or square, where is the very beauiful Mosque of Wazir Khan. It was built in 1634 by Hakim 'Alaud-din of Chiniot, Governor of the Panjab under Shah Jahan. The brick walls are covered with inlaid work called Nakkashi, a kind of mosaic of glazed tiles, lately renewed where necessary. The colours of the tiles are burnt in, and they are set in hard mortar. The yellow ground of the tile-work is extremely effective and beautiful. Over the noble entrance is written in Persian: Remove thy heart from the gardens of the world, and know that this building is the true abode of man.' It was completed in 1634 A.D. The architect was Hidayat-ullah, the faithful servant of Wazir Khan. In the centre front of the mosque is the Moslem creed, and in panels along the façade are beautifully written verses from the Koran. From the gallery round the minarets, about 3 ft. broad, there is a very fine view over the city, which is truly Oriental and picturesque. Beyond the chauk is the Delhi Gate of the city, from which the Landa Bazar now leads to the railway station. The magnificent palace of Dara Shikoh and the great Tripulia Bazar lay between the city and the station; and the houses and gardens and tombs of the nobles extended along the Ravi as far E. as Shalimar. The ruined tomb of Mir Mannu adjoins the open space W. of the railway station; the mosque E. of the station, now used as a railway office, was built by a foster-mother of Shah Jahan in 1635.1 The picturesqueness of the old town must appeal to every one, but to artists it will be found of especial interest. The balconies and projecting oriel windows of the irregular brick houses, together with the variety and colour of the cos 1 The mosque of Dai Anga was restored to the Muhammadans at the instance of Lord Curzon. tumes of the people, form a striking picture. The most effective corners will be found at the N. ends of the streets leading from the Mori and Lohari Gates. In front of the latter the Anar Kali Bazar runs form. down to the Panjab Museum. To the E. of it lie the King Edward Memorial, with the Albert Victor Memorial wing, the Lady Aitchison Female Hospital, and the Lady Lyall Nurses' Home. A college for girls is being started in memory of the visit of Queen Mary. Near the S.W. corner of the Civil Station is the Chauburji (Four Towers) gateway. This beautiful but ruined building, which led to the garden of Zebunnissa Begam, a daughter of the Emperor Aurangzeb, is faced with blue and green encaustic tiles. This lady, who died in 1669 A.D., long before her father, and who was a poetess under the name of Makhfi (Hidden), is buried at Nawan Kot, I m. S. from this garden. Excursions from Lahore. The Shalimar Gardens are 5 m. E. from the railway station. About half way to them is the gateway to the Gulabi Bagh, or Rose Garden, laid out in 1655 by Sultan Beg, Admiral of the Fleet to Shah Jahan. The Nakkashi work of coloured tiles on the gate is very beautiful, and hardly inferior to that on Wazir Khan's Mosque. On the gateway is inscribed in Persian : 'Sweet is this garden; through envy of it the tulip is spotted, The rose of the sun and moon forms its beautiful lamp.' Close to this is the tomb of Sharfunnissa Begam, sister of Zakaria Khan, with paintings of cypress-trees. There are many dargas and gardens near this building, to which on holidays crowds of people go on pilgrimage. Between them and the river is the village of Begampur. The ruined octagonal tomb to the E., known as the Bagga Gumbaz, or White Dome, is the tomb of Yahia Khan, and not far off are the mosque and grave of Zakaria Khan and his father, in a garden of the former, whose palace was at this place. Nearer the river again is the garden tomb of Shah Bilawal, a saint honoured by Shah Jahan, where Maharaja Sher Singh was murdered in 1843. Opposite to the Gulabi Bagh, across a field on the S. side of the road, is the Tomb of 'Ali Mardan Khan, the celebrated engineer, who also created the Shalimar Gardens. Its lofty archway retains traces of exquisitely coloured tiles. 50 yds. S. of this is the octagonal tomb, built of brick, now much ruined. The Shalimar Gardens were laid out in 1637 A.D. by order of Shah Jahan. They are divided into three parts, in tiers of different levels; the highest was known as the Farhat Bakhsh, and the two lowest as Faiz Bakhsh. The whole extent is about 80 acres, surrounded by a wall, with a large gateway and pavilions at each corner. Canals traverse the garden, and there is a tank in the centre with an island and a passage across to it. There are one hundred small fountains in the first garden, and double that number in the tank. The trees are chiefly mangoes, and the garden is laid out in monotonous square beds. Once, when the cement was intact and the frescoes new, it must have been a very pretty place; but now it strikes the eye as rather decayed and shabby. On the opposite side of the road are two other gardens, the Sindhanwala and Misr Brij. Lal's; to the E. is the fine garden of Jama dar Khushhal Singh, and across the road