The city of Srinagar, located in the centre of Kashmir Valley at 1,585 meters above sea level, is bordered by Kargil, Ganderbal, Pulwama, Budgam and Anantnag districts. Located at coordinates between 34.0837° N and 74.7973° E, it covers approximately an area of 29,400 hectares, and consists of North and South Srinagar tehsils, one city block and 136 revenue villages. The Jhelum River, meandering through the city, historically served as a crucial medium of trade and commerce. The Dal and Anchar lakes are the jewels of the city of Srinagar. The Nishat, Shalimar and Harwan baghs, the famous Mughal gardens, are the hotspots of tourism in the city. Its archaeological wealth, with settlements of continuous human habitation since Neolithic times, highlights the significance of Srinagar as the centre of historical and economic importance.
Bird's-eye view of Srinagar city from Hari Parbat. (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
Since the dawn of its history, Srinagar has remained the capital city of Kashmir. The city’s significance is not limited to it being the seat of government, it also is a testament to the region’s enduring resilience and strategic significance, despite facing numerous challenges throughout its chequered history. The city’s artisan communities formed its economic backbone, transforming it into a trade hub. Its strategic location proved invaluable, commanding trade routes to India and Central Asia. While its central position within Kashmir, naturally linking key towns like Anantnag, Baramulla, Jammu and Leh, cemented its role as a commercial hub, Srinagar is home to various industries, including carpet and silk production, silver and copper crafts, leatherworking and wood carving. In short, its commercial, political and cultural importance explains why all historical attempts to relocate the seat of government elsewhere ultimately proved futile.
Early History
Burzahom, a Neolithic village, is recognised as the first human settlement in the city. Situated near Dal Lake, the site was discovered by Helmut De Terra and T.T. Patterson in 1935. Systematic excavations led by T.N. Khazanchi of the Archaeological Survey of India identified four cultural periods—Neolithic I and II, Megalithic and Early Historic—thus tracing the antiquity of the site to the fourth millennium BCE.
Map of Kashmir from Kalhana's Rajatarangini – A Chronicle of the Kings of Kashmir. (Picture Credits: Marc Aurel Stein/PICRYL)
Remains of 10th-century temple at Pandrethan, near Srinagar, Kashmir (1868). (Picture Credits: PICRYL)
The first textual evidence of Srinagar is found in the Rajatarangini of Kalhana, a twelfth-century chronicle of Kashmir. Kalhana states that ancient Kashmir had several capitals, with Srinagari as the most important among all, founded by Ashoka in 250 BCE. Srinagari, the ‘city of Sri’, an appellation of the Goddess Lakshmi, occupied the site of the present village of Pandrethan, about a mile and a half east of the Takht-i-Sulaiman Hill. Pandrethan derives its name from the Sanskrit word Puranadhisthana, literally, ‘the old capital’. Pandrethan holds historical significance as an ancient Buddhist and brahmanical centre. Identified by Alexander Cunningham, the site features scattered architectural fragments and artefacts, indicating its ancient status. Excavations led by D.R. Sahni in 1913 revealed brahmanical and Buddhist sculptures, two stupa remains and a quadrangular monastery enclosure dating back to the early medieval period.
Kalhana, while writing of the rule of the Kushana dynasty over Kashmir, mentions Jushkapura, a significant town established by Jushka. The possible ruins of the town were noticed by M.A. Stein near Zakura, a modern village in the north of Srinagar near the University campus. Alexander Cunningham, during his 1847 visit, had reported finding at the site, ‘a considerable number of stone pillars and mouldings of the style of architecture peculiar to Kashmir…’
Ancient Buddhist site at Harwan. (Picture Credits: Shibnaths2/Wikimedia Commons)
Ancient Buddhist site at Harwan. (Picture Credits: Shibnaths2/Wikimedia Commons)
Ancient Buddhist site at Harwan. (Picture Credits: Cleveland Museum of Art/Wikimedia Commons)
Jhelum River, Baramulla, Kashmir, 1880s. Picture Credits: GetArchive.
