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¤ The Great Legends
 Whenever
Man Singh I (late 16th century) or
his successors warred and won gold,
silver, jewels and other booty, they
hoarded it in the Jaigarh Fort. and
they had the loyal Minas to fiercely
guard their haul. (In fact, legends
tell us that the Minas were such
strict guards that they let each new
Kachhawaha king to enter only once
and pick one single piece for
himself from the dazzling pile!)
Anyway, all this treasure paid first
for building Amber, then Jaipur and
for centuries of lavish living.
Indian Government officials tried to
retrieve whatever was left; they dug
the place in 1976 but found nothing.
In fact they even drained the three
arched water tanks (in a courtyard
on the way to the northern end of
the fort) in the hope of finding the
fortune there. Some say that
everything was used up in building
Jaipur while others claim that it is
still there somewhere.
The dictum of the ancient Hindu
scriptures, the Puranas, 'a fort is
the strength of a king', must have
loomed large in the minds of the
Rajputs while building the Jaigarh
Fort. The ambitious Jai Singh II
then expanded, remodelled and
renamed it in 1726. and since this
fort never fell in the hands of
enemies, it stands almost intact to
this day.
¤ The
Location of The Fort
Jaigarh or the 'Fort of Victory' is
perched on Chilh ka Tola (Hill of
Eagles), 400 feet above the Amber
Fort. The walls of the fort are
spread over three kilometers. Once
you enter through the massive south
facing Doongar Darwaza, you'll
instantly get a tangible feel of
Rajput romanticism. and if you're
lucky, Thakur Pratap Singh, a
handsome Rajput with a fine
moustache will be around to tell you
stories of Jaigarh's illustrious
past. The other entrance to the fort
is through the Awani Darwaza in the
east.
¤ Main
Attractions of The Fort
The Huge Cannon
Jaigarh Fort is a remarkable feat of
military architecture. After you
enter, head straight for the
gigantic cannon Jaivan perched on
top of a tower. Weighing 50 tons
with an 8m barrel and a trajectory
of about 20km, it is said to be the
world's largest cannon on wheels.
Such was its might that it took four
elephants to swivel it around on its
axis. But surprisingly (and
thankfully!) it was never used.
Despite its awesome firepower, it
has a delicate scrollwork of birds,
foliage and a roaring elephant at
its mouth. Jaivan was test-fired
once by Jai Singh in 1720 when the
cannon ball landed at Chaksu about
38km away! and the impact of it was
so enormous that a lake formed at
the spot and many houses collapsed
in Jaipur. The cannoneer died
immediately after the firing, before
he could even jump into water. (It
is mandatory for the cannoneer to
jump into water to avoid the massive
impact, and so there's always a
water tank beside the cannon.) No
wonder enemies didn't ever set their
eyes on Jaigarh. There's even a
notice here which proudly says,
"because of the strong defence
system, management and the
foresightedness of the rulers, the
enemy never dared to enter the
fort."
¤ Vijay
Garh
Walk through a great arch into the
courtyard, Jaleb Chowk. But the most
important part of the fort is
perhaps Vijay Garh, the fort's
armoury. Apart from the huge
collection of swords and small arms
including time bombs, there's an
interesting treasury lock with five
keys and big wine and oil jars. The
1681 map of Amber kept here is worth
a look. If the show of so much
armoury awakens the fighter in you,
try your hands at the mini cannon
which makes a pretty big bang.
 ¤
The Jaigarh Cannon Foundry
The Jaigarh cannon foundry, built by
Bhagwan Das in the 16th century, is
one of the few surviving medieval
foundries in the world. It has a
furnace, lathe, tools and a
collection of cannons. It was
Bhagwan's adopted son, Man Singh I,
who brought the secret of gunpowder
from Kabul in 1584 where the latter
was the commander-in-chief of
Akbar's army. Soon cannons began to
be made in Jaigarh, much to the
displeasure of the Mughals who kept
the secret to themselves ever since
they used it to fight the Lodis and
Rajputs in 1526 (check History of
Delhi for more). There's a point
called Damdama (meaning 'continuous
firing'), where there used to be a
battery of ten cannons positioned to
check any approaching army. This
faces the Delhi Road. This led some
to believe that Man Singh was
secretly preparing for a showdown
with his Mughal allies.
