New Delhi History
Edwin
Lutyens, the world famous architect,
would have neverset his mind on designing New Delhi and the famed Connaught
Place shopping centre in the heart of India’s capital, had it not been
for the glorious past that it could boast of.
The British Empire had termed India as the land" where the sun never
sets" and to add flavour to this phrase Lutyen called his creation as
the "Rome of Hindoostan".
Lutyen
perhaps could have drawn inspiration from the Persian inscription on the
ceiling of the Diwan-e-Khas (Hall of Nobles) at the glorious Red Fort which
says" If there be a paradise on Earth; it is this, oh it is this, oh it
is this". The couplet was rendered into such beautiful verse by the
noted poet, Firdaus, in the court of the Mughal Emperor, Shahjahan. What
could have made him weave such a magical extract must surely have been the
trance and magnetism that the city of Delhi had for the lovers of good
things.
As
much as it can boast of its chequered present, Delhi has an equally if not
better past. The ancient history of Delhi manifested in the landmarks and
memorials still stands testimony to the present history. The times when the
epic Mahabharata was written refers to Delhi as Indraprastha and was
supposed to have been founded by the Pandavas in as early as 1450 B.C. whose
remains have been excavated within the ramparts of the Old Fort (Purana
Qila) .
The
Gupta and the Maurya dynasties, around 320 A.D. when India was known as the
Golden Bird, were mesmerised by the elegant vistas of Delhi and made their
presence felt for a long time while ruling from Indraprastha. This was
followed by the Muslim Kings in the latter half of the 12th century and then
by the slave Kings and the Khaljis who ruled for over a century and built a
new capital Siri, in 1302 A.D. where today stands the imposing Siri Fort
area and the Asian Games Village. After the Khaljis came the Tughlaks in the
early 15th century who gave an additional impetus to the building activity
in Indraprastha with the shaping of the Tughlakabad Fort built by
Ghyias-ud-din Tughlak. This was not the end of the new revival initiated by
the Tughlaks and was followed by the setting up of the cities of Jahanpanah(
asylum of the world) and Firozabad (Kotla Ferozeshah) by the successors of
Ghyias-ud-din.
The
first Mughal conqueror and emperor , Babar, had a liking for Agra where he
set up his capital, although his son, Humayun, returned to Delhi and built
the Purana Qila as his fort and seat of governance. Then came the Suri
dynasty wherein Sher Shah Suri opted yet again for Dilli as the capital
which he built in 1542 A.D. And it had its epicentre as the very same Purana
Qila. For the first time then the capital got its name Dilli, though some
historians say that the brain behind giving this name was Raja Dillu who was
supposed to have ruled in this area as far back as 100 B.C. Although the
next Mughal emperor, Akbar, preferred to shift to Agra and Fathepur Sikri,
his son, derived an affable penchant for Delhi and began work on building
the historic Red Fort (Lal Qila) in 1638 A.D. Much before all this during
the 11th century A.D., a Hindu King, Anangpal is said to have built the
first city, Lal Kot and much after the Lodi dynasty was said to have been
credited with the setting up of the sixth of the seven cities in the form of
the Lodi tombs.
The
seven cities, each with a unique characteristic of its own were Lal Kot,
Siri, Tughlakabad, the ruined fortress east of the imposing Qutab Minar.
Tughlakabad
was said to have become a ghost city 15 years after it was built following a
supposed curse from the Sufi saint, Azam-ud-din. The other cities were
Jahanpanah, Ferozeshah Kotla, Lodi Tombs and the Purana Qila.
In
1911, the British asked Lutyens to give a new meaning to city development
which is reflected in the architectural designs and sophistication that
buildings in New Delhi like Parliament House, Rashtrapati Bhavan, India
Gate, Connaught Place and various administrative buildings like the South
and North blocks along the breathtaking view available from Raj Path.
Modern
Delhi has something for everyone and that is amply reflected in the
cosmopolitan culture that nurtures festivals of all faiths and religions,
places of worship. You can take a stroll at your own leisurely pace, or a
jog or a run and move faster than the common man. This is also reflected in
the market places, the dhabas and restaurants or the gorgeous five-star
hotels. Theatre, drama and entertainment of all sorts including the best of
discotheques are all there. Delhi is one city from where you can branch off
to any corner of the country either by a well-connected system of railways
or by road and air. The rest is for you to explore.
