Gingee Fort / Jinji Fort / Jinjee Fort/ Senchi Fort / Senji Fort
Name of
Fort - Gingee Fort / Jinji Fort / Jinjee Fort/ Senchi Fort /
Location
- Base village Gingee
in Viluppuram district of Tamilnadu
Trek
level - Easy to Moderate (Needs lot of time 6-7 hours minimum as the fort is widely spread and
divided into 3 hills)
Date of
visit - 27th Dec 2017
How to reach
Approximately 30km from Tindivanam, the nearest rail head, and 40km from Tiruvannamalai. The fort is located on NH 77 Bengluru/Bangalore - Puducherry/Pondicherry(Pondy) road, Approx. 75 km from Pondy And 150km from Chennai. The highway has divided the fort complex in two parts. While going from Puducherry/Pondicherry(Pondy), right side of highway(North Side) you can see Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort, Left side of highway (South side)Chandrayandurg fort and a bit ahead towards west is Rajagiri fort.
Pondicherry - Tindivanam (NH-32) - Gingee Fort
As it was a Christmas break for my husband and daughter, we had a 5 days wishlist trip of Pondicherry from 23rd Dec- 27th Dec, 2017 planned. Due to odd timings and high price of Chennai flights and looking at google maps for the distances of 325+km and time from bangalore, 7 hrs to Pondicherry, and with my affinity to Bangalore we booked flight tickets from Pune - Bangalore. And a hired vehicle there on for 5 days. As per the schedule of flight, the flight arrived on time at 7.15am. We boarded the car, and started our journey towards, Pondicherry.
The route we followed was KIAL, Bangalore - Hosur - Krishnagiri - Chengam - Tiruvannamalai - - Gingee Fort - Pondicherry
The plan was to visit the Fort while going to Pondicherry, assuming that we will reach the fort by 12.00 pm and visit it for 2-3 hrs and reach pondy(This is how it is known in south and will be followed in blog) by 6.00 pm or so. But it was quite a theorotical plan.As it was a long weekend, Traffic Jam started from Electronic city and piled up till Attibele , Karnataka - Tamil Nadu border. At Hosur we were stranded for 1.5 hrs for the State change RTO permit of Tamil Nadu. We had covered hardly 75 kms in 5 hrs and it was clear that Gingee can't be achieved on that day. In the dis-mood, we decided to see the fort while coming. Hence instead of 23rd Dec, we went there on 27th Dec. 2017
My advice - if you wish to combine gingee with Pondy, reach pondy via chennai, which is 160+ kms.
Visit my Pondicherry / Puducherry / Pondy blog (link)
Historical Importance
As Maharashtrian, with the pride about Swaraj of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, We were aware about the history of fort from the time of Shivaji Maharaj (1677 AD), But the actual history of Gingee fort dates back to 600 AD. The fort is so fortified, that Shivaji, the Maratha king, ranked it as the "most impregnable fortress in India" and it was called the "Troy of the East" by the British.
In the beginning, Gingee was the place of the Jains but later it was ruled by Pallava, Chola kings, Pandya, Hoysalas, Vijayanagara kings. Muhammadans, Mughals and the indifferent foreigners. The Gingee fort, which was surrounded by the granite walls, the mandapas, the temples inside the fort, was gradually destroyed. The Britishers did not take any steps to renovate the fort. Today Gingee fort is placed as a memorial in the pages of history. Click here for Complete History of Fort
In the beginning, Gingee was the place of the Jains but later it was ruled by Pallava, Chola kings, Pandya, Hoysalas, Vijayanagara kings. Muhammadans, Mughals and the indifferent foreigners. The Gingee fort, which was surrounded by the granite walls, the mandapas, the temples inside the fort, was gradually destroyed. The Britishers did not take any steps to renovate the fort. Today Gingee fort is placed as a memorial in the pages of history. Click here for Complete History of Fort
Gingee Under the Pallavas :- (600 A.D. to 900 A.D)
Gingee was once under the rule of Pallava kings and also the cave temples and rock inscriptions at Singavaram and Melacheri situated near Gingee tell about the Pallava regime in Gingee.
Gingee under the rule of Cholas :- (900 A.D. - 1103 A.D)
Gingee was under the control of Adita Chola (871 A.D. - 907 A.D.) Then during the reign of Adita Cola II and his broter Rajaraja Cola I (985 A.D- 1014 A.D.) it was called "Singapuranadu
Gingee under the rule of Later Pandya, Pallava and Hoysalas :- (1014 A.D. - 1190 A.D)
Gingee under Konar Heritage : -(1190 A.D. - 1330 A.D)
Gingee was under the sway of chieftains, Anandha Koan, Krishna Koan and Pullia Koan. Anandha Koan built "Anandha Giri" and afterwards it became "Raja Giri" His son Krishna Koan built "Krishna Giri"
Gingee under the rule of Vijayanagar Kings :- (1400 A.D)
Gingee under the Nayakka rulers : - (From the end of 14th century A.D. for 150 years)
During the peak of Krishna Deva Raya's power (1509 A.D. - 1529 A.D.) he ordered, Krisnappa Nayyaka to rule a region with Gingee as its capital. He and his successors ruled for about 150 years having capital at Gingee.
