A view of the garden at Dilkoosha Palace, 1858

Photograph by Felice Beato (1825-1907), Indian Mutiny (1857-1859), 1858.

Dilkoosha (or Dilkusha) was built by Nawab Saadat Ali Khan (r.1798-1814) as a hunting lodge. It was used by Sir Colin Campbell as a HQ when relieving the Residency in 1857. During the subsequent evacuation, it served as a staging post for the women and the sick during their journey from the Residency compound, on their way to Cawnpore via the Alambagh. It was also the place where Sir Henry Havelock died of dysentery on 24 November 1857. Sir Colin used the Dilkoosha again in March 1858, when making the final assault on Lucknow.