Fatehpur Sikri, the capital of mughals from 1571-1585 AD. Mughal Emperor Akbar built this town 40 kms west of Agra. This place was chosen by the emperor because it used to be believed the center of the universe and many scholars continue to believe so. Fatehpur sikri is one of finest example of the advanced science & architecture. Its a monument different from others in many respects, one important being is the area it is spread over. This is as large as the town itself. Tourists today see only the two parts and that too very restrictively. Most of the places are either not accessible or closed down by government due to their dilapidated condition. But, Tourists can see the ruins from the outside.
Fatehpur Sikri once had become a ghost town or in other terms a place which was deserted, lost its pre-historic & mughlai grandeur. It remained so for over 500 years. It is only recently, Fatehpur Sikri got its due recognition when declared as World heritage site by UNESCO in 1986 A.D., ever since travelers started coming to this place.
Let us explore some Vintage photographs of Fatehpur sikri.
Let us explore some Vintage photographs of Fatehpur sikri.
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| Photograph - 1869 A.D. |
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| Photograph -1869 A.D. |
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| Photograph - 1869 A.D. |
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| Photograph - 1880 A.D. |
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| Photograph - 1880 A.D. |
No last word on Fatehpur Sikri origin :
There are many versions of history talking about inception of Fatehpur Sikri. One, being universally accepted is that Great mughal emperor Akbar built it in 16th century where as carbon dating of the place & its stone suggest that it is much more older than the century it is claimed to be built in.Another point of view got added after recent excavation of Jain statues at VEER CHABILI TEELA behind the Fatehpur sikri ridge. This place has recently been linked to Jainism and its inception associated with the very beginning of Jain religion which takes back Fatehpur sikri history to 5th century BC. However, this version doesn't seem to have much truth hidden in it.
Third story that says, Babar (Grandfather of Akbar) invaded India in 1526 AD and fought first war in Panipat in the same year. Then, He went to fight another battle in 1527 AD in the battle field of Khanuah which is very much in Fatehpur sikri while moving towards the center of India from north west direction. This suggests that there must have been something already existing to attract an invader to fight and conquer. Some historian believe that Fatehpur sikri was built by Rajput Emperor Maharana Sanga who lost it to Babar.
Therefore, there is nothing certain about Fatehpur sikri history. In both first & last cases, Akbar built it or had got it from his forefathers. He stayed here for some 15 or so years and that constructs the Fatehpur Sikri history.We will also talk about Fatehpur sikri from that angle. We will not be going in much detail of every monument but will focus more on larger picture and details which are not much discussed on other forums.
Points of interest
Palace of Jodhabai : Its a large complex which is only known as Jodhbai Palace locally but entails many other monuments with in it like.(1) Palace of Jodhabai (Hindu Queen of Akbar)
(2) Queen Marium's palace (Christian wife of Akbar)
(3) Beautiful palace of Turke-me-sultana (alias Rukiyya Begum)
(4) Haram (bedroom) of Akbar himself
(5) Birbal's palace
(6) Diwan-I-Khaas (Ibadat khana- meeting place)
(7) Anup talao
(8) Panch mahal and so on
(1) Buland Gate (highest gate in asia continent)
(2) Tomb of Sufi Saint Shiakh Salim chisti
(3) Jama masjid (Mosque)
(4) A closed tunnel
(5) A reservoir outside the buland gate on on the left side
General Information : This should be explored once you have already seen the Jodhabai palace. However, there is no rule as such but only recommended. There is no ticket to it. All you need to do is to take your footwear off at the entrance gate as there are two gates to enter. You will always reach Badshahi Gate side if you are coming from Jodhabai Palace. You may give some INR 5 per pair of shoes, although its not officially charged but an errand run by locals. In this complex, tourist have to be aware of some touts, constantly irritating vendors and hawkers who will try to push to buy a chadar (Linen) to lay on the shrine of sufi saint. This is reckless and stupid. Don't fall into their trap as this all is a commission based business. Cops as and when try to catch them and put them behind bars.
