Top History Images of Raj Darbhanga and Rajnagar, Bihar

Kali Temple at Rajnagar, Madhubani District

Maharajadhiraj Sir Rameshwar Singh wanted to shift the headquarters of Raj Darbhanga from Darbhanga to Rajnagar and lavishly spent money in building palaces and temples and excavating or renovating tanks. Three large palaces and several delicately executed, temples graced Rajnagar and attracted admiration till came the great Earthquake of 1934. The palaces were ruined almost beyond repairs and the temples were very badly damaged. After the Earthquake, it was found that the main palace through the Durga hall and the roof over the inner shrines rendered into a mass of ruins, and the very fine marble image of the deity of Durga were broken into pieces.

A specimen of Sikh Craft kept at Chandradhari Museum, Darbhanga District.

Chandradhari Museum which was established by the state government in 1957, It is situated at Darbhanga in Bihar, Originally situated on the eastern bank of Mansarowar Lake, The museum was shifted to the present double-storied building in 1974. The Museum with the help of the private collection of Chandradhari Singh, a zamindar of Madhubani

Chandrandar Museum was established on 7 December 1957. Earlier it was named Mithila Museum. It was later named after Babu Chandraheri Singh, landlord of Ranti Dodhi of the main donor Madhubani district. It has been constructed from artifacts and heritage received from them.

Sanskrit University Building at Darbhanga donated by the Maharajadhiraj.

Kameshwar Singh Darbhanga Sanskrit University (KSDSU) is a state university located at Darbhanga, Bihar, India, dedicated to the teaching and promotion of Sanskrit.

KSDSU was established in 1961, with the scholar Umesh Mishra as its first Vice-Chancellor. The then Education Minister of unified Bihar, Satyendra Narayan Sinha, announced the instigation of the university. Kameshwar Singh donated his ancestral Anand Bagh Palace to the government of Bihar as a university for the promotion of Sanskrit. Currently, this palace is the head office of the university.

It has held one awareness campaign. Sanskrit scholar and poet Ram Karan Sharma was the vice-chancellor from 1974 to 1980.

Old Darbhanga Raj Palace-Damaged by earthquake

Old Darbhanga Raj Palace-Damaged by an earthquake.

Darbhanga has several palaces that were built during the Darbhanga Raj era. They include Nargona Palace, which was constructed after the 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake and has since been donated to Lalit Narayan Mithila University, and Lakshmivilas Palace. which was severely damaged in the 1934 earthquake, rebuilt and later donated to Kameshwar Singh Darbhanga Sanskrit University and Darbhanga Fort.

Darbhanga Raj also had several palaces in other towns in India, including the Rajnagar Palace Complex at Rajnagar, in Madhubani District of Bihar.

A view of the Shiva Temple at Rajnagar before the Earthquake, 1934.

The Shiva temple built on the South Indian model was also beyond repairs. The glorious Sun temple and the marble image of Kali, the temples of Ardhanarishwar and Raj Rajeshwar were also made irreparable Maharajadhiraj Sir Rameshwar Singh's dream of making Rajnagar the seat of Darbhanga Raj and to bring about a cultural confluence particularly of the different creeds of Hinduism was shattered. It is a tragedy that the religious fervor of the Maharajadhiraj and the lavish spending of more than crores of rupees would come to this end.

A view of Lakshmishwara Vilas Palace after the Earthquake of 1934.

Anand Bagh Palace (also known as Lakshmivilas Palace) is a palace situated in the town of Darbhanga in the State of Bihar, India. Anand Bagh Palace was constructed during the reign of Maharaja Lakshmeshwar Singh in the 1880s and was severely damaged during the 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake. It was rebuilt thereafter.

Anand Bagh Palace was donated to the Government of Bihar by Maharaja Kameshwar Singh for starting a University for the promotion of the Sanskrit language. Currently, this palace is the head office of Kameshwar Singh Darbhanga Sanskrit University. Anand Bagh Palace was well known for its beautiful gardens surrounding it that have by now disappeared. Roper Lethbridge mentions the Lakshmivilas Palace: "The new Palace at Darbhanga, with its immense stables, its botanical and zoological gardens, and its many beautiful surroundings, is well known in England by the sketches that have appeared in the London illustrated papers."

The garden surrounding the Palace had several rare species of plants such as Branched palm having over 8 branches, Rudraksha, Sandalwood, Mahogany, etc. as well as many species of orchids were planted around the Palace. The garden was laid out on the extensive grounds of the Palace by Charles Maries, who was recommended by Sir Joseph Hooker to Maharaja Lakshmeshwar Singh for the post of Superintendent of the gardens of the Raj Darbhanga.