Koti Residency or British Residency or "Hyderabad Residency" is an opulent mansion built by James Achilles Kirkpatrick in the princely state of

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

. Kirkpatrick was British Resident of Hyderabad between 1798 and 1805. Today it is part of the Osmania University College for Women and has been converted into a museum. It can be visited with prior online booking. The building with its classical

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cu ...

is in the style of a Palladian villa and is similar in design to its near-contemporary in the United States, the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

. It features in the 2002

William Dalrymple William Benedict Hamilton-Dalrymple (born 20 March 1965) is a Delhi-based Scottish people, Scottish historian and art historian, as well as a curator, broadcaster and critic. He spends nine months of each year on his goat farm in India. He i ...

book '' White Mughals''. The house was designed by

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

Samuel Russell of the Madras Engineers and construction began in 1803. The building has been included in the list of heritage structures compiled by INTACH.

World Monuments Fund World Monuments Fund (WMF) is a private, international, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of historic architecture and cultural heritage sites around the world through fieldwork, advocacy, grantmaking, education, and training ...

has included the building in ''2025 World Monuments Watch''.

History

Kirkpatrick built the mansion for himself and his Indian wife Khair un Nissa, who bore him two surviving children who were sent to England by the age of five and never saw them again due to the early deaths of their parents. The building was once the embassy of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

to the court of the

Nizam of Hyderabad Nizam of Hyderabad was the title of the ruler of Hyderabad State ( part of the Indian state of Telangana, and the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka). ''Nizam'' is a shortened form of (; ), and was the title bestowed upon Asaf Jah I wh ...

, and the residence of James Kirkpatrick, the British Resident, as well as his successors. Within its compound there were several quarters, including a '' zenana'' (women's quarters) where Khair un Nissa lived. Within the compound is a miniature model of the building- legend has it that this was so Kirkpatrick's wife, who remained in

purdah Pardah or purdah (from Hindi-Urdu , , meaning "curtain") is a religious and social practice of sex segregation prevalent among some Muslim, Zoroastrian and Hindu communities. The purdah garment is the same as a burqa, or yashmak, i.e a veil ...

, could see the entire mansion, including the front. This scaled model has recently been beautifully restored. During the Indian Rebellion of 1857, a group of rebels, led by Maulvi Allauddin and Turrebaz Khan, attacked the residency. After the events of 1857, the British erected

martello towers Martello towers are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts. They stand up to high (with two floors) and typica ...

at the residency, which were demolished in 1954. After independence in 1947, the building became vacant. In 1949 it was converted into a women's college, Osmania University College for Women. After a court directive to the

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexander ...

, it is now a protected monument. However, the building suffered much damage over the years and part of the ceiling had collapsed. It was placed on the 2002 World Monuments Watch list. Restoration works were completed in January 2023, the result of an effort spanning over 20 years.

List of British Residents

From 1786 - 1947

had 34 British residents. #John Kennaway (1788 - 1794) #Major-General William Kirkpatrick (1794–1797) #Major James Achilles Kirkpatrick (1797–1805) (The residency building was built during his time) #Captain Thomas Sydenham (1806–1810) #Sir Henry Russell (1811–1820) #Colonel Martin (1825 - 1830) #Colonel Stewart (1830 - 1838) #General J S Fraser (1838 - 1852) #Colonel Cuthbert Davidson (1852 - 1853, 1853, 1825 - 1835) #General Sir John Low (1853) #G A Bushby (1853 - 1856) #Colonel William Thornhill (1856 - 1857) #Sir George Yule (1863) #Sir Richard Temple (1867–1868) #H A Roberts (1868) #J G Cordery (1868, 1883 - 1884, 1886) #C. B. Saunders (1868–1872, 1872 - 1875) #Sir

Richard Meade Richard Meade may refer to: *Richard Meade, 2nd Earl of Clanwilliam (1766–1805), Irish peer *Richard Meade, 3rd Earl of Clanwilliam (1795–1879), British ambassador *Richard Meade, 4th Earl of Clanwilliam (1832–1907), British Royal Navy officer ...

(1876–1881) #Sir Stuart Bayley (1881 - 1882) #W B Jones (1882 - 1883) #A P Howell (1888 - 1889) #Sir Dennis Fitzpatrick (1889 - 1891) #Sir Trevor Chichele PlowdenDavid Smith, "letters Reveal Heartbreak of Young Winston, The Guardian 9 November 2003, https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/nov/09/booksnews.redbox ; see also Ramachandra Guha, "Churchill in Bangalore," The Hindu Magazine, December 21, 2003 http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/mag/2003/12/21/stories/2003122100040300.htm (1891 - 1900) #Colonel Mackenzie (1899) # Sir David Barr (1900 - 1905) #Sir Charles Bayley (1905 - 1908) # Michael O'Dwyer (1908–1911) #Colonel Alexander Pinhey (1911–1916) #Sir Stuart Fraser (1914, 1916–1919) #Sir Charles Russell (1919–1924) #Sir William Burton (1924 - 1930) #Sir Terrance Keyes (1930 - 1933) #Sir Duncan George Mackenzie (1934–1938) # Sir Arthur Lothian (1942–1946)

Architecture

The building is in the

Palladian Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...

style, with a classical portico. Six

Corinthian columns The Corinthian order (, ''Korinthiakós rythmós''; ) is the last developed and most ornate of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order, which was the earliest, ...

support the roof. Within its compound there were several quarters, including a '' zenana'' quarter.

References

Heritage structures in Hyderabad, India Hyderabad State Tourist attractions in Hyderabad, India Royal residences in India Residencies of British India 1805 establishments in British India Palaces in Hyderabad, India Neoclassical architecture in India {{Hyderabad topics