Hiran Minar & Carvan-Sarai : This is less explored place as not so many tourists walk down to this side of the monuments. This is recommended to be visited after Palace of Jodhabai & Buland Gate. This is situated north of both the monuments. To get down here, when you are walking from Palace of Jodhabai towards Buland Gate Complex, immediately before the entrance to Buland gate complex or Badshahi gate side, you will find on your right a narrow path built with red stones. Hiran minar is hardly 5 minutes walk from this point. It's down the hill. This is a tomb of an elephant who was so amiable to the emperor that when the elephant died, king built a minaret to pay tribute to him. It is believed locally that many elephant tusks were fitted into it earlier but after they started getting stolen. Government replaced them with tusk shaped stones. however, its absolutely worth walking down the hills as you get to see many ruins around including Carvan Sarai - the word Caravan is an Arabic word which means a group of people traveling together and word Sarai means an inn or place to stay at. Therefore, carvan sarai was the place where group of people passing Fatehpur Sikri used to stay.
General Information : Women traveler alone need to be little more attentive as this is very lonely area. however recently, ASI (Archeological survey of India) has been keeping a vigil in this area and two guards are permanently stationed. So, it has become more safer. Still, keeping your cameras and valuables inside the begs are highly recommended. This area is the back side of all the monuments and hence, you may have splendid views from here. It hardly takes about an hour or so to walk down the entire area.
Dak Bunglow & Mint : These are also less talked about sites in Fatehpur Sikri. They both are situated east of Jodhabai Palace at the 5 minutes walking distance. You can either reach there walking across diwan-I-am or else there is a separate entry to it from the other side. Mint is the place where coins used to be minted. Dak bunglow or cicuit house is a later addition by Viceroy of India Lord Curzon in 1905 AD, it meant for govt officials to stay whenever they visited the town. Dak Bunglow, though built in 20th century but resembles the same architecture of Mughals.
General Information : Although, these sites are recommended for the tourists who are staying in the town for few days. They can also be visited by same day visitors.
Museum : Recently, ASI has built a museum at Fatehpur Sikri which is situated right in front of the Mint. Beautiful Jain statues and artifacts have been preserved there which were excavated from the VEER CHABILI TEELA, which has already been discussed in this blog. There is also an audio/video show at the museum thrice a day from 0900 hrs in the morning until 1700 hrs in the evening. This show is of 15 minutes explaining the rich culture & heritage of Fatehpur sikri.
So, These are 5 major points of interest in Fatehpur Sikri. If you have some more energy left in you. Then, you can take a walk through the Sikri Village which is behind the ridge. This ridge is an extension of Vindhyan ranges of Indian peninsular plateau. Mostly people confuse it with Aravali ranges due to the proximity of Fatehpur Sikri to Rajasthan. After that Village, one can take cycle tour along the hemispheric ally built wall around the town.
Strategic Location Advantage : Fatehpur Sikri is situated in the center of Golden Triangle of India i.e. Delhi-Agra-Jaipur. Many travelers prefer staying in Fatehpur Sikri for longer time and visiting nearby places from here. One can come to Fatehpur Sikri from Delhi via Agra or Bharatpur if not in a taxi. There are trains running from Delhi to Agra and Bharatpur from where buses run regularly to Fatehpur Sikri. Otherwise, Taxi can directly transfer you to Fatehpur Sikri. It is 200 kms (4 hours drive) away from Delhi. There are decent, reasonably priced hotels in Fatehpur Sikri which can be booked in advance. Fatehpur sikri is much more peaceful, pollution free and economical vis-a-vis Agra.
Most popular itinerary -
1st Day - Take some rest in Fatehpur Sikri and visit the monuments here
2nd Day - Go to Agra early morning and see the Taj with first ray of sun, this helps you avoiding you long ques and day rush at Taj. Red Fort and Sikandra can also be seen on the same day. Come back to Fatehpur Sikri
3rd Day - Early morning, move to explore Ghana Bird sanctuary at Bharatpur, this adds a natural walk experience to your trip. (Deeg Fort can also be seen which is 30 kms away from Bharatpur) Deeg Fort is undoubtedly beautiful and Serene experience, is also less crowded. Come back to Fatehpur Sikri.
4th Day - For Indian philosophy & spirituality, there can be nothing better than Mathura & Vrindavan, Go and check the sacred temples here and come back to Fatehpur Sikri.
5th Day - Check out from Fatehpur Sikri and move onward to Jaipur. There are many buses running 24*7 from Fatehpur Sikri to Jaipur.
