Forts in India
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Forts are repositories of history. They stand witness to great events of valour and sacrifice, treachery and cowardice. Built in hilly areas or on hilltops, in arid deserts or in waters along the coast, they have a charm and beauty of their own. Almost each one witnessed great battles and abundance of bloodshed. Some have stories of love and intrigue hidden in their stonewalls. The forts have held out a great attraction for everyone – the local who stands in awe of the past glory reflecting the pride that belonged to their forefathers and the person from far away, who comes to see, understand, admire and then become a part of that history at heart.
The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines the ‘Fort’ as “a building or buildings specially made or strengthened for the military defence of an area.” In many cases, it also served as a palace or official place of residence of the ruler but all palaces were not located in forts. The same dictionary defines a ‘castle’ as “a large building or group of buildings with thick walls, towers, battlements, and sometimes a moat for defence.”
Forts have played an important part in the development of localities, be it the Red Fort and Chandni Chowk around which Mughal Delhi flourished or Fort William around which British Kolkata grew up. There are numerous towns ranging from Jhansi to Chandragiri which grew around forts. Some towns even acquired the names from the forts. Durg is fort in Hindi. Satara was so named because of the seventeen walls of the fort. Then there are famous monuments in certain cities and towns that overshadow the importance of the forts. Agra Fort pales into comparative insignificance against the glory of the Taj Mahal. Khajuraho temples overshadow Rajgarh Fort. In many places, only a few pieces of brick-and-mortar remain to remind us that a fort once stood there. Forts have been fascinating objects of study.
Forts in India have been listed below and in the template with links to their respective pages. Only such forts which have a separate entry or where almost the entire location is related to the fort is included here. Cities or towns with forts as one of the many attractions are not included. For example, there is an entry about Fort William and it is included here but Kolkata is not included here.
| Fort | State in which located | Built | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Achalgarh | Rajasthan | 1452 | 11 km north of Mount Abu |
| Agra Fort | Uttar Pradesh | before 16th century | Also known as Lal Qila |
| Allahabad Fort | Uttar Pradesh | 1583 | |
| Amber Fort | Rajasthan | 1592 | 11 km from Jaipur |
| Asirgarh | Madhya Pradesh | Around 10th century | 20 km north of the town of Burhanpur |
| Attur Fort | Tamil Nadu | 17th century | Located in Attur, Salem |
| Bandhavgarh Fort | Madhya Pradesh | before 3rd century BC | At the centre of Bandhavgarh National Park |
| Barabati Fort | Orissa | 14th century | Located in Cuttack |
| Bassein Fort | Maharashtra | 1534 | Located near Vasai just north of Mumbai |
| Bathinda Fort | Punjab | 1st century | Located in Bathinda, Punjab |
| Bekal Fort | Kerala | 17th century | Faces the Arabian Sea |
| Belapur Fort | Maharashtra | 1560-1570 | Located in Navi Mumbai |
| Bombay Castle | Maharashtra | 16th century | |
| Castella de Aguada | Maharashtra | 1640 | |
| Chandragiri | Andhra Pradesh | 11th century | It is near Tirupati |
| Chandragiri Fort | Kerala | 17th century | |
| Chittorgarh Fort | Rajasthan | ||
| Daulatabad | Maharashtra | 100 BC | Earlier known as Devagiri |
| Delhi Fort | Delhi | 17th century | Also known as Lal Qila or Red Fort |
| Dindigul Fort | Tamil Nadu | 1605 | Located in Dindigul |
| Dongri Fort | Maharashtra | Also known as Dongri Hill Fort | |
