Agra (Uttar Pardesh) India Agra was once the capital of the Mughal empire and even today it seems to linger in the past. Not surprising, for the Mughal emperors with their passion for building, endowed the city with some of the finest structures in the world. It is very easy to slip away here through the centuries into the grandeur and intrigues of the Mughal court. Agra is an old city and it is said that its name was derived from Agrabana, a forest that finds mention in the epic Mahabharata. In more recent times Agra come into prominence when Sikandar Lodi made it his capital city in 1501. the Lodi rule was to end very soon the time of the third emberor Akbar that Agra come into own. He embarked on the construction of the massive Agra Fort in 1565. Though Akbar was diverted into building a new capital at Fatehpur Sikri not far way, Agra continued to retain its importance and Shah Jehan, Akbar’s grandson ornamented the city with that masterpiece of Mughal architecture-the Taj Mahal and built several other beautiful buildings within the Agra fort. Agra Tourism Taj Mahal :
Built bya a grief stricken Emperor Shah Jehan as a memorial to his beloved wife Mumtam Mahal, the Taj Mahal has a structural elegance and pristine beauty that has been rarely matched. It took 20 thousand men nearly 22 years to build the mausoleum and the finest of skilled artisans were brought in to inlay the white marble edifice. With precious tones and to conjure filigreed marble screens around the
cenotaphs of the meperor and his beloved queen. There is a jewel-like quality about the Taj Mahal. The beautifully proportioned octagonal structure topped by a perfect dome is balanced by 4 soaring minarets that stand at the corners of the plinth. The Taj Mahal is ethereal at any part of the day-blushing in the rosy glow of dawn or sunset, appearing like a pearly mirage in the moonlight or reflected in the pools of the garden. Perhaps the most moving view of the Taj is from an octagonal tower in the Agra Fort further along the river Yamuna. It was here that the Emperor Shah Jehan was imprisoned and where he spent his last days gazing at the tomb of his beloved wife. It is said that he had planned to build a similar tomb for himself in black marble across the river but in was not to be. Agra Fort :
Emperor Akbar began the construction of the imposing for in 1565 but in was his grandson Shah Jehan who gave it some of its finest building, changing the function of the fort from a military fortification to a royal palace. Within the fort are the Pearl Mosque in white marble; fine halls-the Diwan-I-Khas for private audience and the pillared Diwan-I-Am where the emperor me the public; the Jehangiri Mahal an elegant double storeyed
palace built in 1611 AD; the Khas Mahal an airy marble pavilion believed to be the Emperor Shah Jehan’s aramghar or sleeping quarters and the Sheesh Mahal, beautiful halls studded with tiny concave mirrors where a single candle flame is reflected in a thousand flickering lights. Itmad-ud-Daula : To the north of the fort and across the river Yamuna are several fine examples of Mughal architecture.The Itmad-ud-Daula built by the Empress Noor Jehan as a memorial to her father Mirza Ghiyas Beg, is beautifully ornamented with pietra dura inlay and lattice work marble screens. Sikandra : the imposing mausoleum of Emperor Akbar is built in a fusion of the Hindu and Muslim styles of architecture. Intricate mosaic work in elaborate geometric designs embellish the structures, which is set in a spacious garden. Fathepur Sikri :
A royal city perfectly preserved, Fathepur Sikri provides a marvelous escape into the past, Akbar embarked on the construction of a new capital here when a prophecy of the birth of a male royal heir, by the Sufi Saint Salim Chisti of Sikri, came true Imposing gateways and light-hearted palaces were built in red sandstone within this fortified city only to be abandoned a few
years later. Among its many architectural gems are the palaces for his queens-Jodha Bai, Mariyam and his Turkis Sulatana,built in varying styles, each perfect in itself. The Diwan-I-Khas entirely unique in its concept is a tall vaulated room with an intricately carved centra pillar and capital supporting a platform that once held the emperor’s throne. Narrow galleries link this to the corners of the room where it is believed his ministers sat. The airy Panch Mahal a 5 storeyed structure rising in pyramidal fashion was rising in pyramidal fashion was probably used by the ladies of the court. Set like a jewel in a courtyard of pink sandstone is the finest building here, the marble tomb of Salim Chisti enclosed by finely carved, lacy marble screens.
The Buland Darwaza, an imposing gateway 54m high was built to commemorate Akbar’s victory in Gujarat and was completed in 1575.