Dhar is a city located in Dhar district of the Malwa region in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. The city is the administrative headquarters of the Dhar district. Before Indian independence from Great Britain, it was the capital of the Dhar princely state.
Dhar is situated between 21°57' to 23°15' N and 74°37' to 75°37' E. The city is bordered in the north by Ratlam, to the east by parts of Indore, in the south by Barwani, and to the west by Jhabua and Alirajpur. The town is located west of Mhow. It is located above sea level. It possesses, besides its old ramparts, many buildings contain records of cultural, historical and national importance.
The most visible parts of ancient Dhar are the massive earthen ramparts, which are best preserved on the western and southern sides of the town. These were most likely built at beginning of the 9th century. Wall remains show that the city was circular in plan and surrounded by a series of tanks and moats, similar to the city of Warangal, in the Deccan. The circular ramparts of Dhar, unique in north India and an important legacy of the Paramāras, are unprotected and have been slowly dismantled by brick-makers and others using the wall material for construction. On the north-east side of the town, the ramparts and moats have disappeared beneath modern homes and other buildings.
The historic parts of Dhar are dominated by an impressive sandstone fortress on a small hill. The fortress is thought to have been built by Muhammad bin Tughluq, the Sultan of Delhi, most likely on the site of the ancient Dharāgiri mentioned in early sources. One of the gateways, added later, dates to 1684–85 in the time of 'Ālamgīr. Inside the fort there is a deep rock-cut cistern of great age, and a later palace of the Mahārāja of Dhar that incorporates an elegant pillared porch from the Mughal period, possibly built in the mid-17th century. The palace area houses an outdoor museum with a small collection of temple fragments and images dating to medieval times.