Shahbagh (also Shahbaugh or Shahbag, Bengali: শাহবাগ, romanized: Shāhbāg, IPA: [ˈɕaɦ.baɡ]) is a major neighbourhood and a police precinct or thana in Dhaka, the capital and largest city of Bangladesh.

Since Bangladesh achieved independence in 1971, the Shahbagh area has become a venue for celebrating major festivals, such as the Bengali New Year and Basanta Utsab.

[4][5][6] Shahbagh again became a center for gathering and protests during the Quota Reform Movement and the July Revolution in 2024 that overthrew the Awami league government of Sheikh Hasina.

[9] Although urban settlements in the Dhaka area date back to the seventh century CE,[10] the earliest evidence of urban construction in the Shahbagh area is to be found at monuments constructed after 1610, when the Mughals turned Dhaka into a provincial capital and established the gardens of Shahbag.

[15] According to legends a sadhu named Gopal Giri, from Badri Narayan, established a Kali temple in Shahbagh in the 13th century.

[citation needed] Although British power was established in Dacca in 1757, the upkeep of Shahbag gardens was resumed only in the early 19th century under the patronage of an East India Company judge, Griffith Cook,[17][failed verification] and P.

[20] Rani Bilasmani of Bhawal established a new idol in the Kali temple and excavated a large pond in front of it during this period.

On 7 March 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman chose the Ramna Racecourse near Shahbagh to deliver his speech calling for an independent Bangladesh.

[16] During the ensuing Bangladesh Liberation War, many foreign journalists, including the Associated Press bureau chief in Pakistan, Arnold Zeitlin, and Washington Post reporter, H.D.S.

The hotel, which had been declared a neutral zone,[22][23][24] nonetheless came under fire from both combatants in the war—the Mukti Bahini and Pakistani army.

[32] With an area of 4.2 square kilometres (1.6 sq mi) and an estimated 2006 population of 112,000[33] Shabag lies within the monsoon climate zone at an elevation of 1.5 to 13 metres (5 to 43 ft) above mean sea level.

[34] Like rest of Dhaka city it has an annual average temperature of 25 °C (77 °F) and monthly means varying between 18 °C (64 °F) in January and 29 °C (84 °F) in August.

The Shahbagh Intersection is one of the major public transportation hubs in Dhaka, along with Farmgate, Gulistan, Mohakhali, and Maghbazar.

It is also surrounded by some significant landmarks including Bangladesh National Museum, Suhrawardy Udyan, and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University.

In 1965, the building was acquired by the Institute of Post-graduate Medicine and Research (IPGMR), and later, in 1998, by the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU).

Built as a skating rink and a ballroom for the Nawabs, it was later converted into an eatery and meeting place for students and faculty of Dhaka University and renamed Madhur Canteen.

In the late 1960s, Madhur Canteen became a focal point for planning student protests against the West Pakistan regime.

Flanked on one side by the Dhaka University's Faculty of Fine Arts and on the other by the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), the Madhur Canteen remains a powerful political symbol.

[47] Sujatpur Palace, the oldest Nawab mansion in the area, later became the residence for the Governor of East Bengal during the Pakistani Regime, and was subsequently turned into the Bangla Academy, the Supreme Bengali Language Authority in Bangladesh.

Some of the palace grounds was handed over to the TSC (Teacher Student Center[48]) of Dhaka University, and became a major cultural and political meeting place in the 1970s.

Shahbagh's numerous ponds, palaces and gardens have inspired the work of artists, including poet Buddhadeva Bose, singer Protiva Bose, writer-chronicler Hakim Habibur Rahman, and two Urdu poets of 19th-century Dhaka, Obaidullah Suhrawardy and Abdul Gafoor Nassakh.

[citation needed] The art college building, constructed in 1953–1954, was designed by Mazharul Islam, the pioneer of modern architecture in Bangladesh.

[59] A well-known local Muslim saint of the early 20th century was Syed Abdur Rahim, supervisor of the dairy farm established by Khwaja Salimullah, the Nawab of Dhaka, at Paribag.

Known as the Shah Shahib of Paribag, Abdur Rahim had his khanqah (Persian: خانگاه, spiritual retreat) here; his tomb lies at the same location today.

[61] Since 1875, the Shahbagh gardens have hosted a famous fair celebrating the Gregorian New Year and containing exhibits of agricultural and industrial items, as well as those of animals and birds.

Historically, Shahbagh was also the main venue in Dhaka for other recreational sports like Boli Khela (wrestling) and horse racing.