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Fort William who called a meeting of 'European and Hindu Gentlemen' in his house in May 1816. The purpose of the meeting was to "discuss the proposal to establish an institution for giving a liberal education to the children of the members of the Hindu Community". The proposal was received with unanimous approbation and a donation of over Rs. 100, 000 was promised for the setting up of the new college.

Raja Ram Mohan Roy Raja Ram Mohan Roy ( bn, রামমোহন রায়; 22 May 1772 – 27 September 1833) was an Indian reformer who was one of the founders of the Brahmo Sabha in 1828, the precursor of the Brahmo Samaj, a social-religious reform m ...

showed full sympathy for the scheme but chose not to come out in support of the proposal publicly for fear of "alarming the prejudices of his orthodox countrymen and thus marring the whole idea". The college was formally opened on Monday, 20 January 1817 with 20 'scholars'. The foundation committee of the college, which oversaw its establishment, was headed by

Raja Rammohan Roy Raja Ram Mohan Roy ( bn, রামমোহন রায়; 22 May 1772 – 27 September 1833) was an Indian reformer who was one of the founders of the Brahmo Sabha in 1828, the precursor of the Brahmo Samaj, a social-religious reform ...

. The control of the institution was vested in a body of two Governors and four Directors. The first Governors of the college were Maharaja Tejchandra Bahadur of

Burdwan Bardhaman (, ) is a city and a municipality in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of Purba Bardhaman district, having become a district capital during the period of British rule. Burdwan, an alternative name for the city, ...

and Gopee Mohan Thakoor. The first Directors were Gopi Mohun Deb of Sobhabazar, Joykissen Sinha, Radha Madhab Banerjee and Gunganarain Doss. Buddinath Mukherjee was appointed as the first Secretary of the college. The newly established college admitted Hindu students only from affluent and upper caste families. At first the classes were held in a house belonging to Gorachand Bysack of Garanhatta (later renamed 304, Chitpore Road), which was rented by the college. In January 1818 the college moved to 'Feringhi Kamal Bose's house' which was located nearby in Chitpore.This building is a historic one because Raja Ram Mohan Roy inaugurated his

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

Sabha there and Alexander Duff of the Scottish Missionary Board started his educational establishment, the General Assembly's Institution there as well a few years later in 1830. From Chitpore, the college moved to Bowbazar and later to the building that now houses the

on College Street. In 1855 the 'Pathshala' part was renamed as Hindu School and the 'Mahapathshala' part became

Presidency College, Kolkata Presidency University, Kolkata (formerly known as Presidency College, Kolkata) is a second major public state aided research university located in College Street, Kolkata. Considered as one of best colleges when Presidency College was affili ...

Medium of education

Hindu School had been providing education primarily in Bengali medium until 2017, prior to its bi-centenary, when it has been decided to introduce English as the second medium of imparting education.

Notable alumni

Short notable alumni list * Young Bengals *

Satyendranath Tagore Satyendranath Tagore (1 June 1842 – 9 January 1923) was an Indian Bengali civil servant, poet, composer, writer, social reformer and linguist from Kolkata, West Bengal. He was the first Indian who became an Indian Civil Service officer in 186 ...

. *

Jyotirindranath Tagore Jyotirindranath Tagore ( bn, জ্যোতিরিন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 4 May 1849 – 4 March 1925) was a playwright, a musician, an editor and a painter. He played a major role in the flowering of the talents of his you ...

.Sengupta, Subodh Chandra and Bose, Anjali (editors), 1976/1998, ''Sansad Bangali Charitabhidhan'', pp. 184-185 *

Taraknath Palit Sir Taraknath Palit (1831–1914) was an Indian lawyer from West Bengal and a philanthropist. He was associated with the Swadeshi Movement during the Partition of Bengal and was one of the key figures behind the establishment of Ballygunge S ...

Bhaktivinoda Thakur Bhaktivinoda Thakur (, ) (2 September 1838 – 23 June 1914), born Kedarnath Datta (, ), was a Hindu philosopher, guru and spiritual reformer of Gaudiya Vaishnavism who effected its resurgence in India in late 19th and early 20th century and ...

