Lodhi Garden History: From Bagh-e-Jud to Stein’s Landscape

9 April 20251 min read

Why in the news

Delhi’s Lodhi Garden completed 89 years, prompting a look back at how a medieval burial ground became a landscaped city park.

Original name: Bagh-e-Jud, a pleasure garden in the Sayyid period; nearness to Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya’s dargah made it a favoured burial spot.
Rulers’ tombs of the Sayyid and Lodi dynasties lie here.
After the Mughal decline, displaced villagers settled around the tombs, forming villages such as Khairpur.
Lady Willingdon, wife of the Viceroy, wanted a landscaped park; two villages were moved and the park took her name in 1940.
Captain Young supervised resettlement to today’s Jangpura, once called Youngpura.
After 1947 it became Lodhi Garden.

Monument	Note
Muhammad Shah’s Tomb	Sayyid dynasty; oldest structure
Sikandar Lodi’s Octagonal Tomb	Lodi era
Sheesh Gumbad and Bada Gumbad Mosque	Lodi era
Khairpur Satpula	Bridge built by a noble of Akbar’s court

American architect Joseph Allen Stein, linked with transforming Lodhi Estate and building the India International Centre, shaped the garden’s slopes and flow.
His influence gave the area the nickname Steinabad.

Test yourself

1. What was Lodhi Garden originally called, as per the notes?

It was known as Bagh-e-Jud, a Sayyid-era pleasure garden.

2. Which architect landscaped Lodhi Garden and gave it the nickname Steinabad?

Joseph Allen Stein's influence gave rise to the nickname.

3. The oldest structure in the garden is the tomb of whom?

Muhammad Shah's tomb (Sayyid dynasty) is the oldest.