Drvikrantkhese at 00:24, 19 January 2026

2026-01-19T00:24:42Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Use Indian English|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox building
| image = Mosque of Ghaziuddin Khan.jpg
| caption = The mosque in the courtyard of Madrasa Ghaziuddin Khan
| location = [[Old Delhi]], [[India]]
| coordinates = {{Coord|format=dms|display=it}}
| architect = [[Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung I|Ghaziuddin Khan]]
| architectural_style = [[Mughal architecture|Mughal]]
| current_tenants = [[Zakir Husain Delhi College]]
| diameter = 69.49m x 96.20m
}}

'''Madrasa Ghaziuddin Khan''' is a historical [[madrasa]] complex located by the [[Ajmeri Gate]] in [[Old Delhi]], [[India]]. It was founded in 1696 by [[Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung I|Ghaziuddin Khan I]], a leading noble of the [[Mughal Empire]]. Following the discontinuation of its original function as a madrasa, it successively housed colonial-era educational institutions, such as Delhi College and the [[Anglo Arabic Senior Secondary School|Anglo-Arabic school]]. Today, the [[Zakir Husain Delhi College]] operates in its premises, making the madrasa the oldest continuing educational centre in the city of Delhi.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Asher |first=Catherine B. |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/chol9780521267281 |title=Architecture of Mughal India |date=1992-09-24 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-26728-1 |pages=274–275 |doi=10.1017/chol9780521267281}}</ref>

The structure is one of the few surviving historical madrasas in India, and one of even fewer madrasas dating back to the Mughal period.<ref name=":1"/> The complex also contains a mosque, and the tomb of Ghaziuddin Khan. The complex is an example of later [[Mughal architecture]] - it displays [[Central Asia]]n inspiration in its format, and [[Shah Jahani architecture|Shah Jahani]] elements in its scheme.

== History ==
{{See also|Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung I|Zakir Husain Delhi College}}The early history of the madrasa is obscure. While older British sources date the founding of the madrasa to 1792, modern scholars agree that it was founded earlier, likely around the turn of the 18th century. The madrasa was founded by [[Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung I|Ghaziuddin Khan I]] (also referred to by his titles Bahadur and Feroze Jung), a noble who rose to prominence during the reign of [[Mughal emperor]] [[Aurangzeb]]. According to historian [[Margrit Pernau]], the structure was likely completed by Ghaziuddin Khan's grandson, [[Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung II|Ghaziuddin Khan II]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Pernau |first=Margrit |title=The Delhi College |date=2006 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-567723-2 |editor-last=Pernau |editor-first=Margrit |location=New-Delhi |pages=4–6 |chapter=Introduction}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Citation |last1=Razzack |first1=Azra |title=Founding of an Institution and Its Journey |date=2023-01-12 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9788194831624.003.0002 |work=The School at Ajmeri Gate |pages=29–C1.N250 |access-date=2023-06-17 |publisher=Oxford University PressDelhi |isbn=978-81-948316-2-4 |last2=Siddiqui |first2=M. Atyab|doi=10.1093/oso/9788194831624.003.0002 |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Koch |first=Ebba |title=The Delhi College |date=2006 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-567723-2 |editor-last=Pernau |editor-first=Margrit |location=New-Delhi |chapter=The Madrasa of Ghaziu'd-Din Khan at Delhi}}</ref>

Little is known of the functioning of the madrasa. It was one of three major madrasas operating during the reign of Aurangzeb's successor, emperor [[Bahadur Shah I|Bahadur Shah]], and was funded privately. The madrasa was closed in the 1790s for lack of funds, but was reopened in 1792, financially supported by wealthy Muslims of Delhi.<ref name=":0" />
[[File:The courtyard of Ghazi al-Din Khan's Madrassah at Delhi 1814-15.jpg|thumb|The courtyard of Ghazi al-Din Khan's Madrassah at Delhi. Watercolour by Sitaram, circa 1814-1815]]
In 1803, the British [[Battle of Delhi (1803)|took control of Delhi]] from the [[Maratha Empire|Marathas]]. They found that the madrasa was in use as a Maratha headquarters, and deemed the structure a security threat due to its proximity to the [[Ajmeri Gate]]. Demolition was considered, but instead the madrasa was incorporated into the walls of [[Shahjahanabad]] as a bastion. In 1824, repairs of the madrasa complex were conducted, following which in 1825, a government oriental college named Delhi College was established on its premises. Delhi College operated in the madrasa complex until 1849, when it was shifted to a different location. Following the [[Indian Mutiny of 1857]], British police occupied the premises until 1889, after which the [[Anglo Arabic Senior Secondary School|Anglo-Arabic school]] began operating in the building.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

