Place · plateau fort · India
Rohtasgarh
Also known as Rohtas, Rohtasgarh hill fort
The 12-18 century Rohtasgarh fort on the Rohtas plateau in Rohtas district, Bihar — a 28-square-kilometre plateau fort (one of the largest hill forts in India by area) held in turn by the Kharwar tribal chiefs (12-15 century), Sher Shah Suri (who conquered it in 1538 and used it as his treasury before his 1540 Delhi conquest), the Mughals (from 1558 under Akbar's reign), the Ujjainiya Rajputs (18-century) and the British (from 1764). The plateau's natural defence made it one of the most impregnable fortifications in eastern India. The fort contains the 1544 Rohtas Palace of Raja Man Singh (Akbar's general), the 1587 Hathiyadaha palace, the Takht-e-Padshahi (ceremonial throne platform), the Hindu Jogmaya temple, and the Ganesh temple. The fort was abandoned by the British after their 1764 victory. ASI partial protection since 1917.
- Function
- Religious institution & practice
- Confidence
- Established / referenced
- Location
- 24.630, 84.040
Connections (1)
- Sher Shah fortsChunar Fort, Mirzapur
Chunar on the Ganges and Rohtasgarh on its plateau are the two forts through which Sher Shah Suri built his power base in the eastern Ganga valley before taking Delhi — Chunar acquired by marrying its commandant's widow, Rohtas taken by a ruse, with soldiers carried in covered litters as if they were women. Both are enormous and both were held afterwards by the Mughals, the Marathas and the British in turn.
Sources
Wikipedia, “Rohtas Fort, India”. Archaeological Survey of India and State Archaeology monument records, and the standard regional literature.
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