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Top Attractions in Red Fort

Delhi Gate

The Delhi Gate is an entrance to the Red Fort in Delhi and is on the Forts southern wall. The gate received its name from the Forts city. The primary gate is the Lahori Gate, which is very similar in appearance. The gate was constructed under Shah Jahan. It was provided with a 10.5 high metre barbican by Aurangzeb, facing west. The gateway consists of three stories and is decorated with square, rectangular, and cusped arched panels. These panels are flanked by semi-octagonal towers crowned by two open octagonal pavilions. Red sandstone adorns the gate while the pavilion roofs are in white stone. Between the two pavilions is a screen of miniature chhatris with seven miniature marble domes. Flame-shaped battlements encompass the wall. Near it on the right the last emperor was imprisoned after September 1857. Between the inner and outer gates stand two large stone elephants without riders. They were replaced here by the gift of Lord Curzon. Beyond the southern glacis of the fort, on which a cross marks the site of the old cemetery, are the gardens and cantonment of Darya-ganj. The latter is bounded on the west by the Faiz Bazar leading to the Delhi Gate.

Lahori Gate

The Lahori Gate is the main entrance to the Red Fort in Delhi. The fort is approached through a covered street flanked by arcaded apartments called the Chhatta Chowk. Situated on the western wall of the fort, the gate received its name because it led to the city of Lahore, in Punjab, Pakistan. The secondary entrance is the Delhi Gate. The gateway consists of three stories, each decorated with square, rectangular and cusped arched panels. These are flanked by semi-octagonal towers crowned by two open octagonal pavilions. The whole gate is clad in red sandstone, except the roofs of the pavilions, where white stone is used. Between the two pavilions is a screen of miniature chhatris having seven miniature marble domes. Continuing around the whole wall are flame-shaped battlements. The gate was provided with a 10.5 high metre barbican by Aurangzeb , with its entrance to the north. It is said that Shah Jahan, while under house arrest, wrote to Aurangzeb and criticized his decision: "You have made a fort a bride, and set a veil on it." Every year since Indian Independence Day in 1947, the national flag has been raised and the Prime Minister has made a speech from the ramparts at the gate. In the 1980s, the security of the area was increased by blocking the tower windows as a security measure against sniper attacks. A lift was also added to the gate.

Chhatta Chowk

The Chhatta Chowk is a long passage way that contains a bazaar, or market, located in the Red Fort of Delhi, India. The Chhatta Chowk is located behind the Lahori Gate and is set within an arched passage. It is lined with two-story flats that contain 32 arched bays serving as shops. During Shah Jahans reign, the Chhatta Chowk was very exclusive, specializing in trading goods such as silk, brocades, velvet, gold, silverware, jewellery, gems and precious stones, catering to the luxurious tastes of imperial households. Chhatta Chowk translated into English means, "covered bazaar". Its history dates back to the 17th century. It was inspired by another marketplace which Shah Jahan had seen in Peshawar in 1646. It is a unique example of Mughal architecture in which bazaars were typically open-air. As such, the bazaar was formerly known as Bazaar-i-Musaqaf, with a saqaf, meaning "roof". The arches were walled up in the 20th century and the passage thus lost its original appearance. The ceiling was also originally painted in colours. There are plans to restore the bazaar.

Diwan-i-Am

The Diwan-i-Am, or Hall of Audience, located in the Red Fort of Delhi was where the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan (1628-1658) and his successors received members of the general public and heard their grievances. The inner main court to which the Nakkar Khana led was 540 feet broad, 420 feet deep, and surrounded by arcade galleries, where chieftains (umaras) on duty were posted. On the further side of it is the Diwan-i-Aam. The Diwan-i-Am consists of a front hall, open on three sides and backed by a set of rooms faced in red sandstone. The hall is 100 ft x 60 ft and divided into 27 square bays on a system of columns which support the arches. The roof is spanned by sandstone beams. The proportions of this hall, of its columns, and of the engraved arches show high aesthetics and fine craftsmanship. With an impressive façade of nine engraved arch openings, the hall was ornamented with gilded and white shell lime chunam plaster work. Its ceiling and columns were painted with gold. In the centre of the eastern wall stands a marble canopy (jharokha) covered by a "Bengal" roof. A marble dais below the throne, inlaid with semi-precious stones, was used by the prime minister (wazir) to receive petitions. The emperor was separated from the courtiers by a gold-plated railing, while a silver railing ran around the remaining three sides of the hall. The audience ceremony is known as Jharokha Darshan. Behind the canopy, the wall is decorated with panels inlaid with multi-coloured pietra dura stones. They represent flowers and birds and are reputedly carved by Austin de Bordeaux, a Florentine jeweler. The hall was restored by Lord Curzon, while the inlay work of the throne recess and the plaques of the arch to the west side of the throne were restored by the Florentine artist, Mennegatti. Bernier gives a full account of the splendid appearance of the hall during the rule of Aurangzeb, as well as the 17th century merchant Jean-Baptiste Tavernier.

