Arnala Fort is built on a small island off the port town of Arnala, located around 13 km (8 miles) north of Bassein, Maharashtra, India.[1] Being an island fort, it is also called Jaldurg or Janjire-Arnala. The Portuguese, who built the present fort, called the island Ilha das Vacas (Island of Cows).[2]
The island of Arnala, which has water on all four sides, belonged to Sultan Mahmud Begda of Gujarat.
The island was conquered by the Portuguese in 1530.
In 1737, after nearly two hundred years of Portuguese rule, the fort came under the control of the Marathas in 1737.
The fort was rebuilt by the first Bajirao.
In the middle of 1817, the fort came under the control of the British
In 1516 a local chieftain in Gujarat, Sultan Mahmud Begda, constructed the fort on the island, strategically located at the mouth of the Vaitarna river. In the 1530s the Portuguese had established their operations in the coastal area, headquartered at Fort Bassein, and soon gained control of the island. The Portuguese captain of Bassein donated the island to a Portuguese nobleman who tore down the old fort and began construction of a 700-by-700-foot (210 m × 210 m) fort. The nobleman never completed the fort. Still, it remained under Portuguese control for two centuries; they used it to control shipping and navigation along the northern Konkan coast.
During the late 17th and early 18th centuries, after a long struggle with the Mughal Empire, the Maratha Confederacy came to dominate the region. In 1737 the then Peshwa Baji Rao I sent his brother, Chimaji Appa, to take the Bassein Fort from the Portuguese. After winning the Battle of Vasai, his general, Shankarji Pant, persuaded Chimaji to launch an assault on Fort Arnala, for its strategic importance to the Maratha navy in assaulting Portuguese interests. Their first assault, coordinated with a Maratha naval force commanded by Govindji kasar & Manaji Agre, was routed by a superior Portuguese naval force. A second assault on the fort on 28 March 1737, caught the Portuguese by surprise and forced them to abandon the fort. The victory was commemorated by a plaque installed on the northern wall of the fort and is still visible today. The Marathas then rebuilt the fort, constructing three bastions Bahirav, Bhavani, and Bava.
The British captured the fort on 18 January 1781 during the First Anglo-Maratha War.[3] The Treaty of Salbai nominally returned the Arnala and Bassien forts to the Marathas. The Marathas controlled the fort until 1817.
During the Third Anglo-Maratha War, despite painstakingly defending the fort, the Marathas were finally forced to surrender the fort to the superior naval power of the British. The British formally regained the forts under the Treaty of Poona.
There is a large octagonal fresh water reservoir inside the fort. Within its walls, are also the temples of Ambakeshwar, Bhavani and Shiva as well as Dargas (tombs) of Shah Ali and Hajji Ali. The 'paduka' or sacred sandals of Shrinity Anand are housed in a dome on the eastern face of the fort.
The EntranceEdit
The main entrance of the fort faces approximately north.
Main entrance as seen from North side.
The solid stone doorway is adorned with pictures of tigers and elephants.
Detail of images of Tiger and elephant on the entrance door.
Ramparts and WallsEdit
The external ramparts are in a fairly good condition, and a roughly three-meter-wide path exists along the outer walls. .[5]
Southern Watch TowerEdit
There exists a lone Martello tower about 550 meters from the main fort, on the southern end of the island. This tower has no entrance gate.
^. Archived from the original on 5 April 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
^Scholberg, Henry (1995). Fortress Portugal in India. NorthStar Publications. Retrieved 2 February 2009.
^Naravane, M.S. (2014). Battles of the honourable East India Company. A.P.H. Publishing Corporation. p. 61. ISBN9788131300343.
^Naravane, A.V.H. (1998). The Maritime and Coastal Forts of India. APH Publishing. pp. 43–44. ISBN81-7024-910-4. Retrieved 2 February 2009.
^Kantak, M.R. (1993). The First Anglo-Maratha War, 1774-1783: A Military Study of Major Battles. Popular Prakashan. p. 150. ISBN81-7154-696-X. Retrieved 2 February 2009.
External linksEdit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fort Arnala.
Arnala Fort Pictures 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine Pictures of Forts in Maharashtra
A Vasai Cultural Information Website in GeoCities.
A Blog Post on Arnala by a blogger.
