The Origins of Lahore

Lahore, having a great blend of royal gardens, grand monuments, antique buildings and residences, can be claimed as an historical city of International importance. Over the ages it evolved as the economic and cultural centre of the Northern portion of the Indian sub-continent.

The origins of Lahore are shrouded in the mists of antiquity but Lahore is undoubtedly ancient. A legend has it that it was named after "Lahu" the son of Rama and Sita (both the main characters of epic Ramayana), who founded Lahore about 4,000 years ago. Whereas, some other sources believe that the name comes from the fact that the citadel of Lahore was "iron-like" and thus it was named Lahore. A mohallah between Lohari and Shahalmi gates is still called "Lohar Mohallah" and the original Lahore could well have been the walls around this area. So the origin of Lahore goes back to antiquity thus laying the foundations of the origin of our cultural life.

The Walled City of Lahore was originally surrounded by a huge mud wall. The burnt-brick wall and the Fort were put together by the Mughal Emperor Akbar who built the thirteen gates that are seen today. The gates have been named as: Roshnai, Masti, Kashmiri, Sheranwala, Yakki, Delhi, Akbari, Mochi, Shah Alami, Lohari, Mori, Bhati and Taxali. Fascinating labyrinth of the Walled City of Lahore was colourful, festive and mysterious.

Over the time as invaders continued to wreak havoc on Lahore, the city fell into disrepair. The present Walled City was fortified by Ranjit Singh in 1799. The city devastation began in 1839 when the Sikhs fought among themselves for power and the British rule added to the deterioration of the Walled City. The southern portion of the Fort and Walled City were destroyed in the Mutiny of 1857 by the British. With this they also knocked down the magnificent Taxali gate along with the west walls of the Walled City. Later in 1947the stunning Shahalmi gate was ruined along with the middle portions of the Walled City. The Walled City of Lahore as we see it today presents a picture of perpetual destruction over the ages.

The vibrancy of bazaars, culture, monuments and the colour of life was all snuffed out in the massive destruction during the War of Independence in 1947 and thus a new Lahore was seen as what it is today. This destruction also brought a new intolerant attitude towards our history and the civil institutions failed to keep up the development of physical and cultural institutions.

Today the Walled City of Lahore has reached a point where the infrastructure and cultural heritage is under a grave threat, and the issue needs to be addressed with a sustainable solution.

A new wave of destruction washed away the lively colour, culture and vigorous social activities in 1947 after the war of independence. The resulting inter-communal strife destroyed wide areas of the urban fabric, some of which were repaired