Panhala Fort:
Panhala Fort Complete Information
Panhalgad Location:
In Kolhapur district, which is located in the south of Maharashtra state, about 20 km. This fort is located in the Sahyadri Mountains, on the north side of Kolhapur city. To the north is the valley of the Warna river, to the west is the valley of the Kasari river. And the Sahyadri Mountains, while to the south is the Panchganga river formed by the confluence of the Bhogavati, Tulsi, Kumbhi, Kasari, and Gupta Saraswati rivers. And across the river is the city of Kolhapur. While in the east is the Wadi Ratnagiri mountains, Jyotiba, a famous Hindu deity.
Height:
The average height of this fort is 977.2 m. / 4040 ft. from sea level.
The height from the base of the ground is about 400 meters.
Other Names of Panhalgarh:
Brahmagiri, Pannangalaya, Shahanbidurg, Pannalgad, Panala, Panhala, Poonala.
Panhalgarh Fortification:
Panhalgarh is a very strong double fortified fort. Also this fort has a circumference of 82 miles. The ramparts are made of jambya and kalaya stones, 15 to 36 feet high and the width of the bank is up to 5 feet.
• Tourist routes to reach Panhalgad:
• Kolhapur can be reached by train, bus, from there to Panhalgadal. Distance from Kolhapur to Panhala is 20 KM. The nearest air route is from Ujalaiwadi Airport to Kolhapur and further to Panhala.
• Panhala fort is on Kolhapur to Ratnagiri road.
• Best Places to Visit Panhala Fort :
• Baji Prabhu Deshpande Statue :
A little further down from the bus stop there is an intersection. At that place one can see a magnificent statue of Baji Prabhu Deshpande holding swords in both hands in a fighting attitude. Baji Prabhu Deshpande and the Bandal army fought to get Chhatrapati Shivarai out of the siege of Panhala and held the enemy in a horse trap. Then Baji Prabhu and some Bandals fell down. That incident is remembered when looking at this statue.
Panhalgad Tin Darwaza:
After walking forward from the statue of Baji Prabhu, we come to Tin Darwaza to the west. This gate, which is beautiful and in good condition, is very important. This gate, which is very strong in construction, did the job of stopping the enemy one after another and protecting the fort.
After besieging Panhala, Siddhijohar fired cannons at this gate.
• Tin Darwaza Vihir:
There is a well inside the Tin Darwaza. Its water is used for drinking. It has water all twelve months of the year.
Hanuman Temple:
A small temple of Hanuman can be seen in front of Tin Darwaza. Hanuman is the god of strength worship. He is worshipped by the Mawals.
Andhar Bav:
Andhar Bav is a three-storeyed structure on Panhalgad with a well enclosed in the ground floor. A three-arched structure built in black stone can be seen here.
A guard lives on the first floor. There is a window door on the second floor with a burglar's pass. This allows access to the underworld.
There is a well on the third floor. Such a structure is found in Andhar Bawe.
Ambarkhana:
The inner part of the fort is a large granary called Ambarkhana. There are three granary koths here. In this, grains like vari, nagli, and rice were stored during the Shiva era. Their names are Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswati. A total of 25 khandis of grains were stored in this.
Also, there was a government office, an ammunition depot, and a mint for minting coins here.
• Ambabai (Mahalakshmi) Temple:
This temple is located further from the Nehru Garden outside the palace. This temple is considered one of the very ancient structures on Panhalgad. This temple is about 1000 years old. It was built by the Shalivahan king Gandaritya Bhoja and is his family deity.
• Parashar Guha:
In ancient times, the great sage Parashar lived here. Around 22 caves can be seen in this area. These caves are a reminder of the times of that time. A Shiva temple can also be seen here.
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Temple:
A temple with a marble idol of Chhatrapati Shivaji can also be seen here. This temple was built by Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj.
• Maharani Tarabai's palace:
The palace of Maharani Tarabai can be seen here, which is very magnificent. From this place, she ruled the entire Maratha kingdom. The Deoghar here is worth seeing. Currently, this building houses the Municipal Office, Panhala High School, and Military Boys Hostel.
• Sajjakoti:
There is a building with a kothi further from the palace. It is Sajjakoti. This two-storey building is built of lime and stone and is still in good condition. Chhatrapati Shivaji had kept Sambhajiraj here to look after this department of Swarajya. Secret discussions also took place here. While staying at this fort, Sambhaji Maharaj was poisoned but he luckily survived.
This structure was built by Ibrahim Adil Shah in the 15th century AD. Its construction is found to be in the Bijapur style. Inscriptions in Urdu language can also be seen here.
• Somale Lake:
There is a large lake adjacent to the Peth on Panhalgad, it is Somale Lake. It is believed that it was created by Brahma.
• Somaleshwar Temple:
The Somaleshwar Temple is located next to the Somale Lake. It is believed that Brahma established Somaleshwar Mahadev at this place for the creation of the people. And Brahma did penance at this place. That temple is Somaleshwar Temple. Chhatrapati Shivaji and the Mavlas came together here and worshipped this pindi by carrying flowers of Mahadev Pindis Sahastra Chafya.
• Ramchandrapant Amatya Samadhi:
Ramchandrapant, the Amatya of Swarajya, lived here. His samadhi can be seen here.
Also, his wife's samadhi is also here on one side.
