MUGHAL

GARDENS
A group of gardens built by the Mughals in the
Persian style of architecture

T.V.Pradeepa Priyadharsini
510311251008

PERSIAN GARDENS:
The Persian Garden refers to a tradition and style of garden design
which originated in Persia and which influenced the design of gardens throughout
the larger region.
COMMON FEATURES OF PERSIAN GARDENS
A high surrounding wall
Straight tile-lined channels of water
Bubbling fountains
Trees for shade and fruit
A Pavilion or gazebo
Strong emphasis on flowers in beds and pots

El Partal in the upper Alhambra,

Granada

Persian park

MUGHAL GARDENS:
HISTORY:

The founder of
the Mughal empire,
BABUR , described
his favourite type of
garden as
a CHARBAGH.
(dividing the garden
into four equal
quarters)

Humayun, his
son, does not
seem to have
had much time
for building.
Akbar built
several gardens
first in
Delhi, then in
Agra, Akbars
new capital.

Akbars
heir, JAHANGIR, did
not build as much, but
he helped to lay out the
famous Shalimar
garden and was known
for his great love for
flowers.

Jahangir's
son, SHAH
JAHAN, marks
the apex of
Mughal garden
architecture and
floral design.
He is famous
for the
construction of
the Taj Mahal
and the Red
Fort which
contains the
Mahtab bagh.

These tended to be riverfront gardens rather than the fortress gardens that his
predecessors built.
Building riverfront rather than fortress gardens influenced later Mughal garden
architecture considerably.

FEATURES:

1. Significant use of rectilinear layouts are made within the walled enclosures.
2. Typical features include pools, fountains and canals inside the gardens.

3. Had handsome walls and great gateways. More like forts than gardens
City was pleasantly adorned.
4. Most important feature of Mughal garden is Char Bagh planning

5. Mughals were obsessed with symbol and incorporated it into their gardens in
many ways.

6. Include trees of various sorts, some to provide shade merely, and others to
produce fruits;
flowers, colorful and sweet-smelling;
grass, usually growing wild under the trees;
birds to fill the garden with song; the whole cooled by a pleasant breeze.
7. The garden might include a raised hillock at the center, reminiscent of the
mountain at the center of the universe in cosmological descriptions, and often
surmounted by a pavilion or palace.

TYPES OF GARDEN:
a) TOMB GARDEN:
Universally planned in the midst of a CHAR BAGH
Founded with architectural elements such as stone pathways, canals,
lily pond, lotus-tanks, stairs, cascades and waterfalls.
Example : Humayuns Tomb

b) PALACE GARDEN:
Gardens along with such water devices as tanks, canals, cascades and
fountains.
Illustrated by a large no. of paintings of this period
Example : Garden around a fort at Agra

c) PLAIN GARDEN:
Gardens were laid down independently on a plain surface on char
bagh plan, enclosed on all sides by a PARKOTA (RAMPATS )with a
main gateway in the south and with some ornamental gateways on
other sides.
Divided in four equal parts by four CANALS running from central
platform with stone or or brick paved causeways on both sides, having
tanks, and cascades sometimes.
Perfectly unified homogeneous composition.
Pleasure pavilion was originally built on the central later sometimes
replaced by a tomb of the owner of the garden.
Example : Taj Mahal

d) TERRACED GARDEN:
Laid out with all the basic elements of the plain garden in several
terraces
Had a central canal in the middle, descending from one terrace to the
other, through broad fish scaled cascades and relay-tanks
Each terrace generally having its own independent CHAR BAGH
plan.
Example : Shalimar Bagh

VARIOUS MUGHAL GARDENS

Afghanistan
Bagh-e Babur(Kabul)
India

Humayun's Tomb-Delhi (Nizamuddin)

Taj Mahal-Agra
Ram Bagh-Agra
Mehtab Bagh-Agra

Shalimar Gardens (Kashmir)-Kashmir

Safdarjung's Tomb
Yadvindra Gardens-Pinjore
Khusro Bagh, Allahabad

Chauburji(The Gate to the Mughal Gardens)

Lahore Fort
Shahdara Bagh
Shalimar Gardens (Lahore)
Hazuri Bagh

Pakistan

CASE STUDIES:
1) RAMBAGH GARDEN, AGRA
The Ram Bagh is the oldest Mughal Garden in India,
Built by the Mughal Emperor Babur in 1528 A.D.
Planned following the char bagh pattern

Four main divisions crisscrossed by paths and waterways.

Located about five kilometers northeast of the Taj Mahal.
The Ram Bagh is the oldest Mughal Garden in India.

Built by the Mughal Emperor Babur in 1528 A.D.

Planned following the char bagh pattern
Four main divisions crisscrossed by paths and waterways.
Located about five kilometers northeast of the Taj Mahal.
Cascades down three terraces in a sequence of cascades.

2) MUGHAL GARDEN AT HUMAYUNS TOMB:

Humayun's Tomb was the first garden tomb made in India.

The garden is divided into 36 squares by a grid of water channels and
paths.
These channels of water also facilitates the formation of Charbagh at
Humayuns Tomb.

 Humayun's Tomb was the first garden tomb made in India.

The garden is divided into 36 squares by a grid of water channels and
paths.
These channels of water also facilitates the formation of Charbagh at
Humayuns Tomb.

