Information on Bishop's House (Kolkata, West Bengal) - History & Architecture

St. Paul's Cathedral also known as the Bishops House is historical and architecturally splendor monument in the city of joy, Kolkata, West Bengal. It was established by the Anglican Communion. Rt. Revd. Ashoke Biswas, the respected bishop for this seat of Diocese of Calcutta. This attractive building stands right in front of many glorious monuments like Victoria Memorial, Nandan and the Birla Planetarium in Kolkata, which is often termed as the "land of attractions".

Bishop's House Architecture

The great architectural work of this building was done by Architect William Nairn Forbes and C.K.Robinson. Forbes the architect was better known as "a versatile genius" was basically a military engineer trained in the military school of East India Company at Addiscombe and Robinson, was called civil architecture with recreational and scientific activities. The Bishops House was well designed and structured with the help of specific bricks, which were peculiar in nature. The bricks used for the purpose were light and had compressional strength. The whole structure of the building was dressed up in chunar stone and polished chunam was implemented for covering the interior and exterior of the building, which gives a delicate look to the cathedral. The architectural significance of the House is that it represents the Gothic Revival style with windows made up of stained glass. Moreover, the Florentine Renaissance technique was implemented for the construction of two frescoes. Due to these factors the St. Pauls Cathedral Church is architecturally noteworthy. The current architecture and interior of the cathedral is wide open along with long roof span. It is worth mentioning that the cathedral is more like an arched shape door.

Bishop's House History

Bishop Daniel Wilson was the man behind the establishment of this great architectural monument erected in Kolkata. This cathedral was constructed in the year 1839 and was accomplished on 1847. Major William Nairn Forbes designed this cathedral with the aid of his assistant C.K.Robinson, who modelled the tower of the building and also constructed the Norwich Cathedral. However, due to the massive earthquake of 1934 in Calcutta, the tower was rebuilt alongside the Canterbury Cathedral central tower. However, after the conclusion of its work the name of the cathedral was replaced by St. John's Church, Kolkata. Other than that, it was the first Anglican cathedral which was built in the Victorian age. The Bishop house of Kolkata is also known as the "original metropolitan church of British India".

Bishop's House Tourism Importance

The Bishop house is of great tourist attraction for the people with religious believe. It will be of significance for the people with enormous desirability and admiration for great sculptures and Cathedral interior to be specific. A visit to this Bishop House will provide great mental peace and satisfaction to the people with more religious intent. This is also an immense attraction for the people having fascination towards the religious insight and history of the culture to a considerable extent. The magnificent interior of the cathedral and the rich inscriptions makes it more attractive for the people of any age. The location of the Bishop House makes it more attentive and attractive for the tourist visiting the city of joy.