Description : Gwalior (About this soundpronunciation (help·info)) is a major city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and one of the Counter-magnet cities. Located 343 kilometres (213 mi) south of Delhi, the capital city of India, 120 kilometres (75 mi) from Agra and 414 kilometres (257 mi) from Bhopal, the state capital, Gwalior occupies a strategic location in the Gird region of India. The historic city and its fortress have been ruled by several historic northern Indian kingdoms. From the Kachchhapaghatas in the 10th century, Tomars in the 13th century, it was passed on to the Mughal Empire, then to the Maratha in 1754, followed by the Scindia in the 18th century. A study of urban pollution in 2016 found the city to have the highest level of air pollution in India, and the second highest in the world. According to legend, Gwalior was founded in 8 AD after a local chieftain, Suraj Sen, was cured of leprosy from a drink given to him by a holy man called Gwalipa. Suraj subsequently set up a town and fort and named them after Gwalipa. The earliest historical record found at Gwalior is the Gwalior inscription of the Alchon Hun ruler Mihirakula. It describes Mihirakula's father Toramana (493-515) as "a ruler of , of great merit, who was renowned by the name of the glorious Tôramâna; by whom, through (his) heroism that was specially characterized by truthfulness, the earth was governed with justice", and his Mihirakula as "the lord of the earth" as of 520 AD. Around the 9th century, the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty controlled Gwalior and during their rule, they constructed the Teli ka Mandir temple. In 1021, Gwalior was attacked by forces led by Mahmud Ghazni but they were repelled. In 1231 Iltutmish captured Gwalior after an 11-month-long effort and from then till the 13th century it remained under Muslim rule. In 1375, Raja Veer Singh was made the ruler of Gwalior and he founded the rule of the Tomar clan. During those years, Gwalior saw its golden period. The Jain Sculptures at Gwalior Fort were built under Tomar rule. Man Singh Tomar made his dream palace, the Man Mandir Palace which is now a tourist attraction at Gwalior Fort. Babur described it as "the pearl in the necklace of forts of India and not even the winds could touch its masts". The daily light and sound show organised there tells about the history of the Gwalior Fort and Man Mandir Palace. By the 15th century, the city had a noted singing school which was attended by Tansen. Later in the 1730s, the Scindias captured Gwalior and it remained a princely state during the British Rule. Chaturbhuj Temple at Gwalior Fort claims the world's very first occurrence of zero as a written number.
See on map »