Pratapgad is a mountain fort located in

Satara district Satara district (Marathi pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, aːt̪aɾaː is a Districts of Maharashtra, district of Maharashtra state in western India with an area of and a population of 3,003,741 of which 14.17% were urban (). Satara (city), ...

, in the

Western India Western India is a loosely defined region of India consisting of its western part. The Ministry of Home Affairs in its Western Zonal Council Administrative division includes the states of Goa, Gujarat, and Maharashtra along with the Union te ...

n state of

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

.The fort is situated 24 kilometres from the

Mahabaleshwar Mahabaleshwar () is a small town and a municipal council in Satara district, Maharashtra, India. It is a place of pilgrimage for Hindus because Krishna river has its origin here. The British colonial rulers developed the town as a hill station ...

hill station. The fort is now a popular tourist destination. The fort's historical significance is due to the

Battle of Pratapgad The Battle of Pratapgad was a battle fought on 10 November 1659, at the fort of Pratapgad, near the town of Satara, Maharashtra, India, between the forces of the Marathas under Chhatrapati Shivaji and the Adilshahi troops under the Adilshahi ...

, which took place here on 10 November 1659, between

Shivaji Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...

and

Bijapur Sultanate The Adil Shahi or Adilshahi, was a Shia,Salma Ahmed Farooqui, ''A Comprehensive History of Medieval India: From Twelfth to the Mid-Eighteenth Century'', (Dorling Kindersley Pvt Ltd., 2011), 174. and later Sunni Muslim,Muhammad Qasim Firishta's T ...

general Afzal Khan. Chatrapati Shivaji's killing of Afzal Khan was followed by decisive Maratha victory over the Bijapur army.

History

The

Maratha The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a M ...

ruler

assigned

Moropant Trimbak Pingle Moropant Trimbak Pingle (1620–1683), was the ''peshwa'' of the Maratha Empire, serving on Shivaji Maharaj's Ashta Pradhan (Council of Eight Ministers). Early life Moropant Trimbak Pingle was born to a Deshastha Brahmin family in 1620 Nimgaon. ...

, his prime minister, to undertake the construction of this fort in order to defend the banks of the Nira and the Koyna rivers, and to defend the ''Par pass''. It was completed in 1656. The Battle of Pratapgad between Shivaji and Afzal Khan, a general of

Adil Shahi dynasty The Adil Shahi or Adilshahi, was a Shia,Salma Ahmed Farooqui, ''A Comprehensive History of Medieval India: From Twelfth to the Mid-Eighteenth Century'', (Dorling Kindersley Pvt Ltd., 2011), 174. and later Sunni Muslim,Muhammad Qasim Firishta's ...

, was fought below the ramparts of this fort on 10 November 1659. This was the first major test of the fledgling kingdom's army, and set the stage of the establishment of the Maratha empire. Pratapgad continued to be involved in regional politics.

Sakharam Bapu Bokil Sakharam Bapu Bokil (also referred as ''Sakharam Bapu'', ''Sakharam Hari Bokil'' or ''Sakharam Bhau''), born Sakharam Bhagwant Bokil, was an influential minister, a diplomat and statesman of the Maratha Empire during the Peshwa administration in ...

, a well-known minister of Pune, was confined by his rival

Nana Phadnis Nana Fadnavis (Pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, aːna pʰəɖɳəʋiːs, fəɖ- also Phadnavis and Furnuwees and abbreviated as Phadnis) (February 12, 1742 – March 13, 1800), born Balaji Janardan Bhanu, was an influential minister and sta ...

in Pratapgad in 1778. He was later moved from fort to fort until he died at Raigad. In 1796, Nana Phadnis, while escaping from the intrigues of

Daulatrao Shinde Shrimant Daulat Rao Shinde (also Sindhia; 1779 – 21 March 1827) was the Maharaja (ruler) of Gwalior state in central India from 1794 until his death in 1827. His reign coincided with struggles for supremacy within the Maratha Empire, and war ...

and his minister Baloba, assembled a strong garrison in Pratapgad before heading to

Mahad Mahad ( əɦaːɖ is a city in Raigad district (formerly Kulaba district) situated in the North Konkan region of Maharashtra state, India. It is located from District's headquarter Alibag, and from Mumbai, the state capital of Maharash ...

. In 1818, as part of the

Third Anglo-Maratha War The Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817–1819) was the final and decisive conflict between the English East India Company and the Maratha Empire in India. The war left the Company in control of most of India. It began with an invasion of Maratha te ...

, Pratapgad surrendered by private negotiation. This was a great loss to the Maratha forces, as Pratapgad was an important stronghold, had a large garrison, and could suppress much of the country around

Wai Wai or WAI may refer to : Places * Wai, Maharashtra, a small town in India ** Wai (Vidhan Sabha constituency), a Maharashtra Legislative Assembly constituency centered around the town * Wao State (Vav, Wai, Way), a former princely state in Banas K ...

Geography

Pratapgad fort is located at 15 km (10 miles) from

Poladpur Poladpur is a census town in Raigad district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. Etymology Poladpur is a town named after Poladjung, one of the knights in the army of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. He was beaten and buried at Poladpur during the S ...

and 23 km (15 miles) west of Mahabaleshwar, a popular

hill station A hill station is a town located at a higher elevation than the nearby plain or valley. The term was used mostly in colonial Asia (particularly in India), but also in Africa (albeit rarely), for towns founded by European colonialists as refuges ...

of Maharashtra. The fort stands 1080 metres (3543') above sea level and is built on a spur which overlooks the road between the villages of Par and Kinesvar. The fort has a

Tulja Bhawani Bhavānī (also known as Bhāvya, Tulajā, Turajā, Tvarita, Aṃbā, Jagadambā and Aṃbē) is manifestation of Adi Shakti (Durga). Bhavani translates to "giver of life", meaning the power of nature or the source of creative energy. She is co ...

temple from Shivaji's time. It have

murti In the Hindu tradition, a ''murti'' ( sa, मूर्ति, mūrti, ) is a devotional image such as a statue, or "idol" (a common and non-pejorative term in Indian English), of a deity or saint. In Hindu temples, it is a symbolic icon. Thus ...

of goddess Bhawani, which have eight hands (

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

: ''Ashtbhuja''). Weapons of soldiers are on display near this temple.

Tourism

Statue of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at Pratapgad

Pratapgad is usually visited as a day-trip from the hill station of

, a popular tourist destination located 25 kilometres away.

Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation abbreviated as (MSRTC, or simply ST), is the state run bus service of Maharashtra, India which serves routes to towns and cities within Maharashtra as well as to its adjoining states. It has a flee ...

provides regular bus service. There are small shops, restaurants and a handicrafts store. Many schools also arrange educational trips to the fort. The fort is also on many trekking routes of the area. An bronze equestrian statue of Shivaji is present at the fort. It was unveiled by

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

, then

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...

on 30 November 1957. The same year a road was constructed by the Public Works Department from Kumbhrosi village up to fort. A guest house and a small park was built inside the fort in 1960.

References

Forts in Satara district 1656 establishments in India Mahabaleshwar

External links

{{Fort-stub