Key Facts about Red Fort

About Red Fort:

• The Red Fort, or Lal Qila, is a Mughal fort located in Delhi, India.
• Formerly known as Quila-e-Mubarak, or the Blessed Fort, the Red Fort lies along the banks of the river Yamuna, whose waters fed the moats surrounding the fort.
• It was built as the palace fort of Shahjahanabad – the new capital of the fifth Mughal Emperor of India, Shah Jahan.
• Shah Jahan constructed it in 1639. It was designed by architects Ustad Ahmad Lahauri and Ustad Hamid.
• Named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone, it is adjacent to an older fort, the Salimgarh, built by Islam Shah Suri in 1546, with which it forms the Red Fort Complex.
• The fort complex served as the residence of Mughal Emperors for nearly 200 years, until 1857.
• The fort was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2007.
• From the fort each year on Independence Day (August 15), the Indian prime minister participates in a flag-raising ceremony and delivers a televised address to the country.
• Architecture:
  • The Red Fort’s massive red sandstone walls, which stand 75 feet (23 metres) high, enclose a complex of palaces and entertainment halls, projecting balconies, baths and indoor canals, and geometrical gardens, as well as an ornate mosque.
  • The planning of the palace is based on Islamic prototypes, but each pavilion reveals architectural elements typical of Mughal buildings, reflecting a fusion of Persian, Timurid, and Hindu traditions.
  • The fort is octagonal, with the north-south axis longer than the east-west axis.
  • Among the most famous structures of the complex are the Hall of Public Audience (Diwan-i-ʿAm), which has 60 red sandstone pillars supporting a flat roof, and the Hall of Private Audience (Diwan-i-Khas), which is smaller and has a pavilion of white marble.
  • The marble, floral decorations, and double domes in the fort's buildings exemplify later Mughal architecture.
  • It has 2 principal gates–Lahore Drawaza and Delhi Darwaza along its western and southern sides, respectively.