Womesh Chunder Bonnerjee Womesh Chandra Bannerjee (or Umesh Chandra Banerjee by current English orthography of Bengali names; 29 December 1844 – 21 July 1906) was an Indian barrister. He was a co-founder and the first president of Indian National Congress. Born on 1 ...

Satyendra Nath Bose Satyendra Nath Bose (; 1 January 1894 – 4 February 1974) was a Bengali mathematician and physicist specializing in theoretical physics. He is best known for his work on quantum mechanics in the early 1920s, in developing the foundation for ...

Chhabi Biswas Chhabi Biswas (''Chabi Biśbās'') (13 July 1900 – 11 June 1962) was an Indian actor, primarily known for his performances in Tapan Sinha's '' Kabuliwala'' and Satyajit Ray's films '' Jalshaghar'' (''The Music Room'', 1958), '' Devi'' ...

* Birendranath Sircar *

Nitin Bose Nitin Bose (26 April 1897 – 14 April 1986) was an Indian film director, cinematographer and screenwriter of the nation's film industry. He was born in Calcutta and died in the same city. In the 1930s and early 1940s, he worked with New Theatr ...

Meghnad Saha Meghnad Saha (6 October 1893 – 16 February 1956) was an Indian astrophysicist who developed the Saha ionization equation, used to describe chemical and physical conditions in stars. His work allowed astronomers to accurately relate the spe ...

* Michael Modhusudan Dutt *

Prasanna Kumar Tagore Prasanna may refer to: People As sole name * Prasanna (actor) (Prasanna Venkatesan, active from 2001), Indian film actor * Prasanna (theatre director) (born 1951), Indian theatre director and playwright * V. V. Prasanna, a Tamil playback singer ...

* Rajendralal Mitra *

Peary Chand Mitra Peary Chand Mitra (22 July 1814 – 23 November 1883) was an Indian writer, journalist, cultural activist and entrepreneur. His pseudonym was Tek Chand Thakur. He was a member of Henry Derozio's Young Bengal group, who played a leading role ...

* Dr. Pratap Chandra Chunder * Keshob Chandra Sen *

Nisith Ranjan Ray Nisith Ranjan Ray (born 1910–1994) was an Indian historian, social activist and the founder of the Society for Preservation, Calcutta, an organisation working for the preservation of the cultural heritage of Kolkata. Born in Mymensingh Distric ...

* Rishi Rajnarayan Bosu *

Anandamohan Bose Ananda Mohan Bose ( bn, আনন্দমোহন বসু) (23 September 1847 – 20 August 1906) was an Indian politician, academician, social reformer, and lawyer during the British Raj. He co-founded the Indian National Association, one ...

Kaliprasanna Singha Kaliprasanna Sinha ( bn, কালীপ্রসন্ন সিংহ; 23 February 1841 – 24 July 1870), well known by his pen name Hootum Pyancha, was a Bengali author, playwright, and philanthropist. His most famous work was the translatio ...

Radharaman Mitra Radharaman Mitra (23 February 1897 – 7 February 1992) was a revolutionary involved with Meerut Conspiracy Case and Bengali writer. In 1981 he received Sahitya Akademi Award for his book ''Kalikata Darpan''. Early life Mitra was born in Shyamb ...

* Kulada Charan Das Gupta * Sankar Das Banerji *

Santosh Kumar Mitra Santosh kumar Mitra (Bengali: সন্তোষ কুমার মিত্র) or Santosh Mitra (15 August 1900 – 16 September 1931) was an activist of the Indian independence movement and a martyr. Early life Mitra was born on 15 August ...

References

External links

* {{coord, 22.575697, 88.363713, type:landmark, display=title Boys' schools in India Schools in Colonial India Presidency University, Kolkata High schools and secondary schools in Kolkata Educational institutions established in 1817 1817 establishments in British India Hinduism in Kolkata Hindu universities and colleges Hindu schools in India