India is unlike any other country, with its brilliant colors, magnificent scenery, and rich history. This magnificent country offers a diverse feast for the senses, from the writhing streets of Mumbai to the peaceful coasts of the Andaman Islands.
Taj Mahal, Agra, Uttar Pradesh
The Taj Mahal, often known as the 'Crown of the Palace,' is an ivory-white marble mausoleum located on the right bank of the Yamuna River in the Indian city of Agra. It was built in 1632 by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan (reigned from 1628 to 1658) to contain the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, as well as Shah Jahan's own mausoleum. The tomb is the focal point of a 17-hectare (42-acre) complex that also contains a mosque and a guest house. It is placed in traditional gardens surrounded on three sides by a crenellated wall.
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Fatehpur Sikri, Agra, Uttar Pradesh
Fatehpur Sikri is a town in Uttar Pradesh's Agra District. Emperor Akbar established the city as the capital of the Mughal Empire in 1571, serving in that capacity from 1571 until 1585, when Akbar abandoned it owing to a campaign in Punjab, and was subsequently fully abandoned in 1610.
The name of the city is taken from the previous village of Sikri, which occupied the location. Before Akbar established his city, there was a settlement, temples, and commercial centers here, according to an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) excavation from 1999 to 2000. Sungas colonized the area after their expansion. It was temporarily ruled by Sikarwar Rajputs in the 12th century.
Previously, Sheikh Salim Chishti's khanqah stood here. In 1569, Akbar's son Jahangir was born in the village of Sikri, and that same year, Akbar began building a religious compound to honor the Sheikh who had foreseen the birth. Jahangir began building a walled city and imperial palace here shortly after his second birthday. After Akbar's successful Gujarat expedition in 1573, the city became known as Fatehpur Sikri, or "City of Victory."
Agra Fort, Uttar Pradesh
Agra Fort is a historical fort in the Indian city of Agra. It was the main home of the Mughal emperors until 1638, when the capital was moved from Agra to Delhi. The Marathas were the last Indian monarchs to occupy it until it was captured by the British. The Agra fort was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. It is located approximately 2.5 kilometers northwest of its more famous sister monument, the Taj Mahal. The fort is more correctly defined as a fortified city.
The history of Agra Fort previous to Mahmud Ghaznavi's invasion is unknown, as is the history of the rest of Agra. However, it was occupied by the Chauhan Rajputs in the 15th century. When Sikandar Lodi (A.D. 1487–1517) relocated his capital from Delhi and built a few buildings in the pre-existing Fort at Agra, Agra assumed the role of capital. Mughals took the fort and governed from it after the first battle of Panipat (A.D. 1526). Humayun was crowned there in A.D. 1530. During Akbar's rule (A.D. 1556–1605), the Fort took on its current appearance.
Red Fort, Delhi
The Red Fort, also known as Lal Qila, is a medieval fort in Old Delhi, Delhi, India that served as the Mughal Emperors' principal residence. When Emperor Shah Jahan chose to relocate his capital from Agra to Delhi on May 12, 1638, he commissioned the construction of the Red Fort. Its design, which was originally red and white, is due to architect Ustad Ahmad Lahori, who also built the Taj Mahal. Under Shah Jahan, the fort marks the pinnacle of Mughal construction, combining Persianate palace building with Indian customs.
During Nadir Shah's conquest of the Mughal Empire in 1739, the fort was looted of its artwork and valuables. Following the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the British dismantled the majority of the fort's marble constructions. The defensive walls of the fort were mostly uninjured, and the fortress was afterwards used as a garrison.
Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister, raised the Indian flag above the Lahori Gate on August 15, 1947. Every year on August 15, India's Independence Day, the Prime Minister hoists the Indian tricolor flag at the fort's main entrance and delivers a nationally televised speech from its ramparts.
Qutub Minar, Delhi
The Qutb Minar, also known as the Qutub Minar or the Qutab Minar, is a minaret and "victory tower" that is part of the Qutb complex. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Mehrauli neighborhood of New Delhi, India. It is one of the most frequented tourist attractions in the city because it is one of the oldest that still exists in the Indian subcontinent.
It is comparable to the 62-metre all-brick Minaret of Jam in Afghanistan, built in 1190, which was built a decade or two before the likely start of the Delhi tower. Both have richly decorated surfaces with inscriptions and geometric motifs. The shaft of the Qutb Minar is fluted, with "superb stalactite bracketing under the balconies" at the top of each step. Minarets were slow to be adopted in India, and where they do exist, they are frequently detached from the main mosque.
Hawa Mahal, Jaipur, Rajasthan
The Hawa Mahal (English: "The Palace of Winds" or "The Palace of Breeze") is a palace in Jaipur, India, around 300 kilometers from the capital city of Delhi. Built of red and pink sandstone, the palace is on the outskirts of Jaipur's City Palace and extends to the Zenana, or women's rooms.
The structure was completed in 1799 by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh, the grandson of Jaipur's founder, Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh. He was so fascinated by Khetri Mahal's distinctive structure that he erected this grand and historical palace. Lal Chand Ustad created the design. Its five-story facade resembles a honeycomb, with 953 small windows called Jharokhas that are adorned with elaborate latticework. The original intention of the lattice design was to allow royal ladies to witness everyday life and festivals held in the street below without being seen, as they were required to follow the rigorous norms of "purdah," which banned them from appearing in public without face coverings.
