The Ranjit Vilas Palace is a

palace A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

Ratlam Ratlam is a city in the northwestern part of the Malwa region in Madhya Pradesh state of India. The city of Ratlam lies above sea level. It is the administrative headquarters of Ratlam district, which was created in 1947 after the independe ...

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

that was the residence of the

royal family A royal family is the immediate family of monarchs and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term papal family describes the family of a pope, while th ...

of Ratlam. Built in 1880 and named for the then ruler, the palace is noted for its

Italian architecture Italy has a very broad and diverse architectural style, which cannot be simply classified by period or region, due to Italy's division into various small states until 1861. This has created a highly diverse and eclectic range in architectural de ...

and

décor Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. With a keen eye for detail and a creative flair, an interior d ...

and is a key part of the city’s heritage. Owned by the

Government of Madhya Pradesh The Government of Madhya Pradesh (abbreviated as MP) or Madhya Pradesh Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and its 55 districts. It consists of an executive, led by the governor of Madhya Prade ...

since the death of the last ruler, the palace has suffered from encroachments and several proposals have been made to

renovate Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, o ...

and repurpose the building.

History

The palace was constructed in 1880 by the then ruler of the princely state of

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

Ranjit Singh Rathore and has been named after him. Popularly known as the Old Palace, it is an important part of the architectural heritage of Ratlam. The palace was the official residence of Lokendra Singh, the last ruler of Ratlam. Following his death in 1991 and his wife Prabharaje in 1993, the palace was taken over by the Government of Madhya Pradesh as the ruler had no

lineal descendants A lineal or direct descendant, in legal usage, is a blood relative in a person's direct line of descent – the children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc. In a legal procedure sense, lineal descent refers to the acquisition of estate by ...

Architecture

The palace is noted for its Italian architecture and craftsmanship reflected in the carvings done on the palace floor.

Wallpaper Wallpaper is used in interior decoration to cover the interior walls of domestic and public buildings. It is usually sold in rolls and is applied onto a wall using wallpaper paste. Wallpapers can come plain as "lining paper" to help cover uneve ...

imported from

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and Belgian glass figure in its décor. It also featured an

elevator An elevator (American English) or lift (Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive traction cables and counterweight systems suc ...

which the first such utility in Ratlam and a rarity in buildings of the time.

Present status

The palace has been the subject of much litigation and has been declared as property of the government of Madhya Pradesh. The building itself has been used to house various government offices. In 2011 the Palace was the venue of rival

coronations A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special ...

by claimants to the titular kingship of Ratlam. Over the years the property has been encroachmed upon extensively with houses and shops being built on the encroached land. This forced the

district administration ''District Administration'' is a bimonthly printed and twice-daily digital B2B publication for education leaders in public K-12, K12 school districts. Based out of Palm Beach, Florida, and published by ETC, a brand owned by the UK-based Arc-netwo ...

to ban all commercial transactions on the property in 2017. Proposals to get the state government to declare the building as a

protected monument In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

, to develop it as heritage hotel under the Ministry of Tourism or convert it into a museum have all seen little progress.

References

{{Coord, 23, 19, 27, N, 75, 02, 28, E, display=title Royal residences in India Palaces in Madhya Pradesh Rajput architecture