Now that you have some background on the Moguls in Delhi and Agra, I’ll discuss the three “forts” they built in the order in which they were built, which was not the order in which I visited them.
In 1501 the second Lodi sultan Sikander moved the court to Agra from Delhi, and there it stayed for about 150 years. The first Mogul emperors were too busy consolidating their power to make many changes, but in 1565, the Mogul Emperor Akbar began building a new, moated fortress. His successors, especially his grandson Shah Jahan, expanded and remodeled the fort, transforming it into a palace.
Amar Singh Gate into Agra Fort
Entry is via the Amar Singh Gate through the 70-ft high, 1 ½ mile-long wall that encircles the 94-acre site. There used to be a wooden drawbridge over the moat, but, alas, the drawbridge is gone and the moat is dry.
Agra Fort's VERY dry moat
Note the flat-faced rectangular structure in the first photo behind the tower on the right. This second gate set at a right-angle to the first gate and with a long, walled ramp insured the fort was impregnable by attackers on elephants.
Inner Gate to Agra Fort
Inner side of Inner Gate at Agra Fort
Ramp up from Inner Gate into Agra Fort
After passing through the gate at the top of the ramp, one reaches a large open area and the Jahangiri Mahal.
Jahangiri Mahal
This palace was built in the mid 1560s during Akbar’s reign. It is the earliest Mogul palace extant and the largest private residence within Agra Fort, 250 by 300 feet.
Corner tower of Jahangiri Mahal
Entrance to Jahangiri Mahal. Note the balconies more typical of Hindu architecture.
Eunuchs would have been posted in the small entrance hall which has a lotiform dome.
Lotiform Dome of Entrance Hall
A narrow dog-legged passage leads from the entrance hall to a spacious courtyard faced by two large rooms with five entrance arches and several small rooms, most with just a single entrance way.
Entrance to one of the large rooms off of Court A in Jahangiri Mahal
Some of the carvings are quite intriquite.
Doorway Carving, Jahangiri Mahal
These birds haven’t fared as well over the years.
Bird carvings
Most rooms have niches for decoration, but this wall had more than most in an interesting arrangement.
- Wall of Arabesque Niches
While much of the paint has worn away, what is left gives one an idea of just how sumptuously decorated these harem rooms were.
- Painting fragments in Jahangiri Mahal
While the above painting involved stylized floral designs, some of the carved stone screens and stucco work exhibited far more abstract designs.
Abstract stone carving
Court B with fort wall on left, a bit of corner turret, and entrances to harem
From this rear fortress wall, I catch my first good glimpse of the Taj Mahal.
Taj Mahal from the river-side wall of Agra Fort