¤ Seven
Storeyed- Diya Burj
The highest point in Jaigarh is the
seven-storeyed Diya Burj, the turret
of lamps from where you get a
panoramic view of the city of
Jaipur. Also interesting is the
water supply and storage system of
the fort, a real marvel of planning.
Sagar Talav, with octagonal bastions
and huge dams, is one of the fort's
grand reservoirs. The scarcity of
water has always exercised the
ingenuity of the Rajasthanis, also
accounting for the existence of the
several baoris or baolis (stepwells)
in the state. There are some temples
within the fort. The 10th century
Shri Ram Hari Har Temple houses
images of three gods – Rama, Vishnu
and Shiva. It has an interesting
doorway. Nearby is the 12th century
Kal Bhairava Temple
¤ Museums
The museum of artefacts tells the
story of the Jaigarh Fort and its
vast well-protected treasury. There
is an interesting collection of
paintings, photographs and coins,
and other things like a balance for
measuring explosives and several
containers including a 16th
century coin container. Don't miss
the royal kitchen and dining hall;
after all food and hospitality were
also very much a part of Rajput
agenda.
¤ The
Palace Complex
The palace complex, built by various
kings over a period of two
centuries, has the usual structure
beginning with the Diwan-i-Aam (Hall
of Public Audience). But it goes a
step ahead of the Amber Fort in
terms of defense; it has a Khilbat
Niwas (Commanders' Meeting Hall) in
place of the Diwan-i-Khas (Hall of
Private Audience). There's also the
open pillared hall, Subhat Niwas.
But these are insignificant
structures as compare to the ones in
Amber Fort. This part of the fort is
full of secret back passages for
royal escape in times of emergency.
The luxury suites are very much
there – the breezy Aram Mandir (Rest
House) and the 16th century Vilas
Mandir (Pleasure House). The former
has a lovely garden attached to it.
It was in the charming courtyard of
the latter that the royal ladies had
their little parties, janani majlis.
The pavilions surrounding the
courtyard, with a maze of passages,
offer excellent views of Amber.
¤ The
Lakshmi Vilas Palace
The Lakshmi Vilas Palace is a
beautiful experience, with some
lovely frescoes in blue and the
remains of an old Mughal garden. It
also has a little 'theater' hall
where the rajas had their share of
entertainment – dance, music
recitals and puppet shows. Do stop
by at this Puppet Theatre which has
been revived by some locals who hold
charming shows. This old tradition
of puppetry continues to be a
popular folk entertainment in
Rajasthan today, and tourists take a
huge delight in watching such shows.
Visiting Hours :
0930-1645
Entry Fee :
Rs 15, for students Rs 10
¤ Rajasthan Shopping
Attrctions Complex
There's a lot to see and do in this
handicraft centre on Jagat Shiromani
Temple Road. You can see
demonstrations of the famous
Rajasthan block printing, textiles
which so many people, especially
foreign tourists, are crazy about.
Craftspersons churn up some exotic
designs with wooden blocks and
natural colours. The other centres
of block printing in Rajasthan are
Barmer, Sanganer, Bagru and others.
See Arts & Crafts of Rajasthan for
more on block printing. Shops at the
complex also sell gems, jewellery,
textiles, antiques and other
handicrafts. By antiques one means
artefacts upto 90 years old. So take
home a piece of Rajasthan, though
the prices may be slightly high.
¤ Excursion
To Amber Fort
For an excursion to Amber, take a
bus from the Hawa Mahal in Jaipur.
There's one leaving every half an
hour (Rs 3). Auto-rickshaws charge
Rs 50. There are buses from the
Jaipur Railway Station too.
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