History of Chottprgarh

Chittorgarh was founded during the rule of the Maurya dynasty, and came to be the capital of the Mewar only from 734AD onwards with Bappa Rawal as its first Mewar sovereign. The fort is named after Chittrangad Mauraya. Through its history, Chittorgarh has been overpowered thrice; in 1303 by Ala-ud-din Khilji; by Sultan of Gujarat, Bahadur Shah, in 1535; and by Emperor Akbar in 1568 after which it gradually lost its importance. It is a place synonymous with Rajput valour and honour.
Bastion of Mewar rulers from the 8th to the 16th centuries, Chittorgarh is dominated by its fort, which has been witness to many a bloody battle, with its inhabitants preferring death to dishonor. It is here that the Rani of Rajasthan undertook ‘jauhar’ or self-immolation, rather than surrender to marauders (a Hindu custom where royal ladies and maidens committed self-immolation to save their honor from the cruel hands of the enemy. Their men would cover themselves up in the sacred ashes of these funeral pyres and walk to their deaths with a heavy heart and a will to kill-or-die. The land has given birth to the likes of Maharana Pratap who continued to defy Mughals till his death, despite of all the hardships that he had to bear. Even his enemies thus respected him.
Legends of medieval concepts of Rajput honor, romance and valor haunts the ruins of the citadel of Chittorgarh, where one can see glimpses of the imperial glory of the bygone era in its daunting forts, stylish palaces and fabulous ‘chhatris’.
Today, Chittorgarh attracts tremendous interest from tourists all over the world, who come here to behold the wonders of some of the finest examples of Rajput architecture.
ARCHITECTURE
The ascent to the Chitorgarh Fort takes one through zigzag paths interrupted at intervals by seven enormous gateways or ‘Pols’. There are 7 gateways to the main gate are Padan Pol, Bhairon Pol, Hanuman Pol, Ganesh Pol, Jorla Pol, Lakshman Pol, and Ram Pol. The Suraj Pol is the gate on the east. On the climb, there are two chhatris (small domed canopies, supported by pillars) where Jaimal and Kalla, heroes of the 1568 seige, fell during the struggle against Akbar.
Near the Padan Pol is the memorial of Rawat Bagh Singh who joined hands with King Vikramaditya to fight against Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat when Chittor fort was attacked the second time. The Bhairon Pol is named in the memory of Bhairondas Solanki who also fought against Sultan Bahadur Shah in AD 1534. The Hanuman Pol, the Ram Pol, and the Lakshman Pol have a temple in their vicinity. The Jorla Pol has two adjacent gateways.
WATER FORT
Chittorgarh fort is also called as Water Fort. The fort had 84 water bodies, out of which only about 22 exist today. These Include talabs (ponds), kunds (wells), and baories (stepwells). All the talabs have a natural catchment. The kunds and baories are located below the talabs, so that even the seepage from the latter is not lost.
The fort spreads over 700 hectares, 40 per cent of which are given over to water bodies. The average reservoir depth is about 2 m. Taken together, this means these reservoirs can store about 4 billion litres of water.
In a year of more than normal rainfall (average annual rainfall: 700 mm), enough water would be stored to last the next 12 months. Even after water loss due to seepage and evaporation and other causes, an army of 50,000 could live in the fort for four years without fear of thirst.
