Being the site of at least 10 different regimes in the History and considered sometimes alongside Lahore as the heritage capital of Asia, Delhi has lots to offer when it comes to monuments. Numerous rulers have ruled Delhi and almost each one of them built something or the other to commemorate their respective era of rule. Therefore you will find minor or major monuments in almost each corners of Delhi.

Start your tour from Old Delhi area and fine what Delhi has embraced in itself for you. You ask for the thing and Delhi will offer. Just visit it once and we bet you will cherish these memories forever.
INDIA GATE

India Gate was built in 1931 and was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, the renowned British architect. The 42-meter structure, built to commemorate the victory of allied forces, stands in the west end of the Rajpath. It was previously officially known as the All India War Memorial. The names of the 90,000 Indian Army soldiers, who died in the First World War, Afghan campaign of 1919 and the North-West Frontier operations, are inscribed on the walls of this grand structure. Till date, this is considered the ultimate tribute by any colonial master to its brave and loyal subjects. The foundation stone of this memrobilia was laid on 10 February 1921 by the Duke of Connaught. It was completed in the year 1931.

Amar Jawan Jyoti (The flame of the immortal warrior), is burning beneath it since the Indo-Pak war of 1971 which marks the Unknown Soldier's Tomb. The India Gate is situated at such a point where most of the important roads in Delhi pass by it. Thus it attracted apart from tourists, regular commuters who wanted to spend some quality time with them. Later the innermost part was closed to the public due to terrorist threats.

The lawns around Rajpath are brimming with people during the evening, especially in summers. The best time to visit India Gate is after sunset. In the evening the structure is lit with colored bulbs. These are colored with different colors representing the Indian Tricolor. The atmosphere is usually pleasant in evening and is nice for visiting India Gate. In the evening people come here for walk and children can be seen playing on the beautiful green lawns and around the trees that surround the structure. You can enjoy boating in the pools surrounding the lawns. This is popularly known as The Boat Club. You will also find many fountains surrounding the structure. The fountains too are illuminated by colors representing the Indian Tricolor.

Top QUTAB MINAR
The origins of Qutab Minar are shrouded in controversy. Some believe it was erected as a tower of victory to signify the beginning of the Muslim rule in India. Others say it served as a minaret to the muezzins to call the faithful to prayer. No one can, however, dispute that the tower is not only one of the finest monuments in India, but also in the world.
Qutab-ud-din Aibak, the first Muslim ruler of Delhi, commenced the construction of the Qutab Minar in 1200 AD, but could only finish the basement. His successor, Iltutmush, added three more storeys, and in 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlak constructed the fifth and the last storey. The developments of architectural styles from Aibak to Tughlak are quite evident in the minar. The relief work and even the materials used for construction differ.

The 238 feet Qutab Minar is 47 feet at the base and tapers to nine feet at the apex. The tower is ornamented by bands of inscriptions and by four projecting balconies supported by elaborately decorated brackets.
Even in ruin, the Quwwat Ui Islam (Light of Islam) Mosque in the Qutab complex is one of the most magnificent in the world. Its construction was started by Qutab-ud-din Aibak in 1193 and the mosque was completed in 1197. In additions were made to the building by Iltutmush in 1230 and Alla-ud-din Khilji in 1315.

The main mosque comprises of an inner and outer courtyard, of which the inner is surrounded by an exquisite collonade, the pillars of which are made of richly decorated shafts. Most of these shafts are from the 27 Hindu temples which were plundered to construct the mosque. It is, therefore, not surprising that the Muslim mosque has typical Hindu ornamentation.