The Nayyaka rulers, build tall and strong fort walls with granite, tall towers with sculptural workmanship granite temples on the plains and brick shrines on the peak. This architecture is similar to that architecture in "Hampi"
Under the rule of Muhammaadans:-(1649 A.D. - 1677 A.D)
There was no unity among the Nayakas of Gingee, Tanjore and Madurai. There where frequent fights among them.Taking advantage of this situation, the Bijapur Sultans, who belong to the Muhammadans dynasty, invaded Gingee at the beginning of the 16th Century A.D. and captured it.
Gingee under the Marathas:- (1677 A.D. - 1697A.D)
After the fall of the Muhammadans rule at the end of the 17th century, Chattrapathi Shivaji, a scion in the annuls of History wrested Gingee from the Muhammadans. Afterwards it was handed over to Rajaram in 1697A.D.
Gingee, under the rule of the Mughals:- (1700 A.D-1750 A.D)
The Mughal General Zulfigar Khan (1697 A.D. - 1698 A.D.) captured Gingee fort after a tough fight against the Marathas.
Zulfigar Khan, then handed over the rule to Swaroop singh who was the army head at Bundalakand in 1700 A.D. on conditions that he had to collect tax under the supervision of Sad-ad-ullah khan of Carnatic.
After the death of Swaroop, his son Desingh Raja came to the throne. At the end of the war, Desingh Raja by killing himself made a supreme sacrifice to avoid being a prisioner in the hands of Mogul rulers. After the death of Desingh Raja, Sad-ad-Ullah khan conquered Gingee in 1714 A.D. and ruled till 1750 A.D. for about 36 years.
Gingee under the rule of the Foreigners :- (1750 A.D)
French people who came to India, for the purpose of trade and commerce, attacked Gingee under the command of "Puli" and his troops, captured Gingee and kept Gingee under their control for about ten years. During this period French People annexed Vandavasi in 1760 A.D. and Pondicherry in 1761 A.D. Then the Britishers under the command of General "Coot" attacked the French Army on April, 1761 A.D. by winning the war, they brought Gingee under the control of the British Captain 'Stephen Smith'.
After this time. the General of Mysore, Hyder Ali became the king in 1761 A.D. As Hyder Ali did not like the British rule in India, he waged war against the British many times. So the Britishers made peace treaty with Hyder Ali. After few years, when Warren Hastings became the Governor General of India, Hyder Ali blamed Britishers for going against the treaty and waged war in 1780, by moving his troops via Polur and Vandavasi to caputure Gingee. But he was defeated by the Britsh army.
After 1780 A.D., the southern parts gradually fell into the hands of the British without any opposition. Due to the political changes in Carnation area, the Britishers made Chennai fort for the transport facilities and the French made Pondicherry as their capital and started to rule Indian territory.
Trek to Gingee Fort on 27th Dec, 2017Gingee was once under the rule of Pallava kings and also the cave temples and rock inscriptions at Singavaram and Melacheri situated near Gingee tell about the Pallava regime in Gingee.
Gingee under the rule of Cholas :- (900 A.D. - 1103 A.D)
Gingee was under the control of Adita Chola (871 A.D. - 907 A.D.) Then during the reign of Adita Cola II and his broter Rajaraja Cola I (985 A.D- 1014 A.D.) it was called "Singapuranadu
Gingee under the rule of Later Pandya, Pallava and Hoysalas :- (1014 A.D. - 1190 A.D)
Gingee under Konar Heritage : -(1190 A.D. - 1330 A.D)
Gingee was under the sway of chieftains, Anandha Koan, Krishna Koan and Pullia Koan. Anandha Koan built "Anandha Giri" and afterwards it became "Raja Giri" His son Krishna Koan built "Krishna Giri"
Gingee under the rule of Vijayanagar Kings :- (1400 A.D)
Gingee under the Nayakka rulers : - (From the end of 14th century A.D. for 150 years)
During the peak of Krishna Deva Raya's power (1509 A.D. - 1529 A.D.) he ordered, Krisnappa Nayyaka to rule a region with Gingee as its capital. He and his successors ruled for about 150 years having capital at Gingee.
