Hill stations are dotted with old military towns or cantonments which can set you off on toy trains, chimney cottages and pine trees.
Archana Masih/Rediff.com chooses her favourites.
Nestled in the Nilgiris among tea gardens & rolling hills, 15 km from Ooty on the unique Nilgiris Mountain toy train route. Home of Madras Regiment, Defence Services Staff College, Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw and Rakesh Sharma, first Indian in space.
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Hill station in the Sahaydri mountains near Nasik. Established as a transit camp for arrival & departure of British troops from Bombay harbour. Famous for sanatoriums set up by Gujaratis & Parsis. Home to the army’s School of Artillery. Phrase ‘Going Doolally’ or ‘going crazy’ derived from ‘Deolali taap’, a fever that affected soldiers mental state.
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Home of India’s beloved author Ruskin Bond. Established as a military convalescent cantonment, the 1st building in all of Mussoorie-Landour was built here. Easily one of the most beautiful old towns dotted with cottages. Best discovered on foot. Has a famous Hindi language school. Jim Corbett's parents married here.
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100 odd km from Dehradun, the cool climes made it an ideal place for rest & recuperation of British troops in 1869. Was conquered by the Gorkhas in late 18-early 19th C. Gorkhas defeated by the British in the Anglo-Gorkha war. Home to the Indian Army’s Special Frontier Force which comprises ethnic Tibetans.
Home to the Garhwal Rifles which participated in both World Wars. The quaint hill station is surrounded by oak & pine forests. The British founded many cantonments in the hills after the rebellion of Indian troops across the plains in the first war of Independence in 1857. Lansdowne on the route to Badrinath, Kedarnath, Hemkund Sahib, Valley of Flowers, Corbett National Park.
Established in 1765, India’s oldest cantonment. The first spark of the First War of Independence in 1857 was lit here by Mangal Panday when he attacked his British commander in 1857. He was court martialled & hanged. His unit was dismantled which fuelled the rebellion that shook the British Empire. A park exists where Shaheed Mangal Panday was executed.
This too was set up as a sanatorium & convalescent depot for British troops in 1867. By 1870s a sixth of British were located in hill stations, according to Hill Stations and the Raj by Dane Kennedy. Named after the governor general, it is a popular winter and summer destination.
The summer capital of the Raj, Shimla became a flourishing town frequented by soldiers, merchants, civil servants & folks from all over. Vestiges of the colonial past continue to attract people to its cottages, lamp posts, picture palace and the former grand Viceregal lodge. Shimla is a walking paradise.
Cute cottages with lace window curtains and tall pine trees, it was called the Scotland of the East. Base for British & American troops during the Burma campaign in WW II. Tops India’s travel list of 2025. HQ of IAF’s Eastern Command and Assam Rifles.
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Established in 1832, it is the regimental centre of the Maratha Infantry, the Commando Training School & Air Force Training Academy. With its forts, temples, waterfalls, landscapes, the Western Ghats town has plenty to offer. It had the tallest flag in India before the 418 ft flag post came up at the Wagah Border in 2023.