Diwan-i-Khas

The Diwan-i-Khas, or Hall of Private Audiences, in the Red Fort of Delhi was the place where the Mughal emperor received courtiers and state guests. It was also known as the Shah Mahal. A gate on the north side of the preceding Diwan-i-Am audience hall led to the innermost court of the palace called Jalau Khana and the Diwan-i-Khas. Originally there were two enclosures on the west of the hall, one for the nobles and the other for those of a lower rank. These arcaded courts were destroyed after the Indian Rebellion of 1857. It measures 90 x 67 feet. It consists of a rectangular central chamber, surrounded by a series of arches rising from marble piers. The lower parts of the piers are inlaid with floral designs, while the upper portions are painted and gilded. The four corners of the roof are surmounted by pillared chhatri. The ceiling, which was originally inlaid with silver and gold, was stripped bare by successive financial crises of the empire by the Jats or Marattas. The current ceiling was installed in 1911. The later Peacock Throne from after Nadir Shah's invasion once stood in this hall, towards the east side. Through the centre of the hall flowed the Stream of Paradise (Nahar-i-Bihisht). The building used to have red awnings, or shamianas. Over the corner-arches of the northern and southern walls below the cornice is inscribed the verse of Amir Khusrow: "If there be a paradise on earth, it is this, it is this, it is this." The French traveller François Bernier described seeing the Peacock Throne here. Jean-Baptiste Tavernier described seeing the throne in the Diwan-i-Am, to where it was probably moved, and described five smaller thrones with four on each corner and one in the middle of the hall. The interior was completely plundered following the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The throne, the carpets, and any other items went missing. The hall today is, therefore, only a shell of what it used to be. Recent restoration work has been redone on the panels of inlay and has also reproduced the gilded pattern on one of the pillars fronting the hall. In the riverbed below the hall and the connected buildings was the space known as zer-jharokha, or "beneath the lattices".

Hammam

The hammam of the Red Fort in Delhi was the location of the baths of the Mughal emperor. It is located in the north of the Diwan-i-Khas. The marble hammam is a bath that forms a part of the palace building. It consists of three apartments separated by corridors and crowned with domes. The apartments are illuminated by a colored glass skylight. The two rooms to either side of the present entrance are believed to have been used by the royal children for bathing. The eastern apartment, containing three fountain basins, was used primarily as a dressing room. In the center of each room stood a fountain, and one of the rooms contained a marble reservoir built into the wall. As legend goes, perfumed rose-water once ran from the taps. The western apartment was used for hot or vapor baths, and the heating arrangement was being fixed in its western wall. The whole interior was richly decorated with colorful inlaid pietra dura floral designs made of white marble. The floors and dados of these apartments are finished with white marble as well.

Khas Mahal

The Khas Mahal served as the Mughal emperor's private residence in Delhi. The structure is located inside the Red Fort, which is a large fort complex located inside the city. It consists of three parts: the Chamber of Telling Beads (Viz-tasbih-khana), the sleeping chamber, (khwabgah) and the wardrobe (tosha-khana) or sitting room (baithak). The interior is decorated with carved white marble painted with colourful floral decorations. The ceiling was also partially gilded. The marble screen was carved with the scale of justice (Mizan-i-adal), and above it is a particularly important item of Mughal art. The scale used was a depiction of the emperor's justice. The projecting tower to the east of the Khas Mahal is called the Octagonal Tower (Muthamman Burj). The emperor would address his subjects every morning in a ceremony called Jharokha Darshan.

