A Unique Visit of The Agra Fort on The Taj Mahal Tour

Visiting The Agra Fort - Photo by Bianca Malata - www.itsallbee.com

One cannot visit the Taj Mahal without also visiting the place where Shah Jahan spent his last days; The Agra Fort. Shah Jahan is of course Mamtaz Mahal’s husband who also comissioned the Taj Mahal a memorial to his beloved wife. Agra Fort is almost as beautiful as the Taj Mahal and is also made mostly of the same material as the Taj Mahal. Build with marble and detailed in semi precious stones.

In my previous post I shared 13 top tips on visiting the Taj Mahal, while you are in Agra this is another spot that you should not miss out on. Agra Fort is a UNESCO World Heritage located not too far from the Taj Mahal. This is what can be discribed as a walled city. One of the Mugal Emperor’s realised the importance of the Agra following a victory of the battle for the city, he made Agra the capital city. It was this Emperor’s grandson who then took over the site. This grandson was of course Shah Jahan. He tended to have buildings broken down and rebuilt in white marble. You will see this when you visit. Most parts are made from the red brick that Akbar, his grandfather, when he rebuilt the fort after the battles.

As Shah had over spent so much money building the Taj Mahal in memory of his wife, his son deposed and restrained him in the Fort. Its rumored that Shah Jahan died in the Musamman Burj, a tower with marble balcony with a view of the Taj Mahal. Our tour Guide took as all around and let us roam around also telling us about how some of the the emperor has over a thousand concubines and just how many orgies took place there. As well as how his servants would be outside with big fans fanning the Emperor while his ladies attended to his every desires. Not exactly surprised by stories of these sex mad emperors compared to what you will find at Khajuraho Mounuments.

The Agra Fort is also an important site in that it was the site of a battle during the Indian rebellion of 1857, which caused the end of the British East India Company rule in India. This also led to a century of direct rule of India by Britain.

Don’t miss out on this site and highly recommend getting a tour guide as they offer such a wealth of information about this place, its history and just cool tidbits about the Emperors that ruled over the lands and their scandalous lives.

Entrance Fee: 300 Rupees(£3 +/-) for tourists and 20 rupees for Indians.

Visiting of The Agra Fort - Photo by Bianca Malata - www.itsallbee.com

Jahangir Palace

Agra Fort Diwan I Am (Hall of Public Audience)

In the middle there you can see the burial location of John Russell Colvin, a British Civil Servant who died during the peak of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. His body could not be carried out of the Agra Fort (which after the fall of the Mughals, the British establishment in India converted into a military garrison). The selection of the burial location is often criticized for the insensitivity, considering the significance of the place.Within the sprawling palace-fort complex, the tomb is located in the front of the Diwan-i-Am (Hall of Public Audience) where the Peacock Throne was placed.

This is where the Emperor spent many of his time during the day and this was where many of his concubined were summoned to attend to the Emperor’s desires and bring his fantasies to reality so to speak. The servants stood fanning the Emperor while standing outside under those arches.