Very Short Answer Type Question
1: Name some buildings built by Babar and Humayun.
Answer: Pirzad Masjid and Sambhal Masjid built by Babar at Delhi and Sambhal respectively. Humayun built a palace named ‘Din Panah’ at Delhi.
2: Where is Quli Qutub Shah Tomb situated and what is its significance?
Answer: Quli Qutub Shah Tomb is situated at Golconda in Deccan. It is significant because it is the biggest dome in India
3: Describe ‘Arcuate’ style of construction.
Answer: Arcuate’ was an architectural style of windows to support the weight of the superstructure etc.
4: What were the technological improvements in the Medieval period?
Answer: Technological improvements noticeable from twelfth century were arches above doors and windows; use of cement and construction of large structures.
5. Why was limestone cement used in construction of large structures? [V. Imp.]
Answer: Limestone cement was very high-quality cement, which, when mixed with stonechips hardened into concrete. This made construction of large structures easier and faster.
6. How did the Persian court chronicles describe the Sultan?
Answer: Persian court chronicles described the Sultan as the ‘Shadow of God’.
7. Name the ruler who won universal respect for constructing a large reservoir just – outside Delhi-i kuhna?
Answer: Sultan Iltutmish.
8. What are the special features of Humagun’s tomb?
Answer: (a) It has a central towering dome.
(b)It has a tall gateway (pishtaq).
9. What was mahamandapa?
Answer: It was the main hall in the temple where dances were performed.
10. Name the temple built by king Rajarajadeva.
Answer: Rajarajeshvara temple.
11. When was the tomb of Hanumaun built?
Answer: It was built between 1562 and 1571.
12. Who constructed the Kandariya Mahadeva temple?
Answer: King Dhangadeva of the Chandela dynasty constructed the Kandariya Mahadeva temple.
13. Where was Shah Jahan’s capital in the early years of his reign?
Answer: It was at Agra
14. What is the special feature of Fatehpur Sikri, Akbar’s capital?
Answer:Many of the buildings show the influence of the architectural styles of Gujarat and Malwa.
15. Name the king who invaded Sri Lanka? Whom did he defeat?
Answer: King Shrimara Shrivallabha. He defeated the king, Sena I.
16. What were havellis?
Answer: They were large mansions of the merchants.
17. How did kings win the praise of their subjects? [V. Imp.]
Answer: They won the praise of their subjects by buildings structures meant for public activity such as temples, mosques, tanks, wells, caravanserais and bazaars.
Short Answer Type Questions
1: Name the important Mughal Gardens which have survived till date.
Answer: Shalimar Bagh at Lahore and Srinagar, Nishat Bagh in Srinagar, Kabul Bagh in Panipat & the Pinjore Garden in Punjab are the important gardens of Mughal period that have survived till date.
2: Write a note on Akbar’s tomb at Sikandra?
Answer: The construction of the Akbar tomb was begun by Akbar himself but was completed by Jahangir. The tomb is located in the centre of a huge garden and is square shaped. It consists of five storeys. It has fresco done on its walls and the holy Quran’s versus engraved on stone tiles.
3: Who was the Mughal Emperor who initiated construction on a massive scale?
Answer: Akbar was the first Mughal Emperor with enough time and resources to undertake construction of massive scale construction like Red Fort (Agra), Fatehpur Sikri etc.
4: Write short notes on Humayun’s Tomb.
Answer: Humayun tomb was built by Humayun’s wife Hamida Bano. It was built in Persian method of construction. The use of stone and marble shows Indian influence. Its construction started in 1564 A.D. and it took eight years to be completed.
5: Write short notes on ‘Agra Fort’?
Answer: Akbar had built several buildings and forts, but the most impressive among them is the Agra Fort which was completed in 1571 A.D. Red sand stone was used for the construction and, has many gates named Amar Singh Dwar, Hathi Dwar etc. The Jahangir Mahal, Mariam Mahal etc. are among the places built in Agra Fort. The Agra Fort required 2,000 stone-cutters, 2,000 cement and lime-stone makers and 8,000 labourers.
6: Which was Akbar’s most famous construction?
Answer: The crowning achievement of Akbar’s reign is considered to be palace-cum-fort complex at Fatehpur Sikri. Akbar wanted a peaceful and pretty place with good natural environment. So he had chosen Fatehpur Sikri for this purpose. He commenced its building in 1572 and completed it in 1580. It is built on a hill with large artificial lake. It has many buildings based on Gujarati and Bengali style, including fanciful kiosk, balconies and deep caves.
7: What do you know about Panch Mahal?
Answer: Panch Mahal’ is the part of Fatehpur Sikri. Panch Mahal was built to enjoy fresh air and has five storey buildings. It has different temples with beautiful pillars in several designs.
8: Describe one of the most magnificent buildings of Fatehpur Sikri.
Answer: The most magnificent buildings of Fatehpur Sikri are the mosque and the gateway. It is called the ‘Buland Darwaja’ or the ‘lofty gate’. It was built to commemorate the victory of Gujarat by Akbar. The arch of Buland Darwaja is about 41 meters. It is a ‘half dome portal’ style gate.
