Khwaja Abdul Ghani hired Martin and Company, a European construction and engineering firm, to make the master plan, and named the palace after his son, Khwaja Ahsanullah. Construction ran from 1859 to 1872. The article calls the style Indo-Saracenic Revival. The palace measures 411 by 94 feet (125.4 by 28.75 m) on a raised platform, and the dome peaks at 89 feet (27.13 m). Brickwork forms the dome base.
A tornado on April 7, 1888 caused severe damage, and all buildings except the Rangmahal had to be rebuilt. Repairs followed the 1897 Assam earthquake. The government acquired the property in 1952 and again in 1985, and renovations ran from 1985 to 1992.
The Bangladesh National Museum runs it as a museum. It is designated an Old Dhaka Heritage Site.
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