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Architecture
The Mughal Empire:
Fortresses and Citadels
by Ashish Nangia
 Humayun, as we have seen, did
not live to enjoy rule. His son and successor, Akbar (1556-1605 A.D.) was the
first in a line of emperors that for the next century would establish Mughal
rule over practically the whole of India. This unprecedented empire building
went hand in hand with the subcontinent’s most fertile period as far as art
and architecture were concerned.
Mughal architecture owes its
origins to its religion, Islam, as a showpiece of prestige and power, for
pleasure, and for death. These concepts are reflected in great mosques, forts,
durbars and palaces, gardens and pools, and finally, tombs. Formally and
artistically, Mughal architecture owes as much to its genealogical origins among
the Safavids and Timurids, as it does to the syncretism of its patrons, notably
Akbar and Shah Jahan. It is thus that impeccable Charbagh plans combine
with indigenous detailing as in the tombs of Humayun and Akbar, and the forts at
Agra, Delhi and Lahore.
 Such is the volume of building
during this epoch that it would be impossible to detail every building in this
series. We will however attempt to make the task easier by classifying the
architecture into building types and then discussing the major examples of each.
Mughal building can thus be divided into fort, palace and garden, mosque and
finally tomb.
Mughal Fortresses in Akbar’s Rule
The function of a fort is to
command large swathes of territory, to control the trade routes that pass
therein, to inspire awe and loyalty amongst the populace, and finally to be a
refuge if attacked. The whirlwind and extensive military campaigns of Akbar were
contemporaneous with the construction of a large number of metropolitan and
provincial forts, chief among which are the ones at Agra (from 1564), Ajmer
(from 1570), Lahore (from 1580) and Allahabad (from 1583). Refinement and taste
are the words that come immediately to mind even in so utilitarian a structure
as these forts’ defensive walls. Fine detailing incorporates both Islamic and
indigenous elements, primarily Gujarati in origin.
 Agra Fort
Agra fort, in the form of an
irregular semicircle, has its back to the river Yamuna which thus protects its
eastern side. The riverside walls are punctuated nevertheless by defensive
bastions of which the main one controls an access from the river and numerous
underground passages.
Agra Fort plan
On the town side the bastions are regularly spaced and the
height of the walls is 30m. The western wall is dominated by the massive main
entrance – the so-called Delhi Gate- and the Hathi Pol. This gate is
approached by a tortuous access ramp. More to the south, the Amar Singh gate is defended by two
towers which flank the entrance. A remarkable feature in this fort is a hybrid beast, part
horse, part lion and part elephant sculpted on a panel. This monster evokes
Assyrian men-beasts but also resembles the monsters of Hindu mythology.
It is unfortunate that most of Akbar’s not inconsiderable
work within the fort walls was demolished or modified by Shah Jahan’s rebuilding
and transformation later. One specimen that does survive is the Jahangiri
Mahal.
Agra Fort, Jahangiri Mahal
 This structure built for the emperor’s wives and family is similar
in character to the Man Mandir at Gwalior.
Of Shah Jahan’s additions, most notable are the Anguri
Bagh (Garden of grapes) palace and the white marble Moti Masjid.
Agra Fort,
Anguri
Bagh pavillion
 Agra Fort,
Moti
Masjid
The greatest surviving example however of Akbar’s appetite
and taste for architecture is of course his capital city of Fatehpur Sikri –
soon abandoned because of lack of a reliable water supply.
This will require the entire next section for a detailed examination.
April 3, 2003
Color images under license with
Gettyimages.com
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