Kondapalli Fort, also locally known as Kondapalli Kota, lies to the west of Kondapalli in
Vijayawada
Vijayawada, formerly known as Bezawada, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and is a part of the state's Capital Region. It is the administrative headquarters of the NTR district. Its metropolitan region comprises NT ...
the second largest city of
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...
, India of
NTR district
NTR district is a district in coastal Andhra Region in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The administrative headquarters is located at Vijayawada. The district is named after former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N. T. Rama Rao.
History ...
, . This historical fort also known as Kondapalli Quilla was built by Prolaya Vema Reddy of
Reddi Kingdom
The Reddi kingdom or Kondavidu Reddi kingdom (1325–1448 CE) was established in southern India by Prolaya Vema Reddi. Most of the region that was ruled by the Reddi dynasty is now part of modern-day coastal and central Andhra Pradesh.
Orig ...
during the 14th century CE. It was initially built as a leisure place and business center and later served as a military training base for the British rulers. According to some other historians it was built in 1360 CE by Anna Vema Reddy after he captured Kondapalli from Mudigonda Chalukyas, the fort has been home to several dynasties, from the Reddi rulers to the Nizam Nawabs, and then the East India Company.
Geography
The fort is located to the west of Vijayawada city in the main hill range known as Kondapalli in the
Krishna district
Krishna district is district in the coastal Andhra Region in Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, with Machilipatnam as its administrative headquarters. It is the coastal district of Andhra Pradesh. Machilipatnam is the most populated city in the di ...
. The hill range, about in length, extends between
Nandigama
Nandigama is a town in NTR district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a Municipality and also the headquarters of Nandigama mandal in Nandigama revenue division.
Geography
Nandigama is located 50 km West of Vijayawada and 46&nb ...
and Vijayawada. The forest area in this hill range abounds in a type of lightwood known as 'ponuku' పొనుకు కఱ్ఱ (''Gyrocapus jacquini''), which is used exclusively for the manufacture of the famous Kondpalli toys.
The forest vegetation around Kondapalli fort and the nearby hills are also well known for medicinal plants and trees such as ''Phyllanthus amarus'' (Telugu local name "nela usiri" నేల ఉసిరిక చెట్టు), ''
Phyllanthus
''Phyllanthus'' is the largest genus in the plant family Phyllanthaceae. Estimates of the number of species in this genus vary widely, from 750David J. Mabberley. 2008. ''Mabberley's Plant-Book.'' third edition (2008). Cambridge University P ...
'', ''
Andrographis paniculata
''Andrographis paniculata'', commonly known as creat or green chiretta, is an annual herbaceous plant in the family Acanthaceae, native to India and Sri Lanka.
It is widely cultivated in Southern and Southeastern Asia, where it has been believ ...
'' (local name: "adavi mirapa" అడవి మిరప or "nelavemu" నేలవేము), ''Thedlapala'' (''
Wrightia tinctoria
''Wrightia tinctoria'', Pala indigo plant or dyer's oleander, is a flowering plant species in the genus ''Wrightia'' found in India, southeast Asia and Australia. It is found in dry and moist regions in its distribution. Various parts of the plan ...
''), ''
Tephrosia purpurea
''Tephrosia purpurea'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, that has a pantropical distribution. It is a common wasteland weed. In many parts it is under cultivation as green manure crop. It is found throughout India and Sri ...
'', ''
Albizia amara
''Albizia'' is a genus of more than 160 species of mostly fast-growing subtropical and tropical trees and shrubs in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae. The genus is pantropical, occurring in Asia, Africa, Madagascar, America and ...
'', ''Streulia urens'' and ''
Chloroxylon swetenia''. The hill range is mainly made up of
charnockite
Charnockite () is any orthopyroxene-bearing quartz-feldspar rock formed at high temperature and pressure, commonly found in granulite facies metamorphic regions, ''sensu stricto'' as an endmember of the charnockite series.
