Lalbagh
Fort is the most popular and renowned fort and a great signature of art by
Mughal Empire in Bangladesh. It is also known as Fort Aurangabad. It is located
in Lalbagh of old Dhaka, hence named so. It is situated by the bank of the
river Buriganga in a rich red soil.
History
of Lalbagh Fort
Lalbagh
Fort is an incomplete structure by a Mughal prince and later emperor himself
named Muhammad Azam (third son of Aurangazeb). He started the work of the fort
in 1678 during his vice-royalty in Bangladesh (Previous Bengal). He stayed in
Bengal for 15 months. It remained incomplete when he was called by his father
Aurangazeb to the capital Delhi.
Shaista
Khan was the new Subedar (Governor) of Dhaka in that time, and he did not
complete the fort. In 1684, the daughter of Shaista Khan named Iran Dukht (Pari
Bibi) died there. After her death, he started thinking the fort as ominous, and
left the structure incomplete. Among the 3 major parts of Lalbagh Fort, one is
the tomb of Pari Bibi.
After
Shaista Khan left Dhaka, it lost its popularity. The main cause was that the
capital was shifted from Dhaka to Murshidabad. After the end of royal Mughal
period, the fort became abandoned. In 1844, the area achieved its name as
Lalbagh replacing Aurangabad, so the fort as Lalbagh Fort.
Different
parts of Lalbagh Fort
Lalbagh
Fort consists of three buildings:
- The Mosque (west side)
- The tomb of Pari-Bibi (middle of east-west of the fort)
- The Diwan-i-aam palace (east side)
The
mosque was used for prayer in that time, and still in use. The beautiful
structure and the handy work there are great. People get amazed by seeing this
kind of royal art. Many Islamic art and wall designs are preserved there.
Shaista
khan couldn’t make this fort better but designing the tomb of Pari Bibi
gorgeously. He brought Marble stone, tiles, handy-crafts of flower-leaves
there. This is the only place in Bangladesh where 9 rooms under there decorated
with this kind of items. The roofs are made of black stones. In the top of the
tomb, the dome is covered with pure copper. This beautiful 20.2 meter tomb was
inaugurated in 1688.
Diwan-i-aam
is the greatest part of Lalbagh Fort. It was used as office in that time.
Diwan-i-aam is the place from where the Mughal ruler gave directions to the
ordinary people once in a week. There is also a royal bathroom known as Hammam.
There
are 3 gateways to enter the fort. The southern gateway is the most important
and one can see it from Buriganga. It has a three-storied structure. But the
middle structure is covered by Minaret. That is why it looks like a 2 storied
structure.
In
the total area of Lalbagh fort there are also Royal gardens and a drainage
system. After a certain time Mughal emperor Aurangazeb donated the fort to
Shaista khan in memory of his daughter Pari Bibi. The successor of Shaista khan
got revenue after his death by leasing the fort to the government. After 1853
the cantonment was replaced in Lalbagh Fort from Purana Paltan. Currently, the
Archaeological department of Bangladesh is maintaining this Historical place.
This has become a key tourist attraction in Dhaka. Almost 3 million people
visit this place every year.