Mumtaz Mahal

The Mumtaz Mahal (Hindustani: ممتاز محل, मुमताज़ महल, literally Jewel Palace) is located in the Red Fort, Delhi. The Mumtaz Mahal is one of the six main palaces that were situated facing the Yamuna River. All six palaces were connected by the Stream of Paradise (Nahr-i-Bishisht), a waterway which ran through them. At one time the Chhoti Baithak, which no longer exists, was located just to the north of the Mumtaz Mahal. The building was constructed with white marble in the lower half of its walls and pillars. It consists of six apartments divided by arched piers and was originally painted with floral decorations on the interior. The Mumtaz Mahal was part of the Zenana. After the British occupied the fort, it was used as a prison camp. The building currently houses an exhibition of the Red Fort Archaeological Museum, consisting largely of exhibits of the Mughal period.

Muthamman Burj

The Muthamman Burj, also written Musamman Burj, is a tower of the Red Fort located in Delhi. The structure adjoins the eastern wall of the Khwabgah of the Khas Mahal. It is a semi-octagonal tower where the Mughal emperor would appear every morning before his subjects. This ceremony was known as the Jharokha Darshan. A balcony, the Khwabgah Jharoka (Place of Dreams Balcony), projecting from the central side of the tower was constructed in 1808-09 CE by Akbar II. This is described in an inscription over its arches. The dome above was perhaps originally covered in gilded copper, similar to the one in Agra Fort. The river Yamuna originally laid much closer to the wall and tower but shifted its position since the original construction. At the lower level of the tower is a small gate, which enabled the emperor to move directly between the imperial enclosure of the fort and the banks of the river, where the royal barges would take him to Agra. During the British colonial rule, the tower was used again for the great Durbar. It was from this balcony that King George V and Queen Mary appeared before the public in 1911 during the Delhi Durbar.

Naubat Khana

The Naubat Khana, or Naqqar Khana, is the drum house that stands at the entrance between the outer and inner court at the Red Fort in Delhi. The vaulted arcade of the Chhatta Chowk measures 540 x 360 feet, and ends in the centre of the outer court. The side arcades and central tank were destroyed following the 1857 rebellion. In the east wall of the court lies the Naubat Khana, which was connected to the side arcades. Musicians from the Naubat Khana would announce the arrival of the emperor and other dignitaries at the court of public audience (Diwan-i-Am). Music was also played five times a day at chosen hours. Many Indian royal palaces have a drum house at the entrance. Some historians believe that the later Mughal emperors Jahandar Shah (1712–13) and Farrukhsiyar (1713–19) were assassinated here. The popular name of the gate, Hathiyan pol or "elephant gate," derives from the tradition that everyone except princes of the royal blood had to dismount from their elephants at this point, before entering further into the inner fort complex. The ground plan is a rectangular structure consisting of three large stories. The band gallery is 100 x 80 feet. The construction material is red sandstone, the surface covered in white chunam plaster. The richly carved floral designs on its red sandstone walls appear to have been originally painted with gold. The interior was colourfully painted. Several layers of these paintings can be found at the entrance chamber. The British initially installed the museum of the fort in this gate. It was later moved to the Mumtaz Mahal. The Indian War Memorial Museum is currently located in the first and second stories.

Princes' quarter

The Princes' quarter is an area located in the Red Fort of Delhi, India. The quarter of the imperial princes dates back to the late Mughal Empire period. The one structure that has survived has been altered throughout course of time, therefore losing its original appearance. The structure was the first palace built in north Delhi that was constructed for the princes, and served as a home to many members of the Mughal royal family. After the Indian Rebellion of 1857, occupying British forces converted the palace into a meeting and amusement hall and named it the "Tea House". In his 1919 book "Monuments of Delhi: lasting splendor of the great Mughals and others", Maulvi Zafar Hassan described the structure as a pavilion. The palace underwent some renovation and is open for visitors as a tea house and tourist shop.

Shahi Burj

The Shahi Burj (Urdu: Emperor's Tower) is a three-storey octagonal tower of the Red Fort in Delhi. The tower is located at the northeastern corner of the imperial enclosure. The water feeding, the Nahr-i-Bihisht, is channeled up from the river with a hydraulic system through the tower and then carried by channels into various other buildings of the fort. Adjacent to the south of the tower is a white marble pavilion that was constructed during Aurangzeb's rule. The pavilion features five arches supported on fluted columns and with low whale back roofs. In the centre of the north wall is a marble cascade sloping into a scalloped basin. The tower was damaged during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and again during a heavy earthquake in 1904. Originally there was a chhatri that is now missing. The tower and pavilion have been undergoing renovation work for many years and are closed to the public. On the south-eastern corner is the Asad Burj, which is a similar tower.
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