- Details
- Written by Anchal B Chaudhary
City Palace, Udaipur
City Palace, Udaipur, is the largest palace complex in the Indian state of Rajasthan and one of the most visited tourist attractions in the beautiful city of Udaipur.
Located on the banks of Lake Pichola, on a hill top, City Palace is a beautiful white marble structure and offers wonderful views of the city and its lakes.
The construction of the palace was initiated by Maharana Uday Singh and was taken on by his successors who added several palaces and structures thereafter.
The entry to the palace is through Hathi Pol, the elephant gate, which lies along the main street of the old city.
Bara Pol or The Great Gate takes one into the first court leading to the Tripolia Gate which has eight carved marble torans or archways. Here the king was weighed in gold and silver which was distributed amongst the locals.
Rang Bhawan
Amongst the many palaces in this palace complex, is one named Rang Bhawan which was once the Royal Treasury.
Also located in the Rang Bhawan are temples dedicated to Lord Krishna, his ardent devotee Meera Bai and Lord Shiva.
Sheesh Mahal
Sheesh Mahal, the palace of mirrors, as the name indicates has its walls and ceilings adorned with beautiful glasswork.
Built in 1716 AD, Sheesh Mahal also houses an ancient Dhuni Mata Shrine where a sage is believed to have meditated.
Laxmi Vilas
Laxmi Vilas now serves as an art gallery with a wonderful collection of the renowned Mewar paintings.
Krishna Vilas
Krishna Vilas has a rich collection of miniature paintings that portray royal processions, festivals and games the royal kings played.
Krishna Vilas, however, also has a tragic story associated with it. It’s said that a princess who was unable to choose from the two suitors seeking her hand in marriage, had poisoned herself to death here.
Jagdish Mandir
Built in 1652 AD, Jagdish Mandir is a large temple dedicated to Lord Jagannath, a form of Lord Vishnu. The walls of the temple are decorated with beautiful carvings depicting stories from Lord Krishna’s life and figurines of nymphs or apsaras.
The temple also houses a brass statue of Lord Vishnu’s ride, ‘Garuda’.
Fateh Prakash Palace
Once a palace, Fateh Prakash Palace has now been converted into a Luxury Hotel. Home to a Crystal Gallery, Fateh Prakash Palace has exquisite crystal items like crystal chairs, dressing table, sofas, tables, chairs, crockery and a unique jewel-studded carpet.
The then ruler, Maharaja Sajjan Singh, had ordered these rare crystal pieces from F&C Osler & Co. in England in 1877 but died before these arrived. It’s said that the packages remained unopened for 110 years thereafter.
