The Badshahi Mosque is a Mughal era mosque in Lahore, capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan. The mosque is located west of Lahore Fort along the outskirts of the Walled City of Lahore, and is widely considered to be one of Lahore's most iconic landmarks.
The Badshahi Mosque was built by Emperor Aurangzeb in 1671, with construction of the mosque lasting for two years until 1673. The mosque is an important example of Mughal architecture, with an exterior that is decorated with carved red sandstone with marble inlay. It remains the largest mosque of the Mughal era, and is the second-largest mosque in Pakistan. After the fall of the Mughal Empire, the mosque was used as a garrison by the Sikh Empire and the British Empire, and is now one of Pakistan's most iconic sights.
The mosque is located adjacent to the Walled
City of Lahore, Pakistan. The entrance to the mosque lies on the western side
of the rectangular Hazuri Bagh, and faces the famous Alamgiri Gate of
the Lahore Fort, which is located on the eastern side of the Hazuri Bagh.
The mosque is also located next to the Roshnai Gate, one of the original
thirteen gates of Lahore, which is located to the southern side of the Hazuri
Bagh.
Near the entrance of the mosque lies the Tomb
of Muhammad Iqbal, a poet widely revered in Pakistan as the founder of
the Pakistan Movement which led to the creation of Pakistan as a
homeland for the Muslims of British India. Also located near the
mosque's entrance is the tomb of Sir Sikandar Hayat Khan, who is credited
for playing a major role in preservation and restoration of the mosque.
The sixth Mughal emperor, Aurangzeb, chose
Lahore as the site for his new imperial mosque. Aurangzeb, unlike the previous
emperors, was not a major patron of art and architecture and instead focused,
during much of his reign, on various military conquests which added over 3
million square kilometers to the Mughal realm.
