Red Fort

Name of the place- Red Fort

Picture credit- Gautam Kumar

Timings: 10:30am to 4:30pm

Visit duration: 2-3 hours

The Red fort also known as Lal Qila is in old Delhi and it was the Mughal Emperor's main residence and the palace of Shahjahanabad. The construction of Red fort started during 1639 and it was completed in 1648 by the architect Ustad ahmed lahori. The red color in the Red fort was never present it was originally white and was painted red by the Britishers after the limestone began to flake apart. It was designated a UNESCO world heritage site in 2007. 

History of Red Fort

Shah Jahan, the then Mughal emperor build the Red Fort in Delhi. The construction of the fort was completed in 1648, it was the residence of the Mughal emperors until 1857. After the reign of Aurangzeb, the Mughal dynasty started getting weaker in every aspect. When Farrukhshiyar was the ruler, the silver ceiling of the fort was replaced with copper in order to raise money. In 1739, Nadir Shah defeated the Mughals and he took famous peacock throne, which had served as the royal throne of the Mughals and other valuable things from the fort. In 1760, the silver ceiling of Diwan-i-khas was dug out by Marathas. 

The Britishers also built their own residence within the fort and after the Mughal empire ended the British cleared out all the precious things like Kohinoor diamond, Shah Jahan’s wife cup and the crown of the Bahadur shah. After Indian won the fight for independence the army took the major part of the fort and after that it was given to ASA after independence for restoration. 

Architecture of Red Fort

The Red Fort occupies the area of approximately 255 acres and is octagonal in shape. The architect of the fort was Ustad Ahmed Lahori who is also believed to be the architect of Taj Mahal. The architectural design of the fort is a blend of Persian, Indian and European style. The furnishing of the fort displays extraordinary ornamentation and as per the reports The Kohinoor diamond was also a part of the furnishing. The fort has 3 gates from which 2 (Delhi and Lahori gate) were used by public and 1 (Khizrabad gate) was used by the emperor. 

The Red fort houses the halls of public audience (Diwan-i-aam) and private audience (Diwan-i-khas) a mosque (Moti masjid), Shahi Burj the area where Shah Jahan used to work in private, a royal bath (Hammam), gardens with beautiful designs and also some well known structures inside Red fort are Mumtaz mahal, Khas mahal, Rang mahal and Hira mahal. Red fort is the largest and most important historic building in Delhi.

How to reach Red Fort

Red fort is well connected by all ways of transportation and the nearest metro station is Chandni chowk. The entry fee is 35rs per person and 500 for foreigners. There is also a light and sound show in the evening from 7:30pm to 8:30pm in Hindi and 9pm to 10pm in English which costs 60rs per person. The fort open on all days except Monday from 10:30 am to 4:30 pm.