A popular Hindu story claims that Delhi was the site of the fabled city of Indraprastha, which is featured in the epic Mahabharata, over 3000 years ago. However, historical evidence suggests that the area has been settled for around 2500 years. Since the 12th century, Delhi has seen the rise and fall of seven major powers. The Chauhans took control in the 12th century and made Delhi the most important Hindu city in northern India. When Qutab-ud-din Aibak took over the city in 1193, he began six and a half centuries of Muslim rule. The Delhi Sultanate lasted from 1206 to 1526. It was followed by the mighty Moghuls from 1526 to 1857. The basis of what is today Old Delhi, including the Red Fort and the Jama Masjid, was built during the reign of the Moghul emperor Shah Jahan that lasted from 1628 to 1658. In 1803, the British captured Delhi and installed a British administrator. Delhi was not the capital of India at the time, but it was an important commercial center and had a population of 150,000 by the start of the 20th century.

When the British decided to make Delhi the capital in 1911, they built New Delhi in a grandiose imperial style, secure in the belief that the sun would never set on the British Raj. Only 16 years after the city was inaugurated as the nation's capital, Delhi was torched during the trauma of the partition into Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan. In a matter of weeks Delhi was transformed from a Muslim-dominated city of less than a million inhabitants to a largely Hindu city of almost two million.

Today, very few city residents can lay claim to being real Delhi-wallahs, and most of the population of New Delhi comprises Hindu-Punjabi families originally from Lahore. Since Independence, Delhi has prospered as the capital of India. In the past decade its population has increased by 50%, largely due to rapid economic expansion and increased job opportunities. The downside of this boom is increased overcrowding, traffic congestion, housing shortages and pollution.

Coronation Durbar Park

The Delhi Coronation Durbar was held on December 12,th in 1911 before an assembly of about 80,000 people of British India and the princely states apparently to mark the accession of King George V to the throne of Great Britain on the death of Edward VII. The Coronation at Westminster Abbey took place on June 22, 1911. On the advice of the cabinet, the King George V had resolved to create a new precedent by proceeding himself with the Queen to India at the close of the year, in order to preside over the projected Durbar which was to be held at Delhi. The grand Durbar was held with all the trappings of the imperial Mughal Durbar. The King played the Great Mughal at the Durbar by endowing every interest group with what it looked for. The King announced for the generality some imperial boons and benefits, which included land grants, a month's extra pay for soldiers and subordinate civil servants, establishment of a new university at Dhaka and allotment of five million taka for it, declaration of the eligibility of the Indians for the Victoria Cross, and so on. Then he bestowed of honors on the elite with the aristocratic titles of Sirs, Rajas, Maharajas, Nawabs, Roybahadurs and Khanbahadurs. These followed more general announcements, such as the transference of the capital from Calcutta to Delhi, the annulment of the 1905-Partition of Bengal, the creation of a Governor-in-Council for united Bengal, separating Bihar, Orissa and Chhotanagpur from Bengal's jurisdiction and merging them into a new Lieutenant Governor's province, and the reduction of Assam once more to a Chief-Commissionership. The King then pronounced that henceforth the Viceroy would be concerned with imperial interests only and the provincial concerns should be run autonomously by the Governor-in-Council and elected bodies.

The Coronation Durbar Park is now a lonely place, being the last repository of statues of all the various British rulers of India, good, bad, and indifferent, brought there after Independence. The park is somewhat overgrown, but is worth a visit for those fans of the British Raj.

Humayun’s Tomb

Built in the mid-16th century, this is the first important example of Mughal architecture in India. It is a massive mausoleum complex dedicated to the second Mughal emperor. Humayun ruled from 1530 to 1540 and then again from 1555 to 1556, when he died after a fall from the steps of another Delhi landmark, Sher Mandal. This complex, built between 1562 and 1571 under the orders of Humayun's heirs, encompasses 30 acres divided into several quadrants. Each one contains different tomb structures. The centerpiece of the whole place is a huge square building, dedicated to the emperor himself. It has high arched entrances topped by a bulbous dome and surrounded by formal gardens. The gardens also contain the red-and-white sandstone and black-and-yellow marble tomb of Humayun's wife and, somewhat surprisingly, the tomb of Humayun's barber.

The Red Fort

The Red Fort is a red sandstone castle which contains the remains the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. It was started in 1639 and finished about 1648. It was the center of Mughal power until 1857, when the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled in the wake of the Sepoy Mutiny. The Red Fort is more like a small, imperial city, protected by red walls. As soon one enters in the fort from the Lahore gate there is a small Bazaar, here all kinds of items are available. This Shopping arcade was known as the Mina Bazaar. The arcade leads to the Naubat Khana or the drum house where musicians used to play drums on the arrival of Emperors or other princes. Just above the Naubat Khana is the Indian war memorial museum which has a rich collection of armor, guns, swords, and other items related to war. The Dewan-i-Am or the place of public hearing had a wall paneled with marble in laid with precious stones which were removed during the Sepoy Mutiny. The Dewan-i-Khas or the place for special hearing was the area where the emperor used to hold meetings with his ministers. Next to Dewan-i-Khas are the royal baths or the Hammams and Shahi Burj which are closed for public viewing. The white marbled Moti Masjid or the pearl mosque was the private mosque for Aurangzeb.

Qutab Minar

Qutab Minar has the highest stone tower in India and it's only one of the sights to be seen in the Qutab Minar complex. The marvel of this pillar, however, it's not its size but the fine carvings that cover it: they are all verses from the Koran. It serves as the minaret of the mosque, from where the call to prayer is sounded.

The Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque also belongs to the Qutab Minar complex. It is believed to be the first mosque built in India. It was started by Qutab-ud-din Aibak in 1193 AD and completed in 1197 AD, although some parts show signs of later additions. This mosque was built on top of some Hindu and Jain temples. The carved columns that one sees around the mosque's courtyard, in fact, belong to these previous temples.

The tomb of Iltutmish, which he himself built in 1235, is nearby. Its interiors are heavily decorated with calligraphy.

Jami Masjid

India’s largest mosque was built by the Emperor Jahan in the mid 17th Century from red sandstone. There are three massive gateways, four angle towers and two 40 meter high minarets and no walls. The Mosque itself is a large open square where about 25000 people can assemble and pray.

Raj Ghat

Raj Ghat, a green peaceful place, is Mahatma Gandhi’s final resting place. It's inside a quiet well-looked after little park. The shrine itself is very simple. There is a raised square platform made of black marble and covered in flowers, with a perpetual flame burning at one end of it. Upon the platform is inscribed the words He Ram, Gandhi’s last words, meaning Oh, God. There is also a museum on the grounds, containing, among other things, the blood stained clothes Gandhi wore on his last day alive and one of the bullets that killed him.

Visiting Delhi

Delhi’s airport is India’s main international air hub, with both international and domestic flights. There is also rail and bus service available between Delhi and the rest of India. Delhi has a bus system that is generally overcrowded, especially during rush hour. There is a metro system with stations connected by buses. One can rent a car or hire a taxi, but a more economical way to get around the city are motorized rickshaws. There is even the pedaled kind available in Old Delhi.