Charnockite series
The ...
s, with some pyroxene
granulite
Granulites are a class of high-grade metamorphic rocks of the granulite facies that have experienced high-temperature and moderate-pressure metamorphism. They are medium to coarse–grained and mainly composed of feldspars sometimes associated w ...
s,
granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...
s,
khondalite
Khondalite is a foliated metamorphic rock. In India, it is also called ''Bezwada Gneiss'' and ''Kailasa Gneiss''. It was named after the Khond tribe of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh because well-formed examples of the rock were found in the inha ...
s,
pyroxenite
Pyroxenite is an ultramafic igneous rock consisting essentially of minerals of the pyroxene group, such as augite, diopside, hypersthene, bronzite or enstatite. Pyroxenites are classified into clinopyroxenites, orthopyroxenites, and the websteri ...
s and
dolerite
Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro,
is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-grained ...
s.
History
The fort was built in 1360 CE by Anna Vemareddy of the Kondaveedu
Reddy dynasty
The Reddi kingdom or Kondavidu Reddi kingdom (1325–1448 CE) was established in southern India by Prolaya Vema Reddi. Most of the region that was ruled by the Reddi dynasty is now part of modern-day coastal and central Andhra Pradesh.
Orig ...
after he captured Kondapalli from Mudigonda Chalaukyas. In the historic struggle for power for the throne of Gajapati kingdom, Hamvira had to fight his brother Purushottam, who had succeeded to the throne after their father's death. He sought the help of the Bahmani Sultan in this war. He was successful in defeating his brother and occupied the throne of Gajapati kingdom, in 1472. But in the bargain, he gave Kondapalli and Rajahmundry to the Bahmani Sultan. Subsequently, Purushottam defeated Hamvira in 1476 and occupied the throne of Gajapati. But it is also said that in 1476, a revolution began at Kondapalli when there was famine in the Bahmani kingdom. The garrison of Kondapalli revolted and gave possession of the fort to "Hamer Oriya" or Hamvira.
Purushottam, once he became the king, tried to get back Kondapalli and Rajahmundry from the Bahmani Sultan III. But when he held siege over
Rajamundry
Rajahmundry, officially known as Rajamahendravaram, is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and District headquarters of East Godavari district. It is the sixth most populated city in the state. During British rule, the District of Rajah ...
, for some unknown reason he signed a peace treaty with the Sultan, which resulted in souring of relations between Bahmani and Vijayanagar rulers, which resulted in minor battles. But in 1481, after the death of Sultan Mahammad, the Bahmani Sultanate was in disarray and taking advantage of this situation Purushottam fought with Mahmad Shah, the Sultan's son, and took control of Rajahmundry and Kondapalli fort. Gajapati Purushottam Deva died in 1497 and was succeeded by his son Gajapati Prataprudra Deva.
[
In 1509, Gajapati Prataprudra Deva started a war against Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagar Empire, but Gajapati had to retreat to the north to defend an attack by Sultan Allauddin Hussan Shah of ]Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
. The consequence was that Krishnadevaraya had an easy victory over Kondapalli, which he occupied in June 1515. In the last war fought in 1519, Krishnadevaraya once again defeated the Gajapati ruler. Since the Kondaveedu fortress was very strong, after three months siege of the fort, Krishnadevaraya had to personally direct the operations to get control of the fort. Following this war, Krishnadevaraya married Gajapati Prataprudra Deva's daughter, Kalinga Kumari Jaganmohini. A treaty was also signed for restoring all land up to the southern boundary of the Krishna River to Orissa, which included Kondapalli.
