Grab des Togkluk in Togklukabad bei Delhi (Tomb of Togkluk in Togklukabad near Delhi)

1853

Later hand-coloured tinted lithograph on paper

Without mount: 10.2 x 13.1 in (26 x 33.5 cm)
With mount: 16.9 x 20.2 in (43 x 51.5 cm)

After Ghazi Tughlaq, Governor of the Punjab, had put an end to the atrocities of the invader Chosru Kupru by conquering Delhi to the general joy of the country at the beginning of the fourteenth century, he was proclaimed regent under the name of Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq in 1321, and so the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty in Delhi. He, and also his successor Muhammad bin Tughluq (1325 - 51), rallied the scattered forces of the country, which enabled them to subjugate provinces far from the core of the empire, while at the same time protecting themselves against enemy incursions by conquering solid areas deserted.

Far from the city of Delhi, Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq built the Tughlaqabad Fort from one of the Mewat hills, whose massive walls, carved out of the blackish rock with the greatest simplicity, make a very impressive impression and could probably withstand the attack style and weapons of that time. According to the information that the use of firearms was already known in Hindoostan three centuries before the invasion by Timur (1398), cannons may have already been in use when this fort was built. In fact, the strength of its defence shows that terrible sieges were possible even in early times, and the embrasures can still be seen in the terraced walls, despite their complete decay. Only one mosque inside the fort is still fairly well preserved; In front of it stands a tree: the only greenery in such a whole scene of devastation.

At the foot of that hill lie the ruins of the old Pathan city of Tughlaqpur, with the fort enclosed by a strong wall, and on the opposite side is the tomb of the builder, Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq, built by his son Muhammad bin Tughluq, who founded the city left unvolted, according to the peculiar custom of those old Herrschers, each of whom wanted to build a fort and a palace for themselves, and even found their own capital city, for which they usually used the ruins of the previous one. So, in order to build Tughlaqpur, the devastation of Delhi began, which was completed in the most magnificent way by foreign wrathers. - (Please remove this paragraph)

The tomb of Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq is made of the same material as the fort. Although built in a simple, unpretentious style, almost entirely without decoration, it also makes a beautiful, noble impression, which is further enhanced by the peaceful silence that surrounds it the ruin-strewn hill country prevails.

Plate 32 from Friedrich Wilhelm Waldemar's Des Prinzen Waldemar Von Preussen Nach Indien, Berlin: Deckerschen Geheimen Ober-Hofbuchdruckerei, 1853

Prince Friedrich Wilhelm Waldemar
He was the son of Prince Friedrich Wilhelm Karl of Prussia. He visited Sri Lanka, India and Nepal in 1844-1846. As was the Prussian aristocratic custom, he joined the military and by 1838, he had risen in ranks to simultaneously become a Major in the Guard-Dragoons and Commander of the 3rd Guard Militia. In 1844, he was promoted to Colonel of the Guard Artillery Brigade. That same year, he joined Eduard Graf von Oriola, a former captain on the General-staff, and Lieutenant Albrecht Wilhelm von der Groeben on a tour of India. During this time, he witnessed the First Anglo-Sikh war, particularly the battles of Mudki (18 December 1845), Ferozeshah (21 and 22 December 1845) and Sabraon (10 February 1846).

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