Monday, February 8, 2010

Gwalior Fort

Back from Mitavali in Gwalior we went straight to Gwalior Fort after covering Jai Vilas Palace.
The magnificent Gwalior Fort is built by rulers of Tomar Dynasty in the 15th century on a sandstone cliff, which is 2.8km long from the North to the South and 200-850m wide from east to west and 91 m above the surrounding plains. A majority portions of the fort was built during the reign of Raja Man Singh. The fort walls which are 35ft high and two miles in length, has been influenced by both Hindu and Muslim architecture.

This awe-inspiring fort with two main entrances, encloses three complexes, six palaces, temples and a number of water tanks. Inside the fort there are some wonders of medieval architecture. On the eastern side the fort can be approached from Eastern Gate known as Gwalior Gate which leads pedestrian path while on the western side is Urbai Gate which is the motor able way.
The northern end has Jhangir Palace (5), Shah Jahan Palace, Karna Mahal, Vikram Mahal and Jal Johar Kund. These structures without the proper maintenance are sadly getting ruined. Gurdwara Data Bandi Chhod (6) is the new addition to the fort and has been constructed very recently. Near the Eastern Gate is Man Mandir Palace and it has been maintained quite well. Other structures that are maintained well are the temples. In the next sections we will cover the following in some detail:

  1. Man Mandir Palace (1, 2)
  2. Sahastrabahu Temple
  3. Teli-Ka Mandir
  4. Gujari Mahal

41 comments:

Kirigalpoththa said...

What a majestic building!

Tammie Lee said...

ah, you share with us the beauty of ancient world and my heart leans into the past to feel what it might have been like. Thank you.

myonlyphoto said...

Thanks for sharing your info about the Gwalior Fort. What a beautiful architecture. Anna :)

Anonymous said...

Really awe-inspiring and seeing all these great places and the effort involved to build such beautiful places make me feel to be a tiny speck in the history of time.

Tarun Mitra said...

I liked the first photograph very much waiting for the more info...

joo said...

The first photo is awesome!
What an interesting and beautiful place!
Greetings:)

Rakesh Vanamali said...

I'm awed by that first picture and to imagine how such a marvel could have been accomplished at that time.....!

Urmi said...

Very nice and informative post. You have described very beautifully about the magnificent fort of Gwalior. The pictures are wonderful.

Zuzana said...

This is absolutely stunning, looks like something taking from an epic fantasy tale. Imagine the engineering that must have gone into building this breathtaking creation in the rock.
Beautiful!
xo
Zuzana

jabblog said...

What an extraordiary and majestic feat of architecture.

Unspoken said...

The detail in the building is stunning!

Unknown said...

Someday I want to get there!

Sylvia K said...

Amazing and fantastic places, terrific captures! Love the history and feel as though I've been there. Wish I could visit there! Have a great week, Rajesh!

Sylvia

Carver said...

You show us the most interesting places. Great shots.

Unknown said...

I love your posts, they're always of such exotic locations and great pictures.

Have a great week.

Sarah

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Rajesh: What a neat place to build a palace, very protected from that side.

Phivos Nicolaides said...

What a fabulous place!

Anonymous said...

sure you're tired of hearing this, but wow, india is so full of fascinating places, cultural experiences and interesting people.

penny said...

You are right Rajesh, the Gwalior Fort is magnificent and awe inspiring.
Thank you for sharing its history and the wonderful photos.

Hazel said...

What a magnificent fort! And you did quite a job of photographing it. I love the soft silvery green and the aura of hazy height on it.

Pooch Purple Reign said...

very nice rajesh
~laura

Randi said...

I love the first photo of the magnificent Gwalior - looks like it was taken from a fantasy world. Thanks for sharing!

Anya said...

Amazing fort and buildings !!!!!
Great shots ...

Anonymous said...

another one excellent post of your great country

LadyFi said...

Great first photo - the building is shining with gold!

Elaine Yim said...

Majestic and Magnificient!

Wolynski said...

Wow, that fort is something else, perched on the edge of a cliff. How on earth did they build it so many centuries ago? Fabulous.

radha said...

This fort is really magnificent. India has some truly beautiful forts. So majestic.

Guy D said...

That is amazing, what gorgeous architecture. Great pics

All the best
Guy
Regina In Pictures

joshi daniel said...

that looks truly magnificent and the place from where you shot is excellent!

SandyCarlson said...

I love your sculpted landscape.

Eden said...

Great shot of the Gwalior Fort and thanks for sharing information about it.

Gattina said...

It's unbelievable, there are so many beautiful palaces and temples !

Victoria Tsavdaridou said...

Great photos and post!!! Thanks for sharing!

Japa said...

Very imposing and massive. Great post.

magiceye said...

amazing place

Reader Wil said...

Beautiful ancient architecture! Thanks for showing.Thanks also for your visit and comment. My Wall of Stories, however is not ancient art. It was built in 1998, though I think it also beautiful.

Joseph Pulikotil said...

Hi Greetings:)

Amazing construction,lovely photos and very interesting information.

Have a nice day:)
Joseph

roughterrain crane said...

Amazing architecture!

Ezhilan said...

Impressive architecture! The description is interesting.

Rajesh said...

Tammie, Rekhaa, Rakesh, Protege: Thanks, it is really amazing how these structures were built such a long back to perfection.

Kirigalpoththa, Anna, Joo, Babli, jabblog, Amy, Sylvia, Carver, Sarah, Fishing Guy, Phivos, ewok1993, Pam: Thanks for the appreciation.

Tarun: Thanks, more details are on its way.

Hazel, Laura, Randi, Anya, Vaggelis, LadyFi, Belle, Radha, Guy, Joshi, Sandy, Eden, Gattina, Vicky, Japa: Thanks for the appreciation.

Stine: Thanks, I am sure you will defenitely enjoy the visit.

Reader, magiceye, Joseph, roughterrain, Arasu: Thanks for the appreciation.

Wolynski: Thanks, it is really amazing how these structures were built such a long back to perfection.