Agra is a
medieval city situated on the banks of the
river Yamuna. It is generally accepted that
Sultan Sikandar Lodi, the Ruler of Delhi
Sultanate founded it in the year 1504. After
the sultan's death the city passed on to his
son Sultan Ibrahim Lodi. He ruled his
Sultanate from Agra until he fell fighting
to Babur in the First battle of Panipat
fought in 1526.
The golden age of the city began with the
Mughals. It was known then as Akbarabad and
remained the capital of the Mughal Empire
under Emperor Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan.
Shah Jahan later shifted his capital to
Shahjahanabad in the year 1649.
Since Akbarabad was one of the most
important cities in India under the Mughals,
it witnessed a lot of building activity.
Babar, the founder of the Mughal dynasty
laid out the first formal Persian garden on
the banks of river Yamuna. The garden is
called the Aram Bagh or the Garden of
Relaxation. His grandson Akbar raised the
towering ramparts of the Great Red Fort
besides making Agra a center for learning
arts, commerce and religion. Akbar also
built a new city on the outskirts of
Akbarabad called Fatehpur Sikri. This city
was built in the form of a Mughal military
camp in stone.
His son Jahangir had a love of gardens and
flora and fauna and laid many gardens inside
the Red Fort or Laal Kila. Shah Jahan known
for his keen interest in architecture gave
Akbarabad its most prized monument, The Taj
Mahal. Built in loving memory of his wife
Mumtaz Mahal, the mausoleum was completed in
1648.
Shah Jahan later shifted the capital to
Delhi during his reign, but this son
Aurangzeb shifted the capital back to
Akbarabad and had his father imprisoned in
the Fort there. Akbarabad remained capital
of India during the rule of Aurangzeb until
he shifted it to Aurangabad in the Deccan in
1653. After the decline of the Mughal
Empire, the city came under the influence of
Marathas and Jats and was called Agra,
before falling into the hands of the British
Raj in 1803.
Sight Seeing In Agra
Taj
Mahal
Agra's Taj Mahal is one of the most famous
buildings in the world, the mausoleum of
Shah Jahan's favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal.
Its one among the New 7 Wonders of the
world. One of three World Heritage Site in
Agra, other being Agra Fort and Fatehpur
Sikri.
Completed in 1653 A.D., The Taj Mahal was
built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan as
the final resting place for his favourite
Queen, Mumtaz. Finished in marble, it is
perhaps India's most fascinating and
beautiful monument. This perfectly
symmetrical monument took 22 years
(1630-1652) of hard labour and 20,000
workers, masons and jewellers to build and
is set amidst landscaped gardens. Built by
the Persian architect, Ustad Isa, The Taj
Mahal is on the bank of the Yamuna river. It
can be observed like a mirage from the Agra
Fort from where Emperor Shah Jahan stared at
it, for the last eight years his life as a
prisoner of his son Aurangzeb. It is a
masterpiece of symmetry, seeming to be
floating in the air from a distance, and
each revealed as an illusion experienced as
one enters through the main gate. The verses
of Holy Koran as inscribed on it and at the
top of gate 22 small domes, signifying the
number of years the monument took to build.
The Taj Mahal has been built on a marble
platform that stands above a sandstone one.
The most elegant dome of the Taj, with
diameter of 60 feet, rises 80 feet, over the
building and directly under the dome is the
tomb of Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan's tomb has
been erected next to hers by his son
Aurangzeb. Fantastic inlay works using
semi-precious stones decorate the interiors.
Open Time : 6 A.M. to 7.30 P.M. (Friday is
closed)
Agra Fort
Another world heritage site in Agra. Agra's
dominant structure, the Agra Fort (sometimes
called the Red Fort), was built by Akbar in
1565. The red sandstone fort was renovated
and converted into a palace during Shah
Jahan's time, and reworked extensively with
marble and pietra dura inlay. Notable
buildings in the fort include the Pearl
Mosque, the Diwan-e-Am and Diwan-e-Khas
(halls of public and private audience),
Jehangir's Palace, Khaas Mahal, Sheesh Mahal
(mirrored palace), and Musamman Burj.
The great Mughal Emperor Akbar commissioned
the construction of the Agra Fort in 1565
A.D., although additions were made till the
time of his grandson Shah Jahan. The
forbidding exteriors of this fort hide an
inner paradise. The fort is crescent shaped,
flattened on the east with a long, nearly
straight wall facing the river. It has a
total perimeter of 2.4 k.m., and is ringed
by double castellated ramparts of red
sandstone punctuated at regular intervals by
bastions. A 9 mt. wide and 10 mt. deep moat
surround the outer wall.
Fatehpur Sikri
The Mughal Emperor Akbar built Fatehpur
Sikri about 35 km from Agra, and moved his
capital there. Later abandoned, the site
displays a number of buildings of
significant historical importance. A World
Heritage Site, it is often visited by
tourists to Agra.
Itmad-Ud-Daulah's Tomb
Empress Nur Jehan built Itmad-Ud-Daulah's
Tomb, sometimes called the Baby Taj, for her
father, Ghias-ud-Din Beg, the Chief Minister
of Emperor Jahangir. Small in comparison to
many other Mughal-era tombs, it is sometimes
described as a jewel box. Its garden layout
and use of white marble, pietra dura, inlay
designs and latticework presage many
elements of the Taj Mahal.
