Evolution of Delhi

Urban and rural planning

HISTORY
Historically, every city started as a small
agglomeration along or around a water body and
over the
years it grew in size and value, into a unique
settlement, rich with stories and culture. The
evolution
of Delhi is similar.

What is different however, is that based on

evidence found, it is not one, but seven historic
cities,
that have merged to finally form the megalopolis
that we now know as Delhi.
Lal Kot (Tomaras- 736 ad-1180 ad)
Location: The ruins of the citadel of Lal Kot can be seen along the
Badarpur-Qutab road, Delhi-Qutab road or
Mehrauli-Qutab road.

Origin and influence

The origin of Tomaras is one such dispute in the history of Delhi. The
Tomara dynasty claims to be the heirs to
the Pandavas - sons of Pandu, and heroes of the epic Mahabharata. If we
were to believe the legend, then
Delhi was a just a new name given to the ancient kingdom
ofIndraprastha, and Tomaras began to rule in
succession to the Pandavas. Lal Kot, literally ‘red fort’, is a walled bastion or
military garrison located in South Delhi. It was the
first Delhi fort to be constructed of red stone.
Building types
As of now behind the Qutub complex,
the ruins and remains of Lal Kot still
survive. Most visible parts of Lal Kot
are in the  Adham Khan’s tomb , which
is probably one corner of the fort. There
are probably tanks, various buildings
that could be living quarters and a very
broad wall with huge semi-circular
bastions at irregular intervals. At one
point there seem to be two walls, one
external and one internal. The walls are
mighty and broad even as ruins, giving
a glimpse of the fort that they would
have guarded. Water Tank
There is an apparent water tank, which is full of foliage as
of now. There is another plain land, which is used as a
cricket ground by kids. Which could be another tank or
some part of the fort that requires huge plane area.
Qila rai pithora (chauhans)1180 ad
-1192 ad
Ruler- prithvi raj Chauhan
Location
Prithvi raj Chauhan renamed the city lal kot to qila rai
pithora after his name rai pithora.  The city’s remains are
spread across South Delhi’s Vasant Kunj, Kishangarh,
Mehrauli and Saket areas.
Origin and influence
Prithvi raj Chauhan received the throne of Delhi from
his maternal grandfather Anangpal Tomar II in 1180. Building types
Prithviraj renamed Lal Kot as ‘Rai Pithora’ and ruled
The Lalkot was in the form of a small fort, which
most of the North West India including the states of
converted into a huge fort by Prithviraj Chauhan. He
Rajasthan, Haryana, parts of Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab.
secured the entire city with huge and high walls by
fortifications. He gave this fort a span of six and a
half kilometers. Today, some walls and turret are left
as the ruins of Lalkot and Qila Rai Pithora. So far, the
remains of the fort have not been ascertained.
SIRI

Location
Situated in New Delhi. Located between Hauz Khas on
the east and Mehrauli in the north,

Origin
Alauddin is the best known of the Khalji dynasty because
he extended his dominion to Southern India and
established the second city of Delhi, Siri. He created Siri
between 1297 and 1307 to defend against Mongol Location
invasions of India and Delhi. In response, he built Siri
Situated in New Delhi. Located between Hauz Khas on the east and
Fort. Mehrauli in the north,

Tohfewala Gumbad Masjid (pictured) is one such structure

whose ruins show the form of domed central apartment and
sloping wall characteristic of Khaljis architecture

Alau’d-Din Khilji had also built the magnificent great royal

tank called the Hauz Khas, for providing water to the Siri Fort.
PHYSIOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS

Allauddin, the second ruler of the Khalji dynasty, laid the foundation for the City of Siri in 1303 AD. It was the first city to
be originally built by the Muslims. It is laying spread over an area of about 1.70 sq. kms.
According to the legend of Ala-ud-din’s war exploits, the name Siri given to the Fort was because the foundation of the fort
was built on the severed heads (‘Sir’ in Hindi means "head") of about 8,000 mongol soldiers killed in the war.
The structures built in Siri were stated to have had a fine imprint of the enthusiasm of the rulers of Khalji dynasty
(particularly, the first three out of six Rulers of the Dynasty) with Allauddin's deep interests in architecture and his
achievements supported by the imported skills of the artists of Seljuqs richly contributing to the efforts to build the new
city.
The first city is considered to be built by Muslims, it was in an oval shape. In other words, its rubble-built high city-wall is
roughly oval on plan. It is noteworthy to mention that some derelict structures in the village of Shahpur Jat still stands on
the west.
There were seven gates for entry and exit, but at present only the south-eastern gate exists.
TUGHLAQABAD
LOCATION
In southern Delhi, on
the Badarpur–Mehrauli
Road, to the north of
Asola greens and Dr
Karni Singh Shooting
range, rise the ruins of
the Tughlaqabad fort.
The site still affords a
glimpse of a pre-
gunpowder era medieval
fort and the city it
enclosed, since it is still
modestly well
preserved.
ORIGIN AND INFLUENCE
There is a saying that Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq advised his Sultan, Mubarak
Khalji to build a fortified city on this spot. Building a medieval city was a
costly proposition and Mubarak Khalji did not want to do so. He is said to
have jokingly replied to Tughlaq to build a fort when he (Tughlaq) were to
become the sultan. Tughlaq did become the sultan towards the end of 1320
CE and he did build a fortified city at the spot known as Tughlaqabad.

PHYSIOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS - there are the remains of a rectangular baoli

It was built on a local high ground on a terrain that slopes gently from west to and a well which served as a provision for
east. It is surmised that a small stream (which may not have run throughout water.
the year) ran from west to east passing to the immediate south of this high
ground, and to the north of storm-water drains flowing eastwards. This made
the approach to this relatively high ground from south and north somewhat
difficult. In addition, there were low hills at a short distance to its south. This
terrain made it possible to build a dam, stretching from this local height to the
hills to its south, to trap the waters of the stream flowing from west to east
and convert it into a lake. Even if the lake shrank into a shallow marsh in
summer, it represented an obstacle from south to this local high ground. It
was this aspect that caught the eye of Tughlaq

- circular bastions, exterior wall is sloped

TOWN PLANNING PRINCIPLES
The perimeters of the fort stretch over 6 km, and
had 52 gates at one time, of which only 13
currently remain. It also had seven rainwater
tanks, which are in a decrepit state today.
However, the massively fortified perimeter of the
fort, with rubble-filled city walls, is witness to the
grandeur of a bygone era. The fort is divided into
three parts:
1) the wider city area with houses built along a
rectangular grid between its gates
2) the citadel with a tower at its highest point
known as Bijai Mandal and the remains of several
halls and a long underground passage. On the
western side is a Baoli ( water reservoir)
3) the adjacent palace area containing the royal
residences. A long underground passage below
the tower still remains.
TOMB OF GHIYASUDIN TUGHLAQ ADILABAD FORT
FIROZABAD

Firoze Shah Tughlaq was a more stable ruler than his father,
Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq. He created the next city of Delhi-
Ferozabad or Firoze Shah Kotla has been know today. He was
renowned builder of medieval times, extended city from old
Indraprastha to the ridge and then new capital flourished. In
1354, he brought two sandstone pillars bearing Ashokan
inscriptions from Meerut and Ambala and placed one at the
ridge and another at Kotla Ferozeshah. The third century B.C.
Ashoka Pillar in polished sandstone with Brahmi script
inscriptions is 43 meters high and weight 23 Tons. He built
Khirki Masjid, tomb and Madarsa at Hauz Khas which is
beautiful complex of Mosque. Kalan Masjid, Chausanth
Khamba, Begumpur Mosque and adjacent Bijai Mandal and
Bara Khamba are the other notable buildings constructive his He made 1200 garden around Delhi and is credited
reign. He is also credited for building several haunting lodges in with the erection of 200 towns, 40 mosque, 30
the forests of the ridge. Among these lodges, Bhooli Bhatiyari villages, 30 reserviors, 50 dams, 100 hospitals, 100
Ka Mahal, Pir Gaib and Malcha Mahal are still surviving. public baths and 150 bridges.
SHERGARH

In 1540 a sway of imperial power saw Babur's son Humayun

getting defeated by Sher Shah Suri. Sher Shah established
another capital city of Delhi. The City, known as Shergarh, was
built on the ruins of Dinpanah that Humayun had set up. The
remains of Shergarh is what you see today at Purana Qila. Once
Humayun came back to power, he completed the construction
and proceeded to rule from Shergarh. Firoze Shah completed
the mosque of Jamali-Kamali, jamali's Tomb at Mehrauli.

What is known as the Purna Qila today, was the

creation of Sher Shah when he wrested Delhi
from Humayun in 1540, the second Mughal king.
It was originally being built by Humayun as his
capital Dinpanah. Sher Shah razed Dinpanah to
the ground and started building his own capital
introducing ornate elements in architecture.
MEHRAULI
After the death of Mohammad Ghori in
1206 Qutabuddin Aibak became the first
Sultan of Delhi and Quwwat-ul-Islam was
laid on the site of Hindu fort as Delhi's first
mosque. The construction of Qutab Minar
(now World Heritage monument) was
started by Aibak and continued by
Iltutmish and his successor. It became the
most dominating symbol and a landmark of
Delhi.

