Badshahi Mosque

The Badshahi Mosque (Punjabi and Urdu: Badshahi Mosque, or "Imperial Mosque") is a Mughal era mosque in Lahore, capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan. (1) The mosque is located west of Lahore Fort alongside the outskirts of Walled City of Lahore, (2) and is widely considered to be one of Lahore's most iconic landmarks. The Badshahi Mosque was built by Emperor Aurangzeb in 1671, with the construction of the mosque lasting for two years until 1673. The mosque is an important example of Mughal architecture, with an exterior that is decorated with carved red sandstone with marble inlay. It remains the largest mosque of the Mughal-era, and is the second-largest mosque in Pakistan. [4] After the fall of the Mughal Empire, the mosque was used as a garrison by the Sikh Empire and the British Empire, and is now one of Pakistan's most iconic sights. The mosque is located adjacent to the Walled City of Lahore, Pakistan. The entrance to the mosque lies on the western side of the rectangular Hazuri Bagh, and faces the famous Alamgiri Gate of the Lahore Fort, which is located on the eastern side of the Hazuri Bagh. The mosque is also located next to the Roshnai Gate, one of the original thirteen gates of Lahore, which is located to the southern side of Hazuri Bagh. [5] Near the entrance of the mosque lies the Tomb of Muhammad Iqbal, a poet widely revered in Pakistan as the founder of the Pakistan Movement which led to the creation of Pakistan as a homeland for the Muslims of British India. [6] Also located near the mosque's entrance is the tomb of Sir Sikandar Hayat Khan, who is credited for playing a major role in preservation and restoration of the mosque The sixth Mughal emperor, Aurangzeb, chose Lahore as the site for his new imperial mosque. Aurangzeb, unlike the previous emperors, was not a major patron of art and architecture and instead focused, during much of his reign, on various military conquests which added over 3 million square kilometers to the Mughal realm. [8] The mosque was built to commemorate military campaigns against the Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji, although construction of the mosque exhausted the Mughal treasury and weakened the Mughal state. [4] As a symbol of the mosque's importance, it was built directly across from the Lahore Fort and its Alamgiri Gate, which was concurrently built by Aurangzeb during the construction of the mosque The mosque was commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1671, with construction overseen by the Emperor's foster brother, and Governor of Lahore, Muzaffar Hussein - also known by the name Fidai Khan Koka. [9] Aurangzeb had the mosque built in order to commemorate his military campaigns against the Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji. [4] After only two years of construction, the mosque was opened in 1673. Sikh era The Samadhi of Ranjit Singh (white edifice) is a Sikh shrine that was built next to the mosque in 1848. On 7 July 1799, the Sikh army of Ranjit Singh took control of Lahore. [10] After the capture of the city, Maharaja Ranjit Singh used its vast courtyard as a stable for his army horses, and its 80 Hujras (small study rooms surrounding the courtyard) as quarters for his soldiers and as magazines for military stores. [11] In 1818, he built a marble edifice in the Hazuri Bagh facing the mosque, known as the Hazuri Bagh Baradari, [12] which he used as his official royal court of audience. [13] Marble slabs for the baradari may have been plundered by the Sikhs from other monuments in Lahore. [14] During the First Anglo-Sikh War in 1841, Ranjit Singh's son, Sher Singh, used the mosque's large minarets to place zamburahs or light guns which were used to bombard the supporters of Chand Kaur, who had taken refuge in the besieged Lahore Fort. In one of these bombardments, the fort's Diwan-e-Aam (Hall of Public Audience) was destroyed, but was subsequently rebuilt in the British era. [2] During this time, Henri de La Rouche, a French cavalry officer employed in the army of Sher Singh, [15] also used a tunnel connecting the Badshahi mosque to the Lahore fort to temporarily store gunpowder. [16] In 1848, the Samadhi of Ranjit Singh was built for the Sikh ruler Ranjit Singh at a site immediately adjacent to the mosque after his death.