Forts in Konkan

Maharashtra's History, Culture and people would not be existing without the forts in Maharashtra.

The following are forts exist on the Kokan coastline.

Kulaba Fort - Alibag :

Kolaba Fort is situated in the sea at a distance of 1–2 km from the shores of Alibag. Kolaba fort is built on a rock, a little way from the mainland and at high water an island.

The average height of the fort walls is 25 feet. It has two main entrances, one on the sea side and the other towards Alibag. An interesting feature of this fort is that it has freshwater wells in its premises even though it is a seaside fort. In the monsoons, the fort can be reached by wading through waist-deep water at low tide. However, at high tide, boats must be used to reach it.

The Siddhivinayak temple inside the fort was built by Raghoji Angre in 1759. The Ganpati Idol in the temple is very beautiful and many people worship

Revdanda Fort :

Revdanda fort located at 17 kms from Alibag. The fort was built by a Portuguese Captain by the name of Soj in 1558.

The Salav bridge at revdanda which joins Murud and Alibag gives a cool view of the surroundings.

Part of the town is situated within the premises of an Old Portuguese fort. The place has got lot of sight seeing places.

Korlai Fort :

Korlai fort can be seen from the bridge at Salav, located at 3 kms from Revdanda, on the Revdanda - Kashid road. The fort is an Old Portuguese outpost guarding the entrance to the river. A small road leads up to the top of the fort. There is a Lighthouse on the fort and a small climb from behind the lighthouse will take you to the fort. The fort is in ruins, but the view from the lighthouse is beautiful and the rocky beach at Korlai is also good.

Khanderi and Underi Forts :

The sea forts of Khanderi and Underi are Located 3 kms in the sea near Thal.

The Khanderi fort was built by Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to keep a check on the Siddis of Murud-Janjira. The fort of Underi is at a distance of ½ kms from Khanderi.

Janjira Fort :

The fort was built by Siddhi Amber who came from Abyssinia, the fort is an excellent example of fort building architecture and its outer walls are still in a good condition. The fort is situated on a rock of oval shape near the port town of Murud. Janjira is one of the strongest marine forts of India and it had remain unconquered till the end. The fort is approached by sailboats from Rajapuri jetty. The main gate of the fort faces Rajapuri on the shore and can be seen only when one is quite close to it. It has a small postern gate towards the open sea for escape.

The inside premises of the fort are in ruins but still gives a glimpse of its glorious past. The Huge cannons by the names Kalal bangdi, Chavri and Landa Kasam are worth a mention, it is said that these guns could fire at a distance of 2 kms from the fort making it impossible for enemy ships to come near. From the fort you can see the sea fort of Kasa or Padmadurg which was built by Shivaji Maharaj to counter the might of Siddhi.

Bankot Fort :

The Bankot fort is located near Bagmandla, which is near Harihareshwar. The Fort is also known as Himmatgad, which means the fort of Strength.

Suvarnadurga and Kanakadurga Forts – Harnai :

The fort is located at 17 kms from Dapoli at Harnai. The Suvarnadurg fort consists of two forts, Kanakadurga the land fort and Suvarnadurga the sea fort. The forts were built by Sultan Adilshah of Bijapur and later captured by Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in 1660.

he basic objective of establishing the fort was to counter enemy attacks, mainly by the colonialists of Europe and also by the local chieftains.

There is a lighthouse inside the Kanakdurga fort.

In the past, the land fort and the sea fort were connected by a tunnel, but now defunct. The present approach to the sea fort is only by boats from the Harnai port on the headland.

Gopalgad Fort – Anjanvel :

Anjanwel is a small town near Enron Company Plant at Veldur. Gopalgad Fort at Anjanwel is one of the picturesque forts in Konkan. It is a coastal fort, half of which is on a hill and the other half touches the sea.

Jaygad Fort :

The fort of jaygad is located at 25 kms from Ganpatipule. The fort is still in a good condition and quiet a few people still stay inside the fort. The fort was primarily built for guarding the Jaygad port.

Ratnadurga and Bhagwati Forts :

The Ratnadurga and Bhagwati forts were built during the Bijapur dynasty and captured by Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj from the Adilshah and fortified by him in 1670. The forts are on a hill and its three sides are sea facing. The forts are spread in an area of 120 Acres. Both the forts are worth seeing and the Bhagwati fort also has a temple of Bhagwati Devi.