Another significant archaeological settlement of the early historic times is Harwan, a small village situated about three kilometres to the north-east of the Shalimar Garden, at an altitude of 1,715 metres above mean sea level, on the outskirts of the Srinagar city. The archaeological settlement at some distance, south of Harwan village, locally known as Katri Daj (field of pot sherds), is laid out on the Zabarwan Hills on three terraces overlooking the waters of Dal Lake and the fertile valley below. Excavated first by R.C. Kak in 1920, Harwan features notable examples of pebble, diaper pebble and diaper rubble masonry walls and building bases. A focal point of Harwan is its apsidal temple, which features ornately designed terracotta tiles, laid in concentric circles, displaying intricate floral, animal and human motifs, unique to this region. These tiles also bear Kharoshti numerals, indicating sophisticated artistry and precise craftsmanship, possibly dating from the third-fourth centuries CE. Archaeologists link the site to the Kushana period, suggesting its importance as an influential Buddhist centre. The settlement seems to have been abandoned post the fifth century CE perhaps due to the invading Hunas. Harwan’s findings illuminate Kashmir’s historical significance as a spiritual and artistic centre of the early historic times.
Srinagari served as the capital of Kashmir until the mid-sixth century CE, when King Pravarasena II established a new city, Pravarapura, near Hari Parbat on the right bank of the Jhelum. Despite this, the name Srinagari persisted due to its familiarity among the people. Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang, who visited Kashmir in 631 CE, mentions two capitals: the new city (Pravarapura), identified with modern Srinagar, and the old city, perhaps Pandrethan, located southeast of it. The Rajatarangini vividly describes Pravarapura, portraying it as a bustling city with towering wooden mansions, markets and waterways such as the Dal Lake, Jhelum River and canals that facilitated riverine commerce. Kalhana also mentioned the cool and refreshing waters of Jhelum River and the Hari Parbat offering views of the city’s grandeur. Pravarapura’s temple ruins and other structures, built by successive rulers, align with modern Srinagar’s layout. M.A. Stein identified several of these historical sites, affirming the continuity from ancient to modern times. The embankments of Jhelum, built with massive pillars and blocks, and the old Muslim cemetery near Hari Parbat are key remnants of Pravarasena’s city. Architectural historian James Fergusson highlighted the scale and carvings on these ruins, reflecting the early magnificence of the city.
Hari Parbat Fort. (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
The establishment of alternative capitals continued, notably with Emperor Lalitaditya Muktapida’s Parihaspora, situated 22 kilometres northwest of Srinagar. By the twelfth century, urban development had crossed the Jhelum to its left bank, where even the royal palace relocated, marking a new phase in the city’s evolution.
Srinagar During Medieval Times
With the dawn of Muslim rule in the Valley, there came a shift in the nomenclature of the city. Except for the accounts of Mirza Haidar, Abul Fazl and Mughal Emperor Jahangir, almost all Mughal-era chronicles, including that of French traveller François Bernier, use Kashmir or Shahr-i-Kashmir.
Painting of Khanqah-e-Moula Mosque, Recollections of India Series, 19th-century. (Picture Credits: Anonymous artist, GetArchive)
Khanqah-e-Moula Mosque. (Picture Credits: Stuti Mishra)
Khanqah-e-Moula Mosque. (Picture Credits: Wikimedia Commons)
The city’s spiritual landscape underwent a radical change during the Sultanate and Mughal rule. Sufi saint Sayyid Ali Hamadani, who visited Kashmir during the rule of Sultan Qutbuddin, the fifth Sultan of Kashmir, made Srinagar his seat, from where he spearheaded the spread of Islam in Kashmir. Sultan Sikandar, the next ruler of Kashmir, built a mosque at this place in memory of the Sufi saint, Khanqah-e-Moula, which later became a centre of sociopolitical activities in Kashmir. The famous Jama Masjid at Nowhatta was also built by Sikander.
Tomb of Zain-ul-Abidin’s Mother (Badshah’s Tomb). (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
Zaina Kadal Bridge. (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
Zaina Kadal Bridge. (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
Zain-ul-Abidin, the eighth sultan of Kashmir, undertook several constructions in and around the city and built the Zaina Kadal Bridge over the Jhelum River, connecting the city’s two halves. He constructed a stone shrine at Madan Sahib and a brick mausoleum for his mother, which also serves as his burial site. Zain-ul-Abidin is also credited with patronising shawl and carpet weaving, papier-mâché and wood carving. Additionally, the introduction of crafts like stone-polishing, stone-cutting, glass-blowing, window-cutting, gold and silver leaf-making and book-binding are also ascribed to him. Mirza Haidar, in his tribute to Zain-ul-Abidin, records, ‘In Kashmir one meets with all those arts and crafts which are, in most cities, uncommon... ... In the whole of Mavar-u-Nahar except Samarqand and Bukhara these are nowhere to be met with, while in Kashmir they are abundant. This is all due to Sultan Zain-ul-Abidin.’