After a dramatic defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan, the rule of the

Hindu dynasty over Delhi came to an end in 1191 A.D. It was
captured by Qutabuddin Aibak, the slave commander of
Mohammad Ghori, after numerous defeats. This was the
beginning of Delhi Sultanate and for next 600 years Islamic
dymasties prevailed. The seat of the rule of invaders had been
Mehrauli, which was the living capital of Hindu predecessors.
Mehrauli Archaeological Park was never originally a park. It
was huge piece of land with dense vegetation in proximity to
the Mehrauli village with hefty number of monuments in a
ruined state and a splendid history in the past. In 1997, the area
was redeveloped into a park and proper documentation of the
monuments started. The park is now spread over 200 acres with
100+ monuments out of which around 70 are given “protected
monument” status by the ASI.

The park encompasses architectural relics from almost all

periods of Indian history, however, it was inconceivable to
cover all the delights in one walk but I managed to get some of
the highlights.
SHAHJAHANABAD

By the time the emperor Shah Jahan (1928‐58) came to the

throne, the Mughal empire had ruled continuously over northern
India for almost a century and the artistic tradition of Mughals
had reached a stage of maturity and refinement. During Shah
Jahan’ rein the architectural
development was remarkable due to his interest and patronage
of architecture. His buildings were characterized by sensitivity
and delicateness.
By Shah Jahan’s time, the Muslims in India had partially
Indianized.
Under the Mughals, they were mainly an urban community,
and they disliked village. Muslim life was closely linked to
religious event, as well as to ceremonies and festivals.
THE CITY FORM MORPHOLOGY ELEMENTS

•The urban infrastructure was laid out in a geometric pattern.

•Shows traces of both Persian and Hindu traditions of town
planning and architecture with the Persian influence largely
accounting for the formalism and symmetry of the palaces
gardens and boulevards. The designed infrastructure of
Shahjahanabad comprised:
•The fort
•The Friday mosque.
•The other major mosques, including the corresponding waqf
properties.
•The two main boulevards.

•The bazaars around the Friday mosque.

•The elaborate system of water channels.
•The major gardens and the city wall.
•The arrangement of these planned elements was
influenced by certain site features, which precluded
absolute geometry.
RED FORT
PLANNING OF SAHAJAHANABAD
•The city was planned according to Hindu planning
principles of Shilpa shastra from vastushastra.
•The site was placed on a high land as in the shastra and
was karmukha or bowshaped, for this ensured its
prosperity.
•The arm of the archer was Chandni Chowk.
•The string was Yamuna river.
PLANNING OF SAHAJAHANABAD
•The city was separated by surrounding land by wall
and a moat.
• The basic network of 5 main streets extended Chandni
chowk and faiz bazaar to other gates and to different
part of the walled city. The streets were built as the
spine of major activities and developed as commercial
through affairs.
NEWDELHI

Lutyen’s plan for New Delhi, conceived and constructed between 1912
and 1931, was very much the genre of Versailles and L’ Enfant’s
Washington. Characterized by formally laid out axial movement net-
works, strongly articulated terminal vistas and a low-density, low-rise
physical fabric, New Delhi was the prestigious capital of Britain’s Indian
Empire, accommodating its governmental and other auxiliary functions.

The plan establishes two major visual corridors, one with the Jama
Masjid of Shahjahanabad and the other with Purana Qila, an even older
fortification of Delhi, culminating in the Capitol Complex. Along the
Purana Qila axis, in the east-west direction, is the major ceremonial
green called the Central Vista with the King’s Way penetrating the
Capitol Complex between two major office blocks, and terminating in
the ViceregalPalace. The integrated mass of the Capitol Complex
provides a visual climax to this dramatic linear open space, criss-crossed
by lateral roads and punctuated by India Gate and a small but very
ingeniously designed pavilion to shelter the statue of King George.
From 1912 to 1931 British architects Sir
Edwin Landseer Lutyens and Sir Herbert
Baker were responsible for the
construction of New Delhi as Britain's new
imperial capital of India. The challenge
they faced was to produce an architecture
that successfully combined local traditions
with a statement of colonial power. New
Delhi's urban plan, with its emphasis on
wide, straight roadways radiating like the
spokes of a wheel from major imperial
landmarks, was a direct expression of
British control. But Lutyen’s design for the
Viceroy's House (1912-1931), though
inspired by neoclassicism, also paid
homage to Delhi's Mughal architecture in
its use of red and yellow sandstone, its
dome, and in other details.