The Story Of Old Jaipur Gates Of The Walled City

I first mentioned old Gates in Jaipur in Pol | Gates in Jaipur wherein I posted pictures of the same. Many readers evinced a great interest in this architectural element of Jaipur. Some people refer to old city gates as Jaipur Gates which were entry & exit points from walled city area. City wall of Jaipur was an essential part of the plan laid under the supervision of Maharajah Sawai Jai Singh II its founder. Most travelers can recall popular Gates of Jaipur like Sanganeri gate, Ajmeri gate, Tripolia Gate, to name a few.

history-of-jaipur-old-city-gates-jorawar-singh-gate-jaipurthrumylens — A wide-angle view of Jorawar Singh Gate on Amer Road which used to be called Druv Pol

Jaipur Wall & Old City/Puarana Shahar

The entry gates of the Walled City Jaipur or the old city of Jaipur are hard to miss. These gates marked the outer periphery of the city called Purana Shahar or Char Diwari. As per the plan, a 6-meter high and 3-meter thick wall surrounded Jaipur, containing the city within. This wall acted as a security feature, protecting the city & its inhabitants from any outside threats like attacking armies, wild animals, and dacoits, etc. This pictures explains the boundary of the city within the walls. The locals call the old Jaipur walled city as Puarana Shahar.

Any movement in and out of the city was routed through these gates. Initially, the city was protected by 8 gates in all four directions. These gates would close at dusk and open only after dawn. To alarm all citizens in the evening about the impending closure of gates, a small cannon would be fired in a similar fashion to the sounding of bells. This scheme of closing the gates at dusk was followed until the 1940s. Initially, Chandpole Gate was kept open 24 hours, later this was extended to the rest of gates. The new areas were being developed outside the walled city and the city extended much beyond these gates. Today, these gates are merely symbolic; part of the city’s history, Nostalgia, and built heritage. However, they are also an important element of Jaipur’s rich architectural legacy for which the city is famous across the world.

history-of-jaipur-city-gates-sanganeri-gate-floral-motifs-jaipurthrumylens — A close up on the beautiful floral motif that adorns the Sanganeri Gate, Jaipur

Guide To Jaipur Gates Of The Walled City

How Many Gates Are There in Jaipur?

The walled city area was protected by 8 Jaipur gates. Some websites list 7 gates. The 8 gates listed here do not include the New gate which was built in the 1940s. Here is the complete list of city gates of Jaipur.

Jorawar Singh Gate on Amer Road, Jaipur. Gateway to Jaipur from Delhi

1. Jorawar Singh Gate

As per some historians, the foundation of Jaipur city started with this gate. Situated on the northern boundary of the city, this gate was initially called the Druv gate. Druv stands for Druv Tara or Pole Star -a fixed star in the sky, associated with the north direction. This gate connected to Amer town and Delhi. If you’re driving down to Jaipur from Delhi via Amer town, you’ll pass through this gate. This gate is definitely one of the historic gates of Jaipur.

Location – Amer Road.

Features – Jorawar Singh Gate is widest among all old city gates in Jaipur. The secondary gates on either side are also quite wide which reminds us of its importance for the city.

surajpol-galta-gate-ramganj-bazaar-old-city-gates-in-jaipur-jaipurthrumylens — Surajpol Gate which leads to the Sun temple and Galta Temples

2. Surajpole Gate

Surajpole is located on the Eastern periphery of the walled city of Jaipur. Suraj means Sun in English. This gate marks the direction of Sunrise. The famous Sun Temple or Surya Mandir is situated close by on the hills. This gate leads to the Galta Gate, which connects to the Galta Temples, also famous by the name of Monkey Temple among the foreign tourists.

Location – Delhi Highway near Galta Hills/ Sun Temple.

Feature – It has only one secondary gate.

walled-city-gates-in-jaipur-history-ghat-gate-ramganj-bazaar-architecture — Old City Gates of Jaipur – **Ghat Gate** linking Agra Road with the *Ramganj Bazar.*

3. Ghat Gate Or Ram Pol

Ghat Gate was named so because this gate leads to the Ghat area i.e. Purana Ghat. Read about the meaning of Ghat here. Purana Ghat today is known as Ghat Ki Guni. It was initially called Ram Pol and led to the Ramganj area. Of all the gates, this one was located in an area that was least developed in the walled city area. Even today, areas surrounding this gate are not considered as a prominent part of the walled city. This gate marks the south direction of the old walled city of Jaipur.

Location – Agra Road

Feature – This too has a single secondary gate.

sanganeri-gate-johari-bazaar-gates-of-jaipur-jaipurthrumylens — Sanganeri Gate or Shiv Pol which leads to the famous Johari Bazaar

4. Sanganeri Gate Or Shiv Pol

Sanganeri Gate is a prominent gate because it leads to the Johari Bazaar, the most famous Bazaar of Jaipur in the walled city area. Johari Bazaar is most frequented by tourists and locals alike. It’s a buzzing market. This gate is called Sanganeri gate because it opened to the road leading to Sanganer Town which is famous for the Jaipuri prints or Sanganeri prints. Sanganeri Prints refer to fabric famous for organic colors as well as unique motifs created using the block printing technique. This gate also marks the south direction of the old walled city of Jaipur.

