Agra Fort - Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India
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N 27° 10.622 E 078° 01.345
44R E 204964 N 3009547
The Agra Fort is a UNESCO World Heritage site located on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the city of Agra in the Indian state of Uttar Pradeshin Agra.
Waymark Code: WMQ6BF
Location: India
Date Posted: 12/28/2015
Views: 13
Agra Fort, also known as the “Lal–Qila” (Red Fort), was commissioned by the great Mughal Emperor Akbar in 1565. It was the headquarters of the Mughal Empire. After the Mughals, the Marathas and then the British occupied the Fort.
Even though four Mughal Emperors lived here — Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb — only the first three contributed to the building activities in the Fort. It is interesting to see the progression from sandstone (Akbar) to a mix of sandstone and marble (Jahangir) to only marble (Shah Jahan) as the preferred choice of building material. At one point, the Fort was supposed to contain within its walls 500 buildings; most of the non-imperial buildings were destroyed during British occupation.
At the end of his life, Shah Jahan was deposed and restrained by his son, Aurangzeb, in the fort. It is rumoured that Shah Jahan died in Muasamman Burj, a tower with a marble balcony with a view of the Taj Mahal (the mausoleum of his favorite wife).
The fortress comprises many palaces namely, Jahangir Palace and Khas Mahal, two audience halls and two mosques. The Agra Fort won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2004. India Post issued a stamp to commemorate this event.
Our pictures show, among others, the Amar Singh Gate, Jahangir Palace, Musamman Burj, Colvin's grave in front of the Diwan-i-Am (Hall of public audience) and the Mughal gardens.
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