 Gandhi Memorial Museum was founded in the year 1959 and was built in the memory of Mahatma Gandhi. Also known as the Gandhi Museum, this historical building is located in Madurai, in the Southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Gandhi Museum is amongst the five Gandhi Satyagrahas or Gandhi Museums, which are all present in India.
History of Gandhi Memorial Museum Several years following the murder of Mahatma Gandhi in the year 1948, citizens of the entire country were appealed to contribute generously for a trust which would be named as Mahatma Gandhi National Memorial Trust. The purpose of this trust would be to preserve the belongings of Mahatma Gandhi. On 15th April, 1959, the Gandhi Memorial museum was inaugurated by Jawaharlal Nehru. This museum is categorised under the Peace Museums Worldwide which has been selected by United Nations Organisation (UNO). Rani Mangammal's palace has been modified and transformed into a beautiful museum. Collections in Gandhi Memorial Museum 
The Gandhi Memorial Museum boasts of innumerable relics of Mahatma Gandhi like the original letter which was personally composed by Mahatma Gandhi and addressed to Narayanan Sathsangi of Devakottai. Gandhi had once written a congratulatory note to Subramaniam Bharati, who was a freedom fighter of the nation. This particular document is also a famous collection in this museum. The museum also houses another interesting letter which was written by Gandhi to Adolf Hitler, wherein he had addressed the latter as 'Dear Friend'. This museum also consists of 265 illustrations, which portray the legendary history of the Indian Freedom Struggle for Indian independence. These relics are part of the Special Exhibition on 'India Fights for Freedom'.
Photocopies of numerous letters written by Mahatma Gandhi, photographs, manuscripts, paintings, quotations, mementos and other articles depicting the life events of Gandhi are existent in this museum. These objects comprise the 'Visual Biography of Bapuji'. Some unique photographs of Mahatma Gandhi, which amount to 124, which consist of his childhood, right up-to the time when he was being carried to the crematorium are conserved in the Gandhi Memorial Museum. The museum is also home to 14 original artefacts utilized by Mahatma Gandhi. A famous relic of Gandhi includes an old blood stained cloth which was worn by him during the time of his assassination. However, it is said that this garment is the replica and not the original cloth. The cloth is displayed inside a glass vacuum box. |
| More Articles in Indian Museums (17) | |
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
