Bot at 10:11, 24 November 2022

2022-11-24T10:11:30Z

New page

{{Short description|Residential palace of Mariam-uz-Zamani}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2022}}
{{Use Indian English|date=September 2022}}
[[File:Fatehpur Sikri Fort 166.jpg|thumb|Backside of the grand gateway of [[Mariam-uz-Zamani|Jodha Bai]] Mahal in [[Fatehpur Sikri]]]]
'''Jodha Bai Mahal''' also known as '''Jodh Bai Mahal''' is one of the largest and most prominent palaces<ref>{{cite book|first=Ernest Binfield|last=Havell|title=A Handbook to Agra and Taj|year=1907|pages=121|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.173898/page/n143/mode/2up}}</ref> in [[Fatehpur Sikri]] commissioned by [[Akbar|Mughal Emperor Akbar]] after 1569 for his favourite wife, [[Mariam-uz-Zamani]], commonly known as ''' '[[Mariam-uz-Zamani#The misnomer of Jodha Bai|Jodha bai]]' '''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Havell |first=E. B. (Ernest Binfield) |url=http://archive.org/details/historyofaryanru00have |title=The history of Aryan rule in India from the earliest times to the death of Akbar |date=1918 |publisher=New York, Frederick A. Stokes company |others=The Library of Congress |pages=463}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Foreign Department Of India |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.35314/page/n427/mode/2up?view=theater&q=Mariam%27s |title=References In The Press To The Visit Of Their Royal Highnesses, The Prince And Princess Of Wales To India, 1905-06 |date=1905 |pages=421}}</ref><ref name=:04>{{cite book|first=Muni|last=Lal|title=Akbar|year=1977|pages=179|publisher=V.P. House Private ltd., Delhi|url=https://archive.org/details/Akbar/page/n187/mode/2up?q=Jodha+bai+mahal&view=theater}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Agrawal|first=M. M.|title=The Indian Encyclopedia|publisher=Cosmos Publication, New Delhi|year=2002|volume=15|page=4596}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Jodha Bai's Palace Fatehpur Sikri|url= https://www.trawell.in/uttar-pradesh/fatehpur-sikri/jodha-bai-palace}}</ref><ref name=William>{{cite book|last1=Hunter|first1=William W.|title=The History of Nations: India and Modern Persia|volume=5|publisher=P.F. Collier & son, New York|page=120|year=1881–1895|editor-first=Henry Cabot|editor-last=Lodge|quote= Mariam Zamani's palace in Fatehpur Sikri, mother of prince Salim, came to be known as Jodha Bai Palace. It stands as the biggest palace of Akbar's harem and is built as per distinctive Rajput architecture.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Vincent Arthur |url=http://archive.org/details/cu31924024056503 |title=Akbar the Great Mogul, 1542-1605 |date=1917 |publisher=Oxford: Clarendon Press |others=Cornell University Library |pages=106}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Edmund W. |url=http://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.55169 |title=Moghul architecture of Fathpur-Sikri pt.2 |date=1973 |pages=18}}</ref> This Mahal is the largest complex of the [[zenana]] (palace for women belonging to the royal household).<ref name=:04/> It is a masterpiece of the fusion of Hindu and Persian architecture made with red sandstone.<ref name=Lal/>

==History==
[[File:Fatehpur Sikri Fort 160.jpg|thumb|Jodha Bai Mahal In Fatehpur Sikri]]

{{Blockquote|text="Having conducted a matrimonial alliance with the Hindu princess, Akbar spared no pains in making her new home resemble her old as much as possible"|author=Edmund W. Smith|source=Moghul Architecture of Fathpur Sikri (1973)<ref>{{Cite book|last=Smith|first=Edmund W.|title=Moghul Architecture of Fathpur Sikri, pt 2|year=1973 |page=29|url=https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.55169/page/n45/mode/2up}}</ref>}}

Born as a [[Hinduism|Rajput]] princess, [[Mariam-uz-Zamani]] was married to [[Akbar]] in the year 1562 as a result of a political alliance between Akbar and her father, [[Raja Bharmal]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Aftab|first1=Tahera|title=Inscribing South Asian Muslim Women: An Annotated Bibliography & Research Guide|date=2008|publisher=Brill Publishers|location=Leiden|page=44}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Sarkar|first=Jadunath|title=A History of Jaipur: C. 1503-1938|pages=35 & 43}}</ref> She gradually became his favourite wife and was the first wife of Akbar to honour the royal household with an heir.<ref name=farishta>{{cite book|last1=Hindu Shah|first1=Muhammad Qasim|title=Gulshan-I-Ibrahimi|volume=2|date=1595–1612|page=143|quote=Akbur, after this conquest, made a pilgrimage to Khwaja Moyin-ood-Deen Chishty at Ajmere and returned to Agra; from whence he proceeded to visit the venerable Sheikh Sulim Chishty, in the village of Seekry. As all the king's children had hitherto died, he solicited the Sheikh's prayers, who consoled him, by assuring him he would soon have a son, who would live to a good old age. Shortly after, his favourite sooltana, being then pregnant, on Wednesday the 17th of Rubbee-ool-Awul, in the year 997 was delivered of a son, who was called Sulim.}}</ref> In the year 1569, she gave birth to her third and first surviving child of Akbar, [[Jahangir|Prince Salim]]. Akbar shifted his capital from [[Agra]] to [[Fatehpur Sikri]] in acknowledgement of his faith in the efficacy of the holy man's prayer, [[Salim Chishti|Sheikh Salim Chisti]], whose blessings he sought for the birth of an heir to his empire.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ahmad|first=Aziz|title=Studies of Islamic culture in the Indian Environment|year=1964|publisher=Clarendon Press}}</ref> The construction in Sikri started in 1569 and a grand palace was established for the empress and her newborn son, [[Jahangir|prince Salim]]. This was the biggest residential palace in the city, and to this day it stands, though in ruins, as a monument of Akbar's love for the Amber princess.{{sfn|Lal|1980|p=170}}

