Arcot Gate is part of the fortification of

Arcot Arcot (natively spelt as Ārkāḍu) is a town and urban area of Ranipet district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. Located on the southern banks of Palar River, the city straddles a trade route between Chennai and Bangalore or Salem, between t ...

, a town which is located on the banks of Palar river in

Ranipet district Ranipet district is one of the 38 districts of Tamil Nadu, India, formed by trifurcating Vellore district. The Government of Tamil Nadu has announced its proposal on 15 August 2019, together with Tirupattur district. However, it was officially ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The gate was part of a fort built by Mughal governor,

Daud Khan Panni Daud Khan Panni (? – 6 September 1715) or simply as Daud Khan was a Mughal commander, Nawab of the Carnatic and later Nawab of Kurnool. He was an ethnic Afghan from the Panni tribe and was from Bijapur, Karnataka. Life In 1703, Daud Kha ...

, in the first half of the 18th century. It was the site of a memorable defense made by

Robert Clive Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive, (29 September 1725 – 22 November 1774), also known as Clive of India, was the first British Governor of the Bengal Presidency. Clive has been widely credited for laying the foundation of the British ...

during the

Siege of Arcot The Siege of Arcot (23 September – 14 November 1751) took place at Arcot, India between forces of the British East India Company led by Robert Clive allied with Muhammad Ali Khan Wallajah and forces of Nawab of the Carnatic, Chanda Sahib, alli ...

History

Historically, the region had been the site of number of battles. This prompted the construction of the fortress around Arcot. The area was captured by a Mughal

Nawab Nawab (Balochi language, Balochi: نواب; ar, نواب; bn, নবাব/নওয়াব; hi, नवाब; Punjabi language, Punjabi : ਨਵਾਬ; Persian language, Persian, Punjabi language, Punjabi , Sindhi language, Sindhi, Urd ...

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

from the Marathas caste. Daud Khan Panni was made governor by

Zulfikhar Ali Khan Zulfiqar Khan or ''Nusrat Jung'' ( ur, ) born as Muhammad Ismail in 1657 ( ur, ) was the first Nawab of the Tamil Carnatic State. He was the son of Asad Khan, a Wazir of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb and his wife Mehrunnisa (daughter of Asa ...

(

Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

's general) in 1698. In the year 1710, Mohammed Sayyid was the last mughal governor who was appointed as Nawab of Karnatic with the title

Saadatullah Khan I Sa'adatullah Khan I or Sa'adatullah Khan was Nawab of Carnatic (r.1710–1732) and founder of Nawayath dynasty. He was an adventurer from Konkan in Maharashtra. Life Mohammed Sayyid was the last mughal governor who was appointed as Nawab of ...

and moved his capital from Gingee to Arcot. The prolonged disputes between the different dynasties fighting for the control of Arcot led to the arrival of the British and the French. However the battle between British and French forces was only for control of

south India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...

. The capture and the defence of Arcot by handful of British troops and Sepoy under the command of

against enormous forces was one of the most remarkable battles fought by the British. The siege lasted fifty days, ending 15 November 1751. The Arcot Fort was part of the famous Battle of Arcot, which led to a British victory. One of the gates of the fort was renamed "Delhi Gate" to signify the beginning of the capture of Delhi. The entrance of the gate was constructed in the style of a Mughal arch. Over the gate is Robert Clives room. The old red brick town walls which were part of the original fortification of Arcot were destroyed by

Tippu Sultan Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He int ...

in 1783, but the foundations can be still seen. Today, the remains of the tombs of

and

Jama Masjid A congregational mosque or Friday mosque (, ''masjid jāmi‘'', or simply: , ''jāmi‘''; ), or sometimes great mosque or grand mosque (, ''jāmi‘ kabir''; ), is a mosque for hosting the Friday noon prayers known as ''jumu'ah''.* * * * * * * ...

are the silent witnesses to that period.

Gallery

References

Tourist attractions in Vellore Archaeological monuments in Tamil Nadu {{Vellore-geo-stub