Shivaji’s life reads like story book. He captured his first fort when he was just 16, waged a three decade long war against Aurangzeb and carved a Maratha Empire against all odds. Yet few of his exploits have gripped public imagination as much as the capture of Sinhgarh Fort – or to give it the name it had then, Kondhana Fort.
The fort of Kondhana stands 25 kilometers away from Pune, on the highest point of the Sahyadhri ranges. This triangular fort with its two mile long perimeter wall has the natural defenses of a 40 feet high cliff on three sides and is only accessible from two gates – the Kalyan Darwaza in the South East and the Pune Darwaza at its North East. It was virtually impregnable, and located in the center of a string of other forts – Raigad (Shivaji’s own capital), Purandhar and Torna – was the linchpin in the defense of the Deccan.
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| Sinhgarh Fort | View from its Gates |
Built 2000 years ago by the Koli dynasty, the fort came under the control of the Nizams of Bijapur around 1328. In 1647, as Shivaji began his campaign for Independence, he gained control of the fort, only to lose it in 1649. He regained it again in 1656 and in spite of concerted attacks by Mughals held on to this prized possession. In 1665, Aurangzeb sent his best General, Mirza Raje Jai Singh, to curb Shivaji’s rise in the Deccan. In a year-long campaign, he inflicted a series of reverses on Shivaji, forcing him to sign the Treaty of Purandhar. Amongst the terms of the agreement, Shivaji had to hand over 23 of his forts, including Kondhana, which was soon garrisoned by Mughal troops.
In the five years following the Treaty of Purandhar, an uneasy truce existed between the Marathas and the Mughals. Then in 1670, Aurangzeb attacked the Deccan again. With the truce broken, Shivaji gave the order, “Take the Forts.”, and his first target was the strategically vital Kondhana fort.
Folklore says that one morning Shivaji’s mother, Jijabai, was combing her hair in her fort at Pratapgarh, when her eyes fell upon Kondhana. (Kondhana, by its location was visible to both Raigad and Pratapgad and dominated both). The thought that this prized fort was occupied by the Mughals infuriated her and she summoned Shivaji, ordering him to recapture the fort. Shivaji vacillated, but then succumbed to his mother’s wishes and sent for the only person who would be capable of the task – Tanaji Malusure.
Tanaji, Koli chieftain of Umrathe village in the Konkan was engaged in the preparations for his son’s marriage when Shivaji’s summons reached him. Putting off his son’s marriage, he gathered a force of 1000 Mavala soldiers and accompanied by his brother Suryaji and uncle Shelar set off for Raigad. He knew the import of the task and swore that he would capture the fort or die in the attempt.
The fort was occupied by around 1700 Mughal, Afghan and Rajput troops under the command of the renowned warrior, Uday Bhan Rathod. Tanaji kept his troops some distance away. He then dressed as a commoner and mingled with the local Koli people, seeking out information. He discovered that the fort had one weakness. There was one spot in the West, known as the Dongri Cliff from where its walls could be scaled.
Tanaji reconnoitered the area himself and the next night – on 04 Feb 1670 – moved his army in small groups toward the Kalyan Gate, moving them along different routes to avoid detection. Guided by two of the locals, he moved to Dongri Cliff with 300 men and began the silent, arduous climb along its walls. Legend has it that he used a giant monitor lizard to scale the wall, tying a rope to it and sending it scurrying up the walls and onto the other side. But in all probability, it is just a legend. ‘Ghorpade’ – as these lizards are called in Marathi – is a common Maratha name and it is likely that the first person who climbed the wall and then threw a rope ladder down was named Ghorpade. That individual is lost in history, but the story of the lizard remains.
Using the rope ladder Tanaji and the rest of his men scaled the walls, their swords gripped between their teeth. They were undetected, but when around 50 men had climbed up to the ramparts of the forts ramparts, the rope broke. Tanaji and his small band were on their own inside the heavily defended fort.
Tanaji kept his nerve and silently led his party towards the Kalyan Gate, where they killed the guards and tried to open the massive gates. As they were doing so, one of the guards raised an alarm and the party was soon surrounded by angry, vengeful Mughal guards.
The small band of Marathas held their own against immense odds, and to break their ranks, the War elephant Chandravati was launched against them. The elephant had been fed copious amounts of opium before its attack and perhaps its senses were dulled. It was killed, either by a spear throw, or by a Maratha warrior who managed to mount it and kill it with a sword thrust to its brain.
Yet, this was a small victory. The party was hemmed in and came under repeated attacks by the Mughal garrison, first by Sidi Hillal, the Second-in-Command of the fort and then by Uday Bhan Rathod himself. Uday Bhan attacked Tanaji and a furious duel ensued. Uday Bhan’s powerful thrusts broke Tanaji’s shield and he wrapped a cloth over his left hand and used it to parry the thrusts. Another powerful slash severed his hand, but in a final desperate lunge he hurled himself at Uday Bhan killing him with a blow to his head. Then weakened by the loss of blood from the many wounds he had suffered, he fell dead to the ground.
Seeing their leader fall, the Marathas were on the verge of collapse when Tanaji’s brother Suryaji with around 200 other warriors clambered over the wall with another rope ladder. Suryaji rallied the wavering troops and led them on a fresh counter attack and also opened the gates of the Kalyan Darwaza. The 700 Marathas waiting outside poured in and routed the defenders, killing most. Many of the defenders hurled themselves across the walls to their deaths below, and the rest were taken in as prisoners. By daybreak the fort was in their control and a thatched hut was set ablaze, as a signal of success.
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Shivaji saw the plumes of smoke from his fort at Raigad, indicating the capture of Kondhana. He rushed to the fort and entered through its gates, now held by Marathas. But there was no jubilation amongst the victorious Mavalas. They stood silently around the body of their fallen leader. Shivaji himself wept at the loss of his friend and comrade and said “Gadh aala, pan Sinh gela” (The fort has been gained, but the lion is lost)
Kondhana was renamed Sinhgarh after the lion-hearted Tanaji Malusure and even today his bust stands at the spot where he fell. With Sinhgarh under his control, Shivaji soon captured the adjoining forts of Purandhar, Moholy, Kurnalla and Lohgarh and over the next few years, carved out the Maratha Empire in the Deccan.
Sinhgarh remained in the hands of the Marathas till 1818 when it was eventually captured by the British after a three month long siege. Although the fort changed hands often, one thing about the fort remained constant. It retained the name of the lion that captured it – SINHGARH.