Prachitgad is a

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'' ...

in the Sahyadri mountain range in Sangli district of Maharashtra

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

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 ...

. It covers an area of .

Location

It is located at on the western edge of

Chandoli National Park Chandoli National Park is a national park established in Sangli district on May 2004. Earlier it was a Wildlife Sanctuary declared in 1985. Chandoli Park is notable as the southern portion of the Sahyadri Tiger Reserve, with Koyna Wildlife San ...

Sangli district Sangli district (Marathi pronunciation: aːŋɡli is a district of Maharashtra state in India. Sangli city is the district headquarters. It is bordered by Satara district, Solapur district to the North, Karnataka state to South-East, by Kolh ...

but easiest way to reach is from Ratnagiri district at Shringarpur.It is located on the boundaries of 4 districts Sangli, Kolhapur, Ratnagiri and Satara. It is very remote place to reach from Sangli side due to dense Forrest and mountain terrain. The closest city is

Sangameshwar Sangameshwar Taluka is a taluka in Ratnagiri subdivision of Ratnagiri district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The headquarters for the taluka is the town of Devrukh.The headquarters was moved from the village of Sangameshwar to Devrukh in 1 ...

which is approximately 22 km away. The place is accessible only by foot from Shringarpur near sangmeshwar which is a 5 to 8 hour climb and trek through treacherous terrain or from chandoli dam which is a 14- to 15-hour walk through the forest.

History

Prachitgad was built by Rana Jakhuray Surve in 1404. It's masonry suggests that it was rebuilt by Rana Suryarao Surve during the Muslim rule (16th century). 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 ...

king

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 Adil ...

captured the fort in 1660s, and repaired it.Early English and French Settlements
Maharashtra State Gazetteer: Ratnagiri RaoRana Shurveer Suryarao (Suryaji) Surve, Maratha noble, who was respected and valued by Chatrapati Shivaji despite being his adversary. His divan Shirke betrayed him which led Shivaji to win this fort in 1660. The battle was led by Tanaji Malusare with 1000 soldiers. RaoRana Suryajirao Surve had only 150 soldiers as Shirke - divan had purposely intoxicated all soldiers. After surrendering this fort RaoRana Shurveer Suryajirao moved his capital to Sonawade near Shringarpur, due to cowardly winning the battle Shirkes were not allowed to interfere Prachitgad activities. Sambhaji use to come there to meet RaoRana Shurveer Neelkanthrao surve who shifted his capital from Sonawade to Tulasani near Devrukh . Today Jadhavs and Mhaskes are staying there. After Chatrapati Sambhaji, it does not appear in historical records as the site of any notable event until 1817, when it was captured by Chitursingh, the younger brother of the Raja of Satara. On 10 June 1818, the fort was captured by a

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 South ...

force led by Colonel Cunningham. By 1862, the fort was in ruins, and had been deserted.

Places to visit

*Being in the Chandoli National park Prachitgad is studded with beautiful spots. Two main spots being Sada and Kandhar Doh. Sada is the formation made up of frozen lava. Kanddhar Doh is the water fall on the

Warana River Warana River is a river that flows through the Warana river valley of Sangli and Kolhapur districts in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. It is an important tributary of the Krishna river. Geography and course The river originates at a h ...

. *There is old Bhairav Bhawani temple at Prachitgad *Ancient Sun temple called as Kunkeshwar near Sangameshwar

Nearest towns

* Sangli * Ratnagiri *

Kolhapur Kolhapur () is a city on the banks of the Panchganga River in the southern part of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarter of the Kolhapur district. In, around 2 C.E. Kolapur's name was 'Kuntal'. Kolhapur is ...

* Islampur * Shirala

Nearest railway stations

* Sangli railway station *

Miraj Miraj (Pronunciation: iɾəd͡z ) is a city in Sangli District and also in Maharashtra, India, that was founded in the early 10th century. It was an important jagir of the Adil Shahi court of Bijapur. Shivaji Maharaj stayed in Miraj for ...

junction *

* Ratnagiri *

Location

History

Places to visit

Nearest towns

Nearest railway stations

References

See also