About 37 km west of Agra, this royal city was founded as his dream capital by the Mughal Emperor Akbar. There is a legend behind the construction of this splendid city. Akbar was without an heir for a long time. Therefore, he made a pilgrimage to the renowned Sufi saint Sheik Salim Chisti and sought his blessings for a successor. Finally, a son was born to him, who later came to be known as Jehangir. As a mark of his gratitude, Akbar named him after the saint and built the new capital to mark his birth. Work on the extensive project- featuring grand palaces, formal courtyards, pools, harems, tombs and a great mosque- began in 1571. A large number of skilled masons and craftsmen worked to their bones on an area that was over two miles long and a mile wide. The main material used for construction was red sandstone, which is available locally.
But destiny has its own way- just after fifteen years of the completion of work, the fabulous city had to be abandoned due to acute shortage of water.
About 37 km west of Agra, this royal city was founded as his dream capital by the Mughal Emperor Akbar. There is a legend behind the construction of this splendid city. Akbar was without an heir for a long time. Therefore, he made a pilgrimage to the renowned Sufi saint Sheik Salim Chisti and sought his blessings for a successor. Finally, a son was born to him, who later came to be known as Jehangir. As a mark of his gratitude, Akbar named him after the saint and built the new capital to mark his birth. Work on the extensive project- featuring grand palaces, formal courtyards, pools, harems, tombs and a great mosque- began in 1571. A large number of skilled masons and craftsmen worked to their bones on an area that was over two miles long and a mile wide. The main material used for construction was red sandstone, which is available locally.