Akbar’s Tomb - Nearby Places
Agra has many historical monuments like tombs, palaces, forts etc. Besides visiting Akbar’s tomb, tourists can also visit Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Itmad-ud-Daulah Tomb and many other monuments. Some of the nearby places are as follows −
Mariam-uz-Zamani Tomb
Mariam-uz-Zamani was a Hindu wife of Emperor Akbar and mother of Jahangir. She was the daughter of King Bharmal of Rajasthan. She is also popular by the name of Jodhabai though history says that she was not known by this name in her life time. The tomb was a baradari during the reign of Sikandar Lodi which was converted to a tomb in 1623.
Fatehpur Sikri
Fatehpur Sikri was built by Akbar and its construction was started in 1569. While being childless, he went to Saint Sheikh Salim Chishti and due to his blessings, Akbar became the father of a male child.
Fatehpur Sikri was constructed in the commemoration of this event. Later, Akbar abandoned the city due to water shortage and other events. The places to visit here are Salim Chishti tomb, Buland Darwaza, Panch Mahal, Jodhabai Mahal, and other structures. Fatehpur Sikri is around 38 km from Akbar’s Tomb.
Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan in the memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal. This monument is one of the Seven Wonders of the World and is built from white marble. Along with marble, red sandstone is also used to build some structures like mosque, entrance gates and others. Taj Mahal is around 17km from Akbar’s Tomb.
Agra Fort
Agra Fort was built by Lodi dynasty and Mughal dynasty elaborated its construction area-wise as well as architecture-wise. The red sandstone of the fort were replaced with marbles and other Mughal art has been embedded in the fort.
Aurangzeb imprisoned his father Shah Jahan in this fort who looked at the Taj Mahal from the window of the fort. The distance between the fort and the Taj can be covered in 15 to 20 minutes as the distance between both the monuments is around 7km. Many structures like pillars, mosques, halls and others are included in the fort. Agra fort is 12km away from Akbar’s Tomb.
Itmad-ud-Daulah
Itmad-ud-Daulah is the tomb of the father of Nur Jahan, wife of Jahangir. In Indian history, it is considered as the first monument built of white marble. It is built on the banks of Yamuna River.
The tomb is surrounded by a garden which is a picnic spot nowadays. The distance between Akbar’s Tomb and Itmad-ud-Daulah is around 11km.
