The document summarizes key facts about several famous historical monuments and buildings in India: The Taj Mahal was built by Emperor Shah Jahan in the memory of his wife, took over 20 years to complete, and is recognized as a masterpiece of Mughal architecture. The Qutub Minar was started in 1192 in Delhi and is the tallest brick minaret in India. The Victoria Memorial in Kolkata commemorates Queen Victoria and is managed by the Indian Ministry of Culture. Hawa Mahal in Jaipur was designed for royal ladies to observe the street below without being seen. Charminar in Hyderabad is a mosque and landmark built in 1591. The Red Fort in Delhi

2. The Taj Mahal
• The construction of the Taj began in 1632.
• It was built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in
the memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal.
• The Taj Mahal is widely recognized as the jewel of
Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired
masterpiece of the world’s heritage.
• Ustad Ahmad Lahauri is generally considered as the
principal designer.
• The construction completed in around 1653 in Agra
and the Taj was declared as a world heritage site in
1983.

3. Qutub Minar
• The construction of the Qutub Minar began in 1192
by qutub-ud-din Aibak Shah and was completed by
Iltutmish.
• It is made of marble and red sandstone.
• It has 379 stairs and has a height of 72.5m (237.8
ft).
• The base diameter is of 14.3 metres which narrows to
2.7 meters at the last storey.
• It is the nearest station on the Delhi Metro. A
picture of the Minar is also featured on the Travel
Cards issued by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.
• Located in Delhi, It is the tallest Minar in India and a
UNESCO world heritage site.

4. Victoria
Memorial
• The Victoria Memorial, officially the Victoria
Memorial Hall, is a memorial building
dedicated to Victoria, Queen of the United
Kingdom, which is located in Kolkata, India –
the capital of West Bengal and the former
capital of British India.
• It is an autonomous organization within the
Government of India’s Ministry of Culture

5. Hawa Mahal
• Hawa Mahal literally meaning the palace of winds is a palace in
Jaipur, India.
• It was built in 1799 by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh and
designed by Lal Chand Ustad in the form of the crown of
Krishna, the Hindu God.
• It has 953 small windows called jharokhas that are decorated
with intricate latticework.
• The original intention of the lattice was to allow royal ladies to
observe the everyday life in the street below without being
seen since they had to observe strict “purdah”(face cover).
• Built of red sandstone, the palace is situated on the main
thoroughfare in the heart of Jaipur’s business centre.
• It is particularly striking when viewed early in the morning, lit
with the golden light of sunrise.

6. Charminar
• Built in 1591 CE, the Charminar is a monument and
mosque located in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India.
• The landmark has become a global icon of Hyderabad,
listed amongst the most recognized structures of
India.
• The Charminar is on the east bank of the Musi river.
A temple called Bhagyalakshmi temple stands just
next to the structure. The temple located at the base
of the Minar is dedicated to Goddess Lakshmi

7. Red Fort
• The construction of the Red fort began in 1638.
• It was constructed by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan in the
walled city of Old Delhi that served as the residence of the
Mughal Emperors.
• The fort was the palace for Shah Jahan’s new capital
Shahjahanabad, the seventh city in the Delhi site.
• He moved his capital here from Agra in a move designed to bring
prestige to his reign, and to provide ample opportunity to apply
his ambitious building schemes and interests.
• It served as the capital for the Mughals until 1857, when
Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled by the British Indian
government.
• The fort lies along the Yamuna River.
• The construction completed in 1648 and the fort was designated
a UNESCO world heritage site in 2007.