Ranthambore Fort lies within the Ranthambore National Park, near the city of Sawai Madhopur in Sawai Madhopur district of

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

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 is a formidable fort having been a focal point of the historical developments of

. The fort provides a panoramic view of the surrounding Ranthambore National Park and is now a popular tourist attraction. It is said to have been constructed by Ahir Ruler Maharaja Jayanta in fifth century A.D. The Ahir Yadavas ruled over it till they were expelled by Prithviraja Chauhan in the twelfth century.The kings who succeeded him contributed to the construction of the fort. Back in the day, Ranthambore Fort was considered impregnable owing to its strategic development and design. This became one of the many reasons why several rulers wanted to capture the fort. Subsequently, the fort was occupied by the Muslim rulers of Delhi, and later captured by several other dynasties including Hada and Mewar. The Delhi Sultanate captured it for a brief time. Later on, it came under control of

Marwar Marwar (also called Jodhpur region) is a region of western Rajasthan state in North Western India. It lies partly in the Thar Desert. 'Maru' is a Sanskrit word for desert. The word 'wad' literally means fence in Rajasthani languages. Engl ...

and

Mughals The Mughal Empire was an early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to the highlands of pre ...

. The fortress commanded a strategic location, 700 feet above the surrounding plain. In 2013, at the 37th session of the

World Heritage Committee The World Heritage Committee is a committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization that selects the sites to be listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the World Heritage List and the List of World Her ...

held in

Phnom Penh Phnom Penh is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Cambodia, most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since 1865 and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its political, economic, industr ...

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

, Ranthambore Fort, along with 5 other forts of Rajasthan, was declared a

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

under the group Hill Forts of Rajasthan.

History

Under Rulers

It was constructed by Maharaja Jayanta in fifth century A.D. The ruled over it till they were expelled by Prithviraja Chauhan in the twelfth century.

Under Chauhans Kshatriyas

Its earlier name was Ranastambhapura (Sanskrit: ''Raṇa-sthaṃba-pura'', "City of the Battle Post"). It was associated with

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...

during the reign of

Prithviraja I Prithvirāja I (r. c. 1090–1110 CE) was an Indian king belonging to the Chahamanas of Shakambhari, Shakambhari Chahamana dynasty. He ruled the Sapadalaksha country, which included parts of present-day Rajasthan in north-western India. Early l ...

of Chahamana (Chauhan) dynasty in the 12th century. Siddhasenasuri, who lived in the 12th century has included this place in the list of holy Jain tirthas. In the Mughal period, a temple of Mallinatha was built in the fort. After the defeat of

Prithviraja III Prithviraja III (IAST: Pṛthvī-rāja; 22 May 1166 – February 1192), popularly known as Prithviraj Chauhan or Rai Pithora, was a king from the Chahamanas of Shakambhari, Chauhan (Chahamana) dynasty who ruled the territory of Sapadalaksha, w ...

(

Prithviraj Chauhan Prithviraja III (IAST: Pṛthvī-rāja; 22 May 1166 – February 1192), popularly known as Prithviraj Chauhan or Rai Pithora, was a king from the Chahamanas of Shakambhari, Chauhan (Chahamana) dynasty who ruled the territory of Sapadalaksha, w ...

) in 1192 CE, the fort came under the control of the Muslim

Ghurid The Ghurid dynasty (also spelled Ghorids; ; self-designation: , ''Šansabānī'') was a Persianate dynasty of eastern Iranian peoples, Iranian Tajik people, Tajik origin, which ruled from the 8th-century in the region of Ghor, and became an Emp ...

ruler Muhammad of Ghor. The Delhi Sultan

Iltutmish Shams ud-Din Iltutmish (1192 – 30 April 1236) was the third of the Mamluk kings who ruled the former Ghurid territories in northern India. He was the first Muslim sovereign to rule from Delhi, and is thus considered the effective founder of ...

captured Ranthambore in 1226, but the Chauhans re-captured it after his death in 1236. The armies of Sultan Nasiruddin Mahmud, led by the future Sultan Balban, unsuccessfully besieged the fortress in 1248 and 1253, but captured from Jaitrasingh Chauhan in 1259. Shakti Dev succeeded Jaitrasingh in 1283, and recaptured Ranthambore and enlarged the kingdom. Sultan Jalal ud din Firuz Khalji briefly besieged the fort in 1290-91 but was unsuccessful in capturing it. In 1299, Hammiradeva sheltered Muhammad Shah, a rebel general of Sultan Ala ud din Khalji, and refused to turn him over to the Sultan. The Sultan besieged and conquered the fort in 1301.

