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historic fortress in Delhi, India
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The Red Fort (Lal Qila in Hindi; Hindi pronunciation: [laːl 'qɪlaː]) is a historic Mughal fort located in the Old Delhi area of Delhi, India. Serving as the main residence of the Mughal emperors, it was commissioned by Emperor Shah Jahan on the 12th of May 1639; the fort was constructed following his decision to shift the Mughal capital from Agra to Delhi. Originally adorned in red and white, the fort's design is attributed to Ustad Ahmad Lahori, the architect of the Taj Mahal. The Red Fort is a prominent example of Mughal architecture from Shah Jahan's reign, combining Persian and Indian architectural styles.
During the invasion by Nadir Shah of the Afsharid Empire in 1739, the fort was plundered and stripped of its artwork and jewels. Following the Indian Rebellion of 1857, many of its marble structures were demolished by the British, although the defensive walls remained largely intact. The fort was later repurposed as a military garrison.
On 15 August 1947, the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, hoisted the Indian flag above the Lahori Gate, the main entrance of the Red Fort. Since then, the Prime Minister of India has ceremonially raised the national tricolour at the main gate each year on Independence Day, then delivering a nationally broadcast address from its ramparts.
The Red Fort, as part of the Red Fort Complex, was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007.
The name Red Fort is a translation of the Hindustani Lāl Qila (Hindi: लाल क़िला, Urdu: لال قلعہ), derived from the fort's red sandstone walls. Lal means "red" in Hindi, while Qila comes from Arabic, meaning "fortress." Originally known as the "Blessed Fort" (Qila-i-Mubārak), it served as the residence of the imperial family. The term Lāl Qila is also used to refer to the Agra Fort.
Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned the construction of the Red Fort on 12 May 1638, following his decision to shift his capital from Agra to Delhi. The design of the Red Fort is attributed to the architect Ustad Ahmad Lahori, renowned for his work on the Taj Mahal. It straddles the Yamuna River, which once fed the moats surrounding most of the walls. Construction began in the sacred Islamic month of Muharram, on 13 May 1638. Supervised by Shah Jahan, it was completed on 6 April 1648. The fort was originally adorned in red and white. Unlike other Mughal forts, the Red Fort's boundary walls are asymmetrical to contain and subsume the older Salimgarh Fort. The fortress-palace served as the centrepiece of Shahjahanabad, the city now known as Old Delhi. Shah Jahan's successor, Emperor Aurangzeb, enhanced the Red Fort by adding the Moti Masjid (Pearl Mosque) to the emperor's private quarters. He also constructed barbicans in front of the two main gates to create a more circuitous approach to the palace.
Following the death of Emperor Aurangzeb, the administrative and fiscal structure of the Mughal dynasty experienced decline, leading to the degeneration of the palace during the 18th century. In 1712, Jahandar Shah was crowned the Mughal Emperor. Within a year of beginning his rule, Shah was murdered and replaced by Farrukhsiyar. In 1739, the Persian emperor Nadir Shah decisively defeated the Mughal army, despite its considerable strength of approximately 200,000 soldiers. Following his victory, he plundered the Red Fort, seizing its treasures, including the legendary Peacock Throne. After three months, Nadir Shah returned to Persia. His invasion left the city significantly damaged, and the Mughal Empire, under the next Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah's reign, was severely weakened. The internal weaknesses of the Mughal Empire reduced the Mughals to titular rulers of Delhi. A treaty signed in 1752 established the Marathas as the protectors of the throne in Delhi. The 1758 Maratha victory over the Afghans at Sirhind, followed by their defeat at Panipat, catapulted them into further conflict with Ahmad Shah Durrani.
In 1760, the Marathas stripped and melted the silver ceiling of the Diwan-i-Khas to raise funds for the defence of Delhi from the armies of Ahmed Shah Durrani. In 1761, after the Marathas lost the third battle of Panipat, Delhi was raided by Durrani. Ten years later, the Marathas, acting at the behest of the exiled Emperor Shah Alam II, recaptured Delhi from the Rohilla Afghans. Mahadaji Shinde, the commander of the Maratha Army, restored Shah Alam II to the throne.
In 1764, the Jat ruler of Bharatpur, Maharaja Jawahar Singh, attacked Delhi, and eventually captured the Red Fort of Delhi on 5 February 1765. Two days later, after exacting tribute from the Mughals, the Jats withdrew their forces from the Red Fort, seizing the Mughal throne. The throne now adorns the palace at Deeg, serving as a historical centrepiece. The doors of the fort are located in the Lohagarh Fort of Bharatpur.
In 1783, Sikh Misls led by Jassa Singh Ahluwalia, Jassa Singh Ramgarhia, and Baghel Singh conquered Delhi and the Red Fort. With a consolidated force consisting of 40,000 troops, they looted the area spanning from Awadh to Jodhpur. After negotiations, the Sikh forces agreed to withdraw from Delhi and reinstate the Mughal emperor Shah Alam II. As a condition of their retreat, the Jats stipulated the construction of seven Sikh gurdwaras in Delhi, including the Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib in Chandni Chowk.
In 1788, the grandson of Najib ad-Dawlah, Rohilla, Ghulam Kadir, looted Delhi and killed female members of the Mughal royal family. He also imprisoned Emperor Shah Alam II. Upon learning this, Mahadaji Shinde sent his men to free Shah Alam and pursue Kadir, who was hiding in Ghosgad in Rohilkhand. Kadir was eventually apprehended and beheaded. As a result of this, the Maratha flag was allowed to be hung from the Red Fort until 1803.