9: What was the chief interest of Jahangir and name the two famous buildings of his reign?
Answer: Jahangir’s chief interest was in painting rather than in architecture. Despite this, two buildings constructed during his reign are famous- Akbar’s tomb at Sikandra and Itmad-ud-Daulah’s tomb at Agra.
10: List out some of the important buildings constructed during Shah Jahan’s period?
Answer: Architecture during Shah Jahan’s period was at its zenith. Some of the finest examples are- Taj Mahal in Agra, Red fort in Delhi, Jama Masjid in Delhi, Moti Masjid and Masumman Burz in Agra Fort.
11: Mention some monuments considered as blend of Hindu and Muslim architecture.
Answer: The Jama Masjid of Adil Shah at Bijapur, Adil Shah II’s tomb, some royal palaces & the Satmanzila buildings are elegant examples of blend of Hindu and Muslim style architecture.
12: Give a brief note on Islamic architecture.
Answer: The Islamic architecture represented the order and might of Islam. It was not entirely foreign implant on Indian scene but a mixture of Persian, Timurid, Samarkhand & Bukhara style.
13: Write a short note on Qutub-Minar.
Answer: Qutub Minar with a height of 72.5 m is the tallest brick minaret in the world. Qutub-ud-din-aibak laid the foundation of minar in AD 1199. Numerous inscriptions in Arabic and Nagari characters in different places of the minar reveal the history of Qutub-Minar.
14: Why were the temples destroyed in the Medieval period?
Answer: As kings very often attacked each other kingdoms; they very often targeted these buildings to destroy the power and wealth of their opponents. They decorated their temples with seized images from defeated kingdoms.
15: What is ‘Mausoleum’?
Answer: Mausoleum’ was ‘a building housing an Islamic tomb’. Taj Mahal at Agra and tomb of Shiek Salim Chisti at Fatehpur Sikri are representative examples of Mausoleums built on Persian pattern.
16. Who were involved in the building of the Qutb Minor?
Answer: The Qutb Minar is five storeys high. The first floor was constructed by Qutbuddin Aybak and the rest by Iltutmish around 1229. Over the years it was damaged by lightning and earthquakes and repaired by Alauddin Khalji, Muhammad Tughluq, Firuz Shah Tughluq and Ibrahim Lodi.
17: Describe the styles of temple architecture in India.
Answer: Indian temple architecture is classified in three different styles:
- The North Indian style or Nagara.
- The South Indian style or Dravida.
- The amalgamation of north and south Indian style is called the Vesara.
18: Give some examples of all three styles of temple architecture.
Answer: The Kasi Vishvanath temple at Vanarasi and Das Avatar temple are examples of north Indian style of temple. The most representative of Nagara style are the groups of temples at Khajraho (M.P) and Bhubaneswar (Orissa). The most important examples of Dravida Style are the Shore Temple (Mamallapuram) and the Meenakshi temple (Madurai).
19. How can you say that Mughal rulers adapted regional architectural styles in the construction of their buildings? Explain with examples.
Answer: Mughal rulers were skilled in adapting regional architectural styles in the construction of their buildings. For example :
- In Bengal, the local rulers had developed a roof that was designed to resemble a thatched hut. The Mughals liked this ‘Bangla dome’ and used it their architecture.
- In Akbar’s capital at Fatehpur Sikri many of the buildings show the influence of the architectural styles of Gujarat and Malwa.
20. Describe how Shah Jahan adapted the riverfront garden in the layout of the Teg Mahal.
Answer: The Taj Mahal is the grandest architectural accomplishment of Shah Jahan’s reign. He adapted the river-front garden in the its layout. Here, the white marble mansoleum was placed on a terrace by the edge of the river and the garden was to its south. Shah Jahan developed this architectural form as a means to control the access that nobles had to the river.
21. What is the main feature of Shah Jahan’s new city of Shahjahanabad? [Imp.]
Answer: Shah Jahan constructed a new city namely Shahjahanabad in Delhi. In this city, the imperial palace commanded the river-front. Only specially favoured nobles like his oldest son Dara Shukoh were given access to the river. All others had to construct their homes in the city away from the River Yamuna.
Long Answer Type Questions
1: What kind of structures was built between eight and eighteenth century by the kings and their officers?
Answer: Two kinds of structures were built between eight and eighteenth century by the kings and their officers. The first were forts, palaces and tombs. These were safe, protected and grandiose places of rest in this world and the next. The second were structures meant for public activity including temples, mosques, tanks, wells, caravan serais and bazaars. Kings were expected to care for their subjects and by making structures for their use and comfort, rulers hoped to win their praise.
2: Itmad-ud-Daulah’s tomb was predecessor of Taj Mahal. Explain.
