Delhi was the capital of British India from 1911 until Indian independence in 1947. King George V announced the transfer during the Delhi Durbar in December 1911, moving the imperial capital from Calcutta to the historic northern Indian city.
The decision reflected Delhi's symbolic importance as a former centre of several Indian empires, including the Mughal Empire. It also placed the colonial government closer to northern India, where British administrators considered Delhi strategically and politically significant. Construction of a new imperial district began south of the old city.
That new district became New Delhi, designed chiefly by architects Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker. The name was officially adopted in 1927, and the new capital was inaugurated in 1931. The distinction can cause confusion: Delhi refers to the wider historic urban area, while New Delhi is the planned colonial-era district within it. After independence on 15 August 1947, New Delhi continued as the capital of India.