Nahargarh Fort (Tiger Fort)
¤ The Fort Construction
In 1734, seven years after his new capital was built Jai Singh II
began to build this small fort. Two and a half-centuries later it
still stands tall on a steep rocky face with massive walls and
bastions for company. The fort provides an excellent view of the Pink
City spread out at its foot. Jai Singh II named it Sudarshangarh
(sudarshan chakra: Lord Vishnu’s discus; garh: fort).
¤ The Mysterious Tale
There is a strange story behind the change of name of the fort. When
work began on it, strange things happened here at night. Every morning
the workers would find that the previous day’s entire
construction was destroyed. Jai Singh then found out that the land had
once belonged to a dead Rathore prince named Nahar Singh and his
spirit did not like the sudden disturbances in his spiritual abode. To
appease the soul a small fortress was built at Purana
Ghat where the spirit could reside, and then the fort was
renamed Nahargarh. Later a shrine was also added where the warrior
could be worshipped. Nahargarh was used as the treasure of the Jaipur
kingdom and even the highest state officials would only be allowed to
approach the fort blindfolded.
¤ Constructed into a Pleasure Palace
In the 1880s Maharaja Sawai Madho Singh transformed Nahargarh into a
monsoon retreat. He ordered the Raj Imarat, responsible for royal
construction projects, to design a pleasure palace within the fort
known as the Madhavendra Bhawan. Vidyadhar Bhattacharya, the designer
of Jaipur, built this palace with its beautiful interiors of frescoes
and stucco designs that was used mainly by the harem women.
¤ Fabricatinon of the Palace At Kings convenience
Each of the Maharaja’s nine wives was given a two-storey
apartment, which were set around three sides of a rectangular
courtyard. The maharaja’s personal living wing was built on the
fourth side. The architecture was basically Indian with certain
European additions like rectangular windows and western styled
toilets. The apartments were arranged in such an order that the king
could visit any one queen’s room without the knowledge of the
others. For his convenience, each queen had her name inscribed above
her door. Thakur Fateh Singh, an engineer in the Raj Imarat helped in
the design of the queen’s apartments.
¤ Fort was Protected from Encounters
The fort dominates the skyline by day and forms a breathtaking sight
when floodlit at night. However, much of the original fort now lies in
ruins except the walls and the 19th century additions including the
rooms furnished for the maharajas. The cannons ranged across the
Hazuri Burj were supposed to protect the fort but as the city never
faced an attack from either the Mughals or the armies of other Rajput
kingdoms, they were usually fired to signal the time to the city
below. The queens used to come for a stroll here and the royal
treasure were kept in the palace until Man Singh II moved it in the
1940s to Moti Doongri. You have to walk past the quiet streets at the
base of the hill and then trek 2km up a steep, rough winding path to
reach the top of the fort. Once you reach the top you’ll have a
wonderful view of the Man Sagar Lake, in the middle of which Jai Singh
II built a palatial duck blind for his shooting parties.
Visiting Hours : 1000-1630
Hrs
¤ Eating Joints
RTDC’s Durg Café
Padao Café opens only in the evening. It has a breathtaking
view of the city and is an extremely popular sunset point.
|
