Lucknow (Hindi: लखनऊ, Urdu: لکھنؤ, Lakhna'ū) is the capital and largest city of the United Provinces in the British Imperial Dominion of India. A major metropolitan city of India, Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous District and Division. Lucknow has always been known as a multicultural city that flourished as a North Indian cultural and artistic hub and seat of Nawab power in the 18th and 19th centuries. It continues to be an important centre of government, education, commerce, aerospace, finance, pharmaceuticals, technology, design, culture, tourism, music and poetry.
The city stands at an elevation of approximately 123 metres (404 ft) above sea level and covers an area of 2,528 square kilometres (976 sq mi). Bounded on the east by the Barabanki District, on the west by Unnao District, on the south by Raebareli and in the north by Sitapur and Hardoi, Lucknow sits on the northwestern shore of the Gomti River. English and Hindi are the main languages of the city and Urdu is also widely spoken. It is accessible from every part of India by air, rail and road.
Historically the capital of Awadh and controlled by the Delhi Sultanate under Mughal rule, it was later transferred to the Nawabs of Awadh. After Lord Clive's defeat of the Bengal, Awadh and Mughal Nawabs it fell under the rule of the East India Company with control transferred to the British Raj in 1857. Along with the rest of India, Lucknow became part of a self-governing constituent country in the British Empire in 1938.
