LAHORE - The Liveliest City of Pakistan
Lahore is Pakistan's cultural, intellectual and artistic center. Its faded elegance, busy streets and bazaars, and wide variety of Islamic and British architecture make it a city full of atmosphere, contrast and surprise. Being the center of cultural and literary activities it may rightly be called the cultural capital of Pakistan.
Lahore is undoubtedly ancient. Legend has it that it was founded by Loh, son of Rama, the hero of the Hindu epic, the Ramayana. Some others think that the name means Loh-awar, meaning a "Fort as strong as Iron".
With a population of more than 2.5 million, Lahore is Pakistan's second largest city. It occupies a choice site in the midst of fertile alluvial plains.
It is situated one mile to the south of the river Ravi, and some 23 miles from the eastern border of the district. The city is built in the form of a parallelogram, the area within the walls, exclusive of the citadel, being about 461 acres. It stands on the alluvial plain traversed by the river Ravi. The city is slightly elevated above the plain, and has a high ridge within it, running east and west on its northern side. The whole of this elevated ground is composed of the accumulated debris of many centuries. The river, which makes a very circuitous bend from the East, passes in a semi-circle to the North of Lahore.
Historical Background
Lahore has been the capital of Punjab for about little above one thousand years; first from 1021 to 1186 under the Ghaznavid Dynasty, founded by Mahmud of Ghaznavi, then under Muhammad of Ghor followed by various Sultans of Delhi. It reached its full glory under Mughal rule from 1524 to 1752. The third Mughal emperor, Akbar, held his court in Lahore for 14 years from 1584 to 1598.
In the 18th and 19th centuries the Sikhs also had their capital at Lahore. When the British took over in 1849, they erected splendid Victorian public buildings in the style that has come to be called Mughal-Gothic.
About Lahore
It can also be conjectured that Lahore was an industrial center in the Moghul period. The famous gun which lies in front of the Central Museum and guns present at other places were molded in the foundries of Lahore. Their perfection shows that the industry was quite advanced.
The British during their reign (1849 -1947) contributed towards the beautification of Lahore by harmoniously combining Mughal, Gothic and Victorian styles of architecture. They built some important buildings, like the High Court, Government College, the Museums, the National College of Arts, Montgomery Hall, Tollinton Market, the Punjab University (Old Campus) and the Provincial Assembly.
Lahore has been the traditional capital of Punjab for a thousand years. It had been the cultural center of Northern India extending from Peshawar to New Delhi. Lahore is the city of poets, artists, educational institutions and some of the finest gardens in the continent.
The city as we know it today, reached its peak of glory during the Moghul rulers, especially during the reign of Akbar the Great, who made it his capital. His son, Jehangir, is buried in its outskirts and his mausoleum is one of the places frequented by tourists and Lahorites alike. The last great Moghul Emperor, Aurangzeb (1707 - 1838) built Lahore's most famous monument, the great Badshahi Mosque.
Within the walled city you may come across old Havelis or the spacious houses of the rich, which give you an inkling of the style of the rich and notables in the Moghul reign.
Perhaps the best places to see new buildings are the suburbs being developed by returning migrants, which are a happy blend of influences and styles from all over the world. Besides the number of places worth visiting within the city there are a number of other leisure areas developed in the suburbs and close vicinity.