5 Places in Himachal Pradesh named after Britishers you should know

Today we will discuss about 5 of the famous tourist places in Himachal Pradesh that are named after Britishers during their ruling period in India. It is interesting to know the history of the places we traveled to, so this is a must read article for history lovers.

1) McLeodGanj

Mcleodganj is one of popular places in himachal pradesh which is located in Dharamshala of Kangra district.  McLeodGanj is also known as “little Lhasa” or “Dhasa” because of the presence of the Headquarter of the Tibetan Government in exile here. McLeodGanj was named after  Donald Friell McLeod, he was the governor of Punjab from 1865 to 870. Whereas as Ganj is a common Persian term used for the “neighbourhood”

2) Dalhousie

Dalhousie is another popular place in Himachal Pradesh, situated in district Chamba. Dalhousie was named after the  The Earl of Dalhousie, who was the British Governor General in India from 1848 to 1856. He is infamously known for his bad policies like doctrine of lapse, which has a significant contribution  in the revolt of 1857. As Britishers had done bad things for Indians his name should not be remembered as such beautiful places in himachal pradesh..

3) Victoria Bridge

Victoria Bridge is a marvelous structure built over the Beas river in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh. It was built in 1877 by then king of Mandi Raja Vijay Sen with the help of Britishers. Victoria Bridge is named after the Victoria bridge of London by Britishers while the king wanted to name it Kesari bridge  but at that time Britishers were in power so it was named as Victoria Bridge and it is a shame that  after so many years of independence it is still known as Victoria bridge. Moreover a new bridge built near to this bridge is commonly known as New Victoria aBridge instead of its official name Sardar Patel bridge.

4) Annadale

Annadale is a beautiful place in Shimla district. We have discuss this place in our article related to best museums in Himachal Pradesh as here you can also find an army museum. It has 2 theories of its naming. According to 1st theory, it was named after Annadale valley of Scotland, because at that time most of the British officers were Scottish. According to 2nd theory it was named Annadale by a british officer  after the name of his love interest Anna.

5) Yol

Yol is an army in Dharamshala, Formerly this place was known as “Majaitha village”. Yol stands for “Young Officers living”, it was founded by the British Army in 1849. Yol is famous for  its military history as it was the location of German prisoners of war  in the First World War and Ittalians prisoners of war in the 2nd world war. Nearby tourist attractions are Dharamshala, Mcleodganj, HPCA Cricket Stadium etc.

This was the list of 5 places in Himachal Pradesh named after Britishers. As we all know Brishers had done bad things and looted India during their rule. They are responsible for millions of deaths  and famines. We should not celebrate their names after our Independence, these names should be changed to their old names or these places should be named after native great personalities. Share you views on this in the comment box, Thankyou.