Qila Rai Pithora

Qila Rai Pithora, first known as Lal Kot, is a fortified complex in south Delhi that encloses the Qutb Minar complex and is often called the first city of Delhi. It is attributed to the Tomar ruler Anangpal II, who is said to have brought the iron pillar from Mathura and set it up in 1052. Palaces and temples grew around the pillar, and the walls were completed by 1060.

The ramparts were said to run for more than two miles, standing 60 feet high and 30 feet thick. Lal Kot was in effect Delhi's original red fort, long before Shah Jahan's Qila-e-Mubarak. Stretches of wall still survive in Saket, Mehrauli, Sanjay Van, Kishangarh and Vasant Kunj, so traces of the old circuit can be found across several neighbourhoods.