|
The credit for the urban layout of the city and its structures is
attributed to two architects namely, Vidyadar Bhattacharya, the chief
architect in the royal court and Sir Samuel Swinton Jacob, apart from
the Sawai himself who was a keen architectural enthusiast. The
architects achieved a fusion of the Shilpa Shastra of Indian
architecture with Rajput, Mughal and European styles of architecture.
History
The palace complex lies in the heart of Jaipur city, to the northeast of
the very centre, located at 26.9255°N 75.8236°E. The site for the palace
was located on the site of a royal hunting lodge on a plain land
encircled by a rocky hill range, five miles south of Amber (city). The
history of the city palace is closely linked with the history of Jaipur
city and its rulers, starting with Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II who ruled
from 1699-1744. He is credited with initiating construction of the city
complex by building the outer wall of the complex spreading over many
acres. Initially, he ruled from his capital at Amber, which lies at a
distance of 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) from Jaipur. He shifted his capital
from Amber to Jaipur in 1727 because of an increase in population and
increasing water shortage. He planned Jaipur city in six blocks
separated by broad avenues, on the classical basis of principals of
Vastushastra and other similar classical treatise under the
architectural guidance of Vidyadar Bhattacharya, a man who was initially
an accounts-clerk in the Amber treasury and later promoted to the office
of Chief Architect by the King.
|
Following Jaisingh's death in 1744, there were internecine wars
among the Rajput kings of the region but cordial relations were
maintained with the British Raj. Maharaja Ram Singh sided with the
British in the Sepoy Mutiny or Uprising of 1857 and established
himself with the Imperial rulers. It is to his credit that the city
of Jaipur including all of its monuments (including the City Palace)
are stucco painted 'Pink' and since then the city has been called
the "Pink City". The change in colour scheme was as an honour of
hospitality extended to the Prince of Wales (who later became King
Edward VII) on his visit. This colour scheme has since then become a
trademark of the Jaipur city. Man Singh II, the adopted son of
Maharaja Madho Singh II, was the last Maharaja of Jaipur to rule
from the Chandra Mahal palace, in Jaipur. |
 |
This palace, however, continued to be a residence of the royal family
even after the Jaipur kingdom merged with the Indian Union in 1949
(after Indian independence in August 1947) along with other Rajput
states of Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Bikaner. Jaipur became the capital of
the Indian state of Rajasthan and Man Singh II had the distinction of
becoming the Rajapramukh (present day Governor of the state) for a time
and later was the Ambassador of India to Spain.
Structures
The City Palace is in the central-northeast part of the Jaipur city,
which is laid in a grid pattern with wide avenues. It is a unique and
arresting complex of several palaces, pavilions, gardens and temples.
The most prominent and most visited structures in the complex are the
Chandra Mahal, Mubarak Mahal, Mukut Mahal, Maharani's Palace, Shri
Govind Dev Temple and the City Palace Museum.
Entrance Gates
Virendra Pol, Udai Pol near Jaleb chowk and the Tripolia Gate (triple
gate) are the entry gates to the City Palace. The Tripolia gate is
reserved for entry into the palace by the royal family. Common people
and visitors can enter the place complex only through the Virendra Pol
and the Udai Pol or the Atish Pol (Stable Gate). The entry from Virendra
Pol leads to the Mubarak Mahal. The gateways are richly decorated.
Mubarak Mahal
Mubarak Mahal, meaning the 'Auspicious Palace', was built with a fusion
of the Islamic, Rajput and European architectural styles in the late
19th century by Maharaja Madho Singh II as reception centre. It is a
museum; a fine repository of variety of textiles such as the royal
formal costumes, sanganeri block prints, embroidered shawls, Kashmiri
pashminas and silk saris as part of the Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II
Museum. A noteworthy display here is of the set of voluminous clothes
worn by Sawai Madhosingh I, who was 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) wide and weighed
250 kilograms (550 lb) but interestingly had 108 wives.
Chandra Mahal
Chandra Mahal or Chandra Niwas is the most commanding building in the
City Palace complex, on its west end. It is a seven-storeyed building
and each floor has been given a specific name such as the Sukh-Niwas,
Ranga-Mandir, Pitam-Niwas, Chabi-Niwas, Shri-Niwas and Mukut-Mandir or
Mukut Mahal. It contains many unique paintings, mirror work on walls and
floral decorations.
 |
At present, most of this palace is the residence of the descendents
of the former rulers of Jaipur. Only the ground floor is allowed for
visitors where a museum is located that displays carpets,
manuscripts and other items that belonged to the royal family. There
is beautiful peacock gate at the entry to the Mahal. It has screened
balconies and a pavilion at the roof from where a panoramic view of
the city can been seen. It is set amidst well laid out gardens and a
decorative lake in the foreground.
