Delhi has been inhabited for thousands of years and is often described as a city of many cities. Tradition connects the area with Indraprastha, the capital of the Pandavas in the Mahabharata, and archaeology has found evidence of settlements from ancient times. From the twelfth century it became the capital of the Delhi Sultanate, whose rulers built successive cities, including Siri and Tughlaqabad, and later of the Mughal Empire, which created the walled city of Shahjahanabad and the Red Fort. The British made Delhi their capital in 1911, and Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker designed New Delhi. After independence in 1947, it became the capital of India, and it is now one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world.
Before and after
- from 509 BCE to 27 BCERoman Republic
- 509 BCEOrigins of Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus
- c. 509 BCECleisthenes lays the foundations of Athenian democracy
- 6th century BCEConstruction of Parthenon
- c. 500s BCEOrigins of Delhi
- 6th century BCEConstruction of Royal Road
- 6th century BCEConstruction of Bam Citadel
- 6th century BCEOrigins of Judaism
- from 499 BCE to 493 BCEIonian Revolt
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- c. 1,274 BCEConstruction of Abu Simbel
- from 8th century BCE to 3rd centuryClassical antiquity
- 248 BCEConstruction of Terracotta Army
- 200 BCEOrigins of Nazca Lines
- 19 BCEConstruction of Western Wall
- from 375 CE to 568 CEMigration Period
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires. You can also browse everything in the 6th century BCE.