Jaisalmer Fort Rajasthan History and Interesting Facts

Jaisalmer Fort Quick Facts

Jaisalmer Fort Overview

Jaisalmer Fort located in Jaisalmer city of the Indian state of Rajasthan is one of the largest forts in the world. This fort is also called 'Sonar Quila' or 'Golden Fort' because this fort is built of yellow sandstone and shines like gold at sunset. Very beautiful palaces, temples, and residential complexes of soldiers and merchants have been built inside this fort, which makes it different from other forts. This fort is one of the prime tourist places in Jaisalmer.

Jaisalmer Fort History

The Fort was built by Raja Jaisal in 1156 AD, hence the name of the Fort was also named after him. The Fort was attacked by Alauddin Khilji, the second ruler of the Khilji dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate in the 13th century and kept his mastery over the fort for 9 years. Rajput women also committed Jauhar after Khilji's capture in the fort. In 1541 AD, the second attack on this fort was done by the Mughal emperor Humayun.

After this, to improve relations with the Mughals, Raja Rawal married his daughter with Akbar in 1541 AD. The fort was occupied by the Mughals till 1762. After which this fort was ruled by Maharawal Mulraj. After this a treaty was made between Mulraj and the British and their possession remained on the fort. After the death of Mulraj in 1820, the rule of this place came in the hands of his grandson Gaj Singh.

Jaisalmer Fort Interesting Facts

1. Jaisalmer Fort was built in 1156 AD on top of Trikuta hill in the Thar desert.
2. The Length of this hill is 150 feet and the width is 750 feet.
3. The fort is surrounded by a 30 feet high wall. It is a huge fort with 99 bastions.
4. Huge blocks of yellow and golden stones were used in a very beautiful way to build this fort, no lime or mortar was used anywhere in the whole fort.
5. In the hill foothills of the fort, there is a ghagra-shaped park with a height of 15 to 20 feet, followed by a park at a height of 200 feet, which has a height of 10 to 156 feet.
6. This Fort is three-floors, in which there is a huge chamber of the royal assembly on the first floor, an open terrace on the second floor, some rooms, and cut-out baradaris with beautiful windows.
7. A mixture of Rajput and Mughal architectural styles is seen in this fort.
8. There is also a magnificent drainage system inside the fort, which is named Ghoot Nali, which easily drains the rainwater out of the fort.
9. Currently, it is a residential location for one 1/4 of the city's population. There are many wells inside the fort which are the main source of water for the residents here.
10. Renowned Indian film director Satyajit Ray wrote Sonar Kela (The Golden Fortress), a detective novel based on Kiran, and later filmed it.
11. Jaisalmer Fort was included in the list of World Heritage Sites by UNESCO during the 37th meeting of the World Heritage Committee in Phnom Penh in June 2013.
12. Like other forts of Rajasthan, this fort also has many gates like Akhai Pol, Hawa Pol, Suraj Pol, and Ganesh Pol. Of all the gates, Akhai Pol, or the First gate is famous for its splendid Architectural style.
13. Apart from this, there is also a grand library, where tourists can read books related to Archeology.
14. The Fort opens for tourists from 9 am to 5 pm. The museum is also located inside it, whose entry fee is Rs 50 per person.