RAIGAD FORT :Mystical tale of a legendary fort!

This day was unlike any other day as Hirkani paced herself at dusk towards the main door of the Raigad fort. She along with several other villagers visited the fort every morning to sell their wares and return to their homes in the evening. The doors of the fort would remain closed after dusk till dawn as per strict rules by the king. But on this day she was late to reach the door in the evening and was not allowed to pass by the guards. She pleaded as her baby was alone at home. Frightful at the sight of her baby alone and hungry all night long, she strolled in the fort until she came to a vertical drop with no wall. Without the slightest fear she climbed down the cliff of 1,200 feet. Thorny bushes scratched her body but she eventually reached home to embrace her baby. The next morning, Hirkani was at the door again to sell milk. Suprised and suspicious, the guards took her to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. He appreciated her bravery and ordered a construction of a wall. He honored her by giving her name to the wall. Today this wall is known as ‘Hirkani Buruj’ on the Raigad fort.

Many such mystical heroic tales surround the legacy of Raigad fort. For centuries now, the fort epitomises freedom from a unjust foreign power. Raigad is regarded as one of the strongest fort in the history of India with the Europeans calling it as the ‘Gibraltar of the east’. The fort rises to 2,851 above the sea level. ‘Rairi’ as it was known in the 12th century, ruled by Maratha chiefs followed by the Bahamani and Adilshahi rulers. In 1648, Shivaji Maharaj captured the fort and in 1662 after a thorough research of the hill top selected it as his capital and changed the name to ‘Raigad’. Utterly impressed by the fort he exclaimed “This Fort is formidable. All sides appear as if chiseled from a mountain of solid rock. Not even a blade of grass grows on the sheer vertical rock. This is a paragon to house the throne”

The natural strength of the hill and its flat top, access to Ratnagiri coast, surrounded by walls of rock were the cheif reasons for his section of this fort as the capital of the kingdom. Hiroji Indulkar, the chief architect was then asked to furnish the hill top with a set of royal and public buildings. Records estimate the fort consisted 300 stone houses which included palaces, mansions, offices, a mint, granaries, magazines, quarters for a garrison of 2000 men, a market nearly a mile in length, and a number of rock-cut and masonry cisterns. Defences of the fort were strengthened and an approach was prepared which would be easy for friends and difficult for foes. In 1674, Shivaji declared his independence and became the first Chhatrapati of the Maratha empire. He took the title ‘Kshatriya kulavtansaShri Raja Shiva Chhatrapati and seated the throne in Raj Darbar. The entire fort was ornamented as it had become the symbol of independence fom invaders. A British embassy consisting of Henry Oxeden, later the Deputy Governor General of Bombay visited the fort during this time. They were received with full honour by the king. Shivaji Maharaj added ‘council of ministers’ whose offices can still be seen on the fort. These 8 ministers were Peshwa the Prime Minster, Amatya the Finance Minster, Sachiv the Secretary, Mantri the Interior Minister, Senapati the Commander in Chief, Sumant the Foreign Minister, Nyayadish the Chief Justice, Panditrao the High Priest. In 1680, Shivaji Maharaj breathed his last on Raigad fort and within the next 20 years this fort underwent its toughest time since existence. The death of Sambhaji Maharaj was followed by the capture of the fort by Mughals in 1690. In 1773, the fort was again regained by Marathas. The British with 200 Europeans and sepoys advanced towards Raigad on 17th March 1818 which was looked by the last Peshwa’s wife Varanashibai. As she refused to leave the fort, mortars were placed and bombardment began to this once beautiful jewel of the Maratha empire. On 18th May, Raigad finally surrendered to the British. Everything on the fort, the buildings, streets, temples were destroyed. The great fort was then deserted under the British rule. In 1883, Mr. James Douglas a British traveller visited the fort to find it in a dilapidated condition and wrote in his book “No man now cares for Shivajee over all those wide domains, which once owned him lord and master, acquired by so much blood and treasure and which he handed over with care to the Rajas of Kolhapur, the Bhosles of Satara and their Peshwas in Poona. Not one man now contributes a rupee to keep or repair the tomb of the founder of the Maratha Empire” It was only later that Lokmanya Tilak and Mahatma Phule started work for repair of the fort

The fort today gives a clear understanding of the strategic genius of its king. The best approach today is from Pachad village through the ‘Chit Darwaja’. As the ascent begins through the 1450 steps of the fort, we are welcomed by ‘Khub Lada Buruj’, a small turret designed for suprise attacks on the enemy. A mile ahead, we are greeted by the ‘Maha Darwaja’ or the main gate of the fort which is about 400 feet high. It is so strategically located that it is almost hidden to the approaching people in the fort. It is protected by two huge bastions 75 and 65 feet high. As we move into the fort, we see the ‘Ganga Sagar’ reservoir and the two towers leading to the ‘Raj Darbar’. The reservoir has excellent clean water and is used even today for drinking. We can also see two ruined towers are about 40 feet high and having twelve windows each. To the west of these towers is the ‘Palki Darwaja’ with high masonary walls. A flight of 31 steps takes us to the ‘Balekilla’ or the citadel. A path with ruined buildings on both sides leads us to ‘Mena Gate’. Those on the right are the remains of the women’s quarters and those on the left are rooms for the guards and servants. To the left, inside of the ‘Palki Darwaja’, a path leads east to the back of the King’s court or Raj Darbar where the place of throne of the great king can be visited. There are remains of a fountain, and facing the throne is the ‘Nagar Khana’ or Drum Gate, the main entrance to the darbar. It is a solid square structure with a pointed archway about thirty feet high and with a span of eight feet. The whole building is about fifty feet high. On the top, reached by a flight of twenty-nine steps, is the drum-room although today no one is allowed to the top. The distance between ‘Nagarkhana and the throne is more than 200 feet, yet even the slightest whisper can be heard from both ends very clearly. Outside the Nagarkhana, there is a wide open ground called ‘Holi cha Mal’ a venue for the annual Holi festival in those days. It also has a statue of the great king. Facing this statue is the ‘Bazaar Peth’ (Market place) with two rows of shops separated by a road 40 feet wide. This road leads to the ‘Jagdishwar temple’ which also has a statue of Lord Hanuman about 3 feet high. You can also pay homage at the Samadhi of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. A mile from this place is ruined house of British guest Henry Oxeden. Other places include ‘Wagh Darwaja, the escape route in case fort was captured, Bhavani amd Takmak points, Kushavarta and Hatti talao, Shirkai Devi temple. Shivaji Maharaj built a palace for his mother Jijabai in Pachad village at the foothill, today there is a memorial here. Today a visit to the fort is made easy through the Raigad ropeway as it ascents and descents the sheer vertical hilltop in 4 minutes.