A grove of poplars, water pond, springs and mansions make Karzoo an ideal place for leisure. For the kings of Ladakh, followed by the wazirs of the Jammu Raja and then the British Joint Commissioners, Karzoo Bagh was a favourite place to unwind. Surrounding the bagh are different mansions that were built by Christian missionaries at a later date. These were trade sarais (inns), godowns full of trade goods, including marijuana used by Britishers as anaesthesia. Traders from India and Kashmir supplied spices from Punjab and saffron from Kashmir to Central Asia, through this route. An important trade centre, a British Joint Commissioner was especially deputed to Ladakh to oversee all trade exchanges and also to check on any Russian infiltration. Once host to an interesting mix of rich traders and artists, Karzoo drew peasants, merchants, kings, wazirs, commissioners and missionaries alike.