 While the main tomb took over eight years to build, it was also placed
in centre of a 30-acre (120,000 m2) Char Bagh Garden which was the
first of its kind in the South Asia in such a scale.
The highly geometrical and enclosed Paradise Garden is divided into
four squares by paved walkways (khiyabans) and two bisecting
central water channels, reflecting the four rivers that flow in jannat,
the Islamic concept of paradise.

The central water channels appear to be disappearing beneath the

tomb structure and reappearing on the other side in a straight line,
suggesting the Quranic verse, which talks of rivers flowing beneath
the 'Garden of Paradise'.

3) CHAR BAGH AT TAJ MAHAL

The complex is set around a large 300-meter square charbagh, a Mughal

garden.
The garden uses raised pathways that divide each of the four quarters of the
garden into 16 sunken parterres or flowerbeds.
A raised marble water tank at the center of the garden, halfway between the
tomb and gateway, with a reflecting pool on North-South axis reflects the
image of the Taj Mahal.
Elsewhere, the garden is laid out with avenues of trees and fountains

 The charbagh garden, a design inspired by Persian gardens, was introduced

to India by the first Mughal emperor Babur.
It symbolizes four flowing rivers of Paradise and reflects the gardens of
Paradise derived from the Persian paridaeza, meaning 'walled garden'.
In mystic Islamic texts of Mughal period, paradise is described as an ideal
garden of abundance with four rivers flowing from a central spring or
mountain, separating the garden into north, west, south and east.
The raised marble water tank is called al Hawd al-Kawthar, in reference to
"Tank of Abundance" promised to Muhammad.
Most Mughal charbaghs are rectangular with a tomb or pavilion in the
center.
The Taj Mahal garden is unusual in that the main element, the tomb, instead
is located at the end of the garden.
With the discovery of Mahtab Baghor "Moonlight Garden" on the other side
of the Yamuna, Archaeological Survey of India interprets that the Yamuna
itself was incorporated into the garden's design and was meant to be seen as
one of the rivers of Paradise.
The similarity in layout of the garden and its architectural features such as
fountains, brick and marble walkways, and geometric brick-lined flowerbeds
with Shalimar's suggest that the garden may have been designed by the same
engineer, Ali Mardan.

4) SHALIMAR GARDENS IN KASHMIR

Includes all the features of a mughal garden

Has 3 terraces
The 2nd terrace garden along the axial canal slightly broader, has two
shallow terraces.
The carved stone bases and a fine platform surrounded by fountains are still
seen
Shalimar Bagh is well known for chini khanas, or arched niches, behind
garden waterfalls.
The garden is considered to be very beautiful during the autumn and spring
seasons due to the colour change in leaves of the famed Chinar trees.

The top garden, unseen from below, was reserved for the ladies of the court.
The gardens were the inspiration for other gardens of the same name,
notably the Shalimar Gardens in Lahore, Pakistan.
Upon completion of the gardens, the emperor is said to have recited the
famous Persian expression: If there is a paradise on earth, it is this, it is this,
it is this.

5) RASHTRAPATI BHAVAN-MUGHAL GARDENS

The Mughal Gardens situated at the back of the Rashtrapati Bhavan,

incorporates both Mughal and English landscaping styles and Feature a vast
variety of flowers.
A terraced chahar bagh with two north-south & east-west water channels
with Fountains at crossings.

 Main garden-Two channels running North to South and two running East to
West divide this garden into a grid of squares.
There are six lotus shaped fountains at the crossings of these channels.
Wheresas the energetic fountains rising up to a height of 12 feet create
soothing murmur that enthralls the visitor, the channels are so tranquil in
their movement that they seem frozen. In the channels at appropriate times
of day can be seen reflections of the imposing building and the proud
flowers.
There are wooden trays placed on stands in the centre of the channels where
grain is put for the birds to feed upon.
Terrace garden-There are two longitudinal strips of garden at a higher level
on either side of the Main Garden forming the Northern and Southern
boundary.
The plants grown are the same as in the Main Garden.
At the centre of both the strips is a fountain which falls inwards forming a
well. On the Western tips are located two gazebos and on the Eastern tips
two ornately designed sentry posts.
Long Garden or the 'Purdha Garden'-This is located to the West of the Main
Garden, and runs along on either side of the central pavement which goes to
the circular garden.
Enclosed in walls about 12 feet high this is predominantly a rose garden. It
has 16 square rose beds encased in low hedges.
There is a red sandstone pergola in the centre over the cental pavement
which is covered with Rose creepers, Petrea, Bougainvillea and Grape
Vines.
The walls are covered with creepers like Jasmine, Rhyncospermum, Tecoma
Grandiflora, Bignonia Vanista, Adenoclyma, Echitice, Parana Paniculata.
Along the walls are planted the China Orange trees.
Around the circular garden there are rooms for Office of the horticulturist, a
green house, stores, nursery etc.
Here is housed the collection of Bonsais, one of the best in the country.

S.NO

NAME OF THE GARDEN

LOCATION

TYPE

1)

Rambagh garden

Agra, Uttar Pradesh

Palace garden

2)

Mughal garden at humayuns

tomb

Nizamuddin, New
Delhi

Tomb garden

3)

Char bagh at taj mahal

Agra, Uttar Pradesh

Plain garden

4)

Shalimar gardens in kashmir

Srinagar, Jammu
and Kashmir

Terraced garden

5)

Mugal garden at Rashtrapati

bhavan

New Delhi, Delhi

Application of all
the four gardens