Bijapur

Bijapur, a decayed city in the Bombay Presidency, 160 miles SE. of Poona. It was for centuries the flourishing capital of a powerful kingdom, but fell therewith under various dynasties in succession, Hindu and Mussulman, till in 1686 it was captured by Aurungzebe. It passed during the early part of the 18th century into the hands of the Mahrattas, and became British in 1848. Now that a gradual decay has done its worst, Bijapur presents a contrast perhaps unequalled in the world. Lofty walls of hewn stone, still entire, inclose the silent and desolate fragments of a once vast and populous city. With the exception of an ancient temple, the sole relic of aboriginal domination, the ruins are Mohammedan, and consist of beautiful mosques, colossal tombs, a fort, with an inner citadel, a mile in circuit. The British government has done everything to prevent further decay. Pop. 16,759. See Fergusson's Indian Architecture (1876).