Also seen at the top of the Chandra Mahal is the flag of the royal
family, which is seen unfurled when the Maharaja is in the palace.
It is a one and quarter sized flag. However, when the king is away,
the queen's flag is hoisted on the building. |
There is an interesting anecdote narrated about the 'one and quarter
flag', which is the insignia flag of the Maharajas of Jaipur. Emperor
Aurangzeb who attended the wedding of Jai Singh, shook hands with the
young groom and wished him well on his marriage. On this occasion, Jai
Singh made an irreverent remark to the Emperor stating that the way he
had shaken hands with him made it incumbent on the Emperor to protect
him (Jai Singh) and his kingdom. Aurangzeb, instead of responding in
indignation at the quip, felt pleased and conferred on the young Jai
Singh the title of 'Sawai', which means "one and a quarter". Since then
the Maharajas have pre-fixed their names with this title. During
residence there, they also fly a one and a quarter size flag atop their
buildings and palaces.
There is also a tragic story linked to this palace. Ishawri Singh, son
of Jai Singh who was unwilling to face the advancing army of Marathas,
ended his life humiliatingly by getting bitten by a snake. Following
this, his 21 wives and paramours also committed the then accepted ritual
of sati or jauhar (self immolation on the funeral pyre of their
husband).
Pitam Niwas Chowk
It is the inner courtyard, which provides access to the Chandra Mahal.
Here, there are four small gates (known as Ridhi Sidhi Pol) that are
adorned with themes representing the four seasons and Hindu gods. The
gates are the Northeast Peacock Gate (with motifs of peacocks on the
doorway) representing autumn and dedicated Lord Vishnu; the Southwest
Lotus Gate (with continual flower and petal pattern) suggestive of
summer season and dedicated to Lord Shiva-Parvati; the Northwest Green
Gate, also called the Leheriya (meaning: "waves") gate, in green colour
suggestive of spring and dedicated to Lord Ganesha, and lastly, the Rose
Gate with repeated flower pattern representing winter season and
dedicated to Goddess Devi.
Diwan-I-Khas
Diwan-I-Khas was a private audience hall of the Maharajas, a marble
floored chamber. It is located between the armoury and the art gallery.
|
There are two huge sterling silver vessels of 1.6 metres (5.2 ft)
height and each with capacity of 4000 litres and weighing 340
kilograms (750 lb), on display here. They were made from 14000
melted silver coins without soldering. They are officially recorded
by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest
sterling silver vessels. These vessels were specially made by
Maharaja Sawai Madho Singh II, who was a highly pious Hindu, to
carry the water of the Ganges to drink on his trip to England in
1901 (for Edward VII's coronation) as he was finicky about
committing religious sin by consuming the English water. Hence, the
vessels are named as Gangajelies (Ganges-water urns). There are a
number of crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling (normally
covered with plastic sheets to prevent dust collection), which are
uncovered on special occasions. |
 |
Diwan-I-Aam
The 'Diwan-E-Aam' (Sabha Niwas) or the 'Hall of Public Audience' is an
enchanting chamber, with the ceiling painted in rich red and gold
colours, which still looks vibrant. It is a major attraction in the
Mubarak Mahal courtyard. This chamber, functioning now as an art
gallery, has exhibits of exquisite miniature paintings (of Rajastahni,
Mughal and Persian art), ancient texts, embroidered rugs, Kashmir shawls
and carpets. The ceiling is richly decorated. At present, it is an art
gallery showcasing enthralling painted ceilings and rare ancient
handwritten original manuscripts of Hindu scriptures (the Hindu holy
scripture of the Bhagavad Gita handwritten in tiny script). Also seen in
the art gallery is the Golden throne (called as Takth-e-Rawal) that was
the seat of the Maharaja during public audience. It was mounted on an
elephant or carried by palanquin bearers during the Maharajas visit
outside the palace. At the entry gateway to the hall, two large
elephants, each made out of single marble rock are on display.
