Thalner is an Shirpur Tahsil's Village, the first capital of the
Faruqi kings, stands on the banks of the
Tapi river, in
Shirpur
Shirpur is a town and taluka in Dhule district of Nashik Division, Maharashtra. It is located on National Highway 3, which runs from Agra in Uttar Pradesh to Mumbai, Maharashtra. The Arunavati River and Tapi river flows through the city. Sh ...
tehsil about 46.67 km. (28 miles) north-east of
Dhule
Dhule is a city located in the Dhule District in the northwestern part of Maharashtra state, India known as West Khandesh. Situated on the banks of Panzara River, Dhule is the regional headquarters of MIDC, RTO, and MTDC.
The city is mainly kn ...
in
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 ...
state, India. It was fortified and played a significant role in the history of
Khandesh
Khandesh is a geographic region in Central India, which includes parts of the northwestern portion of Maharashtra as well as Burhanpur District of Madhya Pradesh.
The use of Khandeshi Language (a.k.a. the Ahirani Language) is prevalent in ...
. At the foot of the fort is an old stone temple dedicated to Thaleshwar. The name ''Thalner'' probably derived from this temple. The capital was once a significant commercial centre.
Thalner fort
The fort had one side rising out of the
Tapi and the three other sides were surrounded by a hollow way, varying in width from 91.44 to 137.16 metres (100 to 150 yards). The walls rose to the height of about 18.28 metres (60 ft.) above this hollow and the interior had the same elevation. The only entrance was on the eastern side, secured by five successive gates communicating by intricate traverses, whose enclosure gradually rose to the height of the main wall. A winding ramp, interspersed in some places with steps, ascended through the gate into the terreplein of the rampart. Great ingenuity had been exercised to make this part as strong as possible, apparently under the idea that the profile of the rest rendered it secure, notwithstanding the absence of a ditch.
Today only a small portion of the walls that were on the river side is standing, the others having collapsed for the most part. Even of this wall one of the bastions was ruined by the great floods of the Tapi which took place in 1876, and a tunnel opened in which a small, well executed idol of
Vishnu
Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism.
Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...
was found.
Situated on the banks of the Tapi and the foot of the fort is an old stone built temple dedicated to Thaleshwar. Its 1.828 X 1.828 metre vestibule contains a small ''
ling
Ling may refer to:
Fictional characters
* Ling, an ally of James Bond's from the film ''You Only Live Twice''
* Ling, a character in the ''Mulan'' franchise
* Ling, a playable character from the mobile game '' Mobile Legends: Bang Bang''
* Ling ...
'' symbol. It is crowned by a 7.62 metre (25 ft.) high ''
shikhar''.
History
According to a local grant, in 1128, while the country for 32.18 km (20 miles) around was ' without a light', and twenty-seven of its forts were deserted, Thalner prospered under Javaji and Govaji of the Tale sub-division of ''Gavali rajas'' or the
Abhira kings.
At that time, Daulatrao, son of Bajirao of
Daulatabad came to the people of
Khandesh
Khandesh is a geographic region in Central India, which includes parts of the northwestern portion of Maharashtra as well as Burhanpur District of Madhya Pradesh.
The use of Khandeshi Language (a.k.a. the Ahirani Language) is prevalent in ...
, and finding Thalner flourishing established Javaji's family as headmen of the town.
In 1370, when
Firozshah Tughluq (1351–1388) granted
Malik Raja Faruqi an estate on the south border of
Gujarat
Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
, Malik chose Thalner as his headquarters. In 1371, defeated by the Gujarat king, Malik was forced to take refuge in Thalner fort. On his death in 1399 Malik left Thalner to his second son Iftikar Khan. But in 1417 with the aid of the Sultan of
Malwa
Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also syno ...
, Nasir Khan, the elder son, wrested it from his brother. In 1498 Thalner was invaded by
Mahmud Begada
Sultan Mahmud Begada or Mahmud Shah I (), was the most prominent Sultan of the Gujarat Sultanate. Raised to the throne at young age, he successfully captured Pavagadh and Junagadh forts in battles which gave him his name ''Begada''. He establishe ...
, king of Gujarat, whose army laid waste the district and would not retire till arrears of tribute were paid. In 1511 Mahmud Begada granted Thalner with about one-half of Khandesh to Malik Hissamuddin, a noble of his court. But in the next year, Hissamuddin was murdered and Thalner was restored to Khandesh. In 1566 it was the scene of the defeat of the Khandesh king
Miran Muhammad Shah II by Changiz Khan of Gujarat. In 1600, when it passed to Emperor
Akbar
Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...
, Thalner was noticed as being of great strength though in a plain. In 1660
Tavernier mentioned it as one of the places of trade on the
Surat
Surat is a city in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The word Surat literally means ''face'' in Gujarati and Hindi. Located on the banks of the river Tapti near its confluence with the Arabian Sea, it used to be a large seaport. It is now ...
and
Burhanpur
Burhanpur'' is a historical city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the administrative seat of Burhanpur District. It is situated on the north bank of the Tapti River and northeast of city of Mumbai, southwest of the state's capi ...
line.
In 1750 it was a strong fort, the centre of thirty-two little governments. Shortly after this, it passed to the
Peshwa
The Peshwa (Pronunciation: e(ː)ʃʋaː was the appointed (later becoming hereditary) prime minister of the Maratha Empire of the Indian subcontinent. Originally, the Peshwas served as subordinates to the Chhatrapati (the Maratha king); later, ...
, and was by him made over to
Holkar
The Holkar (Pronunciation: o(ː)ɭkəɾ dynasty was a Maratha clan of Dhangar origin in India. The Holkars were generals under Peshwa Baji Rao I, and later became Maharajas of Indore in Central India as an independent member of the Marat ...
, who, around 1800, pledged it to the
Nimbalkar
Nimbalkar is a Maratha clan, which derives its surname from the forest of Nimbalak in Phaltan taluka, Satara district, Maharashtra, India.
Some Nimbalkars served as head of the deshmukhs (''sardeshmukhs'' or ''sardars'') during the period of the ...
s. It was recovered the following year and kept by the Holkar family until in 1818, under the terms of the
Mandesar treaty, it was handed over to the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
.
Battle of Thalner, 1818
Sindva was a place with a much greater name for strength in the Khandesh region, but it surrendered to the British at once, hence no resistance was expected at Thalner. However, its capture proved one of the bloodiest incidents in the conquest of Khandesh.
Present condition
The fort of Thalner is in a dilapidated condition. Besides the tombs of Major MacGregor and Captain Gordon, the chief objects of interest are ten
Muhammedan domed tombs of common country black stone and two of burnt brick. Of the whole number, one is eight cornered and the rest are square. They vary in size from eleven feet by eleven to three and a half feet square. Though more or less damaged outwardly and with the inside part of their domes partly destroyed, they are in good order. The eight-cornered tomb has some Arabic writing, but so worn as to be unreadable.
Tourist attractions
In Thalner there are two temples, one dedicated to Mahadeva and the other to Khandoba's Temple. The Mahadeva temple is located at Tapi riverside, and Khandoba temple is located near the Thalner bus stand.
Notable personalities
Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her cont ...
's mother, affectionately called 'Mai', was from Thalner. She was the daughter of Seth Haridas Ramdas Lad, a prosperous businessman of the town.
References
*
{{Forts of Khandesh
Villages in Dhule district
Forts in Maharashtra
Former capital cities in India
Tourist attractions in Dhule district
Ahir history