Armenians of Calcutta

  • The Armenians were the first merchants to arrive to India much before Job Charnock and the East India Company from the ancient Eurasian country. Merchant Thomas Cana arrived to Malabar coast on 780 CE. 
  • The community was sparsely populated reaching maxima of 12,000 people at a time. 
  • The Armenian Holy Church of Nazareth (located at Bowbazar), established in 1688, was the first church of Calcutta which houses the oldest Christian grave dating back to 1630. It was rebuilt in 1724 through the efforts of Agha Nazar after the original wooden structure perished in a fire in 1707. The same register of Baptism is maintained from 1904 till today. 
  • The majestic architechtures of Kolkata associated with the Armenian legacy includes Stephen Court and Grand hotel (built by Arathoon Stephen), Queens’s mansion and Nizam Palace (built by J. C. Galstaun), Armenian Ghat (built by Hazoori Mal), Park Mansion (built by Mesrope Thaddeus) and others. 

  • The wealthy Armenians owned trading companies, publishing houses, shipping lines and businesses like indigo, shellac and jewellery and coal. 
  • Sir Catchick Paul Chater, revered as the most famous Armenian of Asia was born in Calcutta on 1846. Khachig Pogose Astwachatoor, as he was named after his birth, was orphaned at the age of 9 and joined La Martineire for Boys’ School, Kolkata as a foundation scholar. 
  • Gauhar Jaan, born an Armenian Christian and baptized as Eileen Angelina Yeoward, established herself along with her mother as a leading vocalist of Calcutta. She is credited with India’s first ever recording on a gramophone, recorded on 2 November 1902.
  • Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy (ACPA) is the sole Armenian-centred school in the eastern section of the world,till date. 

 References:

1.      https://www.getbengal.com/details/armenian-street-tale-of-a-kolkata-street-that-preceded-british-by-centuries

2.      https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/kolkata/management-of-armenian-properties-in-kolkata-draws-applause-from-armenia/article65934560.ece

3.      https://archive.org/details/dli.MoI.TheArmeniansofkolkataanAnthropologicalhistory_Eng

4.      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenian_Church_of_the_Holy_Nazareth

5.      Armenians of Calcutta by Alakananda Nag, 

 A  A taste of time by Mohona Kanjilal

6. https://www.tutorialathome.in/heritage-commercial-buildings/queens-mansion

7.      https://www.india-armenia.com/sir-catchick-paul-chater-s-bust

8.      https://www.peopleofar.com/2018/02/11/gauhar-jaan-armenian-lady-became-indias-first-superstar/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mirza Ghalib's connections with Kolkata

Image
Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan  (27 December 1797 – 15 February 1869) also known by the pen names of  Ghalib  and  Asad  was an Indian poet who wrote in Urdu and Persian and is renowned for his work Dabir-ul-Mulk, Najm-ud-Daula .   His works describes the fall of the Mughal empire, the establishment of the British East India Company Rule and the Sepoy mutiny – the political scenario during his lifetime.   Mirza Ghalib was born in Kala Mahal, Agra into a family of Mughals who moved to Samarkand (in modern-day Uzbekistan) after the downfall of the Seljuk kings. At the age of thirteen, Ghalib married Umrao Begum, daughter of Nawab Ilahi Bakhsh and settled at Delhi.   He visited Kolkata to appeal to the East India Company to restore the full pension in lieu of his family estate annexed by the British.     Ghalib had left for Kolkata on November 1826 and reached the ...
Read more

Balmer Lawrie & Co. Ltd.

Image
Stephen George Balmer and Alexander Lawrie were two Scottish entrepreneurs, who founded the Balmer Lawrie & Co. Ltd. at Kolkata on 1 st February, 1867 . The founding fathers had formed the Company as an ‘Agency House’ and the agency business was primarily in trading.  The range of business spanned over Tea, Shipping, Insurance, Banking, Trading and Manufacturing. The initial products included tea leaves, tea seeds, kerosene, pharmaceuticals, wines and lubricating oils.  It was the sole agent of Calcutta to manufacture one of the first Scotch whiskies – Lafroaig Islay.  A significant part of Balmer Lawrie's business was managing and transferring Indian military pensions to those who returned to Britain post Independence. The Company’s presence in diverse business is its strength. It became a private limited company in 1924 with a paid up share capital of ₹40 lakhs, a public limited company in 1936 and then a Government of India Enterprise in 1972. With the abolitio...
Read more

Ramakrishna Math (Yogodyan), Kankurgachi

Image
Originally known as “Sri Sri Ramakrishna Samadhi Mahapeeth Sri Yogodyan” and later as “Ramakrishna Yogodyan Math”, this place came into existence before the formation of the first Ramakrishna Math at Baranagore, on 19 th October,1886 . Entrance to the Yogodyan Lane Entrance to the premises Founded by Sri Ram Chandra Dutta, the Yogodyan Math was blessed by Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa’s visit in 1883 and 1885. The Math enshrines a part of the sacred relics of Sri Ramakrishna since 23 rd August 1886 (Janmastami Tithi) where the present Temple stands now. The white marbel statue was set up on 26th January 1967.  The main temple besides the Ramakrishna Kunda An oil painting of the Master was established in 1901 by Ram Chandra Dutta and other disciples. Since 2021, it is placed in the room of the Holy Mother at the second floor.   Ramakrishna himself proclaimed the garden as “Yogodyan” and sanctified “ Vedi Ghar ” and the pond “ Ramakrishna Kund ”. Sri Ramakrishna is sai...
Read more