History of Lodhi Garden
History of Lodhi Garden
A 90-acre garden complex situated in New Delhi, India, the Lodi Gardens is comprised of tombs, mosques and other structures commissioned by members of the Sayyid, Lodi, and Mughal dynasties from the mid-fifteenth century onwards. The most significant additions to the complex, the Bada Gumbad, and the Shish Gumbad were made during the reign of Sikandar Lodi (r. 1489–1517), and the place was named after his dynasty following the independence of India in 1947. Scholars believe that the choice of this site was made by three different ruling families because of its proximity to the Nizamuddin Dargah, the burial site of Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya, a venerated thirteenth-century Sufi saint.
Lodi Gardens has a number of entry points and four official gates. At the southern end of it is the tomb of Muhammad Shah Sayyid (r. 1434–45) of the Sayyid dynasty, while at the northern end lies the tomb of Sikandar Lodi of the Lodi dynasty. In its centre lies a number of other structures such as the Bada Gumbad, with its adjacent mosque and mehman khana (guesthouse); a turret that scholars speculate is the oldest structure in the complex; and the Shish Gumbad.
The tomb of Muhammad Shah Sayyid, commissioned by his son and successor, Alauddin Alam Shah (r. 1445–51), is one of the few surviving structures remaining in India that was built by the Sayyids and dates to c. 1445. Including the plinth, the structure is 25 metres wide and is built on a raised mound of 40 metres that is traversed by a flight of stairs. It has an octagonal plan with three archways on each side and an arcade that goes around the open tomb chamber. Notable features include buttressed corners, discharging arches, decorative incised plasterwork on the ceiling and chhatris (domed pavilions) on the roof, surrounding the dome.
The dome is capped by an inverted lotus finial. A circular gallery of arched niches, four of which are windows, line the base of the dome. The interior of the tomb contains the grave of the ruler as well as other graves, presumed to be those of his family members. The octagonal shape of the tomb borrows from the architectural conventions of Shia tombs, attesting to the sect’s influence in Delhi during the reign of the Sayyids.The subsequent construction of tombs in the vicinity of this one suggests the use of the space as a marker of continuity between different rulers of the Delhi Sultanate, leading to the eventual formation of a tomb complex.
The northern end of the Lodi Gardens contains the tomb of Sikandar Lodi, built by his son Ibrahim Lodi (r. 1517–26). The walled garden courtyard around the tomb has an elaborate gateway at its south, from which a path leads to the tomb. Outside this gate is a raised forecourt where two standalone chhatris are placed on either side. A large arched mihrab, the same size as the southern gate, is placed on the western
side of the garden’s boundary wall, suggesting that the space around the tomb may have doubled as an open-air mosque. The tomb resembles Muhammad Shah Sayyid’s mausoleum but does not have chhatris on top. The entrances, with three plain arches on each side, are covered by a bracketed cornice carved out of red sandstone into kalasha designs. Inside the tomb, the arches and windows of the circular gallery along the dome’s drum are decorated with green and blue enamelled tiles. The tomb has a double-dome, with the inner layer serving as a ceiling for the tomb and the upper layer serving as the building’s crown. This architectural innovation was subsequently incorporated into Mughal construction. The upper portion of the dome is decorated with incised plasterwork patterns.
The construction of grand tombs in this area by the Lodis may have been an exercise in consolidating and elevating their lineage. Considering that the dynasty traced its origins to horse traders, these large, ornate structures — particularly the tomb of Sikandar Lodi — may have served to establish a continuity between them and the aristocratic Sayyid dynasty
The northern part of the Lodi Gardens also contains monuments built under Mughal rule. One of these is the Athpula, an eight-pier bridge built during the reign of Akbar (r. 1556–1605), over a canal that originally connected to the River Yamuna and was later provided with a man-made reservoir. The Mughals also constructed a small complex consisting of a gateway, mosque and garden. The two-storeyed gateway has a triple-arched entrance. The mosque has a single chamber and is crowned with three domes. There is a courtyard on its eastern side, with the garden positioned in front of it.
Prior to the urban redesigning of Delhi by the British in the early twentieth century, these structures lay in an area that was part of a village on the banks of the river Yamuna called Khairpur. In 1936, following the formation of New Delhi as an extension of the city, the residents of Khairpur were evacuated and the region was integrated as Lady Willingdon Park, named after the wife of the then-Viceroy of India, Freeman Freeman-Thomas, the Marquess of Willingdon. The tombs were consolidated as a single complex and a large number of native and foreign trees were planted around the monuments while pathways were constructed, giving the place the shape of a park. Following the independence of India, it was named as Lodi Gardens. In 1968, American modernist architect, Joseph Allen Stein, re-landscaped the complex, adding an artificial lake with a fountain and a glass house for storing plants. Stein’s remodelling gives the complex its present day shape. The garden of the Mughal-era mosque now serves as the Rose Garden which houses a variety of English roses. In 1996, the India Bonsai Association helped in setting up the National Bonsai Park next to Gate No.1 of Lodi Gardens — a paved section dedicated to the display of a large variety of bonsai trees. In 2010, all of the complex’s monuments were restored by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH).
Today, Lodi Gardens is a major tourist attraction, and its sprawling greenery makes it a key biodiversity spot in New Delhi. It is also heavily frequented by locals as a park and is an important part of the city’s heritage. Entry into it is free and open from early morning to late in the evening, with shifting timings based on seasons. The locality around Lodi Gardens is known as the Lodi Estate — it is an affluent neighbourhood dotted with cultural and international institutions such as the India Habitat Centre, the India International Centre, and the Alliance Francaise amongst others.
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