During the Second Anglo-Maratha War, British forces defeated a Maratha army led by Daulat Rao Sindhia in the Battle of Delhi, which marked the end of Maratha control over Delhi, including the Red Fort. Following the battle, the East India Company took over the administration of Mughal territories and installed a resident at the Red Fort. The last Mughal emperor to occupy the fort, Bahadur Shah Zafar, became a symbol of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against Company rule in India, in which the residents of Shahjahanabad participated.
Despite its position as the seat of Mughal power and its defensive capabilities, the Red Fort was not a site of any engagements during the 1857 rebellion. Bahadur left the fort on 17 September 1857 and was subsequently apprehended by British forces and returned to the Red Fort before being tried in 1858 and exiled to Rangoon in 7 October of that year.
Following the rebellion's suppression, British authorities ordered the systematic demolition of the Red Fort, during which 80% of the fort's structures were demolished, including the stone screen that once connected the pavilions along the river-facing façade of the fort. All the fort's furniture was either removed or destroyed; the harem apartments, servants' quarters, and gardens were demolished, and a line of stone barracks was erected atop them. Only the marble buildings on the east side of the imperial enclosure escaped complete destruction, although they were damaged while demolition was underway. While the defensive walls and towers were relatively unscathed, over two-thirds of the inner structures were demolished.
Lord Curzon, who served as the Viceroy of India from 1899 to 1905, initiated restoration efforts for the Red Fort. These included the reconstruction of its walls and the revival of its gardens, complete with an updated watering system.
The INA trials, also known as the Red Fort Trials, refer to the court-martial of a number of officers of the Indian National Army. The first trial was conducted at the Red Fort between November and December 1945. On 15 August 1947, the first prime minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, raised the Indian national flag above the Lahore Gate.
After Indian independence, the site experienced few changes, and the Red Fort continued to be used as a military cantonment. A significant portion of the Red Fort remained under the control of the Indian Army until 22 December 2003, when it was transferred to the Archaeological Survey of India for restoration and conservation. In 2009, the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP), prepared by the Archaeological Survey of India under the auspices of a Supreme Court direction to revitalise the fort, was announced.
In the 21st century, several museums and galleries have been added to the Red Fort complex. Four of these museums, inaugurated in 2019, are housed in the colonial-era barracks within the complex. Barrack B1 is dedicated to the 1857 War of Independence, Barrack B2 commemorates the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, and Barrack B3 focuses on Subhas Chandra Bose and the Indian National Army movement. Barrack B4, known as Drishyakala, is a collaboration between the Archaeological Survey of India and the Delhi Art Gallery and showcases Indian art. The earlier museums, including the Indian Freedom Fighters' Museum, the Mumtaz Mahal Museum, and the Naubat Khana Museum, have been closed, with their exhibits relocated to these newly established museums.
Archaeological excavations at the Red Fort have unearthed several Ochre Coloured Pottery culture artefacts dating from 2600 BCE to 1200 BCE.
The Red Fort, the largest monument in Old Delhi, is one of its most popular tourist destinations and attracts thousands of visitors every year. It is a monument of national significance; each year on India's independence day, observed on August 15, the Prime Minister hoists the national flag at the Red Fort and delivers a speech from its ramparts, which is broadcast nationwide. The fort also appears on the back of the ₹500 note of the Mahatma Gandhi New Series of the Indian rupee.
The Red Fort's architectural features are in varying states of preservation. While some structures remain relatively intact, retaining their original decorative elements, others have suffered significant damage, with inlaid marble floral designs removed by looters. The water features, once extensive, are now dry. The tea house, though not preserved in its historical form, functions as a working restaurant. The mosque and the hammam (public baths) are closed to visitors, who can only view them through glass windows or marble latticework. Walkways within the complex are deteriorating, and public toilets are available both at the entrance and inside the premises. The Lahori Gate serves as the main entrance, leading to a shopping area with jewelry and craft stores. The complex also houses a museum of "blood paintings," which narrate the stories of 20th-century Indian martyrs, alongside an archaeological museum and an Indian war-memorial museum.
The Red Fort was the site of a terrorist attack on 22 December 2000, carried out by six Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives. Two soldiers and a civilian were murdered in what the news media described as an attempt to derail the then-ongoing India-Pakistan peace talks.
To ensure security and prevent terrorist attacks, stringent measures are implemented around the Red Fort on the eve of the Indian Independence Day. Delhi Police and paramilitary forces maintain a vigilant presence in the neighbourhoods surrounding the fort, while National Security Guard sharpshooters are strategically stationed on high-rises near the site. The airspace around the fort is a designated no-fly zone during the celebration, and safe houses exist in the vicinity to which the prime minister and other dignitaries can be taken to in the event of an attack.
In April 2018, the Dalmia Group adopted the Red Fort for maintenance, development, and operations under the government's "Adopt A Heritage" scheme, through a contract worth ₹25 crores for a period of five years. A memorandum of understanding was signed with the ministries of Tourism and Culture and the Archaeological Survey of India. The adoption of the Red Fort by a private entity sparked outcry and widespread debate, drawing criticism from the public, historians, and political parties. The move also led to the trending of the hashtag #IndiaOnSale on Twitter. In May 2018, the Indian National Congress demanded the suspension of the agreement until an "impartial review" could be conducted by the Central Advisory Board of Archaeology or another recognized body of experts.
On 26 January 2021, during the 2021 Indian farmers' Republic Day protest, a coterie of protesting farmers breached the fort, hoisted religious flags from its ramparts, and scaled the domes of the fort. One of the farmers was witnessed climbing a flagpole in front of the fort and hoisting the Nishan Sahib pennant on the flagpole. The fort sustained damage owing to clashes between the protestors and the police and was vacated following police announcements.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Red Fort”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.