Delhi Tombs

Delhi Tombs

Humayun's Tomb, Delhi

Humayun's Tomb is sited near Nizamuddin, the centre of medieval Moslem Delhi. Its construction was begun in 1564 after the second Mughal emperor's death by his widow Haji Begum, mother of Akbar. Built on a magnificent podium overlooking the quartered garden, it was built of red sandstone and inlaid with black and white marble. It shows considerable Persian influence.

Gardens around Humayun's Tomb, Delhi

Humayun's tomb actually includes over a hundred graves. The grounds were also used for the burial of prominent nobles in smaller but architecturally impressive tombs in the garden.

Garden tombs

Some of these tombs are of uncertain origin and may predate Humayun's tomb itself. One may be that of Babur, the first emperor and father of Humayun.

Old Delhi
Delhi: The Red Fort,

The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty, Delhi, 1857

by William Dalrymple
On a dark evening in November 1862, a cheap coffin is buried in eerie silence. There are no lamentations or panegyrics, for the British Commissioner in charge has insisted, 'No vesting will remain to distinguish where the last of the Great Mughals rests.' This Mughal is Bahadur Shah Zafar II, one of the most tolerant and likeable of his remarkable dynasty who found himself leader of a violent and doomed uprising. The Siege of Delhi was the Raj's Stalingrad, the end of both Mughal power and a remarkable culture.
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