The Nayyaka rulers, build tall and strong fort walls with granite, tall towers with sculptural workmanship granite temples on the plains and brick shrines on the peak. This architecture is similar to that architecture in "Hampi"
Under the rule of Muhammaadans:-(1649 A.D. - 1677 A.D)
There was no unity among the Nayakas of Gingee, Tanjore and Madurai. There where frequent fights among them.Taking advantage of this situation, the Bijapur Sultans, who belong to the Muhammadans dynasty, invaded Gingee at the beginning of the 16th Century A.D. and captured it.
Gingee under the Marathas:- (1677 A.D. - 1697A.D)
After the fall of the Muhammadans rule at the end of the 17th century, Chattrapathi Shivaji, a scion in the annuls of History wrested Gingee from the Muhammadans. Afterwards it was handed over to Rajaram in 1697A.D.
Gingee, under the rule of the Mughals:- (1700 A.D-1750 A.D)
The Mughal General Zulfigar Khan (1697 A.D. - 1698 A.D.) captured Gingee fort after a tough fight against the Marathas.
Zulfigar Khan, then handed over the rule to Swaroop singh who was the army head at Bundalakand in 1700 A.D. on conditions that he had to collect tax under the supervision of Sad-ad-ullah khan of Carnatic.
After the death of Swaroop, his son Desingh Raja came to the throne. At the end of the war, Desingh Raja by killing himself made a supreme sacrifice to avoid being a prisioner in the hands of Mogul rulers. After the death of Desingh Raja, Sad-ad-Ullah khan conquered Gingee in 1714 A.D. and ruled till 1750 A.D. for about 36 years.
Gingee under the rule of the Foreigners :- (1750 A.D)
French people who came to India, for the purpose of trade and commerce, attacked Gingee under the command of "Puli" and his troops, captured Gingee and kept Gingee under their control for about ten years. During this period French People annexed Vandavasi in 1760 A.D. and Pondicherry in 1761 A.D. Then the Britishers under the command of General "Coot" attacked the French Army on April, 1761 A.D. by winning the war, they brought Gingee under the control of the British Captain 'Stephen Smith'.
After this time. the General of Mysore, Hyder Ali became the king in 1761 A.D. As Hyder Ali did not like the British rule in India, he waged war against the British many times. So the Britishers made peace treaty with Hyder Ali. After few years, when Warren Hastings became the Governor General of India, Hyder Ali blamed Britishers for going against the treaty and waged war in 1780, by moving his troops via Polur and Vandavasi to caputure Gingee. But he was defeated by the Britsh army.
After 1780 A.D., the southern parts gradually fell into the hands of the British without any opposition. Due to the political changes in Carnation area, the Britishers made Chennai fort for the transport facilities and the French made Pondicherry as their capital and started to rule Indian territory.
We started from Pondy at 7.00 am in the morning, while going back to Bangalore to catch a flight back to Pune in the night at 8.30 pm.
Google map is the best way to reach the fort base.
Pondicherry - Tindivanam - Gingee (Approx. 70 km)
On the way we had break fast in a road side restaurant near Tindivanam. It was sumptuous breakfast and hot ginger tea. In South India, breakfast is served on a banana leaf, which helps in sustainability of ecological resources.
Google map is the best way to reach the fort base.
Pondicherry - Tindivanam - Gingee (Approx. 70 km)
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| Pondicherry- Gingee Fort Road on Google maps |
On the way we had break fast in a road side restaurant near Tindivanam. It was sumptuous breakfast and hot ginger tea. In South India, breakfast is served on a banana leaf, which helps in sustainability of ecological resources.
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| Idly Wadai with variety of Chutneys and Sambar. (Complete meal with Protein, Cereals, Carbs and nutrient value) |
We reached the base of fort by 9.15 am as planned. The fort is under Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and is very well maintained. The Gates of entire fort complex opens at 9 am and closes by 5 pm, whereas tickets to climb the hill citadels closes by 4.30 pm. One would need at least 6 to 7 hours, and a vehicle to commute between the points since each of these are spaced a few kilometres apart.
As you reach from Pondy side, Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort comes on the right side first, infront of it is Chandrayandurg fort. We parked our vehicle and went to Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort. The three hills offer natural protection in this triangulation, while there are high walls running for a staggering 13 km across them, coupled with a 80-feet wide moat, to provide complete protection to the interiors.
At the entrance there is a ticket counter. There was a Fort guard issuing tickets. He was speaking fluent Hindi, despite the fact that we were in the core Tamil Nadu. Later after talking with him we came to know that he was in Military and now serving in ASI. He was very informative. He told us that Entry fee includes all the three forts entry so one has to keep the tickets securely.
As you reach from Pondy side, Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort comes on the right side first, infront of it is Chandrayandurg fort. We parked our vehicle and went to Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort. The three hills offer natural protection in this triangulation, while there are high walls running for a staggering 13 km across them, coupled with a 80-feet wide moat, to provide complete protection to the interiors.
