Kondaveedu Fort is a historically significant ancient hill fortress located in Kondaveedu, a village in the
Chilakaluripet
Chilakaluripet is a city in Palnadu district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the Mandal headquarters of Chilakaluripet Mandal in Narasaraopet Revenue Division.
Geography
It is located in the Coastal Andhra region of the state at ...
constituency of
Palnadu district
Palnadu district is a district in coastal Andhra Region in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. With Narasaraopet as its administrative headquarters, it was formed on 04 April 2022 to become one of the resultant twenty-six districts The district ...
,
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
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 site is located 16 miles west of the city of
Guntur
Guntur () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur is spread across 168.49 km square and is the third-largest city in the state. It is situated to the west of the Ba ...
. Apart from this main fort, there are two other forts (names not known) nearby. Efforts are in progress to classify Kondaveedu Fort as a UNESCO
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
.
Kondaveedu Fort was constructed by
Prolaya Vema Reddi
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 ...
. It was used as the capital by the
Reddi dynasty between 1328 and 1482, shifting from their former capital at
Addanki
Addanki is a Municipal city in Bapatla district of the Indian State, Andhra Pradesh. Addanki North is the mandal headquarters of Addanki mandal in chirala revenue division.
Geography
Addanki located at . It has an average elevation of 24  ...
.
[ It was taken by the ]Vijayanagara
Vijayanagara () was the capital city of the historic Vijayanagara Empire. Located on the banks of the Tungabhadra River, it spread over a large area and included the modern era Group of Monuments at Hampi site in Vijayanagara district, Bellary ...
emperor Krishnadevaraya
Krishnadevaraya (17 January 1471 – 17 October 1529) was an emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire, also known as the Karnata Empire, reigning from 1509 to 1529. He was the third monarch of the Tuluva dynasty, and is considered to be one of the g ...
in 1516.[ The ]Golconda
Fort (Telugu: గోల్కొండ, romanized: ''Gōlkōnḍa'') is a historic fortress and ruined city located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It was originally called Mankal. The fort was originally built by Kakatiya ruler Pratāparu ...
Sultan
Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...
s fought for the fort in 1531, 1536 and 1579, and Sultan Quli Qutb Shah
Sultan Quli Qutb-ul-Mulk, more often though less correctly referred to in English as Quli Qutb Shah (1485–1543), was the founder of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, which ruled the Sultanate of Golconda in southern India from 1518 to 1687. Of Turkmen o ...
finally captured it in 1579, renaming it ''Murtazanagar''.[
The fort came under the control of the ]French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
colonists in 1752 when it was extensively fortified. It passed on to 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 ...
who got control of the fort in 1788 but abandoned it in the early 19th century in favour of Guntur
Guntur () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur is spread across 168.49 km square and is the third-largest city in the state. It is situated to the west of the Ba ...
. Now, the massive fortifications and battlements are seen in ruins only. The interior has extensive ruins of magazines
A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combination ...
and storehouses.[
]
Geography
The fortresses were once the capital of the Kondavidu 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 ...
that was delimited between the south of the Krishna River and the Gundlakamma River
The Gundlakamma River ( te, గుండ్లకమ్మ నది) is a seasonal waterway that flows through the east-central part of the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It arises in the Nallamala Hills, an offshoot of the Eastern Ghats. Its m ...
and located to the west of Guntur
Guntur () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur is spread across 168.49 km square and is the third-largest city in the state. It is situated to the west of the Ba ...
city. They were erected on a high ridge of a small range of hills with average elevation of (highest point on the ridge is ). There are two hill (ghat
Ghat, a term used in the Indian subcontinent, depending on the context could refer either to a range of stepped hills with valleys (ghati in Hindi), such as the Eastern Ghats and Western Ghats; or the series of steps leading down to a body of ...
) sections, which form the hill ranges, one is to the north, which provides a very steep but short access to the forts. The preferred access is more circuitous and less tiring and involves of trekking.[ Kondaveedu and the surrounding forest areas have a large number of ]Custard apple
Custard apple is a common name for a fruit and for the tree that bears it, ''Annona reticulata.''
The tree’s fruits vary in shape; they may be heart-shaped, spherical, oblong or irregular. Their size ranges from 7 to 12 cm (2.8 to 4.7 i ...
(''Morinda citrifolia
''Morinda citrifolia'' is a fruit-bearing tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae. Its native range extends across Southeast Asia and Australasia, and was spread across the Pacific by Polynesian sailors. The species is now cultivated throughout th ...
'' (''Noni
''Morinda citrifolia'' is a fruit-bearing tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae. Its native range extends across Southeast Asia and Australasia, and was spread across the Pacific by Polynesian sailors. The species is now cultivated throughout th ...
'')) trees.
