| Fort William | |
|---|---|
| Kolkata, West Bengal, India | |
 Fort William, a view from the inside, c. 1828 | |
  Fort William | |
| Coordinates | 22°33′28″N 88°20′17″E / 22.5577°N 88.3380°E |
| Type | Fortress, garrisoned and armoured army headquarters. |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by |
|
| Site history | |
| Built | 1696–1702 |
| In use | 1781–present |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Plassey (1757) |
| Garrison information | |
| Garrison | Eastern Command |
Fort William is a fort in Hastings, Calcutta (Kolkata). It was built during the early years of Britain's administration of Bengal. It sits on the eastern banks of the River Hooghly, the major distributary of the River Ganga. One of Kolkata's most enduring British-era military fortifications, other than those in Bombay (Mumbai) and Madras (Chennai), it extends over an area of seventy hectares.
The fort was named after King William III.[1] In front of the Fort is the Maidan, the largest park in the country. An internal guard room became the Black Hole of Calcutta. Today the fort is the headquarters of Eastern Command of the Indian Army.
- ^ Krishna Dutta (2003). Calcutta: A Cultural and Literary History. Signal Books. p. 71. ISBN 9781902669595.