Devgarh fort
Historic place near Chhindwara
Devgarh ka kila
Deogarh, also known as Devgarh, is a village in Chhindwara District of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is located 24 miles southwest of Chhindwara picturesquely situated on a crest of the hills.
The fort of Devgarh is situated in the Mohkhed block. The fort is situated on a 650 m high hill. There is a deep moat around the fort. Even today, people reach here in search of treasure. The walls, including the treasures and the ground above the fort, have been dug in many places.
Deogarh was formerly the capital of a Gond kingdom, which rose to prominence in the late 17th and early 18th centuries.
The fort is very good to see. More maintenance is needed. Information regarding the fort is very well given. Surrounding nature and view are beautiful. It was once the capital of the Gondwana Dynasty.
Historical palace built by famous rulers of Deogarh. Many fought for the kingdom with the invaders. The place where elephants were kept and where they played.The numerous wells, tanks, and buildings show that the Gond capital once extended over a large area.
Devgarh Fort
This fort was built by the Gond rulers in the 16th century. Gond is a tribe living in Madhya Pradesh. They ruled many places in Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh in the sixteenth century. This fort is situated at a height of about 650 meter above sea level.
The construction of this fort has also been done in a highly planned manner. The buildings of the fort are built in Islamic style. In which the influence of local Gond art is visible. The buildings of the fort are mainly made of stone and lime. Somewhere bricks have also been used. In some buildings, wood was used for the pillars and roof, which is no longer there.
There is no direct written history of Devgarh. But indirectly, Devgarh has been discussed many times in the Badshahnama and other Mughal literature. During Akbar's time, the Jatwa's kingdom extended up to the present Chhindwara, Nagpur, and Bhandara districts. After Jatwa, his descendants ruled. Koksa (1570-1620 AD), Jatwa Dutia (1640-57 AD), Kokshah Dutia (1657-87 AD), and BakhatBuland (1687-1700 AD). Devgarh was renamed Islamgarh at the time of Bakht Buland. During the time of his son Chand Sultan, the capital shifted from Devgarh to Nagpur due to the invasion of the Mughals.
Moti Tanka, Nakkarkhana, Hathikhana, Kach hari, King's Meeting, Treasury, and Badal Mahal, etc. are visible in Devgarh fort.
Legend
There is a legend about Devgarh Fort that Devgarh foot was the rule of two Gwali brothers named Gharsoor-Ransoor. One day a boy named Jatwa, who was working there, single-handedly lifted the door of the fort and kept it from one place to another. Not even twenty people could lift it. The Gawli brothers were frightened by the power of the Jatwa. He planned to kill Jatwa by deceit. The same night the goddess gave the Jatwa a dream. On the day of Diwali, the Gawali brothers ordered the Jatwa to kill the buffalo with a wooden sword. Jatwa not only killed buffalo with a wooden sword according to his dream but also killed the Gwali brothers and himself became the king of Devgarh.
Hathi Khana
There is a gate in the fort of Devgarh which is known as Hathikhana. It was the gate to enter the Hathi Khana. Hathi Khana is a vast ground where army elephants were kept. The elephants of this region were famous, so the Mughal rulers used to demand the elephants here again and again in the form of a fine. It is known from the letters received from the Mughal rulers that there was a strange elephant named Jatashankar in Devgarh, whose fame spread far and wide. To get this elephant, the spy of Mughal ruler Aurangzeb stayed here secretly for four months. Ultimately the elephant could not be traced.
Moti Tanka
The availability of water naturally in Moti Tanka situated on a high hill has always been a wonder for the people. The scientific reason behind this is that It is the soft layer that comes between two hard layers of rock in which water has been filling for years. After many years, this collected water broke the slit and took the form of a pond at a bowl-like place. Due to the availability of plenty of water on the safe hill, the fort was built on the spot. Local people consider the water of this pond to be holy and miraculous and consume it in illness. The moti tanka made in the Devgarh fort is filled with water throughout the year. The legend among the people is that there is a Paras stone in it. Gold is made by throwing iron, but it is not possible to get it after throwing iron, because no one knows the depth of the stitch. A few years ago, an attempt was made to empty the water from the stitches by installing electric motor pumps, But even in this people could not succeed. It is said that even today at night, loud voices come from here.
