The Taj Mahal in Agra India is
considered one of the best
examples of Mughal architecture in
India. The history of the Taj Mahal
is one of the great love stories of
the world.
The Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan
ruled from 1628 to 1658 and was
married to Arjumand Bano Begum
in 1612 A.D. He called his wife
Mumtaz Mahal or Crown of the
Palace, because she was so
precious to him. Mumtaz Mahal and
Shah Jahan had 14 children and
the queen accompanied Shah
Jahan everywhere, even on military
campaigns. It was on one of these
campaigns, in Burhanpur in central
India, that Mumtaz Mahal died in
1631, shortly after giving birth to
her 14th child. Her dying wish to
Shah Jahan was that he should
"build a tomb in her memory such
as the world had never seen
before." The history of the Taj
Mahal begins with Mumtaz Mahal's
tragic end.
Shah Jahan fulfilled her wish,
creating the most beautiful
mausoleum the world had ever
seen. Shah Jahan was deposed by
his son Aurangzeb. He spent the
last years of his life under house
arrest in the Agra Fort. He used to
spend his time looking across the
Yamuna River at the beautiful tomb
he had built for his beloved
empress, waiting for the day they
could be united again. After Shah
Jahan's death in 1666 A.D., he too
was laid to rest beside his beloved
Mumtaz Mahal. Their real tombs are
in a basement of the Taj Mahal. The
two ornately decorated tombs on
the ground floor, sheltered by the
dome of the Taj Mahal are part of
the stylistic design of this beautiful
monument in Agra India. The
history of the Taj Mahal is the
history of the steadfast love of a
Mughal Emperor for his Queen.
It took 22 years for the Taj Mahal
to be completed. A huge labor
force of 20,000 workers led by
Muhammed Hanif, the head of the
masons and the Persian architect
Ustad Isa or Ustad Ahmad Lahauri,
were employed in its construction.
Finished in 1648, the Taj Mahal
cost the Mughal exchequer 32
million rupees. The Taj Mahal has
been described by the poet Sir
Edwin Arnold, as"Not a piece of
architecture, as other buildings
are, but the proud passions of an
emperor's love wrought in living
stones."
The aesthetic beauty of this
beautiful mausoleum is enhanced
by the romantic story that inspired
its construction. Tourists come
from around the world come to
Agra, to feel the aura of eternal
love that surrounds the Taj Mahal.
The history of the Taj Mahal is a
love story that transcends time and
continues to be retold each day to
the tourists who visit the Taj Mahal
in Agra India.