Saturday 14 March 2015

Forts in Maharashtra

Nowhere in the country would you encounter such a profusion of forts. And such variety. Sited on an island, as at Murud-Janjira or guarding the seas as at Bassein, or among the Sahyadri hills, as at Raigad, whose zig-zag walls and rounded bastions sit like a sceptre and crown amidst hills turned mauve. 

 Most of the forts in Maharashtra whether up in the hills or near the seas are associated with Shivaji --the great Maratha warrior and an equally great fort builder. Moreover, these forts were treated as mini-cities, such as Panhala, which is now a hill station. The concept of the fort-city was, however, not peculiar to Shivaji alone. The Portuguese who came to India as traders and missionaries, built within a century of their coming, Bassein, a garden city to rival many a European capital.

                                                                       Pratapgarh

                                                                        Alibaug

                                                                             Arnala

                                                                         Janjira

                                                                        Lohgad

No comments:

Post a Comment