| Fort Arnala | Maharashtra | 16th century | Island fort 12 km north of Vasai |
| Fort Madhogarh | Rajasthan | 16th century | Located near Jaipur |
| Fort St David | Tamil Nadu | 1640 | Located in Cuddalore |
| Fort St George | Tamil Nadu | 1644 | Located in Chennai |
| Fort William | West Bengal | 1780 | Located in Kolkata |
| Gingee Fort | Tamil Nadu | 9th century | Also known as senji or Chinji or Jinji |
| Gohad Fort | Madhya Pradesh | 16th century | |
| Golkonda | Andhra Pradesh | 1143 | Located near Hyderabad |
| Gwalior Fort | Madhya Pradesh | 11th century? | |
| Harishchandragad | Maharashtra | 6th century | It is located in Ahmadnagar region |
| Ratangad | Maharashtra | 8th century | It is located in RatanWadi, Taluka - Akole,Ahmadnagar region |
| Hosdurg Fort | Kerala | ||
| Jaigarh Fort | Rajasthan | 16th century? | Located near Jaipur |
| Jaisalmer Fort | Rajasthan | 11th century | |
| Jalore Fort | Rajasthan | 8th-10th century | |
| Junagarh Fort | Rajasthan | 1588 | Located in Bikaner |
| Kalinjar | Uttar Pradesh | 3rd-5th century | Located in Banda district |
| Kankwadi | Rajasthan | Located in Alwar district | |
| Kolaba Fort | Maharashtra | 1680 | 2 km from Alibag |
| Kumbhalgarh | Rajasthan | Located in Rajsamand district | |
| Lal Kot | Delhi | 8th century | |
| Lohagad | Maharashtra | 52 km from Pune | |
| Lohagarh Fort | Rajasthan | Located at Bharatpur | |
| Madh Fort | Maharashtra | Also known as Versova Fort | |
| Mahim Fort | Maharashtra | 17th century | |
| Mandu | Madhya Pradesh | 8th-12th century | 100 km from Indore |
| Mazagon Fort | Maharashtra | 1698 | |
| Mehrangarh Fort | Rajasthan | 15th century | Located in Jodhpur |
| Murud-Janjira | Maharashtra | before 16th century | Island fort in Raigad district |
| Nahar Singh Mahal | Haryana | 1739 | Located at Ballabhgarh |
| Nahargarh Fort | Rajasthan | 1734 | Located near Jaipur |
| Old Fort, Delhi | Delhi | 16th century | Also known as Purana Qila |
| Padmadurg | Maharashtra | Sea fort | |
| Palakkad Fort | Kerala | 1766 | |
| Pallipuram Fort | Kerala | 1503 | Located in Ernakulam district |
| Panhala | Maharashtra | 12th century | 18 km northwest of Kolhapur |
| Povval Fort | Kerala | 10 km from Kasargod town | |
| Pratapgad | Maharashtra | 1656 | 25 km from Mahabaleswar |
| Qila Rai Pithora | Delhi | ||
| Raigad | Maharashtra | 17th century | Earlier called Rairi Fort |
| Riwa Fort | Maharashtra | Locally known as Kala Qilla | |
| Sewri Fort | Maharashtra | 1680 | |
| Shivneri Fort | Maharashtra | 105 km from Pune | |
| Sindhudurg | Maharashtra | 1664 | Occupies an islet in the Arabian Sea |
| Sinhgad | Maharashtra | before 14th century | Located near Pune |
| Sion Hillock Fort | Maharashtra | 17th century | |
| St. Angelo Fort | Kerala | 1505 | Also known as Kannur Kotta or Kannur Fort |
| Sudhagad | Maharashtra | ||
| Taragarh Fort | Rajasthan | 1534 | |
| Thalassery Fort | Kerala | 1708 | Earlier known as Tellicherry |
| Tikona | Maharshtra | before 1585 | Also known as Vitangad |
| Tughlaqabad | Delhi | Ruined fort abandoned in 1327 | |
| Udayagiri Fort | Tamil Nadu | 17th century | Located near Nagercoil |
| Vattakottai Fort | Tamil Nadu | 18th century | Located in Kanyakumari |
| Vellore Fort | Tamil Nadu | 1566 | Located in Vellore |
| Bhongir Fort | Andhra Pradesh | 12th century | Located in Bhongir |
| Orugallu Fort | Andhra Pradesh | 12th century | Located in Warangal |
| Kondapalli Fort | Andhra Pradesh | 14th century | Located in Vijayawada |
| Gooty Fort | Andhra Pradesh | 12th century | Located at Gooty 52 km from Anantapur |
| Penukonda Fort | Andhra Pradesh | 1575 | Located at Penukonda 70 km from Anantapur |
| Kurnool Fort | Andhra Pradesh | 16th century | Located in Kurnool |
| Domakonda Fort | Andhra Pradesh | 18th century | Located at 150 km from Hyderbad and 50 km from Nizamabad |
| Worli Fort | Maharashtra | 1675 |