Under Mewar

The fortress was captured by various kings of

Mewar Mewar, also spelled as Mewad is a region in the south-central part of Rajasthan state of India. It includes the present-day districts of Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Pratapgarh, Rajsamand, Udaipur, Pirawa Tehsil of Jhalawar District of Rajasth ...

. Ranthambore was under the direct rule of Rana Hamir Singh (1326–1364), Rana Kumbha (1433–1468) and

Rana Sanga Sangram Singh I (12 April 1482 – 30 January 1528), most commonly known as Rana Sanga, was the Rana of Mewar, Maharana of Mewar from 1509 to 1528. A member of the List of Ranas of Mewar, Sisodia dynasty, he controlled parts of present-day Ra ...

(1508–1528).

Under Hadas

During Rana Udai Singh I's reign (1468–1473) the fortress passed to the Hada Rajputs of Bundi. Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat briefly captured the fortress from 1532 to 1535. The Mughal Emperor

Akbar Akbar (Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, – ), popularly known as Akbar the Great, was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Humayun, under a regent, Bairam Khan, who helped the young emperor expa ...

captured the fortress in Siege of Ranthambore (1568) from Hadas.

Under Jaipur

The fortress passed to the Kachwaha Maharajas of

Jaipur Jaipur (; , ) is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the List of cities and towns in Rajasthan, largest city of the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had ...

in the 17th century, and it remained part of Jaipur state until Indian

Independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

. The area surrounding the fortress became a hunting ground for the Maharajas of Jaipur.

state acceded to India in 1949, becoming part of the state of

in 1950.

Temples

Inside Ranthambore fort, there are three

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

temples dedicated to

Ganesha Ganesha or Ganesh (, , ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped Deva (Hinduism), deities in the Hindu deities, Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in the Ganapatya sect. His depictions ...

(Trinetra Ganesha),

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

and Ramlalaji constructed in 12th and 13th centuries from red Karauli stone. The

temple is particularly famous and attracts thousands of visitors every Wednesday. There is also a Jain temple of Lord Sumatinath (5th Jain Tirthankar) and Lord Sambhavanath.

Nearby attractions

Most of the attractions listed below is not open to the public since it falls under the Project Tiger Protected Area. It can be viewed from vehicles authorized and booked for wildlife safaris only. It is also accessible to people descended from the villagers that were relocated outside the park. ;Water gateways #Kachida Valley #Surwal Lake #Sitla Mata ;Picnic sports #Malik Talao ;Wild life #Bakula #Lakarda And Anantpura # Rajbagh Talao #Ranthambore National Park ;Historical places #Jogi Mahal #Padam Talao #Raj Bagh Ruins #Ranthambhore Fort #Ranthambhore School Of Art #Ganesha temple #Jain Temple

Gallery

RNP-A.JPG, The way inside the fort RNP-8.JPG, History of Ranthambore Fort written on the wall Ranthambore_Fort_Jain_Temple_Entrance.jpg, Jain temple at Ranthambore Fort Battees Khamba (32 Pillars).jpg, Battees Khamba Annapurna Temple.jpg, Annapurna Temple Fine rock art at Ranthambhore Fort.jpg, Fine rock art at Ranthambhore Fort Old tomb,ranthambor fort.jpg, Old tomb, Ranthambore Fort Rani haveli.jpg, Rani Haveli Ranthambore Fort Jain Temple.jpg, Ranthambore Fort Jain Temple RNP-4.JPG, Entrance Naulakha gate,ranthambor fort.jpg, Naulakha Gate, Ranthambhore Fort

References

External links

* {{World Heritage Sites in India Forts in Rajasthan Tourist attractions in Sawai Madhopur district World Heritage Sites in India 10th-century establishments in India 944 establishments 10th-century fortifications