Born in 1857 in modern-day Gujarat, Shyamji Krishna Varma
completed his education in India, before moving on to teach Sanskrit at the
Oxford University.
In 1905 he founded the India House and The Indian Sociologist,
which rapidly developed as an organised meeting point for radical nationalists
among Indian students in Britain at the time and one of the most prominent
centres for revolutionary Indian nationalism outside India. Krishna Varma moved
to Paris in 1907, avoiding prosecution.The monthly Indian Sociologist became an
outlet for nationalist ideas and through the Indian Home Rule Society, he
criticised the British rule in India. Varma, who became the first President of
Bombay Arya Samaj, was an admirer of Dayanand Saraswati, and he inspired Veer
Savarkar who was a member of India House in London. Verma also served as the
Divan of a number of states in India.
A memorial called Kranti Teerth dedicated to him was built and
inaugurated in 2010 near Mandvi. Spread over 52 acres, the memorial complex
houses a replica of India House building at Highgate along with statues of
Shyamji Krishna Varma and his wife. Urns containing Krishna Verma's ashes,
those of his wife, and a gallery dedicated to earlier activists of Indian
independence movement is housed within the memorial.
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