The Fatehpuri Mosque is a 17th-century

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

in India located at the western end of the oldest street of

Chandni Chowk The Chandni Chowk, also known as Moonlight Square is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi, India. It is located close to the Old Delhi Railway Station. The Red Fort monument is located at the eastern end of Chandni Chowk. It was b ...

Old Delhi Old Delhi or Purani Dilli is an area in the Central Delhi district of Delhi, India. It was founded as a walled city named Shahjahanabad in 1648, when Shah Jahan (the Mughal emperor at the time) decided to shift the Mughal capital from Agra. T ...

. It is opposite the

Red Fort The Red Fort or Lal Qila () is a historic fort in Old Delhi, Delhi in India that served as the main residence of the Mughal Emperors. Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned construction of the Red Fort on 12 May 1638, when he decided to shift ...

on the opposite end of Chandni Chowk.

History

Fatehpuri Masjid was built in 1650 by Fatehpuri Begum, one of emperor Shah Jahan's wives who was from

Fatehpur Sikri Fatehpur Sikri () is a town in the Agra District of Uttar Pradesh, India. Situated 35.7 kilometres from the district headquarters of Agra, Fatehpur Sikri itself was founded as the capital of Mughal Empire in 1571 by Emperor Akbar, serving this ...

, and the mosque at

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...

is also named after her. The British had auctioned the mosque after the 1857 war to Rai Lala Chunnamal for Rs. 19,000(whose descendants still live in the Chunnamal haveli in

), who preserved the mosque. Later in 1877 it was acquired by the government in exchange for four villages and was restored to the Muslims at the Delhi Durbar when the British allowed the Muslims back in Old Delhi. A similar mosque, called Akbarabadi Mosque built by the Akbarabadi Begum was destroyed by the British. The

Khari Baoli Khari Baoli is a street in Delhi, India known for its wholesale grocery and Asia's largest wholesale spice market selling a variety of spices, nuts, herbs and food products like rice and tea. Operating since the 17th century, the market is si ...

, which is today Asia's largest spice market, gradually developed after the construction of the mosque. Muslim festivals '' Id-ul-Fitr'' and '' Id-ul-Zuha'' are celebrated with great enthusiasm at the mosque. Mufti Mukarram Ahmad is the chief

mufti A Mufti (; ar, مفتي) is an Islamic jurist qualified to issue a nonbinding opinion (''fatwa'') on a point of Islamic law (''sharia''). The act of issuing fatwas is called ''iftāʾ''. Muftis and their ''fatwas'' played an important role ...

and hereditary imam of the mosque and has been Imam there for almost 42 years and before him his father Maulana Mufti Mohammad Ahmad (d. 21 October 1971/1391 AH) was imam and mufti of the mosque. The grave of the wife of rebel leader Maulana Abdul Qadir Ludhianvi is located in the courtyard of the Fatehpuri Mosque.

Architecture

The mosque is built using red sandstone and has a fluted dome with ''mahapadma'' and ''kalash'' on the top. Flanked by minarets, the mosque has a traditional design with the prayer hall having seven-arched openings. The mosque has single and double-storeyed apartments on the sides. The central

iwan An iwan ( fa, ایوان , ar, إيوان , also spelled ivan) is a rectangular hall or space, usually vaulted, walled on three sides, with one end entirely open. The formal gateway to the iwan is called , a Persian term for a portal projecting ...

in the middle is flanked by three arches on each side.

References

External links

{{Delhi landmarks Mosques in India Mosques in Delhi Mughal mosques Religious buildings and structures completed in 1650 1650 establishments in the Mughal Empire

History

Architecture

See also

References

External links