Sinhagad,
Sinhgarh, or
Sinhgad (
MarathiMarathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
: सिंहगड,
The Lion's Fort), is a fortress located roughly 30 kilometres southwest of the city of
PunePune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
,
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Previously called Kondhana (
MarathiMarathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
: कोंढाणा), the fort has been the site of many important battles, most notably the
battle of SinhagadThe Battle of Sinhagad was a night battle that took place on February 4, 1670 in the fort of Sinhagad, near the city of Pune, Maharashtra, India. It was fought between Tanaji Malusare, a commander of Maratha ruler Shivaji and Udaybhan Rathod, fortkeeper under Jai Singh I...
in 1670. It was also strategically located at the center of a string of other forts such as
RajgadRajgad , literally meaning King of forts, one of the forts of Maharashtra state in India. Situated in the Pune district, the fort is approximately 1326 meters above sea level....
,
PurandarPurandar fort पुरंदर किल्ला figures repeatedly in the rising of Shivaji against the Bijapur kingdom and the Mughals. Purandhar fort stands 4,472 ft. above the sea in the Western Ghats, 20 miles southeast of Pune. It actually consists of two forts - Purandar and Vajragad...
and
TornaTorna Fort or Prachandagad is a large fort located in Pune district in the state of Maharashtra, India. It is historically significant because it is the first fort captured by Shivaji in 1643, forming the nucleus of the Maratha empire. The hill has an elevation of 1405 mts. above sea level, making...
.
Perched on an isolated cliff of the Bhuleswar range of the Sahyadri Mountains, it is situated on a hill rising 1312 meters above sea level. Given natural protection by its very steep slopes, the walls and bastions were constructed at only key places; it has two gates – the Kalyan Darwaza in the south-east and the Pune Darwaza in the north-east.
History
This fort has had quite a long history, It was called 'Kondana' after the sage
KaundinyaKaundinya also known as Ajnata Kaundinya was a Buddhist bhikkhu in the sangha of Gautama Buddha and the first to become an arahant...
. The Kaundinyeshwar temple, the caves and the carvings indicate that this fort had probably been built two thousand years back. It was captured from the Koli tribal chieftain, Nag Naik, by Muhammad bin Tughlaq in 1328 AD.
Shahaji Bhosale, as the commander of
Ibrahim Adil Shah IIbrahim Adil Shah I was a sultan and later shah of the Indian kingdom of Bijapur. He succeeded his elder brother, Mallu Adil Shah, through the machinations of the afaqi faction at the court...
, was entrusted with the control of the Pune region. His son
Shivaji, however, refused to accept the Adilshahi and initiated the task of setting up Swarajya. He gained control of Kondana in 1647 by convincing Siddi Amber, the Adilshahi Sardar who controlled the fort.
Bapuji Mudgal DeshpandeBapuji Mudgal Deshpande was a general in the early Maratha Empire during the reign of Shivaji Maharaj. He is best remembered for his major role during first and second recapturing attempts of “Kondhana” fort in 1647 and 1656 respectively. He was also one of the first settlers of Khed Shivapur...
played key role in this activity.In 1649, it had to be handed over to Adil Shah for Shahaji Maharaj's release. Shivaji Maharaj recaptured it back in 1656 again with the help of
Bapuji Mudgal DeshpandeBapuji Mudgal Deshpande was a general in the early Maratha Empire during the reign of Shivaji Maharaj. He is best remembered for his major role during first and second recapturing attempts of “Kondhana” fort in 1647 and 1656 respectively. He was also one of the first settlers of Khed Shivapur...
,who convinced Fort commander by giving land in newly created
ShivapurShivapur is a village development committee in Kapilvastu District in the Lumbini Zone of southern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 7241 people living in 1067 individual households....
village and peacefully gained control of fort.This Fort saw attacks of Mughals on 1662,1663 and 1665.In 1664,Shahistekhan- mughal general even tried to bribe people of fort to hand over the fort to him but he was unsuccessful.Unfortunately in a Purandar Pact it went into the hands of the Mughal army chief Mirzaraje Jaysingh, in the year 1665. In 1670, Shivaji Maharaj re-conquered this fort and then it stayed under Maratha rule till 1689. After the death of
SambhajiSambhaji Raje Bhosle was the eldest son and successor to Emporer Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha empire.- Early life :...
, the Mughals regained control over. Again in 1693 the Marathas recaptured it headed by Sardar Balkawade. Chatrapati Rajaram took asylum on this fort during Mogul raid on Satara but Rajaram died on Sinhagad on the 3rd of March 1700 & in 1703
AurangzebAbul Muzaffar Muhy-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir , more commonly known as Aurangzeb or by his chosen imperial title Alamgir , was the sixth Mughal Emperor of India, whose reign lasted from 1658 until his death in 1707.Badshah Aurangzeb, having ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for nearly...
conquered the fort. In 1706, it once again went into the hands of the Marathas. Pantaji Shivdev of Sangola and the PantPratinidhis played key role in this battle. Then this fort remained with Maraths till 1818, when the British conquered it.British however took three months to capture this fort highest time ever for them to win any fort in the Maharastra.
Battle of Sinhagad
One of the most famous battles for Sinhagad was fought to recapture the fort by
Tanaji MalusareTanaji Malusare , also known as Simha , was a warrior and military leader in the army of Shivaji, founder of the Maratha Empire in 17th century India. Tanaji was one of Shivaji's closest friends; the two had known each other since childhood....