In the aftermath of [[Indian independence day|Indian independence]] and the [[Partition of India|Partition]] in 1947, a section of the premises was used for two years as a Pakistani refugee camp. In 1948, [[Zakir Husain]] and [[Maulana Abul Kalam Azad]] revived the site as a school, which today operates as [[Zakir Husain Delhi College]].<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" />

== Architecture ==
The complex of Madrasa Ghaziuddin Khan is one of the few extant Mughal madrasas (others are the [[Khairul Manazil|Khair-ul-Manazil]] and the madrasa at [[Sheikh Chilli's Tomb]]).<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> It is also one of the few historical madrasas found in India; [[Ebba Koch]] reasons that schools may have instead been integrated with mosques, and Subhash Parihar adds that dedicated madrasa buildings were used for the specific function of educating ''[[ulema]]'' rather than for primary education.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Parihar |first=Subhash |date=1992 |title=A Little-Known Mughal College in India: The Madrasa of Shaykh Chillie at Thanesar |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1523142 |journal=Muqarnas |volume=9 |pages=175–185 |doi=10.2307/1523142 |jstor=1523142 |issn=0732-2992|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The conceptualization of the complex as a four-[[iwan]] madrasa-cum-mosque, recalls Central Asian madrasas such as the [[Ulugh Beg Madrasa, Samarkand|Ulugh Beg Madrasa]] (perhaps owing to Ghaziuddin Khan's Bukharan origin).<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> According to Koch, the design scheme also draws on precedents set by [[Shah Jahani architecture]] (architecture of Mughal emperor [[Shah Jahan|Shah Jahan's]] reign), while the stylistic elements are characteristic of later Mughal architecture.<ref name=":1" /> Scholar [[Catherine Asher]] argues that the location of the structure beyond the walls of Shahjahanabad, and the lack of earlier Mughal structures in the area, suggests that this area was undeveloped at the time of construction.<ref name=":2" />

According to Koch, much of the madrasa has preserved its original design. The complex is a rectangular, symmetrical courtyard building (measuring 69.49x96.20m) of three wings; it consists of a main entrance portal, a mosque at the western side (acting as the fourth wing), and an enclosure containing the tomb of Ghaziuddin on the southern side. Each wing, and the mosque itself, is punctuated by an [[iwan]]. The three wings are two-storeyed, and are filled with domed ''hujras'' (cells). The eastern wing (entrance side) is twice as long as the north and south wings, and features the main entrance portal. The wings are faced with plaster.<ref name=":1" />
[[File:Tomb of Ghaziuddin Khan.jpg|thumb|The tomb enclosure of Ghaziuddin Khan.]]
The mosque is freestanding and faced with red [[sandstone]] - it lies on the western end of the complex. It features three domes, and is situated on a raised terrace. The mosque building also contains several halls featuring distinctive pillars. The architecture of the mosque draws from a mosque type established during the reign of emperor Shah Jahan, represented by examples in Delhi like the [[Jama Masjid, Delhi|Jama Masjid]], [[Fatehpuri Masjid]], and the [[Zeenat-ul-Masajid]].<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

An enclosure at the southern side houses the tomb of Ghaziuddin Khan, who was buried in the complex following his death in 1710. The structure is a double enclosure of ''[[jali]]'' screens, with the outer one made of sandstone and the inner one made of marble. Its form is similar to those of tombs used for the burial of Mughal royals during this time period.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Madrasas in India|Ghaziuddin Khan]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures of the Mughal Empire]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Delhi]]

Madrasa Ghaziuddin Khan - Revision history

Drvikrantkhese at 00:24, 19 January 2026