5/5 AJ C. 3 years ago on Google
Purana
Qila, Hindustani for
"Old
Fort"
also
formerly
called Shergarh
&
Sher
Fort is
one
of
the
oldest
forts
in Delhi, India.
The
site
has
been
continuously
inhabited
for
2,500
years
and
remains
dating
from
the Pre-Mauryan period
have
been
found.
The
present
citadel
was
begun
in
the
time
of Humayun and
its
construction
continued
under Sher
Shah
Suri.
The
site
is
often
identified
with
the
site
of Indraprastha,
the
capital
of
the
kingdoms
of
the Pandavas from
the Mahabharata.
It
is
located
near
the
expansive Pragati
Maidan exhibition
ground
and
is
separated
from
the Dhyanchand
Stadium by
the Mathura
Road,
Delhi.
Excavations
point
to
traces
from
the
3rd
century
BC,
the
pre-Mauryan
period.
The
first
two
rounds
of
excavations
–
in
1954–55
and
1969–72
–
by
B.
B.
Lal,
then
director
of
the
Archaeological
Survey
of
India
(ASI),
had
unearthed
traces
of
Painted
Grey
Ware
culture
(PGW)
under
the
mound.
At
the
time,
Lal
had
embarked
on
a
mission
to
excavate
various
sites
mentioned
in
the
Mahabharata
text
and
had
found
such
traces
as
a
common
feature
at
all
those
sites.
On
the
basis
of
traces
of
the
PGW,
Lal
concluded
that
it
was
the
site
of
the
Pandava
kingdom
of
Indraprastha,
estimating
900
BCE
as
the
period
of
the
Kurukshetra
war.
Later
on,
excavation
conducted
by
Dr.
Vasant
Kumar
Swarnkar,
Superintending
Archaeologist
of
the
ASI
during
2013-14
and
2017-18
confirms
that
the
site
of
Purana
Qila
has
a
continuous
habitation
from
the
Pre-Mauryan
era
to
the
British
Raj.
Swarnkar
has
stated
that
they
have
not
found
the
PGW
in
a
stratified
layer
which
will
attest
to
the
presence
of
its
culture.
Alexander
Cunningham
identified
the
fort
with
that
of
Indraprastha,
though
he
referred
to
the
present
structure
as
built
by
Muslims.
Dinpanah
The
origins
of
the
Purana
Qila
lie
in
the
walls
of
Dinpanah,
the
new
city
of
Delhi
being
constructed
by
Mughal
emperor
Humayun,
in
the
general
vicinity
of
the
ancient
Indraprastha
ruins.
Abul
Fazl
states
that
he
built
the
fort
in
the
place
of
that
of
ancient
Indraprastha.
The
founder
of
the
Suri
Dynasty,
Sher
Shah
Suri,
defeated
Humayun
and
made
changes
to
the
fort,
strengthening
its
fortifications
and
completing
its
walls.
He
also
had
another
fort
built
there
called
Shergarh,
where
the
governor
resided.
His
project,
however,
was
a
continuation
of
Humayun's
construction
of
a
citadel
for
a
royal
city.
He
also
built
many
structures
inside
the
fort.
Additions
to
the
fort
have
been
believed
to
have
been
made
even
after
his
rule.
The
extent
of
his
contribution
to
the
fort's
construction
is
disputed.
The
historical
attribution
of
its
construction
is
also
uncertain
judging
from
primary
sources.
Muhammad
Khwandamir
said
that
Humayun
laid
the
foundation
of
the
city
on
a
mound
near
Yamuna.
The
construction
of
the
walls
and
fortifications
were
almost
finished
by
Humayun's
time.
Tarikh-i-Da'udi
states
that
Sher
Shah
Suri's
royal
city
remained
incomplete
upon
his
death
and
he
had
named
his
fort
Shergarh.
Abbas
Sarwani
states
the
two
forts
being
constructed
by
him
were
incomplete
when
he
died.
Tarikh-i-Khan-Jahan
states
that
Salim
Shah
Suri
had
constructed
a
wall
defending
Dinpanah
of
Humayun.
Purana
Qila
and
its
environs
flourished
as
the
"sixth
city
of
Delhi".
On
7th
October,
1556
Hindu
king
Hem
Chandra
Vikramaditya,
who
had
defeated
Akbar's
forces
decisively
at
Battle
of
Delhi
(1556)
was
crowned
in
Purana
Qila.
British
Era
Edwin
Lutyens
who
designed
the
new
capital
of
British
India,
New
Delhi,
in
the
1920s,
had
aligned
the
central
vista,
now
Rajpath,
with
Purana
Qila.
During
the
Partition
of
India,
in
August
1947.
This
included
over
12,000
government
employees
who
had
opted
for
service
in
Pakistan,
and
between
150,000–200,000
Muslim
refugees,
who
swarmed
inside
Purana
Qila
by
September
1947,
when
Indian
government
took
over
the
management
of
the
two
camps.
The
Purana
Qila
camp
remained
functional
until
early
1948,
as
the
trains
to
Pakistan
waited
until
October
1947
to
start.(Wikipedia)