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The Red Fort and the city of Shahjahanabad, commissioned by Emperor Shah Jahan in the seventeenth century, have been subjected to the inexorable march of time as well as radical transformations enforced by violent change. Yet, the Red Fort continues to hold a seminal place in the history of the Indian subcontinent. Contained within the walls of the Fort are secrets of a unique system of sophisticated architecture along with the many stories of the various occupants and the lives they had led.

Published two decades after the first edition—the most authoritative piece of research and analysis of the Fort—this second edition of the Red Fort of Shahjahanabad fulfils a long-standing demand for the book to be republished. With the aid of archival photographs, maps, architectural drawings, court chronicles, travelogues and other historical material, this architectural biography offers a rich and engaging narrative of the iconic Fort. Tracing and uncovering the original design and the layers of evolution of its buildings, the author, an architect with a specialisation in conservation, also offers valuable suggestions for the future well-being of the Red Fort and other historical sites where built and open spaces are inseparably integrated. This updated edition is an essential addition to the library of informed travellers as well as conservation professionals, historians and scholars of architecture and art—and anyone who has an interest in history.