The Delhi Gate is an entrance to the

Red Fort The Red Fort, also known as Lal Qila () is a historic Mughal Empire, Mughal fort in Delhi, India, that served as the primary residence of the Mughal emperors. Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned the construction of the Red Fort on 12 May 1639, fo ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

and is on the Fort's southern wall. The gate received its name from the Fort's city. The primary gate is the Lahori Gate, which is very similar in appearance. The gate was constructed under

Shah Jahan Shah Jahan I, (Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram; 5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), also called Shah Jahan the Magnificent, was the Emperor of Hindustan from 1628 until his deposition in 1658. As the fifth Mughal emperor, his reign marked the ...

. It was provided with a 10.5 high metre

barbican A barbican (from ) is a fortified outpost or fortified gateway, such as at an outer defense perimeter of a city or castle, or any tower situated over a gate or bridge which was used for defensive purposes. Europe Medieval Europeans typically b ...

Aurangzeb Alamgir I (Muhi al-Din Muhammad; 3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, also called Aurangzeb the Conqueror, was the sixth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707, becomi ...

, facing west. The gateway consists of three stories and is decorated with square, rectangular, and cusped arched panels. These panels are flanked by semi-octagonal towers crowned by two open octagonal pavilions. Red sandstone adorns the gate while the pavilion roofs are in white stone. Between the two pavilions is a screen of miniature ''

chhatri ''Chhatri'' are semi-open, elevated, dome-shaped pavilions used as an element in Indo-Islamic architecture and Indian architecture. They are most commonly square, octagonal, and round. Originating as a canopy above tombs, they largely ser ...

s'' with seven miniature marble domes. Flame-shaped battlements encompass the wall. Near it on the right the last emperor was imprisoned after September 1857. Between the inner and outer gates stand two large stone elephants without riders. They were replaced here by the gift of

Lord Curzon George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston (11 January 1859 – 20 March 1925), known as Lord Curzon (), was a British statesman, Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician, explorer and writer who served as Viceroy of India ...

. Beyond the southern glacis of the fort, on which a cross marks the site of the old cemetery, are the gardens and cantonment of Darya-ganj. The latter is bounded on the west by the Faiz Bazar leading to the Delhi Gate.

References

External links

Red Fort Gates of Delhi Mughal gates {{india-struct-stub