Fort William, headquarters of Army's Eastern Command, renamed as 'Vijay Durg'
Fort William, headquarters of Army's Eastern Command, renamed as 'Vijay Durg'
M.U.H
07/02/202583
In a major move to remove colonial imprints, the Army has renamed Kolkata’s Fort William, the headquarters of its Eastern Command, as ‘Vijay Durg’. The decision was taken in mid-December 2024, and internal communications within the military have already adopted the new name, though an official announcement is still awaited.
Confirming the development, Wing Commander Himanshu Tiwari, Chief Public Relations Officer, Ministry of Defence (Kolkata), told India Today TV that the decision to rename the fort was made in December 2024.
“The order came in the second week of December, but it has yet to be formally announced. However, we have stopped using Fort William in internal communications,” Tiwari said.
A HISTORIC SHIFT: FROM KING WILLIAM III TO MARATHA NAVAL LEGACY
The historic Fort William was built by the British in 1781 and was named after King William III of England. The renaming to ‘Vijay Durg’ pays homage to the oldest fort on Maharashtra’s Sindhudurg coast, which served as an impregnable naval base of the Marathas during Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s reign. The move symbolises India’s recognition of its own military heritage over colonial relics.
MODI GOVERNMENT’S PUSH TO ERASE COLONIAL NAMES
This renaming follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government’s continued push to ‘decolonize’ institutions, landmarks, and military establishments. Recent changes include the renaming of Rajpath to Kartavya Path, the rechristening of Andaman Islands landmarks, and the revamp of military traditions to reflect indigenous history.
