When Devagiri became Daulatabad, Devagiri, a seemingly impregnable fort, assumed major importance from the year 1327. When Mohammed-Bin-Tughlak dissatisfied with his existing capital, decided that Delhi lay too far north for his ambition to capture the whole of ‘Hindostan. He decided to move the entire populace of Delhi to Devagiri, 700 miles (1100 km) away.
Tughlak’s dream city was abandoned – both literally and figuratively. Very few have the time or the inclination to visit this remotely located fortress. Despite conservation work, the crumbling fort and the buildings tell their own tale of neglect. However, those who visit the Fort, seem to have a special feeling for the place.
The earliest Yadavas had hewn away the irregular face of the conical rock. To create a sheer smooth vertical face rising 50 meters high above a moat dug 15 meters into the rockface. A causeway across the moat became the only entry point to the fortress.
The outer wall is five kilometers long and had earlier sheltered a large population in a town now completely abandoned. A second wall enclosing an area with a radius of half a kilometer is known as the “Mahakot”.
The Yadavas rule between 1183 and 1294 came to a halt when Raja Ramchandra of Devagiri was overcome by Allah-ud-Din. Who was appointed governor by the Delhi Sultanate. The first Muslim monument within the walls of Devagiri was the Jumma Masjid created by Qutb-ud-Din Khilji in 1318.
A tunnel in the rock face offers the only route to the upper reaches. It is said that at the time of a siege, an iron barrier at the end of the long spiraling tunnel. would be heated to such a point, that no one could touch it. Thus successfully pushing back any attackers, who had managed to reach this far.
0 Comment