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Best Forts of India
Thousands of years of a fairly turbulent history
have left their mark on India, and perhaps the most
prominent reminders of the country’s past are the
many forts and palaces which lie scattered across
India. Moated and turreted, thickly walled and exquisitely
decorated with mirror and marble, pietra dura and
paint, these citadels have fulfilled functions ranging
from the purely practical to the unabashedly ornamental.
They have been, like Jaipur’s Amer Fort or the Gwalior
Fort, bastions meant to keep out invaders; or they
have been, like the City Palace of Jaipur, the Red
Fort of Delhi or the Mysore Palace, a no-holds-barred
display of the wealth and grandeur of those who
ruled.And best of all, they still stand- proud and
imposing, forts and palaces which figure right up
there at the top of any tourist itinerary. A tribute
to India’s history, a peek into its past- a sight
not to be missed.
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Amer Fort
Exotic. Fascinating. Historic, amazing, colourful-
all are soubriquets applied with (more often
than not) gay abandon to the many Indian cities
that form part of the average traveller’s
itinerary. But one city, at least, where these
appellations are singularly appropriate is
the `Pink City’ of Jaipur. A strikingly beautiful
city, historic and interesting, dominated
by the imposing 16th century Amer Fort, a
brooding bastion of pavilions and palaces,
looking down over Jaipur. Amer (or Amber)
was once the capital of the Kachhwaha rulers
of the state of Dundhar, all of seven hundred
years before the city of Jaipur came into
existence.
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Agra
Fort
The fort at Agra stands next to what is perhaps
India's best known monument, the Taj Mahal.
More often than not, the Agra Fort is overshadowed
by the pristine beauty of the Taj, but for
those looking for something beyond romance,
the Agra Fort is worth seeing. Akbar, the
greatest empire-builder of the Mughals, commissioned
the Agra Fort in 1565, and his grandson Shah
Jahan, pulled down many of the original buildings
and replaced them with marble ones, while
Aurangzeb added the ramparts. The fort was
for some time occupied by the British; today,
much of it is with the Indian Army and is
out of bounds for tourists. |
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Golconda
Fort
Considered one of India’s most outstanding
citadels, the 13th century Golconda Fort was
built by the Kakatiya kings and later switched
hands and came into the possession of the
Bahmani dynasty. Still later, the Qutb Shahi
dynasty took over, and it is to them- and
more specifically Mohammad Quli Qutb Shah-
that the Golconda Fort owes much of its present
grandeur. During the late 17th century, the
fort was besieged by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb,
who finally gained control of it. The Golconda
Fort is impressive all the way: it stands,
magnificent and majestic, atop a 120 mt high
granite hill. |
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Gwalior
Fort
The Mughal emperor Babar referred to the Gwalior
Fort as “the pearl amongst fortresses in India”
and although you may beg to differ, you will
probably agree that this, the dominating feature
of Gwalior’s skyline, is definitely a citadel
worth seeing. With a turbulent and pretty
eventful past, the Gwalior Fort spreads out
over an area of 3 square km, bounded by solid
walls of sandstone, which enclose three temples,
six palaces and a number of water tanks. Regarded
as North and Central India’s most impregnable
fortress, the Gwalior Fort was built by Raja
Man Singh Tomar in the 15th century.
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Mysore
Palace
A mishmash of architectural styles, the Mysore
Palace resembles, in roughly equal proportions,
everything from a medieval Mughal mausoleum
to an opulent French chateau- and almost any
form of magnificent building in between. Uninhibited
grandeur is the buzzword here- and it has
to be seen to be believed.The site where today’s
Mysore Palace stands was once the site for
an earlier wooden palace, which burnt down
in a fire during 1897. For those with a penchant
for the sumptuous, this proved to be a stroke
of luck- for the building that was constructed
in its stead was one which goes the whole
hog when it comes to sheer splendour. |
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