Travel Tip - The itinerary above is indicative and modifications can be made by traveller themselves depending on their requirement. Mostly hotels in Fatehpur Sikri can arrange taxi/cabs for you to move around and visit nearby places like Agra, Bharatpur, Mathura & Vrindavan. They can also pick up and drop from/to Delhi & Jaipur.
Hotels to Stay in Fatehpur Sikri -
Hotel Goverdhan
Sahkuli, Fatehpur Sikri - 283110
M : +91-94125-26585
URL - www.hotelfatehpursikriviews.com
Hotel Vrindavan
Sahkuli, Fatehpur Sikri - 283110
M : +91 - 94125-16664
URL - www.hotelvrindavanfts.com
Hotel Rahi Gulistan Tourist Complex
Sahkuli, Fatehpur Sikri -283110
(A unit of UP Tourism)
There are few more hotels in Fatehpur Sikri. Above three are the most prominent and professionally managed. All three can be booked by phone, e-mail or sites like booking.com, expedia.com, cleartrip.com, makemytrip.com etc.
Tourist Parking at Fatehpur Sikri :
Fatehpur Sikri is one of the 32 World heritage sites in India, accorded by UNESCO. Hence, Diesel/Petrol vehicles are not allowed in close perimeter of these sites. As per the order of honorable Supreme court, UP tourism has developed a tourist parking at some 500 meters distance from Monuments. All the tourist vehicles coming to Fatehpur Sikri are stopped here, asked to pay the parking fee and park the car inside the parking from where you have Govt run CNG buses running every 5 minutes to take you to the monuments. This costs you about INR 5 per person.
Kindly note if you are coming to stay in a hotel situated after the parking or inside the town, You may either tell the parking representatives that you are going to stay here or show them your hotel booking voucher. There have some bad incidents at this parking and complaints like misbehavior of parking representatives, help from local police can be sought. If you have booked the hotel, you have all the rights to go inside the town and park your vehicle in the hotel, you booked.
Railway Station at Fatehpur Sikri :
Although, its not a major station. There are trains fro/to two important destination Sawai Madhopur and Lucknow or Allahabad. But, good thing about this station is that it has Govt railway reservation desk from where one can easily plan and book tickets as this window is usually free of crowd in comparison to others in Agra and other major destination.
For more information on Fatehpur Sikri :
Please log on to - http://www.up-tourism.com/destination/fatehpur/fatehpur.htm
Hiran Minar & Carvan-Sarai : This is less explored place as not so many tourists walk down to this side of the monuments. This is recommended to be visited after Palace of Jodhabai & Buland Gate. This is situated north of both the monuments. To get down here, when you are walking from Palace of Jodhabai towards Buland Gate Complex, immediately before the entrance to Buland gate complex or Badshahi gate side, you will find on your right a narrow path built with red stones. Hiran minar is hardly 5 minutes walk from this point. It's down the hill. This is a tomb of an elephant who was so amiable to the emperor that when the elephant died, king built a minaret to pay tribute to him. It is believed locally that many elephant tusks were fitted into it earlier but after they started getting stolen. Government replaced them with tusk shaped stones. however, its absolutely worth walking down the hills as you get to see many ruins around including Carvan Sarai - the word Caravan is an Arabic word which means a group of people traveling together and word Sarai means an inn or place to stay at. Therefore, carvan sarai was the place where group of people passing Fatehpur Sikri used to stay.General Information : Women traveler alone need to be little more attentive as this is very lonely area. however recently, ASI (Archeological survey of India) has been keeping a vigil in this area and two guards are permanently stationed. So, it has become more safer. Still, keeping your cameras and valuables inside the begs are highly recommended. This area is the back side of all the monuments and hence, you may have splendid views from here. It hardly takes about an hour or so to walk down the entire area.
General Information : Although, these sites are recommended for the tourists who are staying in the town for few days. They can also be visited by same day visitors.
So, These are 5 major points of interest in Fatehpur Sikri. If you have some more energy left in you. Then, you can take a walk through the Sikri Village which is behind the ridge. This ridge is an extension of Vindhyan ranges of Indian peninsular plateau. Mostly people confuse it with Aravali ranges due to the proximity of Fatehpur Sikri to Rajasthan. After that Village, one can take cycle tour along the hemispheric ally built wall around the town.