Close to the mosque is one of Delhi's most curious antiques, the Iron Pillar. Dating back to the 4th century AD, the pillar bears an inscription which stated that it was erected as a flagstaff in honor of the Hindu god, Vishnu, and in the memory of the Gupta king Chandragupta II (375-413). How the pillar moved to its present location remains a mystery. The pillar also highlights ancient India's achievements in metallurgy. The pillar is made

Top RED FORT

So called because of the red stone with which it is built, the Red Fort is one of the most magnificent palaces in the world. India's history is also closely linked with this fort. It was frorth here ht the British deposed the last Mughal ruler, Bhadur Shah Zafar, marking the end of the three century long Mughal rule. It was also fromits ramparts that the first prime. Minister of India, Pandit Jawharlal Nehru, announced to the nation that India was free form colonial rule.
The mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, after ruling from Agra for eleven years, decided to shift to Delhi and laid the foundation stone of the Red Fort in 1618. For its inauguration in 1647, the main halls of the palace were draped in rich tapestry and covered with silk from china and velvet from Turkey. With a circumference of almost one and a half miles, the fort is an irregular octagon and has two entrances, the Lahore and Delhi Gates.

From the Lahore Gate, a visitor has access to the Chatta Chowk (vaulted arcade ) which as once a royal market and housed court jewelers, miniature painters carpet manufacturers, workers in enamel, silk weavers and families of specialized craftsmen. The road from the royal market leads to the Nawabarkhana (band house) where the royal band played five times a day. The band house also marks the entry into the main palace and all visitors, except royalty had to dismount here.

The Diwani-I-Am is the Red Fort's hall of public audience. Built of sandstone covered with shell plaster polished to look like ivory, the 80 x 40 feet hall is sub-divided by columns. The Mughal emperors would hold court here and meet dignitaries and foreign emissaries. The most imposing feature of the Diwqani-I-Am is the alcove in the back wall where the emperor sat in state on a richly carved and inlaid marble platform. In the recess behind the platform are fine examples of Italian pietra-dura work.

The piece de resistance of the fort, the Diwan-I-Khas was the hall of private audience. The most highly ornamented of all Shah Jahan's buildings, the 90 x 67 feet Diwani-I-Khas is a pavilion of white marble supported by intricately carved pillars. So enamoured was the emperor by the beauty of this pavilion that he engraved on it the following words: If there is paradise on the face of this earth, it is this, it is this."

Richly decorated with flowers of inlaid mosaic work of cornelian and other stones, the Diwan-I-Khas once housed the famous Peacock Throne, which when it was plundered by Nadir Shah in 1739, was valued at six million sterling.

Residence of the senior queens, the Rang Mahal (hall of colours ) has a central hall surrounded by six apartments. The apartments are assured privacy by intricately carved screens which do not hinder the free flow of fresh air and light. The stream of paradise flows through the main hall, and is marked in the centre by a huge lotus shaped marble basin with an ivory fountain.

Constructed by Emperor Aurangzeb in 1662 as his private mosque Moti Masjid (pearl mosque) is built with highly polished marble. The mosque is a good example of the Mughal fetish for symmetry with cusped arches, sinuous decorative designs, carved cornices and bulbous domes.

Other sight seeing areas are the Musamman Burg (Octagonal tower), Khwabgah (bedroom) and the Hammam (royal baths).

Top JAMA MASJID

Work on the Jama Masjid mosque was begun in 1650 by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan to complement his palace at the Red Fort. More than 5,000 workers toiled for six years to complete the largest mosque in India. Every Friday, the emperor and his retinue would travel in state from the fort to the mosque to attend the congressional prayers.

A fine example of Mughal architecture, the Jama Masjid has three gateways. The largest and highest on the east was reserve exclusively for the emperor. The main courtyard of the mosque is 408 square feet and paved with red stone. In the centre is a large marble tank in which the devout wash before attending prayers.

The main mosque is crowned by three onion shaped domes made of white marble and inlaid with stripes of black slate. On the north and south of the complex are two 130 feet high minarets which offer a spectacular bird's eye-view of the city. Jama Masjid is not only architecturally beautiful, but also a place of great religious significance as it houses a hair from the beard of the Prophet and also a chapter of the Holy Quran written by him

LOTUS TEMPLE

Contrary to popular belief, the Lotus temple is not a temple but a prayer hall of Bahai Faith. Located near the famous ISKCON and Kalka Ji temple, this structure is famous throughout the world for its manifestation in design. This is supposed to be the only worship place of the Bahai faith in Asia. The maintainer of this place stresses on keeping quiet. So if you are a chatter-box and can't shut your mouth, Lotus Temple, the most visited place in India after Taj Mahal, is out of bound for you.

