This is one of those forgotten monuments of Delhi! One has to hunt it out to visit... of course, the context of the memorial has changed with the passage of history and while the purpose is not relevant to modern India, it is still a piece of heritage!
The Mutiny Memorial is a monument in New Delhi near Northern Ridge locally known as Ajitgarh or Victory tower. It was built by the British Army in 1862 in memory of British soldiers and natives of the Delhi Field Force killed during the First War of Indian Independence or Sepoy Mutiny in 1857. This octagonal tapering tower of red sandstone is situated just 200 meters away from the Ashoka Pillar.
It comprises of typically Victorian Gothic architecture with an octagonal perimeter. Around the building there are several plaques bearing names of 46 officer casualties killed and many more soldiers who died from diseases during the battle. While the tower is of an octagonal shape from the outside, it is circular from within and is raised on a base that is two-tiered. It has an ornamental façade with a staircase leading to the top. All around the tower there are many plaques on the walls mentioning the names and ranks of the soldiers who fought for the British in the War of 1857.
In the year 1972, on the 25th anniversary of India's Independence, a new plaque was added to the memorial which mentions that the 'enemy' as mentioned by the British were actually the freedom fighters and martyrs of India, who fought bravely against the repressive colonial rule in the First War of Indian Independence.
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