AMAZING CHARMINAR

The Charminar, built in 1591 AD is a monument and mosque located in Hyderabad, Telangana

. The landmark is a global icon of Hyderabad, listed among the most recognized structures of India. The Charminar is situated on the east bank of Musi River, To the west lies theLad Baazar, and to the southwest lies the richly ornamented granite Makka Masjid

The English translation for Chār and Minar, means The "Four Towers"; the eponymous towers are ornate minarets attached and supported by four grand arches

Charminar was built at the center of the city, to commemorate the eradication of plague, Muhammed Quli Qutb Sha had prayed for the end of a plague that was ravaging his city and vowed to build a Mosque at the very place where he prayed

Charminar was constructed in the year 1591 CE, to commemorate the beginning of the second Islamic millennium year (1000 A H . The event was celebrated far and wide in the Islamic world

  thus Qutb Shah founded the city of Hyderabad to celebrate the event and commemorate it with the construction of this building.

Historian Masud Hussain Khan says that the construction of Charminar was completed in the year 1592, and that it is the city of Hyderabad which was actually founded in the year 1591

Qutb shah constructed the Charminar in the year 1589, on the very spot where he first glimpsed his future queen Baghmati and after her conversion to Islam, Qutb Shah renamed the city as "Hyderabad".

The Old City of Hyderabad was designed with Charminar as its centerpiece.

The city was spread around the Charminar in four different quadrants and chambers, seggregated according to the established settlements. Towards the north of Charminar is the Char Kaman or four gateways, constructed in the cardinal directions
Mir Momin Astarabadi, Qutb Shah's prime minister, played a leading role in preparing the layout plan for the Charminar along with that of the new capital city, Hyderabad
architects fromPersia were also invited to develop the city plan. The structure itself was intended to serve as a Mosque and Madraasa. It is of Indo-Islamic architecture style, incorporating Persian architureal elements

The Charminar is a square structure with each side 20 meters (approximately 66 feet) long, with four grand arches each facing a fundamental point that open into four streets. At each corner stands an exquisitely shaped minaret, 56 meters (approximately 184 feet) high, with a double balcony. Each minaret is crowned by a bulbous dome with dainty petal-like designs at the base. Unlike the Taj Mahal's, Charminar's four fluted minarets are built into the main structure. There are 149 winding steps to reach the upper floor. The structure is also known for its profusion of stucco decorations and the arrangement of its balustrades and balconies. The structure is made of granite, limestone, mortar and pulverized marble. Initially the monument with its four arches was so proportionately planned that when the fort was opened one could catch a glimpse of the bustling Hyderabad city, as these Charminar arches were facing the most active royal ancestral streets.

There is also a legend of an underground tunnel connecting the Golconda fort to Charminar, possibly intended as an escape route for the Qutb Shahi rulers in case of a siege, though the location of the tunnel is unknown

A mosque is located at the western end of the open roof; remaining part of the roof served as a court during the Qutb Shahi times. The actual mosque occupies the top floor of the four-storey structure. A vault which appears from inside like a dome supports two galleries within the Charminar, one over another, and above those a terrace that serves as a roof, bordered with a stone balcony. The main gallery has 45 covered prayer spaces with a large open space in front to accommodate more people for Friday prayers.

The clock on the four cardinal directions was added in 1889. There is a vazu (water cistern) in the middle, with a small fountain for purification/washing before offering prayer in the Charminar Mosque.

For now it is about the AMAZING CHARMINAR, the landmark of  the AMAZING city of HYDERABAD

 Next time I will talk about the surroundings and the cuisine