S H A H    JA H A N

        Shah Jahan's most ambitious project was by far the creation of Shajahanabad. In 1648, Shah Jahan made Shahjahanabad the new capital of his kingdom. Shahjahanabad remained the capital of the Mughal dynasty until its fall. This project included the construction of many buildings, including mosques and schools. One of the most prominent and still standing buildings today is the Jama Masjid (pictures on Architectural Achievements page). Jama Masjid was one of the largest congregational mosques of its time. Even today, it is still in daily use for devotees to pray in. Shahjahanabad was the seventh city of Delhi and was secured and enclosed by about a ten kilometer long well.  It was a walled city, and some of its gates and parts of the wall still stand. Ten gates connected the city with the surrounding region called Lahore making them the main entrances for the Red Port besides The Delhi Gate. All the other gates were the other major links of the city with the roadways that functioned the way modern highways do.  On March 9th, 1739, Nadir Shah defeated Mohammad Shah at Panipat and entered Delhi. He massacred the inhabitants and took over almost the entire wealth of Shahjahanabad which was accumulated by the Mughals in India. He destroyed much of the region, but some buildings from Shahjahanabad still stand as proud monuments to Shah Jahan's magnificent city.