Gwalior Fort Madhya Pradesh History and Interesting Facts

Gwalior Fort Quick Facts

Gwalior Fort Overview

Gwalior Fort is one of the famous tourist places in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh located in the central part of the country.

This fort is located on a mountain called 'Gopanchal' in Gwalior district of Madhya Pradesh, which can be easily seen from outside the city. This fort is one of the famous historical museums in the whole of India only in Madhya Pradesh.

Gwalior Fort History

According to the data recorded in history, the Fort was built in the 8th century by a chieftain named Suryasen, but in the 15th century, Raja Mansingh Tomar gave the present form to Gwalior Fort. Many Rajput clans have ruled this fort, after the establishment of the fort, it was ruled by the kings of the Pala dynasty for about 989 years. After this, it was ruled by the Pratihara dynasty. In 1023 AD, Mohammad Ghazni attacked this fort, but he had to face defeat.

In the 12th century, Qutbuddin Aibak, the founder of the Slave dynasty, took this fort under his control, but in 1211 AD he had to face defeat, then in 1231 AD, Iltutmish, the founder of the Slave dynasty, took it under his control. After this Maharaja Devavaram established the Tomar kingdom at Gwalior.

The most famous king of this dynasty was Mansingh (1486-1516) who built the Gujari Mahal for his wife Mrignayani, this fort from 1398 to 1505 AD. But the Tomar dynasty ruled.

Raja Mansingh accepted the suzerainty (आधिपत्य) of Ibrahim Lodi during the 16th century. After Lodi's death, when Mansingh's son Vikramaditya was called to the Delhi court by Babur's son Humayun, he refused to come there. After this Babur attacked Gwalior and captured it and ruled it, but Sher Shah Suri defeated Humayun and brought this Fort under the Suri dynasty.

In the year 1736, the Jat king Maharaja Bhim Singh Rana established his suzerainty over it and kept it under his control till 1756. Between the years 1779 and 1844, the control of this fort kept changing between the British and the Scindia. However, after the battle of Maharajpur in January 1844, this fort finally came under the possession of Scindia (सिंधिया).

Gwalior Fort Interesting Facts

1. This Fort is divided into 2 parts. The first part is the Gujari Mahal and the second Man Mandir.
2. The Gujari Mahal, the first part of the Fort, was built for Queen Mrignayani.
3. The oldest documents related to "Shunya" were found in the Mana temple itself, in the temple on the way up the Fort, which was about 1500 years old.
4. This Fort was used as a prison during the Mughal reign. The Fort was a political prison for the royal people.
5. This Fort has been of great importance in the history of the country. Gwalior Fort is also called the 'Pearl of the Forts of Hind'.
6. This Fort was built with red sandstone, which is visible from every direction of the city.
7. Built-in the 8th century, the height of this Fort is covered over three square kilometers and its height is 35 feet.
8. Its walls are made from the sides of the mountain and it is connected by 6 minarets. It has two doors, one in the north-east and the other in the south-west.
9. There are two ways to enter the Fort: the first is the Gwalior Gate, which can only be reached on foot, while the second is the Urwai Gate, which you can also reach by car.
10. The main entrance of the Fort is also known as Hathi Pul, which leads directly to the Man Mandir Palace and the other gate is named Badalgarh Gate.
11. Many historical monuments, Buddha and Jain temples, palaces (Gujari Mahal, Mansingh Mahal, Jahangir Mahal, Karan Mahal, Shahjahan Mahal) are present in the Fort.
12. The Gujari Mahal located inside this Fort has now been converted into an archaeological museum. In which rare sculptures related to history have been kept, these sculptures have been received from the surrounding areas.
13. Inside the Fort, you can also enjoy seeing Teli ka Mandir, Sahastrabahu Temple built in the 10th century, Bhim Singh ki Chhatri and Scindia School etc.
14. The Kohinoor diamond, which is found in present-day Britain, was the last patron of this diamond, the king of Gwalior. This diamond was extracted from the Golconda mine of India.

How to reach Gwalior Fort

• By Air: Gwalior city has its own airport, which is only 08 km away from the city. From there you can easily reach Gwalior by taking local taxis and buses. There are regular flights from Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Varanasi, Bhopal, Indore, and Mumbai to reach Gwalior by air. Delhi International Airport which is about 321 km from Gwalior is the main connecting airport for international travelers.
• By Train: Gwalior can also be easily reached by rail. There are many trains to Gwalior as Gwalior railway station (Railway code: GWL) is a major rail junction in the Delhi-Chennai and Delhi-Mumbai rail line. Gwalior is connected by rail to almost all the important cities and tourist places of India. You can take direct trains to Gwalior from New Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur, Agra, Jabalpur, Indore, Udaipur, Chittorgarh, Ajmer, Bharatpur, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Nagpur, Bhopal, Varanasi, Allahabad, etc. Apart from this, you can easily reach Gwalior by road also.

Distance of Gwalior from important cities of the country:

• New Delhi: 327 kms
• Bhopal: 430 kms
• Mumbai: 1080 kms
• Chennai: 1867 kms
• Kolkata: 1261 kms
• Agra: 119.1 kms (by NH-44)