The Giants of Kashmir
The Durbar of 1903
The Delhi Durbar was an Indian imperial-style mass assembly organized by the British at Coronation Park, Delhi, India, to mark the succession of an Emperor or Empress of India. Also known as the Imperial Durbar, it was held three times, in 1877, 1903, and 1911, at the height of the British Empire.
In 1903, a big celebration called the Durbar was held in India to mark the crowning of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra as the new Emperor and Empress of India. The celebration lasted for two weeks and was carefully planned by Lord Curzon, who was the ruler of India at the time. It was a dazzling display of pomp, power, and split-second timing. Even though there were similar celebrations before and after, none could compare to the one in 1903.
Originally, Lord Curzon wanted King Edward to come to India for the special coronation ceremony, but the King wasn’t interested. The King sent his brother, the Duke of Connaught, who arrived with a mass of dignitaries by train from Bombay.
On 29 December 1902, the first day of the ceremony began with a parade of elephants walking down the streets of Delhi. The guests of this ceremony were popular Indian kings and princes from all over India.
The assembly displayed possibly the greatest collection of jewels from all over India to be seen…
