Introduction
Red fort is a great monument which was built by Shah Jahan some centuries ago. This Red fort had become the palace in Shahjahanabad. That is the reason for which this Shahjahanabad became the capital of the mughal empire which replaced the ols capital city Agra. If Red fort is not visited then the travel to Delhi will not be complete.
History
A new city was found by Shahjahan named Shahjahanabad whwn he shifted his empire from Agra to Delhi to progress the power of his regime and fulfil the motivated building plans. This Shahjahanabad is nothing but Delhi which we see today or more specifically old Delhi.
Later on the foundation had come of a fort called Red fort in the Northern side of the town. The construction of the fort was completed taking a long period of nine years. The construction of the fort was started in the year 1639 and completed in 1648. This Red fort had become a residence for Shahjahan and Shahjahanabad had become the capital of mughal rulers. This was only the capital for them till the regime of Bahadur Shah Zafar who was the last of Mughal Dynasty.
This had got the name Red fort because it was made up of large sandstone of red colour. This fort had a previous name as “ Qila Mubarak” which meant as a blessed fort because of being used as a residence by the royal family. Bahadur Shah Zafar was the last ruler who ruled it till 1857 and later on the British occupied the fort.
Construction and Specialities
Red fort is located at the eastern edge of Shahjahanabad and derived its name from walls of red sandstone which are very huge surrounding the eight sides of the fort. The length of the wall is 2.5 km and the height is 33 metres. The Red fort has two main entrances. One is the Delhi gate and the other is Lahore gate. Chandni Chowk is a very crowded market which identifies the Old Delhi can be faced by the Lahore gate.
There are many beautiful buildings in the compound of red fort. Diwan-i-Aam , Rang Mahal etc are famous among them. Emperor used to entertain the complaints of the common people in Diwan-i Aam. The Rang Mahal is a popular place which is holding an attractive fountain of Lotus shape. This Rang Mahal is also known as the “Palace of Colours”.
How to Reach and Exact Location
Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airports has connecting flights to all the major destinations of the world and the country. The airport has regular domestic flights to places like Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Cochin, Agra, Varanasi, Khajuraho, Goa, Jaipur, Jodhpur etc. There are three railway stations in the city – the New Delhi Railway Station, the Old Delhi Railway Station and the Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station. The road routes are also quite excellently established. You can avail of local buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws to reach the Red Fort from anywhere within the city.
