The Lal Mahal (Red Palace) of Pune is one of the most famous monuments located in

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, ( the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million As of 2021, Pune Metropolitan Region is the largest i ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, where Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, founder of the

Maratha Empire The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern Indian confederation that came to dominate much of the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. Maratha rule formally began in 1674 with the coronation of Sh ...

spent his childhood.

History

In the year 1630 AD, Shivaji Maharaj's Father Shahaji Raje Bhosale, established the Lal Mahal for his wife Jijabai and son.

Shivaji Maharaj Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...

stayed here for several years until he captured his first fort. The current Lal Mahal is a reconstruction of the original and located in the center of the Pune city. The original Lal Mahal was built with the idea of rejuvenating the recently razed city of Pune when Shahaji Raje entered the city along with Shivaji and his mother, Maasaheb Jijabai. Young Shivaji Maharaj grew up here, and stayed in the Lal Mahal till he captured the Torna fort in 1645. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's marriage with his first wife, Saibai took place in Lal Mahal on 16 May 1640. The Lal Mahal is also famous for an encounter between Shivaji Maharaj and

Shaista Khan Mirza Abu Talib (22 November 1600 – 1694), better known as Shaista Khan, was a general and the subahdar of Mughal Bengal. A maternal uncle to the emperor Aurangzeb, he acted as a key figure during his reign. Shaista Khan initially governed ...

where Shivaji Maharaj cut off the latter's fingers when he was trying to escape from the window of the Lal Mahal. This was part of a surreptitious guerrilla attack on the massive and entrenched

Mughal Army The Army of the Mughal Empire was the force by which the Mughal emperors established their empire in the 15th century and expanded it to its greatest extent at the beginning of the 18th century. Although its origins, like the Mughals themselves, ...

that had camped in Pune, with Shaista occupying (possibly symbolically) Shivaji Maharaj's childhood home. As a punishment for the ignominy of the defeat despite superior numbers and better armed and fed soldiers, Shaista was transferred by the Mughal Emperor to Bengal. Towards the end of the 17th Century, the Lal Mahal was ruined by some people and was eventually razed to the ground as a result of various attacks on the city. It is said that during the construction of the Shaniwarwada, some soil and stones of the Lal Mahal were used for luck. In 1734-35, a few houses were constructed on the land of the Lal Mahal and given for use to Ranoji Shinde and Ramchandraji. The records in the offices of the Peshwas mention that Lal Mahal was used for arranging feasts for the Brahmins during the thread-ceremony of

Sadashivrao Bhau Sadashivrao Bhau Peshwa (3 August 1730 – 14 January 1761) was son of Chimaji Appa (younger brother of Bajirao I) and Rakhmabai (Pethe family) and the nephew of Baji Rao I. He was a finance minister during the reign of Maratha emperor Chhatr ...

, son of

Chimaji Appa Chimaji Balaji Bhat was born in a Chitpavan caste family in 1707 and died in 1740, commonly referred to as Appa or Bhau, was the son of Balaji Vishwanath Bhat and the younger brother of Bajirao Peshwa of Maratha Empire. He was an able military ...

. The exact original location of the Lal Mahal is unknown, however it was known to be very close to the location of

Shaniwarwada Shaniwar Wada is a historical fortification in the city of Pune, India. Built in 1732, it was the great seat of the Peshwas of the Maratha Empire until 1818. Following the rise of the Maratha Empire, the palace became the center of Indian poli ...

, which is roughly where the current reconstruction stands.

Reconstruction and current structure

The current Lal Mahal was built only on a part of the land of the original Lal Mahal. The new Lal Mahal was not rebuilt in the same fashion as the original one and there is not much information found about the area and structure of the original Lal Mahal. The current Lal Mahal was rebuilt by the

Pune Municipal Corporation The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC, IAST: Puṇe Mahānagarpālikā) is the civic body that governs the inner limits of Pune, India. It is in charge of the civic needs and infrastructure of the metropolis, which is spread over an area of 48 ...

. Construction started in 1984 and was completed in 1988. The current Lal Mahal is a memorial holding a collection of large-size oil paintings based on the significant events in the life of Shivaji Maharaj, a statue of Jijabai, a carving depicting Shivaji Maharaj using a gold plow along with Jijabai, a fiber model of Raigad with horsemen and a huge map of Maharashtra indicating the forts of Shivaji Maharaj. The popular Jijamata Garden is now a recreational park for kids.

References

{{coord missing, Maharashtra Buildings and structures of the Maratha Empire Palaces in Maharashtra Tourist attractions in Pune Royal residences in India

History

Reconstruction and current structure

See also

References