The Noor Mahal ( ur, ) is a

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

-owned palace in

Bahawalpur Bahawalpur () is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. With inhabitants as of 2017, it is Pakistan's 11th most populous city. Founded in 1748, Bahawalpur was the capital of the former princely state of Bahawalpur, ruled by the Abbasi fa ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. It was built in 1872 like an Italian chateau on neoclassical lines, at a time when modernism had set in. It belonged to the Nawabs of

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj, British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, ...

, during

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

History

There are various stories regarding its construction. According to the sources Nawab Sir Sadiq Abbasi built the Palace for himself. Noor Mehal is one of the hidden gems of Bahawalpur, due to the lack of publicity. The palace is open to public. It is currently in the possession of the Pakistan Army and is used as a state guest house for holding state durbars and meetings with foreign delegations.

Architecture

Mr. Heennan, an Englishman who was the state engineer, designed the building. The foundation of Noor Palace was laid in 1872. A map and coins of the state were buried in its foundation as a good omen. Most of the palace's materials and furniture were imported from England and Italy. The construction of the palace was completed in 1875 at a cost of Rs. 1.2 million. Considering the amount of silver in the Indian Rupee Coin at 11.66 Grams in 1862, this amount in 2016 would come to about 8.1 million US dollars. Noor Palace covers an area of . It has 32 rooms including 14 in the basement, 6 verandas and 5 domes.Noor Mahal - History
/ref> The design encompasses features of Corinthian and Islamic styles of architecture with a tinge of subcontinental style. The Corinthian touch is visible in the columns,

balustrade A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its con ...

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

s and the vaulted ceiling of Durbar Hall. The Islamic style is evident in the five domes, whereas the angular elliptical shapes are a stroke of subcontinent style. Nawab Muhammad Bahawal Khan the fifth added a mosque to the palace in 1906 at the cost of Rs. 20,000. The design is based on the mosque of

Aitchison College Aitchison College ( ur, ایچیسن کالج) is an independent, semi-private boys school for boarding and day students from grade 1–13 in Lahore, Pakistan. It has a tradition of providing an education that uses academics, sports, and co-curri ...

. In 1956, when

Bahawalpur State Bahawalpur (Urdu, skr, ) was a princely state of British India, and later Dominion of Pakistan, that was a part of the Punjab States Agency. It existed as an autonomous state, within Pakistan from 1947 to 1955, when it was dissolved and merg ...

was merged into

, the building was taken over by the Auqaf department. The palace was leased to the army in 1971; in 1997 the army purchased it for the sum of 119 million. The building was declared a “protected monument” in September 2001 by the Government of Pakistan's Department of Archeology, and it is now open for general visitors, students trips and other interested persons.

Things to see

There are a lot of artefacts in the palace. It includes many objects used by the Nawabs - swords, currency notes and coins, legal documents, furniture, and a piano. There is also a long wall in it that contains photos of Nawabs. Only one picture is real, all others are imaginary. There is also a prison cell aside the palace.

Gallery

File:NoorMahalbwp.JPG, A night view of the Noor Mahal File:NoorMahal1.JPG, Side view of the Noor Mahal File:Noor Mehal-1.jpg File:Beautiful Noor Mahal palace.jpg, Noor Mahal front view day time File:Noor Mahal, Bahwalpur.jpg, Noor Mahal After Rain File:Dinning room of Noor Mahal.jpg, A beautiful dining room at Noor Mahal for visitors File:Noor Mahal decorative tile floor.jpg, Noor Mahal decorative tile floors File:Display of knives in the Noor Mahal Bahawalpur.jpg, Display of historical knives at wall of Noor Mahal File:Noor Mahal Balcony.jpg, A beautiful Balcony at Noor Mahal

References

External links