Answer: Itmad-ud-Daula tomb was one of the significant buildings of Jahangir reign. It was built by Jahangir’s wife and Itmad-ud-Daulah’s daughter, Nur Jahan. It is square shaped and on all the four corners there are small eight sided minarets. It is fully made of white marble inlaid with coloured stones. Here, the principle of Pietra dura (engraving of coloured stones in different motifs) was introduced first in India. The tomb is considered to be the precursor of Taj Mahal due to the use of marble and Pietra Dura.
3. What type of structures were built by kings and their officers between the eighth and the eighteenth centuries?
Answer: During this period kings and their officers built two kinds of structure
(i) Forts, palaces, garden residences and tombs
(ii) Structures meant for public activity including temples, mosques, tanks, wells, caravanserais and bazaars.
4. Write a short note on the Kandariya Mahadeva temple.
Answer: The Kandariya Mahadeva temple dedicated to Shiva was constructed in 999 by the king Dhangadeva of the Chandela dynasty. The temple had an ornamented gateway that led to an entrance. It had a main hall known as mahamandapa where dances were performed. The image of the chief deity was kept in the main Shrine known as garbhagriha. This was the place for ritual worship where only the king and his kith and kin gathered.
5. Throw light on how the construction of the Rqjarqjeshvara temple was a very difficult task. [V. Imp.]
Answer: The Raj araj eshvara temple was built in the early 11th century. It had the tallest shikhara amongst temples of its time. Its construction was a veiy difficult task. There were no cranes in those days. The 90 tonne stone for the top of the shikhara was too heavy to lift manually. Hence, the architects built an inclined path to the top of the temple, placed the boulder on rollers and rolled it all the way to the top. The path started more than 4 km away so that it would not be too steep. This was dismantled after the temple was built.
6. In what ways do you think the policies of Rajendra I and Mahmud of Ghazni were a product of their time? How were the actions of the two rulers different? [Imp.]
Answer: King Rajendra I looted the temples of the defeated rulers and seized prized statues from them. He these statues in decoration of the Shiva temple, that he built in his capital in the early 11th century.
Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni was a contemporary of Rajendra I. He destroyed and looted the temples of defeated kings in order to win credit as a great hero of Islam.Thus, King Rajendra I constructed temple while Mahmud of Ghazni destroyed it. In this way, their actions were very much different.
7. Write a brief note on the chahar bagh built by the Mughal rulers.
Answer: The Mughal emperors were very much interested in literature, art and architecture. Babur, in his autobiography, described his interest in planning and laying out formal gardens, placed within rectangular walled enclosures and divided into four quarters by artificial channels. These gardens were called chahar bagh, four gardens, because of their symmetrical division into quarters. Beginning with Akbar, some of the most beautiful chahar baghs were constructed by Jahangir and Shah Jahan in Kashmir, Agra and Delhi.
8. When was Humayun’s tomb built? What are its special features?
Answer: Humayun’s tomb was, built between 1562 and 1571. Its main features are:
- The central towering dome and the tall gateway known as pishtaqbecame important aspects of Mughal architecture. This tomb architecture was first visible in Humayun’s tomb.
- The tomb was placed in the centre of a huge formal chahar baghand built in the tradition known as ‘eight paradises’ or hasht bihisht—a central hall surrounded by eight rooms.
- The building was constructed with red sandstone, edge with white marble.
9. Give an account of Shah Johan’s audience halls. [Imp.]
Answer: Shah Jahan’s audience halls were specially constructed to resemble a mosque.
The pedestal on which his throne was placed was frequently described as the qibla, the direction faced by Muslims at prayer, since everybody faced that direction when court was in session. The idea of the king as a representative of God on earth was suggested by these architectural features.
The construction of Shah Jahan’s audience hall aimed to communicate that the king’s justice would treat the high and the low as equals creating a world where all could live together in harmony.
10. Compare the reasons why temples were built and destroyed? [V. Imp.]
Answer: Kings built temples to show their devotion to God and their power and wealth. King Rajarajeshvara built Rajarajeshvara temple for the worship of his god, Rajarajeshvaram. Here, the names of the king and the god appear to be similar. The king took the god’s name because it was auspicious and he wanted to appear like a god. The largest temples were usually built by kings while the other, lesser deities in the temples were gods and goddesses of the allies and subordinates of the ruler. The temple was a miniature model of the world ruled by the king and his allies. As they worshipped the deities together in the royal temples, it seemed as if they brought the just rule of the gods on earth. Kings built temples but when they attacked one another’s kingdoms they often targeted these buildings.
In the early 9th century when the Pandyan King Shrimara Shrivallabha invaded Sri Lanka and defeated the King Sena I he seized all the valuables such as the statue of the Buddha made entirely of gold and other golden images from various monasteries. King Sena II took revenge of this. He invaded Madurai, the capital of the Pandyas in order to restore the gold statue of the Buddha. In the same way when in the early 11th century the Chola King Rajendra I built a Shiva temple in his capital. He filled it with prized statues seized from defeated rulers. Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni not only seized the valuables from the temples but also destroyed them. He did it in order to win credit as a great hero of Islam Thus, rulers displayed their political might and military success by attacking and looting the places of worship of defeated rulers.
