Archaeological Museums map of Andhra Pradesh

Chandragiri Fort is an historical

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

, built in the 11th century located at Chandragiri suburb in

Tirupati Tirupati () is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Tirupati district. The city is home to the important Hindu shrine of Tirumala Venkateswara Temple and other historic temples and is refe ...

. It is situated in

Tirupati district Tirupati district () is one of the twenty-six districts in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and one of the eight districts in the Rayalaseema region of the Andhra Pradesh state. The district headquarters is located at Tirupati city. Tirupat ...

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 ...

. Although mostly associated with the Vijayanagara Emperors, it was built much earlier in 11th century by the Yadava rulers. In 1460 A.D. Odra Gajapati Kapilendra Dev captured the Chandragiri Fort.

History

Chandragiri was under the rule Vijayanagara empire for about three centuries and came under the control of the Vijayanagarayadava rulers in 1367. It came into prominence during 1560s during the reign of

Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya (or Saluva Narasimha, Saluva Narasimha I; 1431–1491 CE) was an emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire from the Saluva Dynasty. A patron of the Madhwa saint Sripadaraya, he authored the Sanskrit work ''Rama Bhyudayam''. He ...

. Later, the most famous

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 Srikrishna Devaraya, was kept in this fort as a prince, till his coronation at Penukonda. It is also said that he met his future queen Chinna Devi at this fort. Chandragiri was the 4th capital of

Empire, Rayas shifted their capital to here when the Golconda sultans attacked Penukonda. In 1646 the fort was annexed to the

Golkonda 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 Pratāparud ...

territory and subsequently came under

Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...

rule. It went into oblivion from 1792 onward. The Raja Mahal Palace is now an archaeological museum. The palace is an example of Indo-Sarcen architecture of

period. The crowning towers represents the Hindu architectural elements. The palace was constructed using stone, brick, lime mortar and devoid of timber. Some of important kavyas or epic poems are written in this fort under the patronage of Vijayanagara kings. Inside the fort are eight temples, Raja Mahal, Rani Mahal and other ruined structures. Inside the fort are Raja Mahal and Rani Mahal which are quite well maintained for more than 300 years and Raja Mahal is converted as Archeological Museum by Arechological Survey of India. The museum holds models of fort, main temple and other structures of surrounding area. Both of these building were constructed without using wood and only lime, brick and morter was used. Rani Mahal has flat roof and at base level it has stable and epigraphical evidence says that this building was also used as commanders quarters. The fort is the place where the pact of granting lands for

Fort St. George Fort St. George (or historically, White Town) is a fortress in the coastal city of Chennai, India. Founded in 1639, it was the first English (later British) fortress in India. The construction of the fort provided the impetus for further ...

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, ...

was signed by Vijayanagara King Sri Rangaraya during August 1639.

Vyasathirtha

Sage

Vyasatirtha Vyāsatīrtha (. 1460 – 1539), also called ''Vyasaraja'' or ''Chandrikacharya'', was a Hindu philosopher, scholar, polemicist, commentator and poet belonging to the Madhwacharya's Dvaita order of Vedanta. As the patron saint of the Vijay ...

used to reside here and was a spiritual advisor to King Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya and he was entrusted with worship at Tirumala temple. Vyasathirtha remained in Chandragiri in the court of Narasimha Raya II. The fort is at a distance of 11 km from the famous

Tirupati Temple Sri Venkateswara Swami Vaari Temple is a Hindu temple situated in the hill town of Tirumala at Tirupati in Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh, India. The Temple is dedicated to Venkateswara, a form of Vishnu, who is believed to have appeared ...

and there is a foot path to temple from this fort, which is the reason the sage resided here.

Srivari Mettu

The famous Srivari Mettu, one of the well known walking pathis to Tirumala Venkateshwara Temple starts from this fort and it was originally used by Royal family of Vijayanagara Kingdom, which over the years is allowed to be used to public. A wall of the fort on the steep hill.JPG, A wall of the fort on the steep hill File:RANI MAHAL CHANDRAGIRI FORT AP - panoramio.jpg, Rani Mahal, Chandragiri fort File:Rani mahal chandragiri fort AP - panoramio.jpg, Raja Mahal

References

{{Forts in India Tirupati Tirupati district Forts in Andhra Pradesh Buildings and structures in Tirupati Vijayanagara Empire Archaeological sites in Andhra Pradesh 11th-century establishments in India Buildings and structures completed in the 11th century Monuments of National Importance in Andhra Pradesh Palaces in Andhra Pradesh