Field guides / Punjab / Sheikhupura Fort
Field guide · Heritage
Sheikhupura Fort
Jahangir's hunting lodge of 1607, raised beside the Hiran Minar he built over the grave of his pet antelope — and the fort that gave the town its name.
Jahangir built this fort in 1607 as a royal hunting lodge — the luxurious heart of a hunting resort called Jahangirpura, laid out beside the Hiran Minar, the tower he raised in memory of his pet antelope.
Why go
- ✦Built on Jahangir's order at his hunting ground
- ✦Raised by Iskandar Moin, jagirdar of the pargana
- ✦Named from Sheikhu — Jahangir's own name, given him by Akbar
- ✦The origin of the town's name as well as the fort's
History
Jahangir was called Sheikhu by his father Akbar, after the Sufi saint Salim Chishti whose blessing was credited with his birth; the town took its name from the fort, and the fort from the emperor. The complex next door is the reason it exists: Jahangir's beloved antelope Mansraj — 'Light of Mind' — died in 1606, and the emperor built the hundred-foot Hiran Minar, the Deer Tower, over his remains. A great tank of roughly 750 by 895 feet lies beside it with a small square building at each corner and a subsurface water-collection system. Holes around the tower's perimeter most likely held the mounted heads of animals the emperor had taken.
Historical Significance
Mughal hunting infrastructure rarely survives. Here the lodge, the tower, the tank and the water system all stand together — the most complete imperial hunting landscape left in Pakistan.
Architecture
In AH 1015 the emperor Jahangir encamped at Jahangirpura, the site of present-day Sheikhupura, which he used as a hunting ground. He ordered Iskandar Moin, jagirdar of the pargana, to build a fort there.
Why Visit
A fort built so an emperor could hunt, beside a hundred-foot tower built for a dead antelope. See the two together; neither makes sense alone.
Interesting Facts
- Jahangir built the fort in 1607 as a hunting lodge, not a defensive work
- The Hiran Minar next to it commemorates Mansraj, his pet antelope, who died in 1606
- The antelope's remains were interred at the top of the hundred-foot tower
- 'Sheikhu' was Jahangir's own boyhood name, given by Akbar
Planning tip
Best Time to Visit, October to March.
Getting there, Sheikhupura is about 40 km north-west of Lahore, an easy morning's run from the city.
Allow, One to two hours.
What to Do
Make Sheikhupura Fort Part of a Trip
GreenPak resorts within reach, and the journeys that travel this region.
Nearby
Straight-line distance from Sheikhupura Fort, within 30 km.