History
The village of Kondavidu is said to have been established in 1115 CE as a fortified township by Gopanna, a commander of Buddhavarma of the Telugu Choda dynasty. Later it came under the Kakatiyas
The Kakatiya dynasty (IAST: Kākatīya) was an Indian dynasty that ruled most of eastern Deccan region comprising present day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, and parts of eastern Karnataka and southern Odisha between 12th and 14th centuries. Th ...
and occupied by Prolaya Vema Reddi
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 ...
() who shifted his capital from Addanki
Addanki is a Municipal city in Bapatla district of the Indian State, Andhra Pradesh. Addanki North is the mandal headquarters of Addanki mandal in chirala revenue division.
Geography
Addanki located at . It has an average elevation of 24  ...
to Kondaveedu. Later, the fort was under the control of Vijayanagar Kings, Gajapatis
The Gajapati Empire or the Suryavamsa (IAST: Sūryavaṃśa, "Solar dynasty") dynasty was a medieval dynasty from the Indian subcontinent, it originated in the region of Trikalinga (most of the present-day Odisha and North coastal Andhra) an ...
, Golkonda sultans and lastly under the French and British.
In 1323, Warangal
Warangal () is a city in the Indian state of Telangana and the district headquarters of Warangal district. It is the second largest city in Telangana with a population of 704,570 per 2011 Census of India, and spreading over an .
Warangal ser ...
and the whole of Andhra Pradesh came under the reign of Tughlaqs rulers of Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
. Their depredations and despotic reign resulted in the formation of a confederation movement by the Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
Musunuri Nayaks
The Musunuri Nayakas were warrior kings of 14th-century South India who were briefly significant in the region of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Musunuri Kapaya Nayaka is said to have taken a leadership role among the Andhra chieftains and driv ...
, who ousted the Muslims from Warangal
Warangal () is a city in the Indian state of Telangana and the district headquarters of Warangal district. It is the second largest city in Telangana with a population of 704,570 per 2011 Census of India, and spreading over an .
Warangal ser ...
, and the Reddys were part of this movement.[
The Reddys of Kondaveedu were initially feudatories of the kings of Warangal. From inscriptions, it is inferred that their rule overlapped with that of the Korukonda Reddis and that they shifted from their earlier capital at ]Addanki
Addanki is a Municipal city in Bapatla district of the Indian State, Andhra Pradesh. Addanki North is the mandal headquarters of Addanki mandal in chirala revenue division.
Geography
Addanki located at . It has an average elevation of 24  ...
in Guntur
Guntur () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur is spread across 168.49 km square and is the third-largest city in the state. It is situated to the west of the Ba ...
to Kondaveedu. The founder of the dynasty was Prolaya Vema Reddy, the son of Prola.[ They ruled in the region around present-day ]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 ...
and Guntur towns for nearly a hundred years (1328–1428). Their first ruler Prolaya Vema Reddy (followed by five other rulers till 1428) who ruled till 1353, strengthened the defenses of his kingdom by building a number of forts, which included the Kondaveedu Fort. He shifted his capital from Addanki
Addanki is a Municipal city in Bapatla district of the Indian State, Andhra Pradesh. Addanki North is the mandal headquarters of Addanki mandal in chirala revenue division.
Geography
Addanki located at . It has an average elevation of 24  ...
in Guntur to Kondaveedu fort. Subsequently, the region was ruled by the Bahmanis
The Bahmani Sultanate, or Deccan, was a Persianate Sunni Muslim Indian Kingdom located in the Deccan region. It was the first independent Muslim kingdom of the Deccan, (1458), the Vijayanagara kings (1516), the Qutb Shahis
The Qutb Shahi dynasty also called as Golconda Sultanate ( Persian: ''Qutb Shāhiyān'' or ''Sultanat-e Golkonde'') was a Persianate Shia Islam dynasty of Turkoman origin that ruled the sultanate of Golkonda in southern India. After the coll ...
, (1531,1537 & 1579), the Mughal army of 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 ...
in 1687, the French (1752), the Asaf Jahi
The Asaf Jahi was a Muslim dynasty that ruled the Kingdom of Hyderabad. The family came to India in the late 17th century and became employees of the Mughal Empire. They were great patrons of Persian culture, language, and literature, the famil ...
Kings, and finally the British (1766 and 1788).[
Early in 2019, remains of a ]Buddhist stupa
A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation.
In Buddhism, circumambu ...
were found under a dilapidated Hindu temple at Kondaveedu fort. The remains date back to the later Satavahana period — 1st to 2nd century CE. This discovery pushes back of the history of Kondaveedu to the Satavahana period.
Three copper plate grants of Prithvi Sri Mularaja were found in Kondavidu.