SIGHTSEEING HIGHLIGHTS

Most of Chittorgarh’s magnificent monuments - palaces, temples and towers - are situated in Chittorgarh Fort, which can be accessed through a 1km-long ascent that leads through seven gateways to reach the main gate, called Rampol. Jaimal and Kalla, the heroes of the 1568 siege by Akbar, are honoured by two chhatries (cenotaphs) between the second and third gates. The other main gate of the fort is on its eastern side and is Surajpol. The Rana Kumbha Palace is considered to be one of the most impressive palaces in the fort. It is believed that the palace has underground basements where Rani Padmini and other women performed jauhar. A part of the Fateh Prakash Palace was converted into the Government Museum in 1968. Vijay Stambha, or Tower of Victory, is a nine-storey, 121ft-high structure which was built by Maharana Kumbha in 1440AD to commemorate his victory over Mohammed Khilji. The tower is adorned by sculptures of Hindu deities. At present six jain temples on the fort of Chittor. The largest and chief among them is the temple of Bhagawan Adinatha with fifty-two devkulikas. The place of this temple is known as ‘Sattavish devri’. It means that at some time in the past, there were twenty-seven temples here. Built by a wealthy Jain merchant in the 12th century, Kirti Stambh, a seven-storeyed, 72ft-high tower, is dedicated to Adinathji, the first Jain teerthankar. Near the Kirti stambh, a Jain temple of Adinath teerthankar is there. Padmini’s Palace is built close to the lotus pond where Ala-ud-din Khilji apparently saw a reflection of Rani Padmini in his mirror, so enamouring him that he attacked the fort in a bid to capture her. A good example of Rajput architecture, the Meera Bai Temple was built during the rule of Maharana Kumbha and was later given to Meera Bai, the legendary devotee of Lord Krishna. Another Kalika Mata Temple is also there. This mother goddess temple was build originally in the 8th century as the Surya or Sun temple and converted to its present form in the 14th century. A deep tank filled by a spring coming from a ‘cow mouth’, situated at the edge of the cliffis known as Gomukh Kund. It is considered to be sacred where you can feed the fishes. The Shiva temple, built by Raja Bhoj of Malwa and later rebuilt by Maharaja Mokal in the year 1426 AD. There is three-faced statue of Lord Shiva in this temple well known as Someshwar Mahadev Temple. A small structure which was raised during the invasion of Chittorgarh by Akbar in 1567, it gets the name Mohar Magri because it is believed that Emperor Akbar paid one mohar (gold coin) for each basketful of earth placed on the mound, as the work was very dangerous, brave soldiers guarding the ramparts from abvoe. The mound was raised to such a height that the Mughal cannons could be placed over it and fired inside the fort.
For excursions around Chittorgarh, visit Menal (90km away) on the Bundi-Chittaur road, the 423sq km Sita Mata Sanctuary in Dhariyavad, the 16th century Deogarh Fort (125km away), the Bassi Wildlife Sanctuary in village Bassi, 25km from Chittorgarh, and Bijalpur (40km away), a grand castle which is now a heritage hotel.
CLIMATE
The temperatures ranges between 25ºC to 45ºC in summers in Chittorgarh while winters are cooler and pleasanter with a temperature range between 10ºC to 30ºC. In this area, rainfall is scanty and generally ranges between 60-85 cms.
HOW TO REACH
By Air:- The nearest airport to Chittorgarh is Dabok Airport in Udaipur, which is 90 km from the city.
By Train:- You can find a train to Chittorgarh from all the major cities of Rajasthan and Delhi, the capital of India. From Delhi, you can catch Mewar Express. From Jaipur you can catch Lakecity Express. you can catch trains from Ajmer, Kota, Ratlam And Udaipur.
By Bus:- Bus services to and from Chittorgarh are available from various important destinations such as Delhi, Mount Abu, Jaipur, Indore, Ajmer, Udaipur, Kota, Ahemdabad, Nathdwara and Ratlam.
TOURISM INFO
Department of Tourism, Art & Culture,
Government of Rajasthan,
Tourist Reception Office,
Janta Avas Grih,
Chittorgarh(Raj.)
Tel. + (91)-1472-241089
SHOPPING ATTRACTIONS
Chittorgarh is just the right place to get your hands on the attractive wooden toys that are made by the rural people from Bassi, a village near Chittorgarh. Tourists can be seen buying Pratapgarh special, ‘Thewa’ articles, Akola’s printed fabric of Akola and leather ‘Mojri’, a specialty of Gangrar, as mementos and gifts for their loved ones. The best places to go for the shopping spree are Sadar Bazaar, New Cloth Market, Fort Road Market, Rana Sanga Market, Gandhi Chowk and Station Circle.