The Agra Fort is situated on the right bank of the River Jamuna towards the east of the city. The fort was started in 1565 by Akbar the Great and took 8 years to complete. Jahangir (Akbar’s son), Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb extended the complex to include many other buildings and palaces.
The photo shows the Angoori Bagh created by Akbar for his empress and ladies of the Harem. It is said that the soil for this garden was brought form Kashmir. The garden is surrounded by a double storied building on three sides and by the Khas Mahal on the fourth, a beautiful white marble structure that housed or should I say imprisoned the ladies of the Harem for there is a dark secret door in the corner of the garden that leads to an underground execution chamber should any lady transgress the rules of the Harem. You have to understand that many local rulers gifted their daughters to the Emperor as a mark of fidelity but life in the harem could be very boring and difficult especially if you were not favoured by the Emperor, so if they tried to escape they faced the ultimate penalty – stretched on a rack until all their joints parted – too horrible to think about really in such a beautiful place.
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