10 Historically Important Places In India

The Taj Mahal of Agra is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, for reasons more than just looking magnificent. It's the history of Taj Mahal that adds a soul to its magnificence: a soul that is filled with love, loss, remorse, and love again. Because if it was not for love, the world would have been robbed of a fine example upon which people base their relationships. An example of how deeply a man loved his wife, that even after she remained but a memory, he made sure that this memory would never fade away. This man was the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, who was head-over-heels in love with Mumtaz Mahal, his dear wife. She was a Muslim Persian princess (her name Arjumand Banu Begum before marriage) and he was the son of the Mughal Emperor Jehangir and grandson of Akbar the Great. It was at the age of 14 that he met Mumtaz and fell in love with her. Five years later in the year 1612, they got married.

This India Gate is the monument that has enormous historical significance. This monument was planned by the architect Sir Edwin Lutyen and is the gateway that is 42 meter high. He also laid down the plan of Delhi. Duke of Connaught was the person who laid down the foundation stone of this historical monument. In the month of Feb 1921 India Gate’s construction got completed. India Gate nowdays is being considered as one of the most famous picnic spot among the other tourist places of Delhi by the tourists as well as the people of Delhi. India Gate is also popular by another name 'All India War Memorial' that was built in Delhi in the memory and honor of 90000 soldiers who got died in the 1st World War as well as the 3rd War of Anglo Afghan.

Raigad fort is located around 2850 feets high from the sea level. The fort is situated at highest peak of Sahyadri Mountains and because of that, fort gets the protection naturally. In 1664, King Shivaji declared Raigad as the capital of his empire. Shiv Rajyabhishek (crowning ceremony of King Shivaji) is an important event in the History of India. In April 1680, the King Shivaji passed away and Aurangzeb taken charge of the fort after beating Shivaji’s son Chhatrapati Sambhaji. Again Chhatrapati Shahu’s army gets the fort in 1734. From 1734 to 1758 Peshavas ruled Raigad Fort. British Officer Colonel Prarther attacked on Raigad Fort in 1818 and destroyed most of structures including King Shivaji’s and Queen’s palaces. They got around Rs.500,000/- in form of gold coins as hoard.

The dynasty was established by Vijaya, Vijaya took on the name and ruled Mysore, then a small town, from 1399 CE to 1423 CE. The Wadiyars of Vijaya's dynasty belong to the ArasuWadiyar community of Karnataka, which includes many of the noble clans of the region. The Mysore kingdom was ruled by a succession of Wadiyar rulers for the next couple of centuries. However, the kingdom remained fairly small during this early period and was a part of the Vijayanagara Empire. Later, after the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565, the Kingdom of Mysore became independent and remained so until 1799. The Kingdom of Mysore came under the British during the reign of King Krishnaraja Wadiyar III (1799-1868). His successors changed the English spelling of their royal name to Wadiyar, and took the title of Bahadur. The last two monarchs also accepted the British decoration G.B.E

Gandhi first created Kochrab Ashram, which was located in proper Ahmedabad city; however, in 1917 an epidemic plague broke out that forced them to leave the site. Several visits were made to the Sabarmati sight, which incidentally holds its own glory in Hindu mythology as a famous incident of extreme sacrifice. The land was far from the city of Ahmedabad, surrounded by jungle full of snakes, and situated along the steep rugged cliffs of the Sabarmati River. Nearby, was a British Prison filled with the sounds of iron chains of the inmates engaged in manual labor. Thunder, lightening, and heavy rains marked the day of Gandhi’s final decision.

Guru Arjan Sahib, the Fifth Nanak, conceived the idea of creating a central place of worship for the Sikhs and he himself designed the architecture of Sri Harmandir Sahib. Earlier the planning to excavate the holy tank (Amritsar or Amrit Sarovar) was chalked out by Guru Amardas Sahib, the Third Nanak, but it was executed by Guru Ramdas Sahib under the supervision of Baba Budha ji. The land for the site was acquired by the earlier Guru Sahibs on payment or free of cost from the Zamindars (landlords) of native villages. The plan to establish a town settlement was also made. Therefore, the construction work on the Sarovar (the tank) and the town started simultaneously in 1570. The work on both projects completed in 1577 A.D.

The 1919 Amritsar massacre, known alternatively as the Jallianwala Bagh massacre after the Jallianwala Bagh (Garden) in the northern Indian city of Amritsar, was ordered by General R.E.H. Dyer. On Sunday April 13, 1919, which happened to be 'Baisakhi', one of Punjab's largest religious festivals, fifty British Indian Army soldiers, commanded by Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer, began shooting at an unarmed gathering of men, women, and children without warning. Dyer marched his fifty riflemen to a raised bank and ordered them to kneel and fire. Dyer ordered soldiers to reload their rifles several times and they were ordered to shoot to kill. Official British Raj sources estimated the fatalities at 379, and with 1,100 wounded. Civil Surgeon Dr Williams DeeMeddy indicated that there were 1,526 casualties. However, the casualty number quoted by the Indian National Congress was more than 1,500, with roughly 1,000 killed.

Udaipur City Palace is one of the architectural marvels of Rajasthan, located peacefully on the banks of Lake Pichola. This majestic City Palace is the most-visited tourist attraction of Udaipur and often distinguished as the largest palace complex in Rajasthan. Initially, Maharana Udai Singh built this superb wonder, but the present form of the Palace is the result of subsequent additions by his successors. City Palace boasts of the wonderful blend of Medieval, European and Chinese Architecture. The Palace has various towers, domes and arches, which add to the flavor of heritage site. Towering on the banks of Pichola Lake, City Palace is truly a feast to the eyes. City Palace is a marvelous assortment of courtyards, pavilions, terraces, corridors, rooms and hanging gardens. Encircled by fortifications, this imposing Palace is wholly built in granite and marble.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is one of the busiest as well as the oldest railway stations in India. Situated at the D.N. Road of Mumbai, the terminus was earlier known by the name of Victoria Terminus. It is one of the historic structures in the city and forms a very important part of Mumbai suburban railway. Along with that, Chhattrapati Shivaji Terminus is also the headquarters of the Central Railways of the country. Apart from local trains, a number of long distance trains also operate to and from this terminus.

Since the time of Mahammad Ghori, Orissa was raided several times by the Muslims, but the Hindu kings of Orissa could resist them definitely for a longer period. The Hindus were aware that it would be rather impossible for them to tackle with such a warrior nation and to drive them permanently out of their their country. The beauty of the Sun-rise and the roaring voice of the sea charmed Narasimhadeva since his early life. The river chandrabhaga which is now dead, was once flowing within a mile to the north of the temple site and was joining the sea. On its banks, existed flourishing towns and important trading centres. Trade was carried on with foreign countries as well, by sea routes, as there was no better communication other than the river in those days.