Strategic Location Advantage : Fatehpur Sikri is situated in the center of Golden Triangle of India i.e. Delhi-Agra-Jaipur. Many travelers prefer staying in Fatehpur Sikri for longer time and visiting nearby places from here. One can come to Fatehpur Sikri from Delhi via Agra or Bharatpur if not in a taxi. There are trains running from Delhi to Agra and Bharatpur from where buses run regularly to Fatehpur Sikri. Otherwise, Taxi can directly transfer you to Fatehpur Sikri. It is 200 kms (4 hours drive) away from Delhi. There are decent, reasonably priced hotels in Fatehpur Sikri which can be booked in advance. Fatehpur sikri is much more peaceful, pollution free and economical vis-a-vis Agra.
Most popular itinerary -
1st Day - Take some rest in Fatehpur Sikri and visit the monuments here
2nd Day - Go to Agra early morning and see the Taj with first ray of sun, this helps you avoiding you long ques and day rush at Taj. Red Fort and Sikandra can also be seen on the same day. Come back to Fatehpur Sikri
3rd Day - Early morning, move to explore Ghana Bird sanctuary at Bharatpur, this adds a natural walk experience to your trip. (Deeg Fort can also be seen which is 30 kms away from Bharatpur) Deeg Fort is undoubtedly beautiful and Serene experience, is also less crowded. Come back to Fatehpur Sikri.
4th Day - For Indian philosophy & spirituality, there can be nothing better than Mathura & Vrindavan, Go and check the sacred temples here and come back to Fatehpur Sikri.
5th Day - Check out from Fatehpur Sikri and move onward to Jaipur. There are many buses running 24*7 from Fatehpur Sikri to Jaipur.
Travel Tip - The itinerary above is indicative and modifications can be made by traveller themselves depending on their requirement. Mostly hotels in Fatehpur Sikri can arrange taxi/cabs for you to move around and visit nearby places like Agra, Bharatpur, Mathura & Vrindavan. They can also pick up and drop from/to Delhi & Jaipur.
Hotels to Stay in Fatehpur Sikri -
Hotel Goverdhan
Sahkuli, Fatehpur Sikri - 283110
M : +91-94125-26585
URL - www.hotelfatehpursikriviews.com
Hotel Vrindavan
Sahkuli, Fatehpur Sikri - 283110
M : +91 - 94125-16664
URL - www.hotelvrindavanfts.com
Hotel Rahi Gulistan Tourist Complex
Sahkuli, Fatehpur Sikri -283110
(A unit of UP Tourism)
There are few more hotels in Fatehpur Sikri. Above three are the most prominent and professionally managed. All three can be booked by phone, e-mail or sites like booking.com, expedia.com, cleartrip.com, makemytrip.com etc.
Tourist Parking at Fatehpur Sikri :
Fatehpur Sikri is one of the 32 World heritage sites in India, accorded by UNESCO. Hence, Diesel/Petrol vehicles are not allowed in close perimeter of these sites. As per the order of honorable Supreme court, UP tourism has developed a tourist parking at some 500 meters distance from Monuments. All the tourist vehicles coming to Fatehpur Sikri are stopped here, asked to pay the parking fee and park the car inside the parking from where you have Govt run CNG buses running every 5 minutes to take you to the monuments. This costs you about INR 5 per person.
Kindly note if you are coming to stay in a hotel situated after the parking or inside the town, You may either tell the parking representatives that you are going to stay here or show them your hotel booking voucher. There have some bad incidents at this parking and complaints like misbehavior of parking representatives, help from local police can be sought. If you have booked the hotel, you have all the rights to go inside the town and park your vehicle in the hotel, you booked.
Railway Station at Fatehpur Sikri :
Although, its not a major station. There are trains fro/to two important destination Sawai Madhopur and Lucknow or Allahabad. But, good thing about this station is that it has Govt railway reservation desk from where one can easily plan and book tickets as this window is usually free of crowd in comparison to others in Agra and other major destination.
For more information on Fatehpur Sikri :
Please log on to - http://www.up-tourism.com/destination/fatehpur/fatehpur.htm