Structure
The three forts on top of the narrow hill range are now in ruins; the earliest-built fort dates to the 12th century. The main fort built by the Reddy dynasty and refurbished by subsequent rulers, located at a height of nearly , was considered then as one of the strongest forts in the region. 21 structures have been identified within the fort. Its fortifications built with granite stones comprise huge ramparts, magazines, warehouses, granaries, and wells. There are two entry gates into the forts, called the ‘Kolepalli Darwaza’ and the ‘Nadella Darwaza’. The entrance gate is three-storied, massive and made of granite stone blocks. A building built with rock pillars and covered with rock slabs, has long inscriptions. A defense bunker is also seen. The source of water supply to the inhabitants of the fort was from three sources namely, the Mutyalama Cheruvu, the Puttalamma Cheruvu and the Vedulla Cheruvu (‘Cheruvu’ in Telugu language
Telugu (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken by Telugu people predominantly living in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where it is also the official language. It is the most widely spoken member of the Dravidian language fami ...
means "pond"). On the way to the fort at Kothapalem (known as Puttakota in the past), at the foothill of the fort, an embankment is seen which is inferred as a security ring bund to protect the royal family palaces and houses of the main functionaries of the fort.
The fort's ruins on the southwest side of the Kondaveedu village is in the shape of an equilateral triangle
In geometry, an equilateral triangle is a triangle in which all three sides have the same length. In the familiar Euclidean geometry, an equilateral triangle is also equiangular; that is, all three internal angles are also congruent to each othe ...
, and at the turning angles of the triangle at the south west and north east, tower bastions
A bastion or bulwark is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fi ...
are provided, which form part of the façade wall of the fort. A single wall of length straddles the hills.
A temple known as the Gopinathaswami temple (dedicated to Lord Krishna
Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one of ...
) lies at the foot of the hill; its bunched stone pillars are carved out of a single rock. Both Hindu and Muslim architectural styles are seen in the forts. A mosque is also located within the fort.[
]
Restoration works
The department of Archaeology and Museums (Andhra Pradesh) has decided to carry out major development and restoration works to bring out the past glory of the forts. The works proposed involve construction of hill (ghat
Ghat, a term used in the Indian subcontinent, depending on the context could refer either to a range of stepped hills with valleys (ghati in Hindi), such as the Eastern Ghats and Western Ghats; or the series of steps leading down to a body of ...
) road of length from the eastern side of the hill (the first step to approach the forts to begin restoration works), resetting and providing railing along the rocky pathway, and improving the view-points, bastions, garrison barracks, stables and internal roads with appropriate tourist signages.
ISKCON South India is also embarking on giving a major face-lift to this historical fort through their Spiritual Heritage Revival Project. The Andhra Pradesh government has sanctioned a plot at the foot of the hill to build a beautiful temple for the ancient Venna Gopal deity at the foot of the Kondaveedu Hills in the first phase. The deity was originally installed 500 years ago by the great South Indian Emperor Krishnadevaraya
Krishnadevaraya (17 January 1471 – 17 October 1529) was an emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire, also known as the Karnata Empire, reigning from 1509 to 1529. He was the third monarch of the Tuluva dynasty, and is considered to be one of the g ...
, who also took over the Fort from its previous rulers, the Reddy Kings(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 ...
).
And provided this first phase is carried out successfully, the AP Government promised ISKCON another at the top of the hill to develop. A 3 Crore (30 million rupee) road to the top of the hill is already being completed by Andhra Pradesh government. Krishnas Idol is very rare in the world. Below is the picture of Krishna located in Cheghizkhan pet (Kondaveedu)
Access
Kondaveedu Fort is situated in Kondaveedu village west of Guntur City
Guntur () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur is spread across 168.49 km square and is the third-largest city in the state. It is situated to the west of the Bay ...
. It is about from Guntur city and about 13 km from the side of Chilakaluripet. Guntur is easily accessible by road and rail from all parts of India. The nearest airport is Gannavaram Airport, which is away from Guntur city. After reaching Guntur one should board a Guntur-Chilakaluripet ordinary bus and alight at Bhoyapalem-Pirangipuram Road and can hire an auto rickshaw to the fort.
The simplest way to reach the fort by one's own vehicle. Reach Guntur or Chilakaluripet by road. Drive 25 km from Guntur towards Chilakaluripet via NH5 vice verse 13 km from Chilakaluripet and turn towards Bhoyapalem-Pirangipuram Road. In this road we need to travel around 10 km to our destination.
References
Citations
Sources
*
External links
Video clip of Kondaveedu-Golden age of Telugu Kingdom(Reddy Kings), Best Tourism place in India
{{Forts in Andhra Pradesh
Buildings and structures in Guntur district
Forts in Andhra Pradesh
Tourist attractions in Guntur district
13th-century establishments in India
Monuments of National Importance in Andhra Pradesh
Vijayanagara Empire
Archaeological sites in Andhra Pradesh
Buildings and structures completed in the 13th century