India: A Royal Past

 

India's history is rich with stories of maharajahs (kings) and maharanas (queens). As I've travelled through Rajasthan, I've stopped in many cities and visited their impressive forts and palaces. They are each built in their own unique way, showcasing the time they were built and the influences the builder had from other styles of architecture.

The Royal Gardens at Amber Fort

First was Amber, outside the city Jaipur. The fort was started in 1592 by Maharajah Man Singh. The royal family there reigned for over 800 years! The fort is set on a high hill looking over the beautiful Lake Maota. It has four main sections, which each have their own courtyard. The first, Jaleb Chowk, is the main courtyard where soldiers would show off their loot when they returned from battle. Carved marble screens above the courtyard let women see the action because they weren't allowed in that area (only men were).

The Jai Mandir (Hall of Victory) was the most impressive because of its mirrored walls and ceiling.

After Jaipur, I visited Pushkar and saw its market and ghats (see my previous post), then it was on to Jodhpur. Jodhpur is called the Blue City because many of the buildings in the old, and new, part of town are painted blue because of religious significance. The blue paint is also supposed to repel insects. But when entering the city, I assure you that your eyes won't be noticing the colour of the walls... Your gaze will instead be drawn upwards.... and upwards... to the towering fort above you, Mehrangarh.

Despite the fact that the royal family no longer governs India, this fort is still run by the Jodhpur royals. It houses many royal artifacts, like a collection of elephant howdahs (chairs that sit on top of an elephant for royal family members to travel in style). You can see the rooms decked out as they were hundreds of years ago with stained glass windows and mirrors. The fort was first built in the year 1808.

An Elephant Howdah

The Maharajah's chair in the Royal Entertainment Room

Udaipur was next, a beautiful city built around a lake with buildings that seem to rise up out of the water. The fort, Kumbhalgarh, is found two hours outside of Udaipur in the hills. It's known for having the second longest wall in the world, after the Great Wall of China. Unlike Mehrangarh, it is empty of artifacts, so we visited it to see its impressive views over the hills and a sand-duned desert. It was also great exercise to walk up the windy pathway and through the four gates that helped keep this royal family safe.

The wall is wide enough that eight horses can ride side-by-side!

We unfortunately didn't have enough time to visit the city Jaisalmer, which has its own interesting design. Look it up online; it looks like a giant sandcastle!

As I'm learning more about India's history as I go, I can see how it's steeped with pride and honour. The buildings help you realize what life would have been like hundreds of years ago, and little details teach about the culture.

For example, I noticed beautiful peacock designs used in many of the palaces and learned this noble creature is India's National Bird.

Elephants are a symbol of royally and were used by the royal families in celebrations, as well as during war. Many of the buildings have scenes with elephants fighting or dancing carved into pillars.

Over the last couple of hundred years, the Royal Families have lost all but their ceremonial powers as India has transitioned into becoming the world's largest democratic country.