Lahore Fort

The Lahore Fort, locally referred to as Shahi Qila is situated in the city of Lahore. It is located in the northwestern corner of the Walled City of Lahore.Origins of the fort go as far back as antiquity,but however, the existing base structure was built during the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar (1556-1605), and was regularly upgraded by subsequent rulers,having thirteen gates in all. Thus the fort consists the rich traditions of the entire Mughal architecture Some of the famous sites inside the fort include: Sheesh Mahal, Alamgiri Gate, Naulakha pavilion, and Moti Masjid. In 1981, the fort was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with the Shalimar Gardens (Lahore). The first impact that the Fort gives is an emotional one. It also has architectural and documentary values. The perspective of the Fort gives the visitors a wonderful sense of being there. In fact, that is my recommendation: be there.

The current condition of the fort is not the same as it was at the time of the mughal era . The Fort was extensively refurbished, extended and upgraded during the Mughal era. This is why it is rightly attributed as one of the gems of the Mughal civilization. Emperor Jalal ud Did Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, and Aurangzeb all added to it. During the period of Sikh occupation, Ranjit Singh added several pavilions on the upper ramparts. Some modifications to the Fort were made during the British period beginning in 1846 for housing facilities for colonial functions. Those modifications have been reverted and efforts made to bring the Fort back in its pre 1846 appearance.The walled city of Lahore is the product of the cultural influences of at least three major empires in the subcontinent of India: the Mogul Empire, the British colonial presence, and the modern nation-state of Pakistan. As a result of its position along a major trade route, it has also been influenced by many other, less dominant cultures, such as Afghanistan and China. Unlike Peshawar, which has lost much of it's larger scaled architectural past, , Lahore contains some of the best of all the empires which have touched it, as well as smaller scale vernacular architecture.

There are conservation measure taken by the The Lahore Development Authority's Conservation Plan inorder to conserve the monument from decaying.Also the government has taken measures in preserving this monument. The lahore fort is controlled and maintained by the department of Archeology.There are fully fledged staff equiped with technical knowledge for the conservation and preservation of the monument.Hence its one of the tourist attractions of the old city of Lahore so it is being maintained appropriatly.