New president to move into Bangabhaban today, let’s look for century-old building’s history

Bangabhaban serves as the official residence and office of the President of Bangladesh.

Although new President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir took the oath of office at the Darbar Hall of Bangabhaban on Friday evening, he will move into the century-old building today, Sunday.

The British rulers constructed the building in 1905, following the announcement of the Partition of Bengal.

The partition divided Bengal into two provinces: one was West Bengal, with Calcutta as its capital, while the other was Eastern Bengal and Assam, with Dhaka as its capital.

The Partition of Bengal took effect in October 1905. The new province had been established, but where would its new Lieutenant Governor live?

To meet this need, the British Government initiated the construction of what is now Bangabhaban in Dhaka. However, the name “Bangabhaban” was given to the building only after Bangladesh gained independence.

Sir Joseph Bamfylde Fuller came to Dhaka as the first Lieutenant Governor of the newly created Eastern Bengal and Assam province.

The authorities began constructing a new official residence for him in the Dilkusha area, at a site known as Dana Dighi Maidan. Construction began in 1905 and was completed in 1911. Fuller moved into the new residence as early as 1906, before construction was fully completed.

Historian Muntassir Mamoon provides a detailed account of Bangabhaban’s construction in the second volume of his book “Dhaka Smriti Bismriti Nagari”.

The history is also documented in Dhaka Kosh, published by the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.

According to these books, the site where Bangabhaban now stands once belonged to the Nawab family of Dhaka.

After the Partition of Bengal, when the British Government expressed interest in building a residence for the Lieutenant Governor, Nawab Sir Salimullah proposed constructing it in the family garden at Dilkusha. The Nawab family subsequently leased the southern part of the garden to the British Government for this purpose.

The authorities chose the section of the southern part known as “Dana Dighi Maidan” as the site for the building. Bamfylde Fuller himself selected the location for the residence.

Until the annulment of the Partition of Bengal in 1911, the Legislative Council of the Eastern Bengal and Assam province held its meetings there. The building also hosted receptions for members of the elite on various occasions.

Later, the building became the venue for the swearing-in ceremonies of the chief minister and ministers of Eastern Bengal. Officials also organised programmes there to mark important national occasions at Government House, now known as Bangabhaban.

According to Dhaka Kosh, even after the annulment of the Partition of Bengal, a provision remained in place requiring the provincial governor to visit and stay in Dhaka during a specific period each year. The Government House at Dilkusha served this purpose at the time.

According to Dhaka Kosh, construction of the present-day building began in 1905 on a 23.5-hectare site and was completed in 1911. Initially, authorities named it “Government House”.

The teak-built structure had a floor area of 25,128 square feet, with its wooden floor raised four feet above the ground. This led people to call it the “Timber Palace.”

A cyclone damaged the timber palace in 1961, leaving it completely unfit for use.

The authorities subsequently decided to construct a new residence for the Governor of then East Pakistan. To design the new building, they brought renowned architect Moinuddin Chishti from Lahore.

At the request of the then Governor, Azam Khan, Moinuddin Chishti incorporated Islamic architectural elements prominently into the design.

The architect completed construction of the 84,000-square-foot, two-storey building on 17 January 1964. The new palace featured a Darbar Hall, the Governor’s bedroom and office, as well as several rooms for hosting various functions.

Meanwhile, the second volume of “Dhaka Smriti Bismriti Nagari” states that an air raid damaged the building during the Great Liberation War in 1971. The authorities subsequently carried out further renovations.

After Bangladesh gained independence on 16 December, the first Cabinet meeting of the new country took place here on 23 December.

At the time, the authorities designated the building as the official residence and office of the President and named it Bangabhaban.

Over the years, additional rooms have been added to Bangabhaban to meet changing needs. The interior has also been adorned with paintings by some of the country’s renowned artists.