At the entrance there is a ticket counter. There was a Fort guard issuing tickets. He was speaking fluent Hindi, despite the fact that we were in the core Tamil Nadu. Later after talking with him we came to know that he was in Military and now serving in ASI. He was very informative. He told us that Entry fee includes all the three forts entry so one has to keep the tickets securely.
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| History written at the base of Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort. Same is available at Rajagiri fort as well |
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| ASI Fort timing |
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| Overall map of Gingee Fort |
For Citizen of India - Rs.15/-
For Foreigners: Rs.500/-
Entry free for Childrens below 15 years
Krishnagiri fort
Krishnagiri fort is an easy-to-moderate hike, and the ascent can be done in 45 minutes to one hour. There are steps cut out into the rocks and its a gradual incline. |
| Boulders all over Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort |
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Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort
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| Steps to reach the top |
The fort is in a rather arid region and water was stored in caved granite structures to prevent evaporation.
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| Walkway and steps to reach Mandapam on Krishnagiri (Ranigiri) fort |
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| Mandapam in the middle of climb |
The Krishnagiri fort complex is also called as English Mountain. It is believed that this fort complex was occupied by Britishers.
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| British Architecture at the top |
Rajagiri Fort
The fort complex is called ‘Troy of the East’, as the fort was very effective in keeping attackers at bay just like Troy. The Gingee Fort complex has been a Monument of national importance since 1921.
The naturally strong rock where the fortress is located is further strengthened by the construction. The fort was named after Senji Amman, the virgin goddess among the pantheon of Hindu goddesses.
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| Rajagiri Fort |
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| Complete view of Rocky Rajagiri fort |
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| Restored Structures of strategic importance |
There are only ruins and half broken statues. I could see that the ASI has started the restoration work on this fort but due to huge nature of fort, considerable amount of restoration work is still required.
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| Main Entrance of Rajagiri Fort restored by ASI |
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| Destroyed monuments at the entrance |
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| Destroyed monuments at the entrance - Maintained by ASI |
The base area contains Kalyana Mahal, Gymnasium, Elephant Tank, Granery and other structures. All these are spread on quite a big area. There are some pretty old Banyan trees around as well. seven-storeyed Kalayana Mahal, is built in Indo-Islamic style. You can reach till the top of the tower through a small passage with steps. View from the top is mesmerising.
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| Way to Kalyan Mahal |
The Kalyana Mahal (Marriage Place) of Rajagiri hill is a pyramidal dome on a four storied rectangular open air structure.
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| Kalyan Mahal tower |
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| Kalyan Mahal |
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| Kalyan Mahal |
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| Kalyan Mahal- royal living quarter |
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| The ruins of fort |
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| The ruined royal palace - engraved in solid rock |
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| The ruined royal palace |
Gymnasium is built in stone with a spacious entrance passage and its walls are nearly 2 metres thick with huge ceiling space. A stone structure, with barrel-vaulted roof, found on the Northern-Eastern side of the granary is said to be the Gymnasium.
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| Gymnasium |
A pond is found within the premises called Aanaikulam thought to have been a bath for the troop of war elephants stationed at the fort.
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| Elephant tank - Water storage |
Water resources are usually sparse in South Indian forts, while it was well managed here. There are two sweet water sources on the summit and below it there are three reservoirs for storage of rain water. Water for Kalyana Mahal was brought through earthenware pipes from reservoir located 500 m (1,600 ft) from it.
We spent a lot of time in the bottom part of the fort, almost 1 and 1/2 hours. It was already 11.30 pm and google maps showed us 5 hours to reach KIAL, Bangalore, and hence we did not climb the complete fort.
If you have no time and stamina to do this, just a walk around the base area exploring the structures is also quite worth it.This is what we did for Rajagiri Fort. It takes 2 hours to see Krishngiri Fort, 3 Hours to see Rajagiri Fort thouroughly.
If you are a student of archaeology and history, this fort is a treasure hunt for you.
Few points to remember -
- Plan to start your climb in the morning when it opens at 9 am.
- Start with Rajagiri Fort (Min 3 hours needed) and then if time permits do Krishngiri and Chandrayandurg fort.
- Do not spend too much time exploring the structures at the base in the beginning, keep that for later.
- Plan time for coming down for viewing base structures.
- No food facility on fort. Carry your own lunch in case you plan to have it on the fort.
- Beware of monkeys.
- Carry lot of drinking water, water bottle with at least 2 litres of water.
- Some dry food, in case you don’t find any suitable food stalls
- Do carry instant electrolytes like electoral, Glucon-D.
- Small first aid kit with band aid, volini spray, iodex etc
- Camera to capture best nature moments
- Comfortable cotton clothes, it becomes very hot in the vicinity of rocks with scorching heat.
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