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| Uparkot Fort |
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History
Situated at the foot of the Girnar Hills, in Junagadh, Gujarat is the ancient Uparkot Fort. The fort was built in 319 BC. during the reign of Chandragupta Maurya. The fort was actually buried and undiscovered for more than three hundred years, and was later rediscovered in 976 A.D. It was rebuilt by many kings over the centuries.
Uparkot Fort has an impressive entrance that leads to the ruins of the fort. The fort possesses a 300 feet deep moat which surrounds the fort to provide protection. In some places, the fortifications of Uparkot Fort rise up to 20 meters. The entrance of Uparkot Fort leads to several archaeological sites, including Babupyana Caves, Naugham Kuva, Jama Masjid, Buddhist Caves and Adi-Kadi Vav.
The mosque at the entrance of the fort was commissioned by Mohammad Begde. It was formerly the palace of Ranakdevi which was later converted into Jama Masjid. It has more than 140 pillars supporting the ceiling. Various escape routes and secret passages of the fort start from this mosque that goes right out of the city to four different locations namely, Majiwada village, Somnath village, Surendranagar district and Vadhwan Village.
Moving inside, one will come across a number of Buddhist caves. These rock caves have been carved with floral works. The most prominent ones are the Kapra Kodia Caves and the Babupyana Caves located inside the fort.
One can also come across the Nilamtope, a 15 feet long huge cannon which was acquired by the Nawab of Junagadh from the Turkish. The Adi-Kadi Vav and Naugham Kuva are two large step wells which have a zigzag staircase, worth noting. It is believed that the steps surrounding these step wells could hide a large army. Dhakka Bari is a window inside the Uparkot Fort, which was aimed to punish the offenders by throwing them off in the valley. It is now closed for public access and can be seen only from the outside of fort.
Uparkot Fort is worth visiting for people with interest in forts and their historical pasts. Although extensively renovated and taken over many times during the course of its long illustrated past, its inheritance and several confines remain intact to this day.
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Best time to visit
The best time to visit the Uparkot Fort and Junagadh is during the winter months of October to March, as summers here are unbearably hot.
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Trivia
Uparkot Fort was formerly known as the Revath Nagri.
The fort has been under siege for more than 16 times over an 800 year period!
Uparkot Fort had all the water and food storage resources to last for twelve years.
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Timing
The daily timings for Uparkot Fort are from 7:00 am to 7:00pm.
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Travel Tools
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