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Medieval And Colonial Capital Cities Of DelhiDESCRIPTIONAlong the southern edge of the square is a market known as Urdu Bazar. This has a number of bookshopsspecializing in Urdu language books. It also has a number of stalls and restaurants serving traditional street foodand more, which the Jama Masjid area has long been known for. The dense neighbourhood known as MatyaMahal lies to the south of this.North ShahjahanabadThe northern areas of the Shahjananbad, north of Chandni Chowk and the Red Fort, have transformed since thefounding of the city. Always much less populous than the area south of Chandni Chowk, a large part of the groundwas covered by gardens, and by the vast mansions belonging to the Mughal royalty and nobility. The latterparticularly occupied the eastern part of this area, the riverfront. When the British first moved into Delhi theyestablished this area as the centre of administrative power, building several new colonial structures, bothreligious and institutional or simply adding to or co‐opting older buildings.The area was also the scene of many a battles during the uprising of 1857, also known as the First War of IndianIndependence. Momentous changes came to the area after the revolt, when the British obliterated large parts ofJahanara’s gardens and established a railway line, aligned along the east‐west axis. ( Section 2b History anddevelopment describes these changes in greater detail) The eastern part, the Kashmiri Gate Area, still retains itswide roads, open spaces and grand buildings, now mostly put to institutional use. There are also handsomeresidential buildings along Nicholson Road.Some key heritage structures in the area:o Kashmiri Gate This was one of the fourteen original gates built by Shahjahan around his newly foundedcity facing towards Kashmir and hence named Kashmiri Gate. This two‐bay gate is built out of brickmasonry and covered with plaster.o Dara Shikoh's Library Dara Shikoh, Shahjahan’s favourite and heir apparent to the Mughal throneexhibited a keen interest in architecture just like his father. He is known to have constructed his mansionin a span of four years (1639 – 43) at the cost of 4,00,000 rupees at a site north of Red Fort near KashmiriGate. Although the current building is mostly the work of the British, many of its original Mughalelements can still be seen. It has a classical façade with 7.5 m ionic columns supporting a partly collapsedarchitrave. The original 3m high plinth and steps can be seen from the rear. Inside too, some elements ofthe original Mughal structure are still visible like a double row of blind arches leading to a central portal.The interior is simple concrete flooring and a concrete roof supported on wooden beams placed on irongirders. It is now part of the premises of the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and is used as amuseum under the department of Archaeology, Government of Delhi.o Fakhr‐ul‐masajid (Pride of the mosques) or Lal Masjid, was built in 1728‐29 by Kaniz‐i‐Fatima tocommemorate her deceased husband, Shujaat Khan, a high ranking noble under Aurangzeb. The redsandstone mosque, faced with white marble, is clearly modelled on major mosques in Delhi built duringthe reign of Shahjahan and Aurangzeb. In fact, it is one of the few stone mosques built in Delhi during theeighteenth and the nineteenth centuries. The mosque is raised on a 2.5m platform with shops at the base.Once you climb up to the raised courtyard, there are arcades on both the north and the south.o Northern Railway Building The building currently being used as an office by the Northern Railways,was formerly the mansion of Ali Mardan Khan, a senior general of Shahjahan who was associated withmany of his constructions, especially canals and gardens. As was common in the early days of the empire,the British did not feel the need to demolish the original building completely and therefore, the building31‐07‐2012 INTACH, Delhi Chapter 8
Medieval And Colonial Capital Cities Of DelhiDESCRIPTIONoooooostill has the remains of the Mughal taikhana, or underground chamber, underneath it. The main room ofthe building is domed and on all four sides of it there are semi‐octagonal turrets. On the north and southsides there are circular projecting rooms. On the rear is another circular room with a flat roof which hasprojecting rooms on either side, giving the building a bow shape.Kashmiri Gate Bazaar The building was commissioned by Lala Sultan Singh, a leading banker of his time,in the 1890s. This was a time of relative political stability that led to the rise of the merchant class in Delhiand many commercial and institutional buildings were constructed around this time. The building, about50m long, is made of brick and has shops on the ground floor and iron pillars supporting projecting upperfloor balconies that are constructed out of a combination of wood and wrought iron. The roof is gabledover alternate bays and has tin roof on top. In the topmost floors of the last few bays, are a fewresidences constructed in the same style.Bengali Club This building located right beside the Kashmiri Gate was constructed as a cultural centre forthe Bengali community. This is a double‐storeyed structure with shops on the ground floor. The first floorhas a balcony supported on iron columns and has gabled roofing and an elaborate wrought‐ ironbalustrade.St. James Church St. James' Church, also known as Skinner's Church, built in 1836 by Colonel JamesSkinner, is one of the oldest churches in Delhi. The building itself was designed by Major Robert Smith, aBritish army engineer. The basic design of the Renaissance style church is of a Greek cruciform plan, withthree porticoed porches, elaborate stained glass windows and a central octagonal dome similar to a domeof Florence Cathedral in Florence. Many late Mughal elements can also be noticed in the building. Thecopper ball and cross on the top, which are said to be replica of a church in Venice, were damagedduring the1857 revolt, and were later replaced. Colonel Skinner is buried here and north of the church liesthe Skinner family plot where many of his descendants are buried. The church is also known for two otherimportant graves; one belonging to William Fraser, and the other of Sir Thomas Metcalfe, who lived inDelhi for forty years from 1813 to 1853, during which time he served as Agent to Governor General ofIndia.Magazine Gateway This gateway is all that remains of the British gunpowder and armaments magazinethat was destroyed during the siege of 1857. The structure is now located in a small park in the middle ofa traffic island on the main Lothian Road near Kashmiri Gate. A low‐ vaulted building is attached to agateway that has openings facing both sides of the road. On the outer face there are semi‐octagonalprojections on both sides which lead to a vaulted gateway with two small rooms on either side. There isalso a small canon placed over the gateway. Adjacent to the ruins of the gateway is a smallcommemorative column in granite that was erected in 1901‐2 to honour the postal personnel who died in1857. The height of the column is about 5m and it sits on a square base and tapers towards the top.St. Mary’s Church The church was built in 1865 on the land cleared after the revolt of 1857. The buildingis built in the Italian Romanesque style, not very different from the St. Stephen’s Church near theFatehpuri Mosque and is finished in stucco plaster. The church is laid out on a cruciform plan and has asimple pitched roof made out of country tiles. The arms of the building are semi‐circular in plan. At theentrance on the west there are semi‐circular arched gateways and a bell tower. At the first‐floor levelthere is a blind arcade. The building features some interesting stained glass work on the inside.Post Office This white painted building was built in 1885 in classical European style. The building has fivebays with semi‐circular arches and tapering pilasters in between these doorways. The upper floor wasdesigned as a deep verandah but this has now been screened.The western sector of this part of Shahjahanabad, is the Lahori Gate area. Lahori Gate was one of the originalgates of the walled city of Delhi, built in 1651 along with the rest of the city. It was the city’s exit to the Grand31‐07‐2012 INTACH, Delhi Chapter 9
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