Pratapgarh Fort, located in the Satara district of the Western Indian state of Maharashtra, is a very important fort from the historical point of view, this fort is also known as the Courageous Fort. Here on 10 November 1659 Chhatrapati Shivaji and General Afzal Khan of Bijapur Sultanate There was a fight between After the assassination of Afzal Khan by Chhatrapati Shivaji, there was a decisive Maratha victory over the Bijapur army, which is why this fort is also considered a symbol of Maratha victory. Presently this fort is also a very popular tourism place in Maharashtra.
Pratapgarh fort is situated on a huge mountain 24 km west of Mahabaleshwar hills in Satara district, this fort is also surrounded by forest and hills. This fort was built by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the founder of the Maratha Empire, in 1656 under the supervision of his Prime Minister Moropant Trimbak Pingle to protect the banks of the Nira and Koyna rivers and the cross pass, keeping in mind the possible future threats. Pratapgarh Fort is situated at an altitude of 3454 meters above sea level. There is also another fort inside the fort. The lower fort of this fort divided into two parts is 320 meters long and 110 meters wide, the upper fort was built on the top of the hill. It is roughly square and is 180 meters long on each side. There is a temple of Mahadev in the upper fort, a huge court was organized just in front of the temple, the court was in front of the temple so that no one could lie in front of the temple. This fort, which tells the story of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's valor and might, is special in many other ways.
The fort houses the Tulja Bhavani temple of Shivaji Maharaj's time, which is believed to have been established by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in 1661. In this, the idol of Goddess Bhavani is sitting, which has eight hands, 50 feet long, 30 feet wide and 12 feet high pillars are installed in the temple. 600 soldiers of Afzal Khan's army were killed in the battle. To enter the temple, one has to pass through the Nagada Hall, where a huge drum is kept, which is played on special festivals, the weapons of Maratha soldiers are still kept near this temple.
Along with this, there is also a Hanuman temple in this fort, this temple was established by Ramdas Swami, the Guru of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The special thing about this temple is that such a form of Hanuman ji sitting here is not seen anywhere else.
A grand bronze equestrian statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was inaugurated on 30 November 1957 by the then Prime Minister of India Shri Jawaharlal Nehru. Also in 1960, a guest house and a national park were built inside the fort.
Now it comes to the need of construction of this fort, the invaders wanted to break Shivaji Maharaj by any means, Afzal Khan had killed Shivaji Maharaj's brother and after that he wanted to defeat Shivaji Maharaj, Shivaji told this thing. Maharaj knew very well, keeping this in mind, Shivaji Maharaj built this fort on the heights of the hills to keep an eye on the invaders. When we were moving towards, it was known from the rising dust that the enemy was coming.
Afzal Khan had a meeting with Shivaji Maharaj to make a compromise, from this meeting Afzal Khan was greatly influenced by the personality of Shivaji Maharaj and extended his hand of friendship towards him, but as soon as he got the opportunity, he attacked Shivaji Maharaj from behind. done. Due to the iron armor inside Shivaji Maharaj's clothes, he did not get hurt in any way. In response to this, Shivaji Maharaj attacked Afzal Khan with the "Baghnakh" worn in his hands and ripped open his stomach. After this Shivaji Maharaj defeated Afzal Khan's army from the bad side.
In the third war with the British in 1818, the Maratha Empire had to suffer heavy losses, as well as lose the Pratapgarh fort.
In today's time, Mahabaleshwar is a big hub of tourism in Maharashtra, due to the presence of hills all around, the weather here is very pleasant even in summers, and people also come here for trekking. The greenery spread all around is also enjoyed during trekking. One who visits here once, wants to come here again and again.
-
Tanveer Alam
Comments
Post a Comment