Delhi

Delhi , union territory and city, N central India. The union territory, officially the National Capital Territory of Delhi (2001 provisional pop. 13,782,976), 573 sq mi (1,484 sq km), is on the Delhi plain, which is crossed by the Yamuna River and stretches between the Aravalli Hills on the south and the Shiwalik Range on the north, connecting the alluvial valleys of the Indus and Ganges river systems. A hot and arid region, with temperatures rising above 110°F (43°C) in the summer, it has extensive irrigation works to support agriculture. Hindi and Urdu are spoken by more than 90% of the population. New Delhi , the capital of India, and Delhi (or Old Delhi; see below) are the chief urban centers. It is governed by a chief minister and cabinet responsible to an elected unicameral legislature and by a governor appointed by the president of India.

History

Throughout India's history the region of Delhi, commanding roads in all directions, was the key to empire. From the earliest times many cities rose and fell there, and within 50 sq mi (130 sq km) S of New Delhi are more important dynastic remains than exist in any other area of the country. The earliest city on the Delhi plain was the semilegendary Indraprastha, mentioned in the Hindu epic Mahabharata . Another historic site is the Rajput citadel and town containing the Lal Kot [red fort], erected in 1052; it is sometimes confused with Shah Jahan's Red Fort in Old Delhi.

In 1192 the legions of the Afghan warrior Muhammad of Ghor captured the Rajput town, and the Delhi Sultanate was established (1206). The invasion of Delhi by Timur in 1398 put an end to the sultanate; the Lodis, last of the Delhi sultans, gave way to Babur , who, after the battle of Panipat in 1526, founded the Mughal empire. The early Mughal emperors favored Agra as their capital, and Delhi became their permanent seat only after Shah Jahan built (1638) the walls of Old Delhi. Among the most famous monuments on the Delhi plain are the 12th-century Kutb Minar and the tomb of Humayan (built 1565-69; it is the architectural prototype of the Taj Mahal at Agra).

The City of Delhi

The city of Delhi, or Old Delhi (1991 pop. 7,175,000), on the Yamuna River, adjoins New Delhi in the east central part of the state and is a commercial center. It was enclosed by high stone walls erected in 1638 by Shah Jahan. Within the walls he built the famous Red Fort—so called for its walls and gateways of red sandstone—that contained the imperial Mughal palace. The fort remained a military garrison until 2003. In the palace is a public audience hall (Diwan-i-Am), where the splendid Peacock Throne stood, and a private audience hall (Diwan-i-Khas), built entirely of white marble and bearing the apt inscription "If there is a heaven on earth, it is this!" Shah Jahan also built the Jama Masjid [great mosque], one of the finest in Islam. Just south of the fort, on the Yamuna's bank, is Rajghat, where the bodies of Mohandas Gandhi and of India's prime ministers have been cremated; it is now one of the most revered shrines in India. In the northwest, beyond the old walls, is the Univ. of Delhi.

The present city of Old Delhi did not become important until Shah Jahan (for whom it was sometimes called Shahjahanabad) made it the capital of the Mughal empire in 1638. It was sacked (1739) by the Persian Nadir Shah , who carried off the Peacock Throne. The city was held by the Marathas from 1771 until 1803, when the British took it. During the Indian Mutiny of 1857 it was held for five months by the rebel soldiers. Delhi Cantonment was (1912-31) interim capital of India until New Delhi was officially inaugurated.

Delhi Former capital of India, on the River Yamuna, union territory of Delhi, n central India. Delhi has held a key position throughout India's history, and is built on the site of at least seven settlements, dating back more than 2000 years. In the 17th century, it was capital of the Mogul Empire. In 1912, it became capital of British India (replacing Calcutta) and remained so until independence in 1947, when the capital became New Delhi. Sites include the Red Fort, Qutb Minar, the Rajghat (a shrine where Gandhi was cremated), the Jamii Masjid, and the Jai Singh Observatory. Industries: cotton textiles, handicrafts, tourism. Pop. (2001) 9,817,439.

Delhi, India, USA Indraprastha, Dhilli, Qila Rai Pithora, Siri, Tughlaqābād, Jahānpanāh, Ferozābād/Fīrūzābād, Purāna Qila/Shergarh, Shāhjahānābād (India) India: National Capital Territory and a city. The Mahābhārata mentions a city called Indraprastha built in about 1400 bc. The name Delhi first emerged during the 1st century bc when Rājā Dhilu built a city and named it after himself. However, modern Delhi is said to have been founded by a Rājput chief during the 11th century as the walled city of Qila Rai Pithora. Thereafter seven more cities of Delhi were built, each extending its boundaries. Captured in 1192 by Quṭb‐ud‐Dīn Aykab (d. 1210), founder of Muslim rule in India, it became the Muslim Dihli Sultanate in 1206, remaining in existence until the mid‐16th century. (Dihli was the Perso‐Arabic spelling of the name; Delhi was a 19th‐century mistake which somehow became the official spelling.) The second Delhi was built at Siri, a couple of miles (3 km) to the north‐east, in 1303. Further expansion to the east resulted in the city being renamed Tughlaqābād in 1325 after the Muslim Tughluq dynasty and then Jahānpanāh ‘Refuge of the World’ when Muhammad ibn Tughluq (c.1290–1351), sultan (1325–51), extended construction in the north‐east. When Feroz ( Fīrūz) Shah Tughluq, sultan (1351–88), moved his capital even further north in 1354 the city was renamed Ferozābād (Fīrūzābād) after him. In 1526 the city became the capital of the Mughal Empire. Purāna Qila was also known as Shergarh (or Sher Shah) after Emperor Sher Shah, the Afghan king, who built it as the sixth city of Delhi in 1540. The city became known as Shāhjahānābād (now Old Delhi) in 1638 after Shah Jahān (1592–1666), Mughal emperor (1628–58). Delhi came under British rule in 1803. The British Indian capital was moved from Calcutta to New Delhi in 1912 (although construction was not complete until 1929), a location adjacent to and south of Old Delhi. Old and New Delhi have since merged and the city is the capital of India. Other theories as to the origin of the name include the Hindi dil ‘eminence’ and dehlī ‘threshold’ to the Rivers Ganges and Indus.