The palace was constructed between 1857 and 1859 as part of King Mindon's founding of the new royal capital city of Mandalay.

Much of the palace compound was destroyed during World War II by allied bombing; only the royal mint and the watch tower survived.

After the disastrous Second Anglo-Burmese War of 1852, the shrunken Burmese kingdom had few resources to build a new ostentatious palace.

The former royal palace of Amarapura was dismantled and moved by elephants to the new location at the foot of Mandalay Hill.

During World War II, the palace citadel was turned into a supply depot by the Japanese and was burnt to the ground by Allied bombing.

In October 2021, in the aftermath of the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, the State Administration Council began constructing a public recreation park adjacent to the historic walls of the Mandalay Palace in violation of the 2015 Law on the Preservation and Protection of Ancient Buildings, sparking criticism from local conservationists.

To give access to the battlements in cases of alert and at the same time to strengthen the wall, an earthen rampart on a moderately inclined plane has been thrown up behind it.

Each of the twelve gates, represented by its own zodiac sign, is 4.8 m (15.75 ft) wide and flanked on both sides by one-half of a bastion which supports the post of a many-tiered pavilion or pyatthat that rises over the gateway.

In the case of foes armed with ancient weapons, this moat would no doubt have presented a rather formidable obstacle to the besieging army, whose crafts would have been completely exposed to the missiles of the warriors protected by the merlons on the ramparts and on the barbicans.

The moat was originally spanned over by five wooden bridges, four of which lead to the four principal or middle gates, that is one to each face of the walls.

The fifth leads up to the south-western gate, used during the times of monarchy for amingala or inauspicious occasions such as to carry off dead bodies.

The British constructed two additional bridges one at the south-west and the other at the north-west corner, to allow of materials and supplies for the troops into the fort.

The space between is spanned over by teak logs of natural size – the length of two of these logs making up the length of the bridge resting, at both extremities on transversal beams supported by five posts partially encased in the masonry of the abutments; the extremities of the logs which meet in the middle of the bridge are likewise supported by five huge wooden pillars the heads of which are joined together by means of two large wooden plates which rest on cleats so constructed that the whole structure could be taken down and removed rapidly in case of danger.

It is a simple building, consisting of a high square plinth; on the top of this four columns sustain a wooden platform surmounted by a double-roof; the whole is crowned by a small finial and a hti or umbrella.

A good example of traditional Burmese architecture, the Relic Tower has three parts – first a low basement; second a rectangular block or terrace rising from the first and third a relic-chamber surmounted by a three-tiered roof (pyatthat); the whole is crowned by the usual finial and the hti.

Along the four sides of both basement and terrace runs a battlemented parapet formed of lozenge ornaments; at the four corners of each are small square pillars each surmounted by a marble manussiha or winged leogryph; the monster has a human head and two bodies.

The relic-chamber on the terrace is square; the only entrance into it is on the west, facing the flight of stairs by which access is obtained to the top of the terrace; these narrow steps are enclosed between two brick walls, ornamented with copings in three tiers; the lower end of each coping is terminated by a large and graceful volute; this kind of ornamental stairs, with minor differences in details, may be seen all over Burma, either in brick or wood.

The hall consists of two three-roofed wooden structures, richly decorated with figures and flowers, and supported by massive teak pillars painted red at the bottom and gilded above.

[2] Due north from the Clock Tower is a cluster of mausoleums erected to the memory of some members of the royal family.

It was originally a brick pyatthat, plastered over and whitewashed, erected by King Thibaw to the memory of his father, as soon as the grave had been built.

The palace grounds are dominated by the 24 m (78 ft) tall Nanmyintsaung (နန်းမြင့်ဆောင်) or Watch Tower, topped by a seven tiered pyatthat.

The latter consists of three distinct parts: on the east, the Great Audience Hall and the Lion Throne Room are erected on an earthen basement contained by a brick wall; the whole of the western portion, from the westernmost extremity up to and including the Hman-nan or Glass Palace, is likewise an earthen basement surrounded by a masonry wall; these two basements are connected, from the Hman-nan up to the Lion Throne Room, by a plank flooring of the same level supported by numerous teak posts.

Access to the top of the basement was obtained by thirty-one flights of steps, some large and some quite small, the principal of which are those at the eastern and western extremities.

[2] The Great Audience Hall was built with a special eye to external effect, and this object was attained by carving and gilding all the wooden parts of the roofs-except the panels between the two roofs, which were merely gilt-that is, the gables, barge-boards and eaves-boards.

The carving is in low relief and consists principally of a lotus and foliage-band on the eaves-boards; the barge-boards are ornamented with a plain scroll design and surmounted by flamboyant which are very effective as a decoration.

Access to the throne was obtained by means of a flight of steps in the room behind it from which it is shut off by a sliding door of gilt iron lattice work.

It was also where the king and queen celebrated the Burmese New Year, and where the formal ear piercing of young princesses took place.

Their Majesties; they, whether princesses or minor queens, were not allowed to enter this room with slippers on or with their golden umbrellas: they had to leave these at the entrance with their attendants.