Chittaurgarh Travel By Palace on Wheels
Chittaurgarh - Palace on Wheels |
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On the fifth day of the journey aboard the Palace On Wheels after a date with the royal tigers at Ranthambore National Park, you arrive at Chittaurgarh at 15.30 hrs. The story of Chittaurgarh is a saga of valour, tenacity and sacrifice. Chittaurgarh (also Chittorgarh) was sacked three times and its defenders had to make the supreme sacrifice. The Fort of Chittaurgarh is a treasure trove of history and offers to the traveller an insight into the life of the Great Rajput rulers, who laid down their lives fighting a superior enemy instead of leading a life of submission under them. The origin of Chittaurgarh can be traced to the seventh century. Earlier it was known as Chitrakut, after a local Rajput chieftain named Chitrang. It remained the capital of the local Sisodia clan of Rajputs from the eighth to the 16th century. The history of this town is written in blood and sacrifice. Muslim rulers sacked it three times in the medieval period. The first was by Ala-ud-din Khilji, the Sultan of Delhi in 1303. Khilji laid siege of this hill fort to capture the beautiful Padmini, the queen of Chittaurgarh. When the situation worsened, Bhim Singh, the ruler of Chittaurgarh, led his men donned with saffron robes of sacrifice, and rode out of the fort to certain death. Inside the fort, women, including Padmini and the children, committed mass suicide or jauhar by immolating themselves on a huge pyre, rather than losing their honour at the hands of the enemy. In the middle of the 15th century, Chittaurgarh gained eminence when the legendary Rajput ruler, Rana Kumbha, ruled it. He built the Vijay Stambh (Victory Tower) to commemorate his victory over Mahmud Khilji, the ruler of Malwa, in 1440. Bahadur Shah, the Sultan of Gujarat, sacked Chittaurgarh again in 1535. The jauhar that followed the siege saw the death of 13,000 women and 32,000 Rajput soldiers. The third and final siege took place in 1568 at the hands of the great Mughal emperor Akbar. Jaimal and Kalla, two Rajput generals, valiantly defended the fort but with their death and deteriorating situation, jauhar was performed. However, Maharana Udai Singh II, the ruler of Chittaurgarh, fled to Udaipur and re-established his rule. The Mughal emperor Jahangir returned Chittaurgarh to its rulers in 1616. The main tourist attraction of the town of Chittaurgarh remains its fort, which is located on a steep hill beside the modern township. A zigzag ascent of about one km through seven gates leads the tourist to its main western gate or Rampol. On the way, one can see two chhatris or memorials of Jaimal and Kalla marking the spots where they fell while defending the fort during the siege of 1568. The main gate on the eastern side of the fort is known as the Surajpol. Though most of the monuments in the fort are in ruins, yet they reflect the glory of its great rulers. | |
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