history of delhi
History of Delhi

Delhi is now the capital of India. It is very ancient city. The History of Delhi is very interesting to mention down.  Traditions say that it was first built by the Pandavas and that it was known as Indraprastha. It is said that this city remained as a capital for more than a 1000 years with many gaps. In all it served as the capital city as many as 14 times .It was built and rebuilt again under the several ruling dynasties such as the Delhi Sultans ,the Mughal rulers ,the British Rulers and the latest by the Indian Government since 1947.

History Of Delhi : The Formation of Delhi

  • ‘Qila Rai Pithora’ where now the Quwwat-ul Islam Mosque and the Qutub Minar stand ,is know as the first city of Delhi. It was built by Qutbuddin Aibak.
  • Ala-ud-Din Khilji laid the foundation of the second city of Delhi known as ‘Siri’.
  • Ghiyas-ud-Din Tughlaq built ‘Tughlaqabad’,the third city of Delhi.
    History Of delhi
    Image of the walled city of Delhi printed in The Illustrated London News
  • Muhammad Tughlaq laid the foundation stone of ‘Jahanpanah’,the fourth city of Delhi.His successor Firoz Shah Tughlaq built ‘Firozabad’ now known as Kotla Firoz Shah ,the fifth city of Delhi.
  • The Mughal ruler Humayun laid the foundation of ‘Dinpanah’ ,the sixth city of Delhi.
  • The most spectacular city of Delhi was the seventh city known as ‘Shahjahanabad’. Shahjahanabad built by Shah Jahan deserves a special mention .Shah Jahan shifted his capital to Delhi in 1639 and decorated it with some of the finest pieces of Mughal architecture.The new capital was a Walled City,the 7th city of Delhi,with 14 gates. A canal run down the center of the Chandni Chowk.The main streets of Chandni Chowk along with Faij Bazar were quite wide enough for the royal processions to pass. Shahjahanabad, the new capital , was adorned with many magnificent and grand buildings but there was none to compare with the Red Fort and the Jama Masjid.
    History of delhi
    Image of Delhi During Mughals

Image Credit:

Kumbhalgarh 001
Black Taj Mahal

Published Date :July 27, 2023 @ 6:41 pm

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