History of Kolkata

There is a long history of Kolkata, formerly known as Calcutta in English, which is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located in eastern India on the east bank of the River Hooghly. The city is a colonial city developed by the British East India Company and then by the British Empire. The city was the capital of the British Indian empire till 1911, when the capital was relocated to Delhi. Kolkata witnessed a fast rise as the second city of the British Empire in the 19th century, accompanied by the development of a culture that was a coalescence of European philosophy with Indian tradition. The city is also noted for its revolutionary history, ranging from the Indian struggle for independence to the leftist Naxalite and trade-union movements. Labelled the "Cultural Capital of India", "The City of Processions", "The City of Palaces", and the "City of Joy", Kolkata has also been home to luminaries such as Rabindranath Tagore, Subhash Chandra Bose, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Mother Teresa and Satyajit Ray. Problems related to rapid urbanisation started to plague the city from 1930s, and still the city is an example of an urban hotbed of the developing nations.