Fortress Architecture
‘Duh’ means difficult and ‘c’ means to go. That is, a fortress refers to a structure that is difficult to reach. The fortress itself is inaccessible. So it can be said that ‘fortress’ A structure of architecture that is specially designed for protection from the enemy and for warfare.
In general terms, the ‘wall’ around the building or group of buildings (wall or parkota) in which soldiers are armed, whose wall is covered with weapons, whose path cannot be easily entered by the enemy, whose path is inaccessible, whose enemy cannot reach the king even by entering it can be called a fortress.
It is not necessary that every castle has all these qualities. Generally, a building surrounded by a strong and high parcotta can be called a fort. Mankind had learned the art of constructing residential settlements consisting of forts or castle-like parighas (walls or parkotas) and moats (moats) in the Middle Stone Age to protect its from wild animals and suddenly attacking enemies and protect your group.
As time went on, wall construction became a necessity of human civilization. When ‘State’ When the system of names was introduced, it became necessary for the king to build a fort. There are many examples of forts or cities in the Rig Veda. At that time the forts were wide (earth), extensive (urvi) and and iron (lohavarna) and had a wide area inside-
Vi Durga vi dvisha pura ghnanti rajan esam. They take the evil shore.
By the time of Ramayana, the principles of fortification had improved considerably. The Ramayana describes four types of forts. The Shukra Niti mentions seven parts of the state- king, ministers, friends, treasury, nation, fortress and army. That is, the kingdom could be established only if these seven things were present. In Shukra Niti, the fort is called the hand and foot of the kingdom
The eyes are the mind, the ears are the good ears, the mouth is the treasury, the strength is the mind
Hands and feet are remembered as the limbs of the kingdom in a fortress nation.
The Manusmriti states that an archer in a fort can face a hundred warriors standing outside the fort and a hundred archers in a fort can fight ten thousand soldiers
One archer on the wall fights a hundred.
One hundred and ten thousand therefore a fort is prescribed.
Later, when Janapadas, Mahajanapadas and Chakravarti empires were established, there were several forts under each emperor. The emperor began to erect a huge chain of forts to protect his empire. These fortress chains became the basis of great empires. That is why kings, maharajas, feudal lords, contractors and generals built various types of forts for the protection of themselves and their kingdom or region.
Over time, the architecture and craftsmanship of the fort evolved and the structure of the forts became more complex. The wall of the fort became double and sometimes even triple. In the fort of Bharatpur, a mud rampart was built outside the fort wall so that the cannonballs could penetrate the mud wall and the actual wall of the fort could be preserved. A ditch was dug around the fort and filled with water so that the enemy could not easily reach the ramparts of the fort.
Many ancient texts of India have explained the fort, including Shukra Niti, Narapati Jayacharcha, Manusmriti, Vishnudharma Sutra, Niti Vakyamrita, Yajnavalkya Smriti and others. There are also references to various forts in the Vayu Purana, Brahmanda Purana, Matsya Purana, Srimad Bhagavatam Purana etc.
The Matsya Purana gives detailed accounts of the method of construction of the fort and the equipment stored by the state. The Mahabharata mentions six types of forts. The Manu Smriti also mentions six types of forts. Manu has described the mountain fort as having more virtues, in which the enemy can be destroyed by various efforts-
But with all diligence, one should take refuge in the mountain fortress.
For the mountain fortress is distinguished by its many qualities.
The well-known writer Kautilya of the Mauryan period has defined four major categories of forts:Auduk, Parvat, Dhanvan and Van Durg. The Shukra Niti mentions nine types of forts- Eran Fort, Parikh Fort, Parigh Fort, Forest Fort, Dhanva Fort, Jal Fort, Giri Fort, Sainya Fort and Sahay Fort. Narapati Jayacharya has mentioned eight types of forts. The Vishnudharma Sutra describes six types of forts as follows:
(1.) Dhanva Fort: Waterless, on open land within a circle of five yojanas.
(2.) Mahidurg: having walls built of stone blocks or bricks.
(3.) Wark Fort: which is surrounded by thorny and tall trees, thorny creepers, shrubs and bushes for a yojana on all sides.
(4.) Water Fortress: Surrounded by water on all sides.
(5.) Nridurga: which is protected on all sides by a four-horned army.
(6.) Mountain Fort: a fortress with mountains which can be climbed with difficulty and which has only one narrow passage.
Fort and citadel are generally considered synonymous, but in fact there is a slight difference. A fort is built on a hill, while a citadel is built on land. Fortified ramparts were built around both but since the citadel is built on land, a moat was also dug around it.
