Monuments of Uttarakhand are the most frequented destinations of India that play a prominent role in the Indian tourism economy. Uttarakhand is famous for its divine beauty, leisure, adventure, and is popularly known as `the Land of the Gods`. This state has a great mythological value and is famous for the presence of the numerous numbers of Hindu pilgrimage spots. Other than the mythological value and Hindu pilgrimage spots, Uttarakhand has rich historical value of its own. Rulers like Pauravas, Guptas, Palas and British have ruled here and constructed lots of monuments to several cities of the state.
Monuments of Uttarakhand include several religious monuments and beautiful colonial structures that have historical importance and promote the state tourism. The entire state is dotted with religious monuments and the nearby hill-stations of Dehradun, Mussourie, Nainital, Almora, Bhimtal, Kausani and Ranikhet consist of many resorts and colonial monuments of the British province.
Popular monuments in Uttarakhand
The major religious monument of this province is the accumulation of 160 temples famous as Jageshwar temple. The famous sun temple is present in the town of Almora itself. The other famous religious monuments are Badrinath and Kedarnath temples. Hrishikesh and Haridwar are also famous for different religious monuments whereas Hemkund city has a major significance to Sikhs.
Apart from the Hindu monuments, this province has also experienced Tibetan Buddhism monuments whose major examples are Mindroling Monastery and its Buddha Stupa located to the southwest of Dehradun. Here is a list of some more historical structures.
Katarmal Sun Temple
Katarmal Sun Temple is located in Katarmal village and is perched at a height of 2,116 metres above sea level. The temple was built in the 9th century by a Katyuri ruler, Katarmalla. Apart from the main temple, there are 45 more shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva, his wife Goddess Parvati, Lakshman, and Narayan.
Baijnath Temple
Located in the Garhwal hills, Baijnath Temple was built in the 12th century, and is dedicated to Hindu Lord, Shiva.
Pithoragarh Fort
Pithoragarh Fort, located in Pithoragarh was built in the year 1789 by the Gorkhas after they invaded the town.
Baleshwar Temple
The historical Baleshwar Temple is located in the city of Champawat. It was constructed during the period of 10 to 12 century AD and is a wonderful example of stone architecture.
Deogarh Fort
Another major monumental attraction of Uttrakhand that depicts the historical value is the Deogarh Fort in Dhanaulti. This 16th century fort is a popular structure comprising several palaces, decorated with frescoes and outstanding Jain temples.
Badrinath Temple
Perched in the Himalayan region at about 11,000 feet above ground level, Badrinath is the most visited heritage monument in Uttarakhand. The place is one of the quartets of the famed Char Dham or the four shrines.
Jagatram
Jagatram is located near Dehradun in the Garhwal region. It is historically significant and has a rich heritage dating back to the 1st Century AD.
Jageshwar Temples
Jageshwar Temples are a group of 124 ancient Hindu temples dated between 7th and 14th century near Almora. The valley has a number of temple clusters such as the Dandeshwar and Jageshwar sites.
St. John`s Catholic Church
St. John`s Church is a Roman Catholic Church located at the Mall Road near St. Mary`s Church in Lansdowne. The Church was established in 1936 under the supervision of Agra Diocese. The construction of this church was completed in 1937.
Mindrolling Monastery
Mindrolling Monastery is one of the "Six Mother Monasteries" of the Nyingma school in Tibet. It was founded by Rigzin Terdak Lingpa in 1676. It was heavily damaged in 1718 by the Dzungar Mongols from East Turkistan. The Monastery was rebuilt during the reign of Seventh Dalai Lama (1708–1757).
Gurudwara Shri Hemkund Sahib
Hemkund Sahib is a Sikh place of worship and pilgrimage site in Chamoli district. It is devoted to Guru Gobind Singh (1666–1708), the tenth Sikh Guru and finds mention in Dasam Granth, a work presumed dictated by Guruji himself.