to the N.E. that of Lehna Singh. The Lahore Cantonment, formerly Meean Meer, lies 5 m. to the S.E. of the Civil Station. It is the headquarters of the 3rd Army Division. Six of the nine Army Divisions, it may be noted, are in the corner of India, N.W. of Luck now. The Cantonment, built in the middle of graveyards and upon them, has always been very unhealthy; the dust and heat of the place in summer render it one of the most unpopular in India. Aboutm. to the N.W., on the right of the road from the railway station to the Cantonment, is the Shrine of Meean Meer, a saint from whom the Cantonment has its name, and who was honoured by the Emperors Jahangir and Shah Jahan, his real name being Muhammad Mir. It stands in the centre of a quadrangle 200 ft. sq., on a marble platform. Over the entrance are an inscription in Persian and the date= 1635 a.d. The left side of the enclosure is occupied by a mosque. The disarmament of the Native Regiments at Meean Meer, on 13th May 1857, by BrigadierGeneral Corbett, was perhaps the most important of all the steps taken at the commencement of the Mutiny to secure the Panjab and ensure the taking of Delhi. It was carried out quietly and effectively by the 81st Regiment and the artillery of the station, in the presence of the Judicial Commissioner, Mr Robert Montgomery, Sir John Lawrence being at the time in Rawalpindi. The 81st also occupied the Fort of Lahore and the Govindgarh Fort at Amritsar. Returning towards the city, the traveller will pass on the right the village of Shahu-ki-Ghari, where are a number of large tombs, some with cupolas, but all more or less ruined. Some way W. of the village is Kila Gujar Singh, so called from one of the Bhangi Sardars, and near it, and upon the main road from the Civil Station to the railway station, is the most venerated tomb in Lahore or its vicinity. It is called the Tomb of Bibi Pakdaman (the chaste lady). According to tradition, this saint was the daughter of the younger brother of Ali by a different mother. Her real name was Rakiya Khanum, and she was the eldest of six sisters, who are all buried here, and who fled with her from Bagdad after the massacre at Karbala; she died in 728 A.D., at the age of ninety. Visitors are expected to take off their shoes. There are five enclosures, and the tomb of Rakiya is in the fifth. It is of brick, whitewashed. Shahdara is situated beyond the road bridge, on the right bank of the Ravi, about 1 m. to the N. of the railway bridge over that river. The journey by rail is 5 m. to the Shahdara station, from which the Tomb of the Emperor Jahangir is 14 m. It is more convenient to go in a carriage (about 5 m. drive). Before crossing the railway is seen (right) the tomb of Nurjahan, wife of Jahangir, a plain building of one storey; it has been restored and is surrounded by fine lawns and flower-beds. After crossing the railway a domed building is passed on the left. This is the tomb of Asaf Khan (see below); and immediately E. of it is the enclosure, which was the sarai or outer court of the mausoleum. An archway of white marble, and 50 ft. high, leads into the garden court of Jahangir's mausoleum, once the Dilkusha garden of the Empress Nurjahan (Mihr - un- nissa). The mausoleum consists of a fine terraced platform, not unlike the lowest terrace at Sikandra (p. 242), with four minarets at the corners and a small pavilion over the tomb chamber in the centre.1 The passage to the tomb chamber is paved with beautifully streaked marble. The cenotaph is of white marble, inlaid with pietra dura work, and stands in the centre of an octagonal chamber. On the E. and W. sides are the ninetynine names of God, most beautifully carved, and on the S. side is inscribed, The Glorious Tomb of His High Majesty, Asylum of Protectors, Nur-ud-din Muhammad, the Emperor Jahangir,' 1627 A.D. On the four sides are exquisite screens of lattice-work. The lamp over the tomb was presented by the Maharana of Kotah. Outside the entrance a staircase leads up to the flat roof of the terrace, covered with a fine marble tessellated pavement. The minaret at each corner is 95 ft. high from the platform. The marble parapet which ran round the pavement was taken away by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, but has been restored. The minarets are four storeys high, and are built of magnificent blocks of stone 8 ft. long. From the top there is a fine view over the Ravi to the city of Lahore. once The Tomb of Asaf Khan, brother of the Empress Nurjahan, is an octagon surmounted by a dome. It has been utterly ruined and almost entirely stripped of the lovely kashi work which adorned it. In the portals some fragments still remain to show how splendid it once was. The cenotaph is of white marble. The Tughra writing on it is extremely fine, and resembles that on the tomb of Jahangir. The gardens here and round the Emperor's 1 The model of the tomb was that of Itimad-ud-daula at Agra (see p. 241). Tomb have been much improved of late. Asaf Khan and his sister had entire