The rulers of the five Deccan sultanates had a number of cultural contributions in the fields of art, music, literature and architecture. The Bidar and Golconda forts are examples of the architecture and military planning of the sultanates. Apart from forts, they also constructed many tombs, mosques and madrasas. Gol Gumbaz (tomb of Mohammed Adil Shah), was the second largest dome in the world.[when?]
In 2014, UNESCO put a group of buildings on its "tentative list" to become a World Heritage Site under the name "Monuments and Forts of the Deccan Sultanate" (despite there being multiple sultanates). These are:[1]
Bahmani and Barid Shahi Monuments at Bidar, Karnataka
During Ahmadnagar rule, multiple palaces were constructed, and their ruins lay in and around Ahmadnagar city. They also built tombs of nobles such as Salabat Khan and Changiz Khan, and saints such as Shah Sharif and Bava Bangali.[2]
Malik Ambar is credited with the construction of the Janjira Fort in the Murud Area of present-day Maharashtra India.[3] After its construction in 1567 AD, the fort was key to the Sidis withstanding various invasion attempts by the Marathas, Mughals, and Portuguese to capture Janjira.[4]
The Farah Bagh palace (also called Faria Bagh) is situated in Ahmednagar, Maharashtra. It was built by Nizam Shahi rulers in Ahmednagar.[5][6][7]
Farah Bagh was the centrepiece of a palatial complex completed in 1583. It belonged to the royal household and Murtaza Nizam Shah often retired here to play chess with a Delhi singer he called Fateh Shah. He also built the singer a separate palace called Lakad Mahal in the garden.[citation needed]
Bijapur Sultanate
Prominent monuments in Bijapur are the Gagan Mahal, Gol Gumbaz, Bijapur Fort and Ibrahim Rauza. Gol Gumbaz is the tomb of Mohammed Adil Shah and it contains the second-largest dome in the world constructed before the modern age. The external diameter of the hemispherical dome is 44 m. Ibrahim Rouza is the tomb for Ibrahim Adil Shah II and it is one of the most beautiful monuments in Bijapur.
Golkonda fort, built by the Qutb Shahi dynasty, is one of the most impregnable forts in India. It is also known for its acoustic features and water management.
The Jami Masjid (1518) built by Quli Qutb Mulk is a notable mosque in Golkonda. The tombs of Qutb Shahis are a mausoleum complex, a royal necropolis of 30 tombs of the royal family. These were erected from 1543 to 1672.
Char Minar, in the heart of Hyderabad, was completed in 1591. It has four minarets of 56 m. height. The construction of the Makkah Masjid was started in 1617 during the reign of Muhammad Qutb Shah but completed only in 1693.[9]
^Sohoni, Pushkar (2020). "The Fort of Janjira". African Rulers and Generals in India. Greensboro, North Carolina; Ahmedabad: University of North Carolina Ethiopian and East African Studies Project; Ahmedabad Sidi Heritage and Educational Center. pp. 167–183.
^Kainthla, Anita (August 2011). "The Invincible Fort of Murud Janjira". India Currents. 25 (5): 56–57 – via ProQuest.
Michell, George; Zebrowski, Mark (1999). Architecture and Art of the Deccan Sultanates (The New Cambridge History of India Vol. I:7). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN0-521-56321-6.