Monuements in Chennai

     Fort St George is the name of the first British fortress in India, built in 1644 at the coastal city of Madras (modern city of Chennai). It symbolises the beginning of British rule in India. Presently it is used as the offices of the Tamil Nadu Secretariat and the Legislative Assembly. Fort St. George marks the beginning of development of Madras (Chennai) as a modern city.

     The East India Company, which had entered India around 1600 for trading activities, had begun licensed trading at Surat, which was its initial bastion. However, to secure its trade lines and commercial interests in the spice trade, it felt the necessity of a port closer to the Malaccan Straits. It succeeded in purchasing a piece of coastal land, originally called Madraspattinam (also called Channapatnam), from a local chieftain, where it began construction of a harbour and a fort.

      The fort was completed on April 23rd, coinciding with St. George's Day, celebrated in honour of St. George, the patron saint of England. The fort, hence christened Fort St. George faced the sea and a few fishing villages. Soon it became the hub of merchant activity. It gave birth to a new settlement area called George Town, which grew to envelop the villages and led to the formation of the city of Madras. It also helped establish British influence over the Carnatic region, and keep the kings of Arcot and Srirangapatna, as well as the French forces based at Pondicherry, at bay.

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