control over the indolent Jahangir during the last years of his life. Before marrying Jahangir, Nurjahan was married to an Afghan, Ali Kuli Khan, who lived at Burhanpur. Jahangir compassed his death, and carried Nurjahan away to Delhi; as she refused to marry him, he imprisoned her in a small palace, and made her an allowance of 14 annas a day. Eventually Asaf Khan persuaded her to marry Jahangir. On his death Nurjahan wished a younger son of the Emperor married to her daughter by her Afghan husband to succeed him : but Asaf Khan stood by Shah Jahan, and the ex-Queen at once retired into private life. Asaf Khan died six years later, having attained to the rank of Khan-i-Khanan and Governor of Lahore; and his tomb was erected by the Emperor, who was himself born at Lahore. Nurjahan survived her brother for four years. 18 m. W. of Lahore is Shaikhpura, formerly Jahangirabad, the hunting - seat of Jahangir and of Dara Shikoh, the eldest brother of Aurangzeb. The road crosses the bridge over the Ravi. Further up-stream the river-pavilion of Kamran has been demolished. The road, at about 4 m., enters a dreary tract of long grass and jungle. A bridge over the Baghbachcha (Tiger Cub), a branch of the Dig, is then passed. At Mandiali there is a good Road Chauki, standing 100 yds. back from the road. On the left, at Shaikhpura, is a garden-house built by Rani Nakayan, Queen of Ranjit Singh. At the S.W. corner of the garden is her Samadh, an octagonal building. Over the door is a picture of the ten Gurus, with an inscription. Across the road is a very clean and comfortable house which or en 43 m. Gujranwala station (R., D.B. with four suites of rooms) (population 29,472). Headquarters of a District, and the birthplace of Ranjit Singh. At m. beyond the station is the Samadh of Mahan Singh, father of the great Maharaja. It is an octagonal building, 81 ft. high to the top of the gilt ornament on the summit. Within are the sculptured rosettes knobs which mark where the ashes are deposited. The large rosette surrounded by twelve smaller ones is inscribed Sarkar Ranjit Singh." That nearest the trance is in memory of a blue pigeon that fell down into the flames in which Ranjit Singh and his concubines were being consumed. Other rosettes mark the ashes of Mahan Singh Padshah, Maharaja Sher Singh, and Sarkar Nau Nihal Singhji. There is a narrow but lofty pavilion, covered with mythological pictures, among which is one of Duryodhana ordering Draupadi (p. lxxii) to be stripped. As fast as the clothes were pulled off her she was supernaturally reclothed. At 100 yds. to the E. is the pavilion of Mahan Singh, a handsome building, now used as the reading-room of the town. Close to the market-place is the house where Ranjit Singh was born, with a frieze of geese round the courtyard. N.E. of the town is the Barahdari, or pavilion, of the famous General Hari Singh Nalwa. It stands in 40 acres of garden and grounds. To the E. is a pavilion 12 ft. high, full of small niches for lamps. On the E. wall is a painting of warriors and elephants, now almost gone. At 70 yds. to the N. of the house is the Samadh of Hari Singh (see p. 339). The place where the ashes lie is marked by a knob shaped like a budding flower. There are no sati memorials. A picture on the wall inside is a portrait of Hari Singh hawking, with a string of ducks passing over his head. The gardens famous round Gujranwala are for oranges. Gujranwala is now famous for iron safes, which are being exported in large numbers. 62 m. Wazirabad junction station (R., D.B. with four suites of rooms) (17,146 inhabitants). From here a line runs N.E. to Sialkot and Jammu (see below). This place, founded by Wazir Khan in the reign of Shah Jahan, became, under the rule of Ranjit Singh,1 the headquarters of General Avitabile, who built a completely new town on the plan of a parallelogram, surrounded by a wall. A broad bazar runs from end to end. Close to the town is one of the most famous gardens in the Panjab, laid out by Diwan Thakur Das Chopra. N. of Wazirabad is the great Alexandra Bridge over the Chenab, opened on 27th January 1876 by King Edward VII., then Prince of Wales. The Chenab was a most difficult stream to deal with, owing to the sudden furious floods to which it is subject and the absence of a welldefined river-bed. An expedition may be made by branch line from Wazirabad to Sialkot. Wazirabad is famous for its cutlery, sword-sticks, and canesticks. 27 m. Sialkot station (D.B.). A town with military Cantonment I m. N. (population 64,869). Sialkot has been identified with the ancient Sagala, the capital of the Indo-Greek Menander (the Milinda of the Buddhists) and of Mihirakula the Hun. The Church is a striking object, having a steeple 150 ft. high. Near the railway station and the city is a lofty old fort, in which the British residents took refuge on the mutiny of the two native regiments on 9th July 1857. A number, however, were killed before they could make their escape, and Brigadier-General Brind, com 1 See p. lxxxvii. |