Gradually the distinction between bastion and fort disappeared and at present bastion, fort, arsal, kot, baran, ased and fort seem to have the same meaning. The fort was originally considered a symbol of the strength and strategic power of the kingdom. The basic principle of the construction of the fort has been almost the same - high percotes all around, strong gates, turrets, kangaroos, winding passages, etc.
‘Kapishish’ in the context of the creation of the fort in Sanskrit literature mentions a structure called. Later they were also called Jivarkha and Angrakha. Jivarkha was a small fort built on winding roads where soldiers were kept. Above the fort was built a rampart wide enough for four or five horses to walk simultaneously
From here, the fort guards threw arrows, hot oil, stones etc. at the invading soldiers. When cannons were introduced, façades were built in the upper part of the ramparts with cannon mouths opening into them. In order to strengthen the ramparts of the fort, circular turrets began to be built at intervals which were poli from the inside. It was a kind of refined form of Kapishish.
Inside it stored soldiers and war materials. The residence of the king or emperor in the fortress was reached by a number of gates called poles. These poles were closely guarded by soldiers. The door on the east side was called the sun pole, the door on the west side was called the moon pole and the door on the north side was called the pole pole.
Stone throwers were installed on the ramparts of the fort. It was a chadas-like device through which stone balls could be thrown far away. These devices were invented by man in the post-Vedic period. They were called by the names of Dhenkuli, Nali, Bhainroyantra and Markati Yantra. These devices continued to be used till the sixteenth century A.D. i.e. until the Indian rulers acquired cannons and guns.
Hindu forts were extremely difficult to break. The Mughals employed mainly three types of compositions in demolishing the Hindu forts- Pashib, Sabat and Gunpowder. Outside the fort ramparts up to the height of the fort a platform was constructed with the help of earth and stones called pashib. The construction of the pashib was not simple as stone pellets and arrows were showered from the ramparts of the fort on the craftsmen and soldiers who built the pashib. Sabats were made to give them security.
Sabat referred to the thick hide shed of animals such as cows, bullocks, buffaloes or buffaloes. To avoid the blows of stones and arrows raining down from the fort, a long roof of thick leather was built under which the soldiers could reach the fort wall and fill the foundation and walls of the fort with gunpowder and blast it. Akbar employed these three methods to demolish the fort of Chittor.
It was also customary to settle entire towns within the fort, cultivate and raise livestock so that if the fort was besieged by the enemy, food and other vital supplies could be maintained within the fort for a long time.
Many forts including Chittor Fort, Ranthambhore Fort, Jalor Fort and Siwana Fort were besieged by Muslim rulers for many years but due to the self-sufficient system within the fort they could only conquer the fort when either the logistical materials within the fort finished or one of their own gave the secrets of the castle's secret-paths, to the invader. The fall of the forts of Jalore, Siwana, Ranthambore, Jaisalmer and others was due to such deceptions.
Architecture of royal palaces
The architecture of Rajasthan shows a distinctive form of royal palaces. The presence of a royal palace was considered essential in city-building or fortification. The famous architect Mandan has considered the right place for building the palace either in the middle of the city or on a high place in a corner of the city. The grandeur which was given predominance in the construction of the royal palaces demonstrates the growing power of the Rajput rulers.
In the royal palaces, the female porch and the male porch, were invariably built and both were connected by an easy path. The Mardani Dyodhi was used for holding courts, meeting the common people and courtiers, residence of princes, etc.
The Janani Dyodhi was the residence and kitchen of the women of the royal family. All these parts of the royal palace were combined to form a complete unit and towers etc. were also built similar to the fort architecture. There are many similarities in the architecture of the royal palaces of the Rajput rulers.
After the establishment of contact with the Mughals, the process of making the royal palaces shiny began. They began to have fountains, small gardens, thin pillars with carvings of vines and marble. The decoration of royal palaces began in particular. Fine carvings, carvings, ornate terraces, windows etc. have been the hallmarks of Rajasthani royal palaces.
Amar Singh Palace in Udaipur, Jagniwas and Jagmandir in Pichhola Lake, Phool Mahal in Jodhpur Fort, Deewane Aam and Deewane Khas in Amer and Jaipur, Rangmahal, Shishmahal and Anoop Mahal in Bikaner etc. are Mughal in decoration despite the predominance of Rajput architecture style has been adopted.
As Rajput rulers and feudal lords began to visit the Mughal court more and more, they became interested in architecture in keeping with the splendor of the Mughals. After the fall of the Mughals, the families of many Mughal-dependent craftsmen were sheltered by the Rajput rulers. Through them, the Mughal style began to progress not only in the architecture of the palaces of the rulers, but also in the royal palaces of the feudal lords.