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Defence Architecture in Early North Karnataka c18.s2.t3: The Fort in Bādāmi

Defence Architecture in Early North Karnataka c18.s2.t3

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The Fort in Bādāmi

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The fort on the North Hill of the Bādāmi Chālukyas dated to mid 6th century A.D. is a typical example of Giridurga (Fig.89). It is polygonal in plan inevitably after the natural top edge of the hill. It immediately reminds of the Karvaṭa (Fig.88) type of fort discussed by Mānasāra in his work which more or less immediately precedes the fort (543 A.D.). The builders of the fort, therefore, in view of the proximity of the period of the work, may be expected of as knowing well the different types of forts discussed in the work.

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Of course, within the fort excepting the two temples Upper and Lower Śivālayas, there are no remains. Further as the hill top is mostly of bare rock surface intersected by deep valleys alignment of streets etc. cannot be known. Further there, the top area is not so extensive as to accommodate numerous buildings in alignment.

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The Upper Śivālaya is more or less in the centure of the fort, and the Lower Śivālaya originally probably Gaṇēśa temple is in the mid-way. The entrance is very well protected by closed barbican. It should be noted that the North Hill is surrounded by the deep valleys on all sides, which in turn, by lofty hill ranges.

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On the whole, the hill fort in Bādāmi seems to be a practical example of Mānasāra's ideal concept of Kharvata fort.

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The Fort in Malkhed (Fig. 55)

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The fort of the period of the mid late Rāṣṭrakūṭas is located on the bank of the river Kāginā and the original part of the fort is polygonal in plan, looking like a shouldered wedge and on all the other sides is a moat. The moat is very wide, almost double the total width of three moats (Fig. 79 and Fig. 80) and bunds in between (i.e. 46 m) as suggested by Kautilya. At close and regular interval on exterior side are rectangular bastions. Within the fort is the citadel part with bulbous bastions (Fig. 83) on the western side of the fort i.e. on the bank of the river. It had a bifurcation wall on the eastern side. Unfortunately owing to the subsequent distructions, additions, alterations and accumulation of debris in great height within the citadel, it is not possible to ascertain the original layout and the position of the buildings etc.

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On the whole it follows more or less the general plan of the fort of Sthala durga (Fig.78) as given by Kautilya.

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The Fort in Basava Kalyāṇa (Fig.44 and Fig.45)

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The fort at Basava Kalyāṇa i.e. enclosure No.II,which is definitely the original and of the period under discussion, is located in a depression not easily visible from a distance, surrounded by a wide moat and provided with semi-circular bastions at regular intervals. The fort is oval shaped in plan. In this case also owing to heavy alterations and additions in the following period, the original layout within the fort of the Kalyāṇa Chālukya period cannot be known.

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The contemporaneous mud fort at Hangal (Fig.55) which is added to the earlier fort i.e. Enclosure No.III is more informative so far as the interior plan is concerned. The extant main streets in all probability are the same as originals and the famous Tārakēśvara temple, which is the most important, is located in the centre of the western part of the fort. On the outside there is another enclosure probably built slightly at later date. It is surrounded by wide moat fed by the river Dharma, Ānekere and Achakere. Thus, Enclosure No.III seems as the citadel surrounded by the supporting communities living in between Enclosures III and IV. The fort consisting of the two enclosures of the period is roughly egg shaped. Being a mud fortification there are no reasonably bastions at regular intervals. The fortified earth work, taken together, in all probability is the longest in this part of the country, running in several kilometres.

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Both the forts i.e. from Basava Kalyāṇa and Hāngal reflect the ideas of Kautilya in his description of Sthaladurga.

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The Fort in Vijayanagara (Hampi) (Fig.58)

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The Vijayanagara fort at Hampi is a combination of the Sthaladurga (Fig.78) and Giridurga (Kharvaṭa) (Fig.88). The plan of the fort in view of the local configuration is therefore irregularly polygonal in plan. Its extent and many enclosures one within the other and the roads (Fig.86) and the location of the important buildings such as temples, (N.S.: 5 km. and E.W.: 10.2 km and next enclosure, N.S.: 11.2 km. E.W.: 14.3 km) readily remind the Rājadhānīya (Fig.91) layout of Mānasāra. The fort walls (Fig.85) of Vijayanagara encompass an area of about 280 square kilometres and measure about 800 km., if all put together. And therefore in the whole of Asia let alone India, excepting the great China wall we hardly come across with such a magnificent work of forti-fying the capital as attempted in Vijayanagara.

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The Fort in Bījāpur (Fig.70)

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The last but not the least is the fort of ‘Ādil Shāhis of Bījāpur. The curtain wall (10.00 m. both wide and high) around the city fort of Bījāpur runs about 10½ kilometres in almost a circular manner, interconnected with high bastions (30 m) and massive watch towers altogether numbering 84, with six main gates together with a deep and wide moat (18-20 m) on the outside. From the citadel almost in the centre of the fort, six roads run in radial way connecting the six city gates in the fag end, which remind partly of the concept of Kharvata (Fig.83) type of fort by Mānasāra. Basically the fort is a Sthaladurga (i.e. ground fort), as it is situated on a plain ground. The dimensions of the architectural members of the fort such as, the wall, the bastions, the wall-walk, the moat etc. are more or less similar to those enunciated by Kautilya.

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What is noteworthy here is that even the builders of the forts for Muslims were in all probability following the principles of Kautilya and Mānasāra in this region. In a way the Muslims in this part of Karnataka too had been greatly impressed by the Hindu ideals regarding construction of forts as enshrined in Kautilya's Arthaśāstra and other allied important works. But for its inception and history, the fort is essentially Indian in layout having little alien idea, though not in architectural features, as a whole.

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Thus we find that there is definitely relationship in varying degrees between actual specimens of forts discussed and the theoretical ideas regarding the construction of the forts, given in detail by these great thinkers of the respective periods. We do not find any striking departure in practice from what has been said in the texts in any of the examples studied. The texts therefore are of immense help in understanding of the selection of the sites, the layout of the forts and their construction in a better way.

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