Man Mandir Palace, Gwalior Fort, Madhya Pradesh, India

The majestic Gwalior Fort occupies the plateau atop the hill overlooking the city of Gwalior. Some of the temples inside the fort can be dated as far back as 6th century AD, far before any fortification ever existed. One of these temples contain humanity’s earliest record of the number zero. Unlike the temples, the date of construction of the actual fort is uncertain and the earliest mention of its existence comes from the 10th century AD. In 1398, the fort came under the control of Tomar Rajputs and seen here is the Man Mandir Palace built between 1486 and 1516 by the most celebrated of the Tomar rulers, Maan Singh Tomar. Decorated using turquoise and yellow tiles, the palace is also known as the Chit Mandir (Painted Palace). The palace construction came to an end in 1516 when Maan Singh was killed in the attack by the Delhi Sultan, Ibrahim Lodhi, resulting in the palace coming under the control of the Delhi Sultanate. The fort changed hands as often as North India did, going from the Sultanate to the Mughals to Sher Shah Suri, back to Mughals, then to the Marathas and finally to the British.