chittaurgarh fort

Chittorgarh Fort showcases the military might of the Rajput rulers while its walls resonate with their tales of valour, heroism and sacrifice. Chittorgarh is the largest fort in the country and the grandest of all the grand forts in Rajasthan. Also simply referred to as Chittor, it sprawls atop a hill at a height of 180 m (590.6 ft) covering an area of 280 ha (691.9 acres). It is believed to have been constructed by the later Maurya rulers in the 7th century. The massive structure served as a capital of Mewar. It can be reached by road several kilometres down south Bhilwara above the plains of the valley drained by the Berach River.

Chittaurgarh Fort Tour

The Fort has imprints of some of the greatest Rajput rulers beginning with the Guhilot, the Sisodias, and then the Suryavanshi clans. Chittorgarh Fort is tainted with a bloody history with three major battles having been fought for it. None of its rulers won these wars starting with the defeat of its ruler Rana Ratan Singh by Allauddin Khilji in 1303, the defeat of Bikramjeet Singh in 1535 by Bahadur Shah, the Sultan of Gujarat and lastly in 1567 Emperor Akbar defeated Maharana Udai Singh II. After this, the Fort was left abandoned.

A visit to Chittorgarh Fort begins with a one mile long serpentine road that leads to seven enormous gateways (pols) all with different designs, names and sizes. The gates are heavily guarded by watch tower and massive iron spiked doors. A great architectural marvel of the fort is its huge water source that makes up 40% of the structure and so designed that even the seepage would not be lost. This is why it is also called as Water Fort. Out of the 84 water bodies today 22 are in existence. All the reservoirs together can store about 4 billion litres of water. The Gaumukh Reservoir is considered sacred.

The Tower of Victory (Vijay Stambh) and the Tower of Fame (Kirti Stambh) are grand edifices that offer a captivating view below. Vijay Stambh was constructed by Maharana Kumbha to commemorate his victory over Mohamed Khilji. The second is dedicated to Adinathji the 1st Jain Teerthankar.

Rana Kumbha Palace is where the Rajput queen Rani Padmini committed Jauhar, a ritual suicide committed by Rajput women. It is the largest of all the monuments in the fort. Padmini Palace sits besides a pool and can be traced as the root of the battle between Allauddin Khiliji and Rana Ratan Singh.

The Fort has plenty of temples too such as the Meera Temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, Kalika Mata Temple dedicated to the said mother goddess and six Jain temples. The Fateh Prakash Palace has been converted to a museum today with a rich collection of sculptures from all over the fort.