==Architecture and ornamentation==
[[File:Fatehpur Sikri Fort 145.jpg|thumb|The distinctive Hindu style temple inside the palace used by the queen for worshipping]]

Jodha Bai Palace was commissioned by Akbar in her honour and was the largest residential palace in his harem. It is also known as '''Raniwas''' and '''Zenani Dyodhi'''.<ref name=Liveindia /> It shows the Rajput influence and is built around a courtyard, with special care being taken to ensure privacy. This palace building consists of a rectangular block with a single magnificent gateway on the eastern side, which was protected by guard rooms, having triangular ceilings and other apartments. The gateway of the palace is situated on the east side and is very magnificent and is of typical Rajasthani architecture. It has a magnificent double-storey complex which is the [[Bedroom|Khawabgah]] of the palace.

[[File:Fatehpur Sikri DSC 0047.JPG|thumb|The majestic gateway of the Palace of Jodha Bai]]

It also has a Hindu temple and a tulsi math used by his Hindu wife for worship. This palace was internally also connected to the palace of Akbar.<ref name=Lal>{{cite book|first=Muni|last=Lal|title=Akbar|year=1977|pages=179|publisher=V.P. House Private ltd., Delhi|quote=Akbar’s Khwabgah—dream-cottage—-a song of love in red sand¬ stone and white marble was where the ceremony of the, lifting of "the veil of every new wife he took was performed—and he took at least one every full moon. The guides in Fatehpur almost proudly stress that no woman—wife, concubine or mistress—shared the Khwabgah with the Emperor twice In her lifetime. Jodha Bai was perhaps the only exception. The Padshah often invited her to the seclusion of the pleasure house “for the company and a game of chess.”}}</ref> Several Hindu motifs have been used in the building alongside [[Lord Krishna]] depictions on the walls, which confirms that the occupant of the building was a Hindu lady.<ref name=Liveindia>{{cite web|title=Jodha Bai's Palace Fatehpur Sikri|url= http://www.liveindia.com/fatehpur-sikri/jodha_bai_palace.html}}</ref>

This palace has distinct Gujarati and Rajasthani architectural patterns.<ref>{{cite web|title=Jodha Bai Mahal|url= https://www.uptourism.gov.in/en/article/jodha-bai-mahal}}</ref> Many motifs can be found in the interior like swans, elephants, parrots, Srivastava marks etc. There is a suite in the palace which served as a temple. It contains vedikas and other Hindu motifs. The suite has pillars with brackets. The western suite, which serves the purpose of the temple, contains beautiful curvilinear pillars with brackets. The superstructure of the building comprises chhatris, pillars with wall brackets, semicircular domes and several niches. The palace is built with red sandstone which also makes it very beautiful.

==Gallery==
{{commons category|Shabistan-i Iqbal}}
<gallery>
File:"JODHA BAI PALACE".jpg|The bedroom complex inside the palace
File:Entrance to Queen's Palace (Fatehpur Sikri).jpg|Entrance to Queen's Palace
File:Fatehpur Sikri - Visit During WCI 2016 (87).jpg|The Rajasthani style-influenced entrance to Empress Palace
File:Fatehpur Sikri - Visit During WCI 2016 (94).jpg|Tulsi math in front of the temple in queen's Palace
File:Fatehpur Sikri DSC 0107.JPG|Hindu architectural design on the pillars of the temple inside Jodha Bai Mahal
File:Fatehpur Sikri DSC 0116.JPG|Temple with a tulsi math in the middle of the courtyard
File:Fatehpur Sikri DSC 0131.JPG|Rajasthani style chattris in the faux window. A typical example of medieval period Hindu architecture
File:Fatehpur Sikri Fort 154.jpg|A window with Mughal and Rajasthani culture style
File:Fatehpur Sikri Fort 167.jpg|The open style Hindu temple inside the palace
File:Fatehpur Sikri Fort 170.jpg|An example of the textural amalgamation of Mughal and Rajasthani design
File:Fatehpur Sikri Fort 176.jpg|A typical faux window design showing Rajasthani and Gujrat influence in the Palace
</gallery>

==See also==
*[[Jahangiri Mahal]]
*[[Ibadat Khana]]
*[[Panch Mahal]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://www.agraindia.org.uk/fatehpur-sikri/imperial-harem/jodha-bais-palace.html Jodha Bai Palce in Fatehpur Sikri]

{{coord|27.0965|77.6648|type:landmark_region:IN|display=title}}

[[Category:Mariam-uz-Zamani]]
[[Category:Fatehpur Sikri]]
[[Category:Forts in Uttar Pradesh]]
[[Category:Mughal architecture]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Agra district]]
[[Category:Sandstone buildings in India]]
[[Category:Royal residences in India]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Agra district]]
[[Category:Archaeological monuments in Uttar Pradesh]]
[[Category:Akbar]]
[[Category:1659 establishments in the Mughal Empire]]

Jodha Bai Mahal - Revision history

Bot at 10:11, 24 November 2022