The Victoria Memorial, built in the memory of Queen Victoria, is situated in Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal. It dominates the Maidan (large park) in Calcutta (Kolkata). The memorial was designed by Sir William Emerson in an architectural style similar to Belfast City Hall. Emerson was against the exclusive use of European styles and used Indo-Saracenic style, incorporating Mughal elements in the structure. The foundation stone of the memorial was laid down in the year 1906, by the 'Prince of Wales'. Apart from being a memorial, the monument was intended to serve as a tribute to the success of the British Empire in India. Lord Curzon was the one who envisaged the main idea of the erection of the Victoria Memorial Hall, which was to serve as the architectural culmination of the Kolkata city.
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