The structure is situated in the sprawling lush-green 26 acres campus. The building was commissioned in the year 1980 to an Iranian architect named Fariburz Sabha and was completed in the year 1986. It was opened for the general public in the same year. The temple is set among numerous pools and a sprawling garden. This has been deliberately done in order to create a feel that this Big Lotus is floating in a pond. The Lotus, as seen from outside or from airplane, has three sets of petals. These petals are made of special concrete mould in white cement and decorated with white marble. These stones were brought from all over the world including the famous Mount Olympus in Greece and Macedonia.

The Bahai faith is an off shoot of Islam and thus is heavily inspired from the basic tenets of Islam such as monotheism. You will not find any Idol in the temple. It is just a hall to pray and salvage. There is an Information Center at the Bahai House of Worship that provides information on different facets of the Bahai Faith in the form of photographs, books, miniature and short films.

Top PURANA QUILA
Covering a circuit of about a mile, the walls of the fort have three gates and are surrounded by a mat fed by the river Yamuna.
The wall was built by Humayun while the buildings in the fort are attributed to Sher Shar. The notable buildings that have survived in the fort are the Sher Mandal and the Quila-I-kholina Mosque. Sher Mandal is a two storeyed octagonal tower which was used by Humayun as his library. The mosque, built around 1541-42, is a landmark in Indo Islamic architecture.

The architect has shown skill by enriching each part with moulding, bracketed openings, marble inlay, carving and other establishments. A variety of materials have also been used to construct the small mosque (168 x 44 feet). The entrance arch is of marble, the spandrels of red sandstone studded with marble bossed, the columns and pilasters of black and white marble.

HUMAYUN'S TOMB

The first mature example of Mughal architecture in India, Humayun's Tomb was built by the emperor's grieving widow, Haji Begum, in 1565 AD. The mughals brought with them a love for gardens, fountains and water.
Designed by the Persian architect, Mirza Ghyas, Humayun's Tomb shows a marked shift from the Persian tradition of using coloured tiles for ornamentation.
Top
JANTAR MANTAR

Under patronage from the emperor, he set on himself the task of correcting the existing astronomical tables and updating the almanac with more reliable instruments. Delhi's Jantar Mantar is the first of the five observatories that he built with large masonary instruments.
At first sight, the Jantar Mantar appears like a gallery of modern art. It is, however, an observatory. Sawai Jia Singh II of Jaipur (1699-1743), a keen astronomer and a noble in the Mughal court, was dissatisfied by the errors of brass and metal astronomical instruments.

MUSEUM

Delhi is packed with museums for travelers to explore, such as the Crafts Museum in the Pragati Maidan area. The National Museum and the Gandhi National Museum is located close to the Rajghat. The National Museum is the biggest, grandest museum in Delhi, housing an extensive collection of excavated items, some from 2nd and 3rd century B.C. There are also artifacts from the Harrapa civilization, which are from the Indus valley. This museum also has traveling exhibits from time to time. (Tourist offices, hotels and the museum will provide tourists of information on the various exhibitions). The museum also offers a daily film in its auditorium.

Located in Chanakya Purj, the National Rail Museum displays old trains and locomotives from the time of steam. India is very proud of its progressive rail system, as it was one of first countries to have extensive railway lines in the 19th century (India still relies on its rail system as a primary mode of transportation between cities). The museum also explains the history of railways in India.
The Nehru Museum and Planetorium was the old residence of India's first Prime Minister, na,ed Jawaharlal Nehru. Thus, this museum is more of a memorial of this Prime Minister's legacy. In the same site is the planetarium which exhibits the accomplishments of the Indian Space program.

The National Science Center, near Pragati Maiden, has a host of modern scientific exhibits and models. The Dara Shikoh Library is a well established archaeology museum. The Dolls museum exhibits different types of dolls, spiritual and otherwise, from various parts of India. Each doll reflects the region from which it comes. This museum is very popular for children and families.