Pallippuram Fort or (Paleport Castelo em Cima) is a fort in Pallippuram, Vyppin,

Ernakulam Ernakulam () is the central business district of the city of Kochi, Kerala, India. It is the namesake of Ernakulam district. The eastern part of Kochi city is mainly known as Ernakulam, while the western part of it after the Venduruthy Bridge ...

district of

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, south

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. It was built by Portuguese sailors on 27 September, 1503 using just timber wood, and later renovated in 1505 by replacing timber structure with stone. It is the oldest existing European fort in India. The Dutch captured the fort in 1663 and sold it to the Kingdom of

Travancore The kingdom of Travancore (), also known as the kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor () or later as Travancore State, was a kingdom that lasted from until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvanan ...

in 1789. The fort is situated in the northern extremity of Vypeen island and is hexagonal in shape, a form popularly known as ''ayikkotta'' or ''alikotta''.

Structure

Hexagonal in shape, the lowest internal floor of the fort is raised to a height of . The gate and the door posts, and the lintels are finely dressed and arched while underground there is a cellar that was used to store gunpowder. A well provided a source of fresh water. There is an opening to the north which leads to the cellar. There is a circular slab stone, on which was installed a pillar on which the radiating wooden struts supporting the upper two floors must have rested. Each face of the fort measures long and high while the walls are six feet thick. Each face of the fort has three embrasures, one above the other. The central opening of the embrasures measures . The fort could have mounted as many as guns commanding all quarters round it. There is an open space inside affording easy passage to the cellar. The fort is constructed using laterite, '' chunam'', and wood. The walls are thickly plastered using mortar. The door way in the central circular slab is made of granite. All the six sides of the fort are overgrown with vegetation. It has an underground path which connects to some other openings. It was saying that the route goes under rivers and lands which they used to escape from enemies when needed. The underground path is permanently closed now.

Gallery

File:Ayakotta information board.jpg, Information board File:Ayakotta pallipuram (Inner view).jpg, Inner area of ayakotta File:Pallippuram-fort-02.jpg, Ruins of the Fort(Wide View) File:Pallippuram-fort-03.jpg, Entrance

References

External links

Cochin.orgEnchantingkerala.orgPallippuram Fort on Flickr
Forts in Kerala Portuguese forts in India Colonial Kerala Buildings and structures in Ernakulam district Portuguese in Kerala Buildings and structures completed in 1503 1503 establishments in India 1500s establishments in Portuguese India 16th-century forts in India 1661 establishments in the Dutch Empire {{India-struct-stub