• Rede Mahal:
There was a horse stable on Panhalgad. Later, animals were kept there. That building is now called Rede Vastu.
• Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj Temple:
Chhatrapati II Sambhaji Maharaj lived here. A temple was built here after him.
• Dharma Kothi:
After going further from Sambhaji Temple, we come to Dharma Kothi. During the Shiva era, the government's grain was taken and distributed to the poor as charity here.
• Dutondi Buruj:
We can see the Dutondi Buruj near the court on Panhalgad, which has stairs on both sides. Since there are stairs on both sides, it is called Dutondi Buruj.
• Kalavantin Mahal:
This building, built during the Bahamani Sultanate, was built for the female dancers. In later times, accommodation was provided for women in this place.
Pisati Buruj:
There is a tower at the back of the fort. It is called Pisati Buruj. The tower was useful for keeping an eye on the surrounding area.
Four doors:
In the eastern part of Panhalgarh, there was a Darwaza which was Char Darwaza. When the British attacked from this side in 1844 AD, they destroyed this gate by hitting it with cannon balls. Its remains can be seen today.
• Narveer Shiva Kashid Memorial :
On Panhala near Char Darwaza you will see a plaque with the name of Narveer Shiva Kashid's memorial after passing that way there is a village called Nebapur. There is a memorial to Narveer Shiva Kashid. At this place, there will be notice boards and memorial sculptures of Mawla on the outside. You will get complete information about the incident. And on the inner side, the tomb of Shiva Kashid can be seen.
• Tiger Door :
You can also see Vagh Darwaza on Panhala Fort. It is a gate guarding the fort like a tiger with a very strong construction.
• Rajdindi Door :
This gate in the direction of Vishalgad can be reached from here through the Kasari Valley, through the Masai Plateau, to Vishalgad through a very remote route. Vishalgarh is 45 miles away from here. Chhatrapati Shivarai had gone to Vishalgad by this route.
• Tabak Park :
An extensive grove on the Panhal fort. A garden suitable for children to play with various play equipment. This park provides beautiful shade from tall and low trees.
• Historical events that happened at Panhala Fort:
• Earlier, Brahma established Someshwar Pind and created a lake at this place for the birth of people. And did penance. Therefore, this place is called Brahmagiri.
• Sage Parashar did penance at this place. There was a settlement of snakes in this place. Indradev asked the snakes to break the penance of Sage Parashar. As soon as they caused trouble, Parashar got angry. Then the snakes took refuge. The snakes are called Pannag. Pannag means snake and Alay means house. Therefore, this place is called Pannangalaya.
• If anyone built the first Panhala Fort, it was done by Shilahar King Nursinh Bhoj during the period 1178 to 1209 AD.
• After this, this fort remained in the possession of the Yadava for some time.
• After the fall of the Yadav dynasty, in the year 1469 AD, during the reign of the Bahamani Shahi, his vizier Mahmud Gawan was very clever. During the rainy season, when the guard on the fort was weak and he was unaware, he cleverly captured the fort by keeping the camp away.
• In the 16th century AD, Adil Shah of Bijapur took possession of this fort. He got the gate and platform of the fort built.
In 1659, Shivaji captured the fort.
Historical events that took place at Panhala Fort:
• As soon as Shivaji captured Panhalgad, Adil Shah sent his general Siddi Jauhar to recapture the fort. He laid a tight siege on the fort on 2 March 1660 with the help of 40,000 soldiers. The siege lasted for almost six months. As soon as the supplies at the fort ran out, Shivaji started negotiating a truce. As soon as the siege was over, he disguised himself outside the fort through the Rajdindi Gate and escaped with the help of Bajiprabhu Deshpande and Bandhal Mavla. At that time, Shiva Kashid, who had taken the form of Shivaji, came to the rescue to deceive Siddi Jauhar.
• Complete information about Panhala Fort
As soon as Siddi Jauhar realized that there was a multi-form Shivaji, he killed Shiva Kashid. And Siddi Masood, an officer, was sent after Chhatrapati Shivaji. Then, by pushing the white water of the river into the Ghodkhindi ahead, Bajiprabhu Deshpande and Bandal fought a fierce battle and helped Shivaji reach Vishalgad safely. In this battle, many Bandal youths and Bajiprabhu Deshpande and his brother Phulajiprabhu sacrificed their lives while fighting. This battle is famous in history.
At this time, the Mughals were attacking Swarajya in the north, so to appease the enemy on the south, Chhatrapati Shivaji made a treaty with Adil Shah and gave Panhala Fort to him. • Later, on March 6, 1673, Kondoji Farjand was sent to conquer the fort. With the help of only 60 Mavlas, Kondoji Farjand conquered this fort and brought it to Swarajya.
• Chhatrapati Sambhaji looked after the affairs here for some time. The last meeting of Chhatrapati Shivaji and Chhatrapati Sambhajiraje took place at this fort.
• During the reign of Maharani Tarabai, it was recognized as the capital of the Marathas in 1710 AD. And Maharani Tarabai ran the affairs of Swarajya from here.
• Later, this fort was taken over by the British in 1844 AD.
• After independence, this fort was recognized as a national monument and today this place houses the Panhala Municipality Office, Panhala High School, Military Boys Hostel.
• Today this place is densely populated. And it is a taluka place.
Tourists regularly visit this place, which is close to Kolhapur city, to learn about Shivaji and his political activities.
This is
Panhala Fort Complete Information
