|
Bangalore Fort began in 1537 as a mud fort. The builder was Kempe Gowda I, a vassal of the Vijaynagar Empire and the founder of Bangalore, now Bengaluru. Haider Ali in 1761 replaced the mud fort with a stone fort. The army of the British East India Company, led by Lord Cornwallis on 21 March 1791 captured the fort in the siege of Bangalore during the Third Mysore War (1790–1792). At the time the fort was a stronghold for Tipu Sultan. Today, the fort's Delhi gate, on Krishnarajendra Road, and two bastions are the primary remains of the fort. A marble plaque commemorates the spot where the British breached fort's wall, leading to its capture. The old fort area also includes Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace, and his armoury. The fort has provided the setting for the treasure hunt in the book Riddle of the Seventh Stone. ==History== The confirmed history of the Bangalore Fort is traced to 1537, when Kempe Gowda I (pictured), a chieftain of the Vijayanagara Empire, widely held as the founder of modern Bangalore, built a mud fort and established the area around it as Bengaluru Pete, his capital. Kempe Gowda I, who showed remarkable qualities of leadership from childhood, had a grand vision to build a new city which was further fueled by his visits to Hampi, now a UNESCO heritage city, the then beautiful capital city of the Vijayanagar Empire. He persevered with his vision and got permission from the King Achutaraya, the ruler of the empire, to build a new city for himself. The King gifted 12 hoblis (revenue subdivisions) with an annual income of 30,000 varahas (gold coins) to Kempe Gowda to meet the expenses of his venture of building a new city.〔〔〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Kempe Gowdas of Bengalooru (Bangalore by Dr. R. Narayana )〕 Kempe Gowda moved from his ancestral land of Yelahanka to establish his new principality, having obtained support from King Achutaraya. One version for the site selection process for the fort and the Bengaluru Pete is that during a hunting expedition along with his Advisor Gidde Gowda, Kempe Gowda went westward of Yelahanka and reached a village called Shivasamudra (near Hesaraghatta), some from Yelahanka where, in a tranquil atmosphere under a tree, he visualized building of a suitable capital city with a fort, a cantonment, tanks (water reservoirs), temples and people of all trades and professions. It is also said that an omen of an uncommon event of a hare chasing away a hunter dog at the place favoured selection of the place and a dream of goddess Lakshmi (Hindu Goddess of wealth) that prophesized good indications of the events to happen, further sealed his decision on the place for his capital. Following this event, on an auspicious day in 1537, he conducted a ground breaking ritual and festivities by ploughing the land with four pairs of decorated white bulls in four directions, at the focal point of the junction of Doddapet and Chikkapet, the junction of the present day Avenue Road and Old Taluk Kacheri Road (OTC).〔〔 Thereafter, he constructed a mud fort (now in the western part of the city), with a moat surrounding it, and nine large gates. The building of the mud fort is also steeped in a legend. During the construction of the Fort it was said that the southern gate would collapse no sooner than it was built and human sacrifice was indicated to ward off the evil spirits. When Kempe Gowda would not accept human sacrifice, his daughter-in-law, Lakshamma, realising her father-in-Law's predicament, beheaded herself with a sword at the southern gate in the darkness of night. Thereafter, the fort was completed without any mishap. In her memory, Kempe Gowda built a temple in her name in Koramangala.〔 Thus, Kempe Gowda's dream fructified and the Bengaluru Pete evolved around the Mud fort called the Bangalore Fort.〔 In 1637-38, the Bangalore Fort under Kempe Gowda’s rule was very prosperous. Rustam i Zaman, the commander under the Bijapur Sultanate who was on a war campaign, and after he had captured the Sira Fort close to Bangalore, wanted to capture the Bangalore Fort and the city. However, Kasturi Ranga Nayak who had been given the Sira Fort to hold, prevailed on Rustam i Zaman not to attack the fort even though he, after capturing the town, had surrounded the fort with 30,000 strong cavalry. Kempe Gowda managed to get Nayak withdraw the troops. Randaula Khan, who was not convinced with the action of Nayak in withdrawing the troops, met Nayak in his tent and promised him more rewards and also recognition under the Bijapur rulers, Nayak relented but advised Randaula not to attack the fort at that time and that he would manage surrender of the fort by Kempe Gowda eventually. Soon enough he prevailed on Kempe Gowda to surrender the fort with all its riches without any battle. Rustom-i-Zaman then took over the fort and handed over its management to Shahji along with other territories, which he had recently conquered, with Bangalore as his headquarters. This mud fort was enlarged during Chikkadeva Raya Wodeyar's rule between 1673 AD – 1704 AD. In 1761, it was renovated by Hyder Ali, who made it strong with stones. A part of the fort was subject to bombardment by the British when they fought a battle against Tipu Sultan, son of Hyder Ali. Tipu Sultan repaired the fort later. Inside the fort, there is temple dedicated to Lord Ganapathy.〔 In March 1791 the army of the British East India Company led by Lord Cornwallis laid siege to the Bangalore fort during the Third Mysore War. Following tough resistance by the Mysore army led by the Commandant Bahadur Khan, in which over 2000 people were killed, on 21 March the British breached the walls near the Delhi Gate and captured it. In the words of the British chronicler Mark Wilks “Resistance was everywhere respectable.” With the capture of the Bangalore Fort the Army of British East India Company replenished supplies and obtained a strategic base from where it could attack Srirangapatna, Tippu Sultan's capital. File:RobertHome - The Death of Colonel Moorhouse at the Storming of the Pettah Gate of Bangalore.jpg|The Death of Colonel Moorhouse at the Storming of the Pettah Gate of Bangalore File:British Plaque, Bangalore Fort.JPG|Siege of Bangalore (1791) British Plaque, Bangalore Fort File:MANTE(1800) p7.428 STORMING BANGALORE - 1791.jpg|Stroming and taking Bangalore, by the Marquis Cornwallis 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Bangalore Fort」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|