Baku, November 30, AZERTAC

Built during the second half of the 16th century by the Emperor Akbar, Fatehpur Sikri (the City of Victory) was the capital of the Mughal Empire for only some 10 years.

The complex of monuments and temples, all in a uniform architectural style, includes one of the largest mosques in India, the Jama Masjid.

Located in Agra District in the State of Uttar Pradesh in northern India, the city was constructed southeast of an artificial lake, on the slopping levels of the outcrops of the Vindhyan hill ranges.

Known as the “city of victory”, it was made capital by the Mughal emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605 CE) and constructed between 1571 and 1573.

Fatehpur Sikri was the first planned city of the Mughals to be marked by magnificent administrative, residential, and religious buildings comprised of palaces, public buildings, mosques, and living areas for the court, the army, the servants of the king and an entire city.

Upon moving the capital to Lahore in 1585, the city remained as an area for temporary visits by the Mughal emperors. The inscribed property covers 60.735 ha, with a buffer zone of 475.542 ha.

The city, which is bounded on three sides by a wall 6 km long fortified by towers and pierced by nine gates, includes a number of impressive edifices of secular and religious nature that exhibit a fusion of prolific and versatile Indo-Islamic styles. The city was originally rectangular in plan, with a grid pattern of roads and by-lanes which cut at right angles, and featured an efficient drainage and water management system. The well-defined administrative block, royal palaces, and Jama Masjid are located in the centre of the city. The buildings are constructed in red sandstone with little use of marble.

Amongst the religious monuments at Fatehpur Sikri, Jama Masjid is the earliest building constructed on the summit of the ridge, completed in 1571-72. This mosque incorporates the tomb of Saikh Salim Chisti, an extraordinary masterpiece of sculpted decoration completed in 1580-81 and further embellished under the reign of Jahangir in 1606.

To the south of the court is an imposing structure, Buland Darwaza (Lofty Gate), with a height of 40 m, completed in 1575 to commemorate the victory of Gujarat in 1572. It is by far the greatest monumental structure of emperor Akbar’s entire reign and also one of the most perfect architectural achievements in India.