Maharani Palace
Maharani's Palace was originally the residence of the royal queens. It
has been converted into a museum, where weapons used by the royalty
during war campaigns are displayed, including those belonging to the
15th century. The ceiling of this chamber has unique frescoes, which are
preserved using jewel dust of semiprecious stones. A particular weaponry
on display is the scissor-action dagger, which when thrust into an
enemy's body is said to disembowel the victim, on its withdrawal. The
other artefacts on display include swords with pistols attached to it,
the sword presented by Queen Victoria to Maharaja Sawai Ram Singh
(1835–80) which is inlaid with rubies and emeralds, guns serving as
walking sticks and a small canon which could be.
Bhaggi Khana
Bhaggi Khana is a museum in the palace complex where a collection of old
carriages, palanquins and European cabs adopted as baggis to Indian
situations are on display here. The baggi which attracts attention is
the one gifted by Prince of Wales to the Maharaja in 1876, called the
Victoria baggi. Also on display here are the mahadol, a palanquin with a
single bamboo bar that was used to carry the priests and a ratha
(chariot) that was used for carrying the idols of Hindu gods in
procession on festive occasions.
Govind Dev Ji temple
Govind Dev Ji temple, dedicated to the Hindu god Lord Krishna, is part
of the City Palace complex. It was built in early 18th century outside
the walls set in a garden environment. It has European chandeliers and
paintings of Indian art. The ceiling in the temple is ornamented in
gold. Its location provided a direct view to the Maharaja from his
Chandar Mahal palace. The arathi (prayer offering) for the deity can be
seen by devotees only for seven times during the day.
Visitor information
The palace complex is in the heart of the Pink City, slightly northeast
of the very centre of Jaipur. Jaipur is well connected by a network of
road, rail and air links to all the major cities and towns of India.
National Highway No.8 linking Delhi to Mumbai, and No.11 linking Bikaner
to Agra, passes through Jaipur.
 |
Jaipur is on the broad-gauge and meter gauge network of the Indian
Railways and has direct trains on the broad gauge network to all
major cities in Rajasthan and India. Jaipur is also connected with a
metre gauge rail route with Sri Ganganagar, Churu and Sikar. One of
India's most famous and luxurious trains the Palace on Wheels, also
makes a scheduled stop in Jaipur.
Jaipur's Jaipur International Airport (IATA: JAI, ICAO: VIJP) known
as Sanganer International Airport is situated in its satellite town
of Sanganer. It provides domestic air links with Jodhpur, Udaipur,
Aurangabad, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Goa, Chennai, Ahmedabad,
Indore, Bangalore, Mumbai, Surat, Bhopal, Lucknow, Gorakhpur and
Jabalpur. |
Its international operations are, however, sporadic, with flights to and
from Muscat, Sharjah, Bangkok and Dubai.
The City Palace and the Museum are open to visitors from Monday to
Sunday between 10.00 AM to 5.00 PM (Closed on Diwali / Holi and a select
few holidays) and an entry fee for foreigners of Rs 150/80 for
adult/child and Rs 35/20 for adult / child, Indian citizens.
Access
By Air
The nearest airport is Jaipur International Airport (IATA: JAI, ICAO: VIJP),
located in the
southern suburb of Sanganer, 13 km (8.1 mi) from Jaipur, the capital
of the Indian state of Rajasthan.
Delhi and Mumbai are the two main gateway cities to Rajasthan from
international destinations. There are regular flights connecting Delhi
and Mumbai to Jaipur and Jodhpur in Rajasthan and also important
destinations like Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai operated by domestic
carriers.
By Train / Rail
Daily super fast train connects Mumbai to Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bikaner and
Kota. Delhi (the nearest rail head to Jaipur) is also directly connected
to Sawai Madhopur, Bharatpur, Kota, Udaipur, Bikaner, Jodhpur and
Jaisalmer. Shatabdi train operates from New Delhi station to Ajmer via
Jaipur. Double decker train is also available between Jaipur and Delhi.
By Road
Bus: The Interstate Bus Terminal (ISBT) at Kashmiri Gate, New Delhi has
almost a twenty – four hour bus service to Jaipur. Air-conditioned and
Volvo bus service of state owned Rajasthan state Roadways Transport
Corporation (RSRTC) to Jaipur is operational from the premises of
Bikaner House, Pandara Road © 011-23383469, journey time about 5 hours.
Delhi is connected to Jaipur via Darukhera, Behror, Kotputli and
Shahpura on NH 8. Jaipur is further linked to Mumbai via Ajmer, Udaipur,
Ahmedabad and Vadodara on NH 8. RSRTC also connects major destinations
in Rajasthan through express and deluxe buses from Jaipur.
|