Hari Parbat Fort. (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
Hari Parbat Fort. (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
Makhdoom Sahib Shrine. (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
Ali Masjid. (Picture Credits: Habib Ullah Afridi/Wikimedia Commons)
Sher Garhi Palace. (Picture Credits: Syed Muneeb Masoodi)
Kashmir was annexed to the Mughal Empire in 1586, after a period of internal instability. The political history of Kashmir during the Mughal period is centred around the Hari Parbat Fort, Takhat-i-Sulaiman hill, Nowhatta, Nau Shahr and the area in the vicinity of Jama Masjid. Akbar visited the Valley three times in 1589, 1592 and 1597, and laid the foundation of Nagar Nagar, a city around Hari Parbat, including the construction of a fortification around the hill. On the southern side of this hill, Akbar commissioned a shrine dedicated to Sheikh Hamza Makhdoom, a Sufi mystic of the Rishi order of Kashmir. The Mughal imprint on the city deepened during Jahangir and his successor Shah Jahan’s reign, including the establishment of magnificent gardens around the Dal Lake, including the famous Shalimar and Nishat Bagh. In 1623, Empress Nur Jahan laid the foundation of the Pathar Mosque on the left bank of Jhelum river opposite the Khanqah-e-Moula. In 1683, Shah Jahan made Kashmir into a separate province, with Srinagar as its administrative seat. The foundation of Aali Masjid was laid under Aurangzeb. A pivotal moment came in 1699 during Fazil Khan’s governorship, when the moi mubarak (sacred hair) of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was brought to Srinagar by Khawaja Nur-ud-Din Ishbari and enshrined at a mosque at Hazratbal, establishing a new spiritual seat.
In 1753, Kashmir came under Afghan rule, who ruled the Valley from 1753 to 1819. The Shergarhi Palace was built by Amir Khan Jawansher (1770–76), an Afghan governor. Another Afghan governor, Ata Muhammad Khan Barakzai (1806–13) constructed the massive fort on the top of the Hari Parbat hill. This era concluded with the city facing deteriorating conditions and growing communal tensions, marking the end of a significant historical chapter in Srinagar’s evolution.
Modern and Contemporary Srinagar
The Sikhs annexed Kashmir in 1819, restoring the name Srinagar, yet their rule marked a period of urban decline. The new rulers imposed restrictions on Muslim practices, including the closure of the Jamia Mosque until 1843, while communal tensions manifested in events like the Shia-Sunni riots in 1837.
Under Dogra rule, established by the Treaty of Amritsar (1846), Srinagar was established as the capital of Jammu and Kashmir State, though the city faced severe challenges. Urban conditions deteriorated amidst overcrowding and poor sanitation, culminating in the catastrophic 1877–79 famine that claimed half the population, alongside recurring cholera outbreaks and natural disasters. The 1872 Darbar Move under Ranbir Singh’s rule established the pattern of seasonal capital shifts between Srinagar (in summers) and Jammu (in winters).
In 1886, a municipality was established in Srinagar, initiating sanitation improvements and systemic urban development. Tourism emerged around Dal Lake, with houseboats catering to British officers. The modification of Shergarhi Palace and development of parks were initiated under Dogra rulers Pratap Singh and Hari Singh. The period between 1891 and 1941 witnessed substantial urban expansion, driven by migration, improved public health and economic growth, particularly in textiles and tourism. The arrival of Punjabi traders and administrators added new dimensions to the city’s demographic makeup.
After Independence, Srinagar became the summer capital of the state and was granted a special status. Following unrest and the 1990 Pandit exodus, Jammu and Kashmir became a Union Territory in 2019, with Srinagar as its capital.
This essay has been created as part of Sahapedia's My City My Heritage project, supported by the InterGlobe Foundation (IGF).
