The Royal Palace

A logical place to begin a tour of the palace complex is the Diwan-i-Am, where important festivals were held, and where citizens could exercise their right to petition the emperor. Unlike the ornate pillared Diwan-i-Am buildings at the forts in Agra and Delhi, it is basically just a large courtyard, surrounded by a continuous colonnaded walkway with Hindu-style square columns and capitals, and broken only by the small pavilion, flanked by elaborately carved jali screens, in which the emperor himself would have sat – the position of the royal platform forced the emperor’s subjects to approach him from the side in an attitude of humility.

A doorway in the northwest corner of the Diwan-i-Am leads to the centre of the mardana (men’s quarters), a large, irregularly shaped enclosure dotted with a strikingly eclectic range of buildings. At the far (northern) end of the enclosure stands the tall Diwan-i-Khas (“Hall of Private Audience”), topped with four chhatris and embellished with the heavily carved Hindu-style brackets, large overhanging eaves and corbelled arches which are typical of the architecture of Fatehpur Sikri.

The interior of the building consists of a single high hall (despite the appearance outside of a two-storey building) centred on an elaborately corbelled column known as the Throne Pillar, supporting a large circular platform from which four balustraded bridges radiate outwards. Seated upon this throne, the emperor held discussions with representatives of diverse religions, aiming to synthesize India’s religions into one. The pillar symbolizes this project by incorporating motifs drawn from Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and Christianity.

Next to the Diwan-i-Khas lies the three-roomed Treasury, its brackets embellished by mythical sea creatures, guardians of the treasures of the deep; it’s also known as Ankh Michauli, meaning hide and seek, which it’s said was played here – in fact both names are probably just fanciful inventions, and the building most likely served as a multi-purpose pavilion which could be used for a variety of functions, as could most buildings in Mughal palaces. Attached to it is the so-called Astrologer’s Seat, a small pavilion embellished with elaborate Jain carvings.

In the middle of the courtyard, separating the Diwan-i-Khas from the buildings on the opposite (south) side of the complex is the Pachisi Court, a giant board used to play pachisi (similar to ludo). Akbar is said to have been a fanatical player, using slave girls dressed in colourful costumes as live pieces. Abu’l Fazl, the court chronicler, related that at “times more than two hundred persons participated, and no one was allowed to go home until he had played sixteen rounds. This could take up to three months. If one of the players lost his patience and became restless, he was made to drink a cupful of wine. Seen superficially, this appears to be just a game. But His Majesty pursues higher objectives. He weighs up the talents of his people and teaches them to be affable.”

Diagonally opposite the pachisi board, the House of the Turkish Sultana (or Anup Talao Pavilion) gained its name from the popular belief that it was the residence of one of Akbar’s favourite wives, the Sultana Ruqayya Begum – though this seems unlikely given its location in the centre of the men’s quarters. The name was probably made up by nineteenth-century guides to titillate early tourists, and the building is more likely to have served as a simple pleasure pavilion. Its superbly carved stone walls are covered with a profusion of floral and geometrical designs, plus some partially vandalized animal carvings.

South of here is the Anup Talao (Peerless Pool), a pretty little ornamental pond divided by four walkways connected to a small “island” in the middle – a layout reminiscent of the raised walkways inside the Diwan-i-Khas.

Facing the Turkish Sultana’s house from the other side of the Anup Talao are Akbar’s former private sleeping and living quarters, the Daulat Khana (“Abode of Fortune”). The room on the ground floor with alcoves in its walls was the emperor’s library, where he would be read to (he himself was illiterate) from a collection of fifty thousand manuscripts he allegedly took everywhere with him. Behind the library is the imperial sleeping chamber, the Khwabgah (“House of Dreams”), with an enormous raised bed in its centre.

One of Fatehpur Sikri’s most famous structures, the Panch Mahal or “Five-Storeyed Palace”, looms northwest of here, marking the beginning of the zenana (women’s quarters) which make up the entire western side of the palace complex. The palace tapers to a final single kiosk and is supported by 176 columns of varying designs; the ground floor contains 84 pillars – an auspicious number in Hindu astrology. The open spaces between the pillars were originally covered with latticed screens, so that ladies of the zenana could observe goings-on in the courtyard of the mardana below without themselves being seen.

Directly behind the Panch Mahal, a courtyard garden was reserved for the zenana (harem). The adjoining Sunahra Makan (Golden House), also known as Mariam’s House, is variously thought to have been the home of the emperor’s mother or of Akbar’s wife Mariam. It is enlivened by the faded remains of paintings on its walls (whose now vanished golden paint gave the pavilion its name), by the lines of verse penned by Abu’l Fazl, inscribed around the ceiling in blue bands, and by the quaint little carvings tucked into the brackets supporting the roof, including several elephants and a tiny carving of Rama attended by Hanuman (on the north side of the building, facing the zenana courtyard garden).

Solemnly presiding over the whole complex is the main harem, known as Jodhbai’s Palace. The residence of several of the emperor’s senior wives, this striking building is the grandest and largest in the entire city, and looks decidedly Hindu even in the eclectic context of Fatehpur Sikri, having been modelled after Rajput palaces such as those at Gwalior and Orchha.

On the north side of the palace, the Hawa Mahal (“Palace of the Winds”), a small screened tower with a delicately carved chamber, was designed to catch the evening breeze, while a raised covered walkway, lined with five large chhatris, leads from here to a (now vanished) lake.

Northwest of Jodhbai’s Palace lies a third women’s palace, known as Birbal’s Palace – though this is another misnomer, as Birbal, Akbar’s favourite courtier, was a man and would have been most unwelcome in the middle of the zenana. It’s more likely to have been the residence of two of Akbar’s senior wives.

At the southwestern corner of the palace complex, with the village of Fatehpur Sikri nestling at its base, stands the Jama Masjid or Dargah Mosque, one of the finest in the whole of India. Unfortunately, the mosque is rife with self-appointed “guides” who make it all but impossible to enjoy the place in peace. The mosque was apparently completed in 1571, before work on the palace commenced, showing the religious significance which Akbar accorded the entire site. This was due to its connections with the Sufi saint Sheikh Salim Chishti, who is buried here, and who played a crucial role in the founding of Fatehpur Sikri by prophesying the birth of a son to the emperor: when one of Akbar’s wives Rani Jodhabai, a Hindu Rajput princess from Amber, became pregnant she was sent here until the birth of her son Salim, who later became the emperor Jahangir. Fatehpur Sikri was constructed in the saint’s honour.

The neck-cricking Buland Darwaza (Great Gate), a spectacular entrance scaled by an impressive flight of steps, was added around 1576 to commemorate Akbar’s military campaign in Gujarat. Flanked by domed kiosks, the archway of the simple sandstone memorial is inscribed with a message from the Koran: “Said Jesus Son of Mary (peace be on him): The world is but a bridge – pass over without building houses on it. He who hopes for an hour hopes for eternity; the world is an hour – spend it in prayer for the rest is unseen.” The numerous horseshoes nailed to the doors here date from the beginning of the twentieth century – an odd instance of British folk superstition in this very Islamic place.

The gate leads into a vast cloistered courtyard, far larger than any previous mosque in India. The prayer hall, on the west side, is the focus of the mosque, punctuated by an enormous gateway. More eye-catching is the exquisite Tomb of Sheikh Salim Chishti, directly ahead as you enter the courtyard. Much of this was originally crafted in red sandstone and only later faced in marble: the beautiful lattice screens – another design feature probably imported from Gujarat, though it would later become a staple of Mughal architecture – are unusually intricate, with striking serpentine exterior brackets supporting the eaves.