ಚಿತ್ರದುರ್ಗ ಕೋಟೆ Chitradurga Fort with Guide Forts of Karnataka Tourism Chitradurga tourism. Chitradurga Fort or as the British called it Chitaldoorg, is a fortification that straddles several hills and a peak overlooking a flat valley in the Chitradurga District, Karnataka, India. The fort's name Chitrakaldurga, which means 'picturesque fort' in Kannada, is the namesake of the town Chitradurga and its administrative district.
The fort was built in stages between the 11th and 13th centuries by the dynastic rulers of the region including the Chalukyas and Hoysalas, later the Nayakas of Chitradurga of the Vijayanagar Empire.The Nayakas of Chitradurga, or Palegar Nayakas, were most responsible for the expansion of the fort between the 15th and 18th centuries. The fort was taken over for a short while by Hyder Ali at Chitradurga in 1779. The fort was captured by the British forces twenty years later, when they defeated his son Tipu Sultan.The fort is built in a series of seven concentric fortification walls with various passages, a citadel, masjid, warehouses for grains and oil, water reservoirs and ancient temples. There are 18 temples in the upper fort and one huge temple in the lower fort. Among these temples, the oldest and most interesting is the Hidimbeshwara temple. The masjid was an addition during Hyder Ali's rule. The fort's many interconnecting tanks were used to harvest rainwater, and the fort was said to never suffer from a water shortage.
Chitradurga is formed of two words in the Kannada language: ‘Chitra’ means "picture" and ‘Durga’ means "fort" and is tagged with the English word ‘fort’ to form the name "Chitradurga Fort". It is also locally known as "Kallina Kote" or Stone Fortress, which is also formed of two Kannada words ‘Kallina’: "Stone" and Kote: "Fort". Other names used in Kannada are ‘Ukkina Kote": "Steel Fort" (metaphorically used to mean an impregnable fort) and ‘Yelusuttina Kote’: "Seven Circles Fort".
However, the area where the fort now exists achieved prominence only under the dynastic rule of the Nayakas of Chitradurga or "Paleygars" (called "little kings") as a feudatory of the Vijayanagar Empire.
Between 1500 AD and 1800 AD, Chitradurga Fort witnessed a turbulent history starting with the Vijayanagar Empire; the empire had gained control of this region from the Hoysalas. Vijayanagar rulers brought the Nayakas, the traditional local chieftains of the area, under their control as their feudatory, until their dynastic reign ended in 1565 A.D. Thereafter, the Nayakas of Chitradurga took independent control of the region and their clan ruled for more than 200 years until the last of their rulers, Madakari Nayaka V, was defeated by Hyder Ali of Mysore Kingdom, in 1779.
Timmana Nayaka or Thimmappa Nayaka, a chieftain from Matti during the rule of Saluva Narasimha, was the first ruler in the hierarchy of the Nayakas of Chitradurga. Initially, he was a chieftain under the Vijayanagar Empire but was soon elevated to the rank of Governor of Chitradurga by the Vijayanagar ruler . His rule lasted for a brief period and ended with his incarceration and death as a prisoner of the Vijaynagar Empire. His son Obana Nayaka or Madakari Nayaka (1588-1602) succeeded him.
Madakari Nayaka V was the final ruler of the clan from 1758 to 1779. It was during his reign that the city of Chitradurga and the fort were besieged by the troops of Hyder Ali. Madakari Nayaka used the fort effectively for defense during three battles against Hyder Ali, at times allying himself with Hyder Ali of Mysore Kingdom and at others with the Marathas. Hyder Ali attacked the Chitradurga Fort the first time in 1760, the second time in 1770 and the third time successfully in 1779 when he defeated Madakari Nayaka. Nayaka was taken a prisoner and killed. Nayaka's gamble of playing with both Hyder Ali and the Marathas was not successful; he was betrayed by the Marathas and some local Muhammadan officers in his service. Subsequent to his death the treasury at the fort is said to have yielded a rich bounty. It was during one such war that the heroics of Onake Obavva, the wife of a soldier guarding the fort, became a legendary event.
The Nayak Palegars built the fort as an impregnable fortification for defense purposes with 19 gateways, 38 posterior entrances, 35 secret entrances, four invisible passages, water tanks and 2000 watch towers to guard and keep vigil on the enemy incursions. The storage warehouses, pits, and reservoirs were primarily designed to ensure the food, water and military supplies required to endure a long siege. . Seven walls (called Yelusuttinakote in local language) form the fort.Eighteen temples were built in the upper fort. Some of the well-known temples were the Hidimbeswara , Sampige Siddeshwara, Ekanathamma, Phalguneshwara, Gopala Krishna, Lord Hanuman, Subbaraya and Nandi.
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