Amer Fort, Rajasthan
Amber Fort, also known as Amer Fort, is a fort in Amber, Rajasthan, India. Amber is a 4 square kilometer (1.5 square mile) town located 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) from Jaipur, Rajasthan's capital. Raja Alan Singh Meena established Amber and the Amber Fort in 967 AD, and it was afterwards ruled by kachawaha rajputs. It is the main tourist attraction in Jaipur and is located high on a hill. Amber Fort is well-known for its artistic aspects. The fort, with its huge ramparts and system of gates and cobbled roads, overlooks Maota Lake, the Amber Palace's principal source of water.
The architectural style of various fort buildings was heavily influenced by Mughal architecture. The elegant, sumptuous palace is built of red sandstone and marble and is divided into four levels, each with a courtyard. It comprises of the Diwan-e-Aam, or "Hall of Public Audience," the Diwan-e-Khas, or "Hall of Private Audience," the Sheesh Mahal (mirror palace), or Jai Mandir, and the Sukh Niwas, where breezes blow over a water cascade within the palace to artificially produce a cool atmosphere. As a result, the Amber Fort is also known as the Amber Palace. The Rajput Maharajas and their families lived in the palace. A temple dedicated to Shila Devi, a goddess of the Chaitanya cult, is located near the fort's Ganesh Gate and was granted to Raja Man Singh when he vanquished the Raja of Jessore, Bengal, in 1604. (Jessore is currently in Bangladesh.) Because Raja Man Singh had twelve queens, he built twelve apartments, one for each. Each room featured a stairway leading to the king's room, but the queens were not permitted to ascend. Raja Jai Singh only possessed one queen, therefore he erected one room that was the size of three ancient queen's rooms.
Sanchi Stupa, Madhya Pradesh
Sanchi is a Buddhist complex on a hilltop in Sanchi Town, Raisen District, Madhya Pradesh, India, known for its Great Stupa. It is 46 kilometers (29 miles) north-east of Bhopal, the state capital of Madhya Pradesh.
Sanchi's Great Stupa is one of India's oldest stone constructions and an important monument of Indian architecture. In the third century BCE, the Mauryan monarch Ashoka the Great commissioned it. Its core was a basic hemispherical brick building built over the Buddha's relics. It was capped by the 'chhatra,' a parasol-like structure representing high rank that was meant to honor and protect the artifacts. The stupa's original construction was overseen by Ashoka, whose wife Devi was the daughter of a businessman from nearby Vidisha. Sanchi was also where she was born and where she and Ashoka married. Four finely carved toranas (ornamental entrances) and a railing encircling the entire structure were constructed in the first century BCE. The Mauryan period Sanchi Stupa was composed of bricks. The hybrid thrived into the 11th century.
Sanchi is the center of a region with a number of stupas, all within a few miles of Sanchi, including Satdhara (9 km to the west of Sanchi, 40 stupas, the Relics of Sariputra and Mahamoggallana, now enshrined in the new Vihara, were unearthed there), Bhojpur (also known as Morel Khurd, a fortified hilltop with 60 stupas), and Andher ( (10 km SW of Sanchi). Saru Maru is around 100 kilometers to the south. Bharhut is about 300 kilometers to the northeast.
Gwalior Fort, Madhya Pradesh
The Gwalior Fort is a hill fort in Madhya Pradesh, India, near Gwalior. The fort has been around since at least the 10th century, and inscriptions and monuments discovered within what is now the fort campus suggest that it may have been around as early as the beginning of the 6th century. Raja Suraj Sen Pal and his dynasty dominated the country for almost 900 years. Throughout its history, the fort has been ruled by a variety of different kings.
Man Singh Tomar (reigned 1486–1516 CE) built the current fort, which consists of a defensive construction and two principal palaces, Gujari Mahal and Man Mandir. Queen Mrignayani commissioned the construction of the Gujari Mahal palace. It is now a museum of archaeology. The second oldest record of "zero" in the world was discovered in a little temple on the way to the peak (the stone inscription bears the oldest record of the numeric zero symbol having a place value as in contemporary decimal notation). The inscription is around 1500 years old.
Konark Temple, Odisha
Konark Sun Temple is a 13th-century CE (year 1250) Sun temple located 35 kilometers (22 miles) northeast of Puri on the Odisha coast. The temple was built in 1250 CE by King Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty.
What remains of the temple complex, dedicated to the Hindu Sun God Surya, resembles a 100-foot (30 m) high chariot with massive wheels and horses carved from stone. Far of the temple, which was once over 200 feet (61 m) tall, is now in ruins, particularly the huge shikara tower over the sanctuary, which rose much higher than the mandapa that remains. The structures and elements that have survived are well-known for their exquisite artwork, iconography, and motifs, which include sensual kama and mithuna scenarios. It is also known as the Surya Devalaya and is a great example of Odisha or Kalinga architecture.
The cause of the Konark temple's demolition is unknown and is a topic of contention. Theories range from natural damage to purposeful demolition of the temple during its siege by Muslim forces multiple times between the 15th and 17th centuries. As early as 1676, European sailor tales referred to this temple as the "Black Pagoda" because it resembled a large tiered tower that appeared black. Similarly, Puri's Jagannath Temple was dubbed the "White Pagoda." Both temples were significant landmarks for sailors sailing in the Bay of Bengal. The current temple was partially repaired thanks to the conservation efforts of British India-era archaeological experts.
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