Qila Mubarak Patiala

Qila Mubarak, one of the greatest forts in Punjab, is the oldest part of Patiala. Its design blends Sikh, Mughal, and Rajasthani architecture. It was originally a mud fort — a 'Kachigarhi' (mud and brick fortress) — built in 1763 by Ala Singh, a Sidhu Jat Chaudhary of Mehraj in Bathinda district and chief of the Phulkian Misl, on land ceded by a Muslim Chaudhary of Sanaur village. Ala Singh, who founded the Patiala branch of the Phulkian dynasty, used revenue collected from the city of Sirhind, conquered a few years earlier, for the fort's construction. It is said that this original fort was an extension built atop an already existing Mughal fortress erected by governor Hussain Khan in Patiala. This was a "patti" (ਪੱਟੀ/strip of land) of 84 villages, and one of these villages was chosen as the new administrative centre of the Phulkians, since their previous capital, Barnala, lay in a water-scarce, semi-arid part of Malwa. The fort was built here in the Puadh region of Punjab, and the settlement that grew around it came to be known as "Pattiala" (strip of Ala). This settlement expanded further after merchants from Sirhind relocated here following the sack of Sirhind by the combined army of the twelve Sikh Misls in 1764. The fort was later rebuilt in baked bricks by Ala Singh's grandson, Amar Singh, whose work formed the interior portion of the Qila, known as Qila Androon. Over the following century and a half, successive rulers of Patiala added to the complex in various architectural styles. In the early 19th century, Maharaja Karam Singh added more buildings, including the outer portions and the Ranivas, hiring architects, artists, and carpenters from Jaipur for the work. The complex went on to serve as the residence of Maharaja Sahib Singh (1781–1813), Maharaja Karam Singh (1813–45), and Maharaja Narinder Singh (1845–62). The Ranbaas (or Ranivas) was renovated and opened to the public as a luxury hotel.