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Nakkarkhana
The king's arrival was informed by playing drums from Nakkarkhana. Its high roof was also suitable for surveillance around the inside of the Devgarh fort. It was only through its huge gate that the king's ride used to enter HathiKhana for inspection. The outer walls of the Nakkarkhana were decorated with beautiful ornaments. The inner roof of the dome is adorned with geometric drawings of red, green, and black, the remains of which are still present today. Inside the Nakarkhana, on the first floor, there were two more built stages for the musician. These musicians used to greet the king on his arrival by playing melodious tunes.
Internal Security of the Fort
All the gates built in the fort played an important role in the internal security of the Devgarh fort. Only special persons were allowed entry by the security checkpoints located at the gate. Similarly, when each door was closed, the particular area became completely safe. Similarly, the entry of common people was restricted through this gate due to security reasons. Because entering from here one can reach important places like the king's assembly, treasury, palace, and hammam. When this gate was closed, this particular area would have been completely safe.
Water Distribution System
The water distribution system of the Devgarh fort is extremely important. In some parts of the palace and fountains, water was supplied through earthen pipes. Possibly through Moti Tanka, water was stored and supplied through pipes. The special thing is that at the time of construction of these buildings of the 16th-17th century, pipes were also put in the walls according to the plan. On the right side of this door which was a part of the palace, around a pipe of baked clay can be seen by looking carefully at a height of about 5 meters.
Treasure
Local people call this building a treasure. This building was important and was built with safety in mind. It was the strongest building of the fort made of stone. Beautiful carvings were done on its walls, the remains of which are present at some places. Probably the work of collecting taxes from the merchants and farmers of the state was done here. The copper coins of Maharaj Jatwa and his descendants were prevalent.
Badal Mahal
This multi-story palace built on a high hill seems to be talking to the clouds, hence the name Badal Mahal. The king and his family used to reside here. There are many rooms in the palace, one of which is an octagon. The walls of the rooms have been painted red in some places. There is also a four-room basement. There is also a stepwell in the courtyard of the palace.
Fort Security System
Presently the temple is established on top of this turret. Which is called the temple of Chandi Devi by the local people. To protect the Devgarh fort, eleven more bastions have been built connecting the strong wall of the fort. From these bastions, not only was the vigil around far and wide but the enemy was also faced with the cannon. A chowki was built around the fort at some distance and a gurry was built at a distance of few kilometers from them. The information of the enemy's activity was immediately received by the security circles made in this way.
Hammam
There is a room here, local people call that room Hammam. This room was built for the entertainment of the king and queen. The configuration of this room is rectangular. The fountain situated in the middle of it used to enhance the beauty of the room. About half of it was covered with beautiful pillars, which had a wooden roof.
Protection of the Fort from the External Enemy
There was such a place in the fort from where the entry of common people was prohibited. Because from there the soldiers used to provide special protection to the Devgarh fort. The hill of the fort is sloping from this side and the main entrance is also on this site. Therefore, the possibility of an enemy attack was also highest from this side. Therefore, giving this more tight security, the wall of the fort was built double. Many holes were made in the wall. The special thing is that Each hole was made in such a way that the target of the gun fired from it was able to kill the enemy standing in a particular place.
There is also Rani Mahal near this.
Devgarh will be the heritage village of Chhindwara
Prosperity will come into the village
Newly sanctioned 61 Prime Minister houses of Devgarh will be developed as homestays by giving them traditional shape.
Renovation work of 41 ponds will be done at the battle level and the village will be developed as a tourist destination.
Deogarh village population-2000
Number of houses in Devgarh village-450
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