But after the treaty with Vijayanagara emperor, between 1519 and 1525, Gajapati Prataprudra Deva had to defend his territory against invasion by Sultan Quli Qutab, the Sultan of Golkonda. But in the final assault, in 1531, Kondapalli came under the rule of Sultan of Golkonda. The war with Golkonda Sultans was continued by Govinda Bidyadhar, the new ruler of the Gajapati Kingdom who had succeeded Gajapati Prataprudra Deva (who died in 1533) but ended finally with a treaty with the Sultan.[
The area came under ]Mughal rule
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
in the 17th century. After the disintegration of the Mughal Empire in the early 18th century, Nizam ul-Mulk
Abu Ali Hasan ibn Ali Tusi (April 10, 1018 – October 14, 1092), better known by his honorific title of Nizam al-Mulk ( fa, , , Order of the Realm) was a Persians, Persian scholar, jurist, Political philosophy, political philosopher and Vizier ...
, what later became the Nizam of Hyderabad
The Nizams were the rulers of Hyderabad from the 18th through the 20th century. Nizam of Hyderabad (Niẓām ul-Mulk, also known as Asaf Jah) was the title of the monarch of the Hyderabad State ( divided between the state of Telangana, Mar ...
declared independence and took the area under its control. In the late 18th century, the area was still under the Nizam
The Nizams were the rulers of Hyderabad from the 18th through the 20th century. Nizam of Hyderabad (Niẓām ul-Mulk, also known as Asaf Jah) was the title of the monarch of the Hyderabad State ( divided between the state of Telangana, Mar ...
's rule, a treaty of alliance was signed between Nizam Ali and the British East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
recognizing the control of the British over the territory. This treaty was initially signed on 12 November 1766 under which the company in return for the grant of the territory agreed to garrison troops in the fort for Nizam's aid at an annual cost of 90,000 pounds. It is also stated that in 1766 the British, under General Caillaud, stormed the fort and took control of it.
A second treaty was signed on 1 March 1768, under which the Nizam recognized the grant provided to the British by Mughal ruler Shah Alam. But, as a gesture of friendship, the British (then the East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
) agreed to pay an allowance of 50,000 pounds to the Nizam. However, in 1823, the East India Company rested total control of the Sarcars under an outright purchase from the Nizam.[
In the initial years, the fort was used as a business center but after the British took over the fort in 1766 it was converted into a military training base.]
Structure
The fort, which has a very picturesque sight, has three successive entry gates. The main entrance gate is called the ‘Dargha Darwaja’ built with single block of granite. It is wide and high. Its name is derived from the tomb or dargha of Gulab Shah, who was killed in battle here. Besides Darhgha Darwaza, another entrance gate called the Golconda Darwaza is located on the other end of the hill, which leads to Jaggaiahpet
Jaggayyapeta, also spelled “Jaggiahpet”, is a census town in NTR district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, located just southwest of the border with Telangana. It is also the mandal headquarters of Jaggayyapeta mandal of Nandigama reve ...
village. The fortified wall has towers and battlements.
At the far end of the fort there is the Tanisha Mahal or Palace, perched on a crest between two hills. The palace had many chambers on the ground floor and a huge hall on the upper floor. In addition, there are several buildings still standing in the fort, which are ruins.[
There is deep reservoir near the palace, which is sourced by a spring. The water in the reservoir is said to be very cold and to cause fever. There are numerous other water tanks in the fort area, which go dry during the summer months. An old granary now in ruins, beyond the reservoir, is inhabited by bats.][
An English barrack is still standing in the fort area, which has eight large rooms, apart from a house in an annex. An English ]cemetery
A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...
is also seen in the fort.[
]
Restoration works
The Archeological Department of Andhra Pradesh has undertaken restoration and renovation works of the fort and the structures located within its precincts. The works cover improving link road to the fort from the National Highway, strengthening and restoring of historical walls, restoration of Jail Khana (prison house), Koneru pond and Museum, building a ropeway up to the hill, construction of inner roads, providing basic amenities such as three-phase power supply, drinking water and toilets, landscaping and setting up food courts. The museumcontains relics found at that place along with display of Kondapalli Toys and lot of Historical references.
References
External links
Pictures of the fort and the palace
{{Authority control
Buildings and structures completed in 1360
Forts in Andhra Pradesh
Tourist attractions in Krishna district
1360 establishments in Asia
14th-century establishments in India
Buildings and structures in Krishna district