Ahsan Manzil is one of the most popular tourist spots in our city. The grandeur of the palatial mansion overlooking the Buriganga and the glorious history of the Dhaka Nawab family that resided there makes it an architectural gem, as well as a political seat of the olden times.

But the more curious history buffs may ask: what was in Ahsan Manzil's site before Ahsan Manzil itself came into existence? The mansion was originally built in 1872 by Nawab Khwaja Abdul Ghani. But what was there before that?

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Ahsan Manzil without the dome?

The site was acquired in the 1830s by Khwaja Alimullah, father of Abdul Ghani, from the French. There was a French factory or trading centre on the site.

Travelling further back in time, before the factory or trading centre, there was a "Rang Mahal" of Sheikh Enayetullah, a landlord during the Mughal era. His son Matiullah afterwards sold it to the French, and then Alimullah bought it from them, marking the beginning of the compound eventually becoming associated with Ahsan Manzil and the Nawab family.

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And so, as we relish in the heritage that is Ahsan Manzil, let's not forget that the place's history is richer than what meets the casual eye, encompassing Dhaka's French presence and the story of a landlord during the Mughal times!

Sources: Banglapedia; "Dacca- A Record of its Changing Fortunes" by Ahmad Hasan Dani