Mysore Palace Karnataka History and Interesting Facts

Mysore Palace Quick Facts

Mysore Palace Overview

Mysore is an important city located in the South Indian state of Karnataka. Mysore used to be the capital of the erstwhile Maharaja Wodeyar of Karnataka till some time before independence. This palace has some special features of its own, such as its rich culture, beautiful gardens and the carvings done in its grand palaces attract visitors to it.

Mysore Palace History

Mysore Palace has a rich history of its own which was built by the Wadiyar dynasty in the 14th century. In the year 1638, the palace was badly damaged due to lightning from the sky, which was refurbished by the rulers there.

Mysore was taken over in 1793 by Hyder Ali's son Tipu Sultan, who removed the Wadiyar king, during whose rule the palace was converted to the Muslim architectural style.

When Tipu Sultan died in 1799, the five-year-old prince of the Wadiyar dynasty, Krishnaraja Wadiyar III, was placed on the throne, after which he rebuilt the palace in the Hindu architectural style which was completed by 1803. During the marriage ceremony of Princess Jayalaksmani in 1897, a fire broke out in this palace due to which the entire palace was ruined. For the reconstruction of which Queen Kempa Nanjamani Devi appointed the famous British architect Henry Irwin. Henry Irwin started building the palace in 1897 and after about 15 years it was completed and handed over to the Queen in 1912.

Mysore Palace Interesting Facts

1. The First structure of this temple was built in the 14th century. This palace was first built from sandalwood wood.
2. This palace has been the residence of the royal Wadiyar family of Mysore for almost 600 years (1350 AD to 1950 AD).
3. Mysore is located at a distance of 160 km from Bangalore. It is also connected to other major cities of South India.
4. The present Mysore Palace was built between 1897 AD and 1912 AD under the leadership of British architect Henry Irwin. The construction of this palace cost about Rs 41,47,913.
5. There is a 145 feet high minaret in the palace, on which the structure of marble domes is present.
6. There are mainly 3 entrances in this palace. In which first is the east entrance which is open for all festivals, second is the south entrance which is for general tourists and third is the west entrance which is opened only for the festival of Dussehra.
7. The main complex of this palace is 156 feet wide and 245 feet long, in which common minor works are done.
8. This palace is the main place of the most famous festival of Mysore, Dussehra, where the general public celebrates this festival with great pomp for 10 days.
9. The palace has a golden throne which was the royal throne of the rulers of the Kingdom of Mysore. It is believed that this royal throne is made of pure 24 carat gold, which weighs about 200 kg.
10. One of the most important rooms of this palace is the Ambvilas (Darbar-i-Khas) which was used as a room for private visitors.
11. The palace has several mandapas, one of which is a doll's pavilion (Gombe Thottie) which also houses a fine collection of Indian and European sculpture and ceremonial objects, including a wooden elephant hauda (palki for travel) decorated with 84 kg of gold.
12. The most beautiful mandap of this palace is the Kalyan Mandap which is also known as the Marriage Mandap. The mandapa is octagonal in shape with a multi-coloured stained glass ceiling, geometric patterns and depictions of a peacock motif.