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Jag Mandir's history begins with the
Maharana Karan Singh's benevolence shown to Emperor Shahjahan
(1605–1627). Shahjahan, before he was crowned as Mughal Emperor, was
known during his young days as Prince Khurram. As Khurram, he rebelled
against his father Emperor Jahangir in 1623, because he wanted to be
the heir to the Mughal throne. Faced with danger of getting thwarted
in his campaign, he sought refuge in Mewar Kingdom at Udaipur where he
was given safe haven by the then Maharana Karan Singh (it is said that
this courtesy was extended because Khurram's mother was a Rajput Hindu
lady). He was initially kept in the City Palace along with his wife
Mumtaz Mahal and his two sons, Prince Dara and Prince Aurangzeb. Later
they were shifted to the Gul Mahal, as a safe refuge, in the midst of
the lake (this place since then has also been called Khurram's
Palace). Gul Mahal is a domed pavilion that was specially built for
Khurram by Maharana Karan Singh. It was later enlarged by his son
Jagat Singh into a huge palace and named as the Jag Mandir palace.
Structure
Carved statues of elephants at the jetty entry, Jag Mandir Palace.
The impressive series of structures in the three storied Jag Mandir
Palace include
Gul Mahal, which was built first as refuge for prince Khurram;
the elegant facade flanked by four carved statues of elephants on
either side at the jetty entry on the lake from Udaipur;
the Garden Courtyard and the Darikhana on its northern side;
Bara Patharon ka Mahal (palace of the 12 stones);
the Zenana Mahal – a southern extension to the Gul Mahal;
and the Kunwar Pada ka Mahal.
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