Chamba

Chamba is bounded on north-west by Jammu and Kashmir, on the north-east and east by Ladakh area of Jammu and Kashmir state and Lahaul and Bara-Bangal area of Himachal Pradesh, on the south-east and south by the District Kangra of Himachal Pradesh and Gurdaspur District of the Punjab.  Regarding the early history of this region it is believed that this area was at time inhabited by certain Kolian tribes, which were later, subjugated by the Khasas. The Khasas too after a time came under the sway of Audumbaras (2nd centaury B.C.). The Audmabaras had republican form of government and worshiped Shiva as their principal deity. From the Gupta period (4th Centaury A.D.) the Chamba region was under the control of Thakurs and Ranas who considered themselves superior to the low tribes of Kolis and Khasas. With the rise of Gurjara Pratiharas ((7th Centaury A.D.) the Rajput Dynasties came to power.  The Muslims never invaded Chamba, though it had its occasional fights with the neighboring states in the hills having similar cultural background. Thus, the damage to Chamba from these invasions was seldom serious and never beyond the possibility of repair. Even the powerful Mughals were kept at bay on account of difficulties involved in communications and long distances. Akbar tried to extend a loose control over the hill states including Chamba and attached fertile tracts of these states to the imperial territory south of Dhauladhar. Aurangzeb once issued orders to the Raja of Chamba Chatter Singh (1664-1694AD) to pull down the beautiful temples of Chamba. But instead the raja in clear defiance to the Mughal ruler placed glided pinnacles on the temples. He was ordered to come down to Delhi to face the imperial wrath. But Aurangzeb himself had to leave for the Deccan from where he could not disentangle till the end of his life. On the whole, the northern India experienced comparatively peaceful condition during the Mughal regime Raja Prithvi Singh (1641-1664 AD), a handsome and a gallant knight was favourite of Shahjahan and visited the imperial court many times. He introduced the Mughal style of court life including Mughal-Rajput art and architecture in Chamba.                 The main places of intrested at Chamba  Chaugan   The Chaugan is the heart and hub center of all activity in Chamba. According to Dr. J. Hutchison, “ The town is built on two terraces. On the lower is the Chaugan a fine grassy sward, about a half a mile long by eighty yards broad. Tradition is silent as to its use as a polo ground and the name is etymologically distinct from Chaugan, the Persian name of Polo, being of Sanskrit origin and meaning ‘four-sided; Besides being a public promenade and recreation-ground, the Chaugan was utilized for State Darbars and sports”. Laxmi Narayan Temple  Laxmi Narayan Temple, which is the main temple of Chamba town was built by Sahil Verman in the 10th century A.D. The temple has been built in the Shikhara style.The temple consist of Bimana i.e. Shikhara and Garbhgriha with a small antralya. Laxmi Narayan Temple has a Mandapa like structure also. The wooden Chhattries, the wheel roof,  atop the temple were in response to the local climatic conditions as a protection against snow-fall. Rang Mahal  One of the largest monuments, Rang Mahal is located in Surara Mohalla. The foundation of Rang Mahal was laid by Raja Umed Sing (1748-1764). The super structure of RangMahal, which is in brick belongs to a later date with its southern portion built around 1860 by Raj Sri Singh. The architecture of Rang Mahal is an amalgam of Mughal and British styles. This palace was the residence for a branch of the ruling family. Its fort like looks justify its use as royal granary and treasury which is on its western side. Once the palace must have hummed with activity of busy servant and the frolics of the royal blood but now under the aegis of Handicrafts Department of the State Government, most of the rooms of this palace are being used as work-shops for making shoes, chapples and rumals. A number of decorative and colorful wall painting have been removed and taken to National Museum of Delhi. Some of the wall paintings and richly painted doors of the palace can be seen preserved in the Bhuri Singh Museum of Chamba. Bhuri Singh Museum  Bhuri Singh Museum at Chamba opened formally on 14-09-1908, it is named after Raja Bhuri Singh who ruled Chamba from 1904 to 1919. Bhuri Singh donated his family collection of paintings to the museum. The idea to open a public museum came from J. Ph. Vogel, an eminent Indologist who was serving A.S.I. and who through an intensive exploration had discovered, read and analyzed old inscriptions dispersed far and wide in the territory of Chamba state. These inscriptions mostly in Sarda script shed important light on the mediaeval history of Chamba. The parasites of Sarahan, Devi-ri-kothi and mul Kihar are now preserved in the museum.