You can see the Bhagwati Bander (Port) at the foot of this fort and there is a Lighthouse near the fort from where you can get a view of Ratnagiri city below. The Bhagwati Bander (Port) is a major port on the Konkan coastline.

Purnagad Fort :

The fort is located 25 kms from Ratnagiri after Pawas. The fort is spread in an area of 22 acres. The fort is located at the mouth of Muchikund river creek.

Sindhudurg Fort :

The fort lies on the shore of Malvan town of Sindhudurg District.

Over 4000 mounds of iron were used in the casting and foundation stones were firmly laid down. The construction was started on November 25, 1664. Built over a period of 30 years, the sea fort is spread over 48 acres with a 3 km) long rampart, and walls that are 30 feet high and 12 feet thick. The massive walls were designed to serve as a deterrent to approaching enemies and to the waves and tides of the Arabian Sea. The main entrance is concealed in such a way that no one can pinpoint it from outside.

Today, Sindhudurg Fort is a popular destination amongst tourists, both from within India, and abroad. There is also a coral reef located on the outskirts of the island. Tourists throng the island in large numbers especially in the summer season to explore the island as well as to undertake activities like Scuba Diving, Snorkelling      … etc

Attractions at the fort :

• There are three sweet water reservoirs in ramparts of the fort, and even if the water in the nearby villages dries in summer, these wells do not dry; they always contain water in them.
• There is a coconut tree which has a branch, if you see a coconut tree it will never have a branch but this tree not only has a branch but also gives fruit. This tree was struck by lightning a couple of years ago.
• There is a passage which is hidden in a temple which looks like a water reservoir, this passage goes under the fort for 3 kilometers, and 12 kilometers beneath the sea, and from there 12 kilometers in a nearby village which was used as a rescue door if the enemy entered the fort; this way was for the women to move out. However, this passage has been partially closed to public view, ever since it was abandoned, by the British rulers.
• The entrance gate is hardly visible from anywhere, and unless you are not a regular visitor, and if you are not and you are trying to enter through a boat which is the only possible option apart from air, you would bang at the rocks around the fort which can't be seen to naked eyes, hence you have to be very familiar with the fort, to enter.
• A handprint and a footprint of Shivaji Maharaj is also embedded in one section of the fort. There is also Atmeshwar Mandir, a famous Shivling, and is beautiful place for Adhyatmik Sadhana (Spiritual Activities).
• There is a Temple of Shivaji Maharaj, built by his son Rajaram.
• Daily Pooja(worship)and maintenance is done by mainly two families-that were assigned this job since the fort was built, one of them is Shriram Sakpal

Vijaydurga Fort :

Vijaydurg located in Devgad taluka, Vijaydurg is famous all over the world for its delicious Alphonso mangoes, and this becomes quite evident on the approach to Devgad. Mango plantations are everywhere as it is alongside fishing and farming, the main occupation of the people in Devgad.

Vijaydurg the oldest fort on Sindhudurg coast was constructed in the regime of Raja Bhoj of Shilahar dynasty in 1205 (construction period 1193-1205). The fort was earlier known as “Gheria” as it is situated in the village "Girye". Shivaji Maharaj won this fort from Adilshaha of Bijapur in 1653 and renamed it as “Vijay Durg” as the then Hindu solar ear’s name was “Vijay”. Vijay means Victory.

The Architectural marvel

• The 200 m long, undersea/underland tunnel from the fort to the Dhulap’s palatial house in the village is man-made. The roof of the tunnel has been pinched to protect it from land-slides and it is also well ventilated. Now the tunnel is partially blocked. Using latest technology if this tunnel is cleared it will be a major tourist attraction and will be of great help for architectural students/history lovers.
• The fencing compound wall constructed at 8-10 m depth undersea, 300 feet from the fort is another architectural wonder. The wall constructed with laterite stones is 122 mtr long, 3 mtr high and 7 mtr in breadth. Majority of attacking ships met their watery grave after colliding on this wall as this wall is not visible above the sea level.

This fort was also known as “Eastern Gibraltar” as this fort was impregnable for a long time like the fort “Gibraltar” in Europe. This impregnable fort has some locational advantages. One such advantage is 40 km long waghotan/kharepatan Creek. The big ships can’t enter the shallow water of this creek and hence Maratha warships were anchored in this creek. These ships were invisible from deep sea.