, a general of
Shivaji in March 1670. A steep cliff leading to the fort was scaled with the help of a
monitor lizardThe Bengal monitor or common Indian monitor, is a monitor lizard found widely distributed over South Asia. This large lizard is mainly terrestrial, and grows to about 175 cm from the tip of the snout to the end of the tail...
named yashwanti, colloquially known as a ghorpad. Thereafter, there ensued fierce battles between Tanaji and his men, and the mughal army that had the fort at the time. Tanaji lost his life, but his brother Suryaji took over and captured Kondana.
There is an anecdote that upon hearing of Tanaji's death, Shivaji expressed his remorse with the words: "Gad aala pan sinha gela" - "We gained the fort, but lost the lion". The name Sinhagad, though, pre-dates this event, and can be seen in written communiques from the era. Hence, the story that the name was made Sinhagad in honour of Tanaji is untrue. A bust of Tanaji has been established on the fort in memory of his contribution to the battle. It remains to this day a grand symbol of a great Maratha victory over the invading muslims.
Pune is well known for its forts and its hilly areas, which attract trek lovers in huge numbers. It has also been one of the eminent tourist spots in the state of Maharashtra. Holding historical structures like Shivneri Fort, Janjira Fort, Sinhagad Fort etc. Pune is also known as the cultural capital of the state. Sinhagad Fort is located to the southwest of Pune at a distance of 25km. Trekking is the major attraction of the fort.
The fort is also known as Kondhana and forms the centre of all other forts Rajgad, Purandar and Torna surrounding it. The fort is located in the Sahyadri Mountains, on a deserted cliff of Bhuleswar range at a height of 1350m above the sea level.
The walls, the bastions and the slopes of the fort are built with tremendous idea providing natural protection and have been built at only some of the key points. The Fort has only two gates to enter the structure, the Kalyan Darwaza and Pune Darwaza which are positioned at the south east and north-east ends respectively.
Some of the information available at this fort portrays that the fort could have been built 2000 years ago. The caves and the carvings in the Kaundinyeshwar temple stand as proofs for the same.
In 1328 AD, Muhammad bin Tughlaq captured the fort from Nag Naik, Koli tribal chief. Since this time, many rulers attempted to capture the fort and it went into the hands in regular intervals. Shivaji, the ruler of Marathas took over the fort in 1647.
Mughals gave a tough fight in capturing the fort, but Marathas never let the fort stay under any one for a long time. The fort was captured by other rulers and recaptured by Marathas at regular intervals, until the British finally captured it in 1818.
The fort is also significant for holding the memorials of Tanaji Malusare and Rajaram, younger son of Shivaji. Tanaji was a general of Shivaji who lost his life in the Battle of Sinhagad. Twentieth Century history reveals that one of the renowned Indian freedom fighter Lokmanya Tilak erected a bungalow above the fort.
Currently the fort serves as a training centre at National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla. And is the picnic spot for the Pune locals and trekking enthusiasts.
Present day
Parts of the once extensive fortification are now in ruins, but visitors still sense how the fort acted as an active military outpost. It is a popular weekend destination for many residents of Pune, with some enthusiasts trekking to the top of the fort from the base near Sinhagad village. The site also houses a memorial to Tanaji as well as the tomb of
RajaramShrimant Rajaram Shivaji Raje Bhonsle Chhatrapati Maharaj was the younger son of the first Chhatrapati Shivaji, stepbrother of the second Chhatrapati Sambhaji, and took over the Maratha Empire as its third Chhatrapati after his brother's death at the hands of the Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb in 1689...
, Shivaji's younger son, who also died here. Visitors can see the military stables, brewery and a Kali (godddess) temple along with a Hanuman statue much to the right side of the temple, as well as the historic gates.
The fort is also part of training at National Defence Academy,
KhadakwaslaKhadakwasla is a dam situated 20 km from the City of Pune in Maharashtra, India. This dam is one of the main sources of water for Pune. In the vicinity of the dam, there is a Dental Centre, a Veterinary Hospital, the well-known National Defence Academy and Central Water & Power Research Station...
. Cadets from the academy are regularly sent on a hikes and runs from NDA to Sinhagad in full battle gear to build endurance and stamina.Almost every Sunday cadets who default on some aspect are sent for punishment to reach sinhgad top and come back after taking a token from an INSTRUCTOR present at top,they are also given refreshments,hot chocolate drink, water etc.the whole exercise has to be completed in 5 hours,the total distance is around 26 km and the total weight of battle gear is about 18–19 kg.. The fort also houses a television tower for broadcasting local TV signals. Sinhagad is very popular tourist destination also today and is frequented by Punekars
Transportation
There is a steep and narrow two lane road from the base of the fort to the top. The local municipal transport service, the PMPML runs buses every hour from Shanivarwada and Swargate to the Sinhagad foothills. The climbing route from either side of the fort can be covered in around an hour, however it gets slippery in the rainy season. Shared taxi services to the base as well as the top of the mountain are also available.
See also
- Tanaji Malusare
Tanaji Malusare , also known as Simha , was a warrior and military leader in the army of Shivaji, founder of the Maratha Empire in 17th century India. Tanaji was one of Shivaji's closest friends; the two had known each other since childhood....
- Shivaji
- List of forts in Maharashtra
- Sinhagad Express
The Sinhagad Express is an express train which plies daily between the cities of Pune and Mumbai in India. It is operated by the Indian Railways and comes under the Central Railway zone and is one of the six point-to-point express trains which carry thousands of passengers daily between Pune and...
- Battle of Sinhagad
The Battle of Sinhagad was a night battle that took place on February 4, 1670 in the fort of Sinhagad, near the city of Pune, Maharashtra, India. It was fought between Tanaji Malusare, a commander of Maratha ruler Shivaji and Udaybhan Rathod, fortkeeper under Jai Singh I...