20/11/2025
Chapslee' and what was later named ‘Auckland House' were built sometime between the late 1820s and the early 1835s by Dr. Blake, a surgeon in the service of the East India Company. The smaller house was taken by The Governor-General, Lord Auckland's Military Secretary and nephew, Captain William Osborne. This was then purchased by Auckland in 1836 to house his aides and given the name 'Secretary's Lodge. On 1st October 1838 the fateful 'Simlah Manifesto' that launched the disastrous First Afghan War was issued from its rooms. In 1848, the house was purchased by General Peter Innes of the Bengal Army who gave it its present name, 'Chapslee'.
After 1870, Chapslee repeatedly changed hands and one resident was Sir Courtney Ilbert, after whom the famous Ilbert Bill that proposed to allow Indian judges to try Europeans was named. In 1896, Chapslee became the property of Sir Arthur Milford Ker of the Alliance Bank of Simla who practically rebuilt this to create one of the finest residences in town. Exactly a century after the fateful ‘Manifesto’ was issued, in 1938, this was then purchased by Raja Charanjit Singh of Kapurthala (d.1970) as a summer residence. Chapslee is still with his decendants and is a privately-owned property.
# British Raj India India # Simla
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