Chittorgarh Fort

The Chittorgarh fort was built by the Maurayans in 7th century A.D. Some accounts say that the Mori dynasty had the fort when Bappa Rawal the founder of the kingdom of Mewar seized Chittorgarh (Chittor fort) and made it his capital in 734 AD. While some other accounts say Bappa Rawal received it as a part of the dowry after marriage with the last Solanki princess.By the 16th century, Mewar had become the leading Rajput state. Rana Sanga of Mewar led the combined Rajput forces against the Mughal emperor Babur in 1527 A.D. but was defeated at the Battle of Khanna. Later in 1535 A.D., Bahadur Shah, the Sultan of Gujarat besieged the fort causing immense carnage. It is said that again just like in the case of Jauhar led by Padmini in 1303 A.D., all 32,000 men then living in the fort donned the saffron robes of martyrdom and rode out to face certain death in the war, and their womenfolk committed Jauhar led by Rani Karnawati. The ultimate sacrifice for freedom, Jauhar was again performed for the third time after the Mughal Emperor Akbar captured Chittorgarh in 1568 A.D. Chittorgarh is also famous for its association with two very widely known historical figures of India. The first is Meera Bai the most famous female Hindu spiritual poetess whose compositions are still popular throughout North India. Her poems follow the Bhakti tradition and she is considered to be the most passionate worshipper of Lord Krishna.