Old City Gates of Jaipur – Ajmeri Gate on MI Road which leads you to the Kishanpole Bazaar, Jaipur.

Location – Johari Bazaar/ Eastern end of MI Road

Feature – Shiv Pol and Kishan Pol are quite similar in terms of design. The design follows a large primary door in the center and secondary doors on either side.

5. Ajmeri Gate Or Kishan Pol

Kishanpole is commonly referred to as Ajmeri Gate. It was called so because this gate opened up on the road leading to the town of Ajmer. The importance of Ajmer was due to the famous Ajmer Sharif Dargah, a popular Muslim shrine that was frequented by the Mughal ruler Akbar (1567-1605 AD). This gate opens into Kishanpole Bazaar. This gate marks the south direction of the old walled city of Jaipur. Read Maharajah School of Arts & Craft in Kishanpole Bazaar

Location – Kishanpol Bazaar/ MI Road

Feature – The design follows a popular architecture of a large size primary door in the center and smaller secondary doors on either side.

chandpol-gate-walled-city-history-of-jaipur-chandpol-bazaar-jaipurthrumylens — Chandpole Gate

6. ChandPol Gate

Chandpole Gate marked the western limit of the walled city of Jaipur. Chand means Moon in Hindi. Since the Moon is associated with the west direction, this gate was called Chandpole or Chand Pol. This gate is located on the same axis as Suraj Pol. Both gates marks either ends of the walled city and they are connected by a major arterial East-West road. The bazaar surrounding this gate is called Chandpole Bazaar. It’s a very active & bustling market.

Location – Chandpole Bazaar

Feature – Huge primary gate with unusually small secondary gates on either side. You will find a very popular temple dedicated to Lord Hanuman just next to this gate.

samrat-gate-brahampuri-gates-in-jaipur-jaipurthrumylens — Samrat Gate in Brahampuri, Jaipur

7. Samrat Gate

Samraat Gate or Samrat Gate is one of the least known Jaipur Gates. It’s in the Brahampuri area close to Jorawar Singh Gate. This gate is situated on the north-west section of the walled city, providing access to the Brahampuri area. In some of the old records, it is also referred to as Brahma Pol. Some historian mention Samrat Gate being named after Jaganath Samrat.

Location – Brahampuri, Amer Road, Jaipur

gangapol-near-samode-haveli-jaipur — Gangapole Gate, Jaipur

8. Gangapol Gate

Gangapole Gate is also located close to Jorawar Singh Gate. Like Samrat Gate, this gate is not well known. However, it’s much grander than Samrat Gate. A very popular heritage hotel by the name of Samode Haveli is located close to the Gangapole gate. This gate is situated on the north-east section of the walled city.

Location – Near Samode Haveli, Amer Road, Jaipur

Apart from the above 8 gates, another addition was made to the gates on the walled city called New Gate.

Naya Pol or New Gate

The new gate is called so because this one was not in the original plan of Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II. It was constructed around the 1940s and inspired by the famous Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. The design of this gate was toned down to align with the architecture of Jaipur. Prior to the one that we find now, earlier a very small gate used to exist in its place. This gate links Chaura Rasta Bazaar to MI Road and Ramniwas Garden and is in the Southern direction of the walled city. There is a popular belief that the New gate was built by the last king of Jaipur Maharajah Man Singh II to allow faster access to his new residential building, Rambagh Palace from Jaipur City Palace.

Location – Chaura Rasta/ MI Road

Feature – The design follows a large primary door in the center and smaller secondary doors on either side. This gate finds its inspiration from European architecture and blends it well with the local style and patterns.

This is how these gates were placed on the city map.

North- Jorawar Singh Gate
South- Ghat Gate, Sanganeri Gate, New Gate, Ajmeri Gate
West – Chandpole Gate
East- Surajpole Gate
North-East- Gangapole Gate
North-West- Samrat Gate

While all these gates are bound by a common design of floral motifs and color, each gate is unique in terms of architecture. With every passing day, Jaipur Havelis in the walled city are giving way to the new buildings and office complexes. These gates are great reminders of the rich architectural legacy of yesteryear. A good way to explore some of these gates would be on a self-guided free walking tour in Jaipur. Check out Free Walking Tour in Jaipur.

floral-motif-details-on-chandpole-gate-jaipur-lord-hanuman-temple-jaipurthrumylens — Another view of **Chandpole Gate** along with the Lord Hanuman temple located just adjacent to it.

At the same time, all these gates are part of the history of Jaipur. Some write-up mention 7 gates of Jaipur which is incorrect. There were 8 city gates in old Jaipur as per the original plan and another one was added in the middle of the twentieth century. A reference also needs to be made about Patrika Gate which embodies many of the architectural elements of these Jaipur Gates. Read Patrika Gate | A snapshot of Rajasthan Here is a picture of Patrika Gate.