In this presentation we review the historical cities of Delhi, who built them and where they are located.

1. Historical Cities of Delhi
Siva Prasad Bose

2. Introduction to the Historical Cities
In the medieval ages, as different kings, sultans, and emperors
ascended to the throne of Delhi, they often sought fit to establish
a new capital city for themselves and their dynasty.
Sometimes the cities of Delhi are called the seven cities and
sometimes the eight cities of Delhi, depending on how we count
them and what is included in each city.

4. Lal Kot or Qila
Rai Pithora
This was the fort city built and
expanded by the Tomar and
Chauhan rulers (possibly
building up from even earlier
constructions by Rajput and
other rulers) before the
conquest by Mohammed Ghori.
It mainly consists of the
remnants of a fort and located in
South Delhi near Saket,
including parts of Mahrauli.

5. Mehrauli
This city is sometimes included in Lal
Kot since the boundaries are
overlapping. It includes the Mahrauli
archeological park and the Qutub
Minar complex. It was built by
Qutubuddin Aibak after the Islamic
conquest of Delhi, with Mohammed
Ghori’s victory over Prithviraj
Chauhan in the 1192 second battle of
Terain. The boundaries were further
expanded by his successors including
Iltutmish. It is located in South Delhi
near Mehrauli, its boundaries overlap
with Qila Rai Pithora.

6. Siri
This was the city built by the
Khalji rulers that flourished in
14th century, and later
expanded by Sher Shah Suri. It
was built with thick walls to
keep out the Mogol invaders. It
encompasses the Siri fort and
surrounding areas. It is mainly
located near Hauz Khas,
including parts of Siri Fort and
the village of Shahpur Jat.

7. Tughlaqabad
This was built by the Tughlaq
rulers in the 14th century.
Tughlaqabad was started by
Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq who built
the Tughlaqabad fort, and
whose tomb lies across the road
from the fort. Tughlaqabad also
includes the nearby Adilabad
fort.

8. Jahanpanah
Jahanpanah was started by
Mohammed Tughlaq in 1325 AD
who combined the existing
fortifications of Delhi, Siri and
Tughlaqabad. It includes
structures such as Bijay Mandal
palace ruins and Begumpur
mosque. Parts of Jahanpanah
are located towards the South
of Delhi near Panchsheel
enclave and Malviya Nagar.

9. Firozabad
This was founded by Firoze
Tughlaq in 1354 AD. It includes
parts of Hauz Khas lake and
Feroze Shah Kotla fort and
madarsa. It is located near the
Hauz Khas village and the deer
park nearby.

10. Shergarh
This was built by Sher Shah Suri
and his successors in the 16th
century, although its city limits
and surrounding areas also
include some ancient parts said
to date from the time of the
Pandavas. It includes structures
such as Purana Qila, Humayun’s
tomb, Sunder nursery and
Nizamuddin area. This was built
over the boundaries of Dinpanah,
a city that was started by the
Mughal emperor Humayun before
he was defeated by Sher Shah
Suri in battle.

11. Shahjahanabad
This was the city built by the
Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan and
named after him. The red fort and
surrounding areas were
completed and inaugurated in
1648 AD. Shahjahanabad
encompasses the Red Fort, Jama
Masjid, Chandni chowk and
localities such as Daryaganj. It is
located in the north of Delhi in
what is often called old Delhi.
This has a number of still
surviving old city walls and gates
such as Kashmere gate, Ajmeri
gate and Mori gate.

12. New Delhi
This was the city built by the British
rulers of India as the new capital of
British India when the capital was
moved from Calcutta in 1911. It
includes the magnificent Raj path
connecting the India gate and
Rashtrapati Bhavan, secretariat
buildings, many of the central
government offices such as Rail
Bhavan, as well as markets such as
Connaught place. After
independence, New Delhi remained
the capital of free India and many
more government buildings were
added.