Jama Masjid
The Jama Masjid is a large mosque attributed
to Shah Jahan's daughter, Princess Jahanara
Begum, built in 1648, notable for its
unusual dome and absence of minarets.
Chini Ka Rauza
Notable for its Persian influenced dome of
blue glazed tiles, the Chini Ka Rauza is
dedicated to the Prime Minister of Shah
Jahan, Allama Afzel Khal Mullah Shukrullah
of Shiraz.
Ram Bagh
The oldest Mughal garden in India, the Ram
Bagh was built by the Emperor Babur in 1528.
It lies about 2.34 km north of Taj Mahal.
Soami Bagh Samadh
The Soami Bagh Samadh is the mausoleum of
Huzur Soamiji Maharaj (Shri Shiv Dayal
Singh) in the Dayalbagh section in the
outskirts of the city. He was the founder of
the Radhasoami Faith and the Samadh is
sacred to its followers. Construction began
in 1908, and it is believed that
construction will never end. It is often
seen as the "next Taj Mahal". The carvings
in stone, using a combination or coloured
marble, is life-like and not seen anywhere
else in India. The picture shown is taken
from the backside and shows only two floors.
When completed, the samadh will have a
carved dome and a gateway.
Sikandra (Akbar's tomb)
Sikandra, the last resting place of the
Mughal Emperor Akbar, is only 13 kilometres
from the Agra Fort. Akbar's tomb reflects
the completeness of his personality. The
vast, beautifully carved, red-ochre
sandstone tomb is set amidst a lush garden.
Akbar himself planned his own tomb and
selected a suitable site for it. To
construct a tomb in one's lifetime was a
Tartary custom which the Mughals followed
religiously. Akbar's son Jahangir completed
the construction of this pyramidal tomb in
1613.
How To Get There
By Air:
Agra airport is 7 km from the city center
.Indian airlines operate daily tourist
shuttle flights to Agra, Khajuraho, Varanasi
and back. It only takes 40 minutes from
Delhi to Agra. At press time, operations of
all flights to and from Agra were suspended.
But chartered flights are coming directly to
Agra Airport.
By Rail:
Agra is well connected by railroad. The main
railway station is the Agra Cantonment
station. Agra is well connected by rail to
Delhi, Varanasi and cities of Rajasthan.
Trains like Palace on Wheel, Shatabdi,
Rajdhani, and Taj Express are the best
choices if you want to reach Agra from
Delhi.
By Road:
Agra lies less than 4 hours away, on a good
double-carriage highway from Delhi. Many
operators in Delhi offer bus tours to Agra.
If you don't mind being part of a bus tour,
a good option is to take a day trip from
Delhi with TCI; alternatively, hire a car
and driver. Should you need to stop for
refreshments, the Country Inn at Kosi, 99km
(61 miles) from Delhi, is a good bet.
the banks of river Yamuna. The garden is
called the Aram Bagh or the Garden of
Relaxation. His grandson Akbar raised the
towering ramparts of the Great Red Fort
besides making Agra a center for learning
arts, commerce and religion. Akbar also
built a new city on the outskirts of
Akbarabad called Fatehpur Sikri. This city
was built in the form of a Mughal military
camp in stone.
His son Jahangir had a love of gardens and
flora and fauna and laid many gardens inside
the Red Fort or Laal Kila. Shah Jahan known
for his keen interest in architecture gave
Akbarabad its most prized monument, The Taj
Mahal. Built in loving memory of his wife
Mumtaz Mahal, the mausoleum was completed in
1648.
ld and
is set amidst landscaped gardens. Built by
the Persian architect, Ustad Isa, The Taj
Mahal is on the bank of the Yamuna river. It
can be observed like a mirage from the Agra
Fort from where Emperor Shah Jahan stared at
it, for the last eight years his life as a
prisoner of his son Aurangzeb. It is a
masterpiece of symmetry, seeming to be
floating in the air from a distance, and
each revealed as an illusion experienced as
one enters through the main gate. The verses
of Holy Koran as inscribed on it and at the
top of gate 22 small domes, signifying the
number of years the monument took to build.
The Taj Mahal has been built on a marble
platform that stands above a sandstone one.
The most elegant dome of the Taj, with
diameter of 60 feet, rises 80 feet, over the
building and directly under the dome is the
tomb of Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan's tomb has
been erected next to hers by his son
Aurangzeb. Fantastic inlay works using
semi-precious stones decorate the interiors.
Open Time : 6 A.M. to 7.30 P.M. (Friday is
closed)
heesh Mahal
(mirrored palace), and Musamman Burj.
The great Mughal Emperor Akbar commissioned
the construction of the Agra Fort in 1565
A.D., although additions were made till the
time of his grandson Shah Jahan. The
forbidding exteriors of this fort hide an
inner paradise. The fort is crescent shaped,
flattened on the east with a long, nearly
straight wall facing the river. It has a
total perimeter of 2.4 k.m., and is ringed
by double castellated ramparts of red
sandstone punctuated at regular intervals by
bastions. A 9 mt. wide and 10 mt. deep moat
surround the outer wall.