Arnala Fort & Jivdani Temple - * How to go, places to visit, things to do
Trekking Tourism - Virar - विरार - ویرار
August 29, 2023
arnala, fort, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, september, 20. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Arnala fort news newspapers books scholar JSTOR September 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message Arnala Fort is built on a small island off the port town of Arnala located around 13 km 8 miles north of Bassein Maharashtra India 1 Being an island fort it is also called Jaldurg or Janjire Arnala The Portuguese who built the present fort called the island Ilha das Vacas Island of Cows 2 Arnala fortPart of Portuguese IndiaArnala fort bastion viewed through one of the fort s windowsArnala fortCoordinates19 27 57 N 72 43 57 E 19 46577 N 72 73247 E 19 46577 72 73247TypeIndo European style Sea fortSite informationControlled by Gujarat Sultanate 1516 1530 Portugal 1530 1737 Maratha 1737 1818 United Kingdom East India Company 1818 1857 British India 1857 1947 IndiaOpen tothe publicYesConditionProtected RuinsSite historyBuilt1516 ADBuilt bySultan Mahmud BegdaDemolishednoBattles wars4Garrison informationCurrentcommandernoneGarrisonn aOccupantsn a Contents 1 History 2 Features 2 1 Water Reservoir and Shrines 2 2 The Entrance 2 3 Ramparts and Walls 2 4 Southern Watch Tower 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksHistory EditThe island of Arnala which has water on all four sides belonged to Sultan Mahmud Begda of Gujarat The island was conquered by the Portuguese in 1530 In 1737 after nearly two hundred years of Portuguese rule the fort came under the control of the Marathas in 1737 The fort was rebuilt by the first Bajirao In the middle of 1817 the fort came under the control of the BritishIn 1516 a local chieftain in Gujarat Sultan Mahmud Begda constructed the fort on the island strategically located at the mouth of the Vaitarna river In the 1530s the Portuguese had established their operations in the coastal area headquartered at Fort Bassein and soon gained control of the island The Portuguese captain of Bassein donated the island to a Portuguese nobleman who tore down the old fort and began construction of a 700 by 700 foot 210 m 210 m fort The nobleman never completed the fort Still it remained under Portuguese control for two centuries they used it to control shipping and navigation along the northern Konkan coast During the late 17th and early 18th centuries after a long struggle with the Mughal Empire the Maratha Confederacy came to dominate the region In 1737 the then Peshwa Baji Rao I sent his brother Chimaji Appa to take the Bassein Fort from the Portuguese After winning the Battle of Vasai his general Shankarji Pant persuaded Chimaji to launch an assault on Fort Arnala for its strategic importance to the Maratha navy in assaulting Portuguese interests Their first assault coordinated with a Maratha naval force commanded by Govindji kasar amp Manaji Agre was routed by a superior Portuguese naval force A second assault on the fort on 28 March 1737 caught the Portuguese by surprise and forced them to abandon the fort The victory was commemorated by a plaque installed on the northern wall of the fort and is still visible today The Marathas then rebuilt the fort constructing three bastions Bahirav Bhavani and Bava The British captured the fort on 18 January 1781 during the First Anglo Maratha War 3 The Treaty of Salbai nominally returned the Arnala and Bassien forts to the Marathas The Marathas controlled the fort until 1817 During the Third Anglo Maratha War despite painstakingly defending the fort the Marathas were finally forced to surrender the fort to the superior naval power of the British The British formally regained the forts under the Treaty of Poona Today the fort is in a state of disrepair 4 Features Edit Octagonal water reservoir inside the fort Water Reservoir and Shrines Edit There is a large octagonal fresh water reservoir inside the fort Within its walls are also the temples of Ambakeshwar Bhavani and Shiva as well as Dargas tombs of Shah Ali and Hajji Ali The paduka or sacred sandals of Shrinity Anand are housed in a dome on the eastern face of the fort The Entrance EditThe main entrance of the fort faces approximately north Main entrance as seen from North side The solid stone doorway is adorned with pictures of tigers and elephants Detail of images of Tiger and elephant on the entrance door Ramparts and Walls Edit The external ramparts are in a fairly good condition and a roughly three meter wide path exists along the outer walls 5 Southern Watch Tower Edit There exists a lone Martello tower about 550 meters from the main fort on the southern end of the island This tower has no entrance gate Martello tower on Arnala IslandSee also EditBassein Fort Portuguese India List of forts in MaharashtraReferences Edit Friends of Forts Archived from the original on 5 April 2009 Retrieved 3 February 2009 Scholberg Henry 1995 Fortress Portugal in India NorthStar Publications Retrieved 2 February 2009 Naravane M S 2014 Battles of the honourable East India Company A P H Publishing Corporation p 61 ISBN 9788131300343 Naravane A V H 1998 The Maritime and Coastal Forts of India APH Publishing pp 43 44 ISBN 81 7024 910 4 Retrieved 2 February 2009 Kantak M R 1993 The First Anglo Maratha War 1774 1783 A Military Study of Major Battles Popular Prakashan p 150 ISBN 81 7154 696 X Retrieved 2 February 2009 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fort Arnala Arnala Fort Pictures Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine Pictures of Forts in Maharashtra Arnala Fort Page A Vasai Cultural Information Website in GeoCities Arnala fort Trip A Blog Post on Arnala by a blogger Arnala Fort amp Jivdani Temple How to go places to visit things to do Trekking Tourism Virar व र र ویرار Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Arnala fort amp oldid 1165870536, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
