Chieftains and Their Fortifications

Introduction

In medieval India, the Delhi sultanate was the biggest empire, but still, most of the Indian continent was not under the control of the Sultanate. Multiple small kingdoms and their chieftains were in control of their areas. The chieftains were highly defensive and they knew that they could not fight and win the empire, so they chose to live in well-defended forts which were hard to break into.

Moroccan traveller Ibn-Battuta, who was Qazi in the court of Mohammad Tughluq, wrote about such chieftains in his books. He wrote that there were various small territories which are still independent and under the control of chieftains. Those chieftains used to build their forts on rough terrain, on hills or inside the forest covered by bamboo groves. Those bamboo groves were impenetrable and an ordinary army could not go through that and that is why those chieftains were safe from the emperor.

According to Ibn-battuta, the chieftains well secure themselves in forts built on hills, rocky uneven and rugged places and sometimes inside bamboo groves. Inside the forts, they had food grains, cattle and water. These all arrangements them completely independent and they can live as long as they want to, inside the fort. Ibn-Batutta wrote that the bamboos in India were not hollow and when they are intertwined they act as a barricade which was hard to cross and they were unaffected by fire also.

Forts in Medieval India

The development of forts in medieval India was a continuation of the past. The forts are the very first thing any king or chieftain requires. With the start of the Delhi sultanate, many changes came in architecture. Before the onset of the Delhi sultanate, Rajputana had dominated the building styles. There were hundreds of forts were built in the rocky terrain of Rajputana. They used slab and beam technology, by simply putting one stone above another and filling the gaps. After the arrival of sultans in Delhi, they brought cultural influences from their homes in central Asia. The construction of medieval India was an amalgam of indigenous tradition with the effect of central Asia.

The sultans had brought the technique of arch and dome structure, which was borrowed by Arabas who copied it from the Romans. The Arch and Dome style became dominant in the Indian subcontinent. It reached its peak at the times of Alauddin Khilji, Khilji was an emperor and he conquered three Rajputana forts. These were forts of Ranthambhor, Chittor and Jaisalmer. During Khilji’s reign, Mongols invaded India which is why he was more concerned about making new forts which acted as a stronghold against Mongols.

After the Khilji dynasty, Tughluqs came into power and their buildings were built on high platforms. It can be seen in the tomb of Ghiyassudin Tughluq.

Types of Forts in Medieval India

The purpose of the fort was to defend the chieftains and stop the enemy from interesting the stronghold. For this purpose, the kings built different types of forts which were very hard to infiltrate and easy to defend. We are going to see different types of forts built in medieval India.

• Desert Fort or Dhanva Durg − From its name it is clear that such forts were built in the middle of the desert. The desert acted as a natural barrier to the enemy. Another benefit was that enemies could be seen easily from vary far and the soldiers were prepared when they came near. Such forts were generally built by Rajputs in Rajasthan. Sometimes such forts were built on high grounds for a better view of coming enemies.

• Mud fort or Mahi Durg/ Rampart fort − It was a fort with all the outer walls covered with thick mud and bricks. This layer made the fort much stronger and resistant to fires. Thick earthen walls acted as a shield.

  

• Water forts − Such types of forts were very famous in medieval India. The kings used to Build their forts in the middle of a water body, which provided them with an extra layer of defence. An army couldn't direct march inside the fort, they had to use boats and soldiers inside the forts were always ready to destroy such boats. The Murud Janjira fort in Maharashtra is an example of a water fort.

  

• Hill fort or Giri Durg − Such forts were built on hills or a summit. The terrain near the fort was also mountainous. It was very difficult for an army to attack such a fort because the hills were steep and had very small passages through which one can climb. It was on an elevated surface so the soldiers had a clear view of long distances. The enemies were easily spotted from a long distance and it gave time for soldiers to be ready to fight.

  

• Forest forts or vans forts − These forts were built in the middle of thick forests, which made them very hard to conquer. Initially, the enemy had problems finding those forts and due to the thickness of forts, big armies could not enter all at once. The forests also work as camouflage for many traps set by the soldiers. The Moroccan traveller also talks about such types of forts in his books. He claims that many small chieftains used to build forest forts and make themselves independent of the rule of the sultanate. There were foods, cattle and water present inside such forts.

  
  

Conclusion

The forts have always been in the history of India. Medieval India saw multiple changes in dynasty and administration, but one thing that did not change was the creation of strong and durable forts. Every chieftain, emperor and king had constructed forts to keep them safe from any attacks. We found the records of chieftains fortifying themselves in forest forts to defend against the attacks from big emperors, in the writings of Ibn-battuta. Forts were built for different purposes and had different structures based on their needs.

FAQs

Q1. What was the style of fort buildings by the Delhi sultanate?

Ans. The Delhi sultanate build forts with arches and doms and this style by Arabs who were influenced by the Romans.

Q2. What kind of forts were used by chieftains in India?

Ans. Chieftains built their forts on hills and uneven terrain and the majority of them built the forts in dense forests covered by bamboo groves. Such types of bamboo groves were difficult to cross through and that act as a rampart.

Q3. what were the different types of forts built by kings?

Ans. There were different types of forts −

• Water fort.

• Desert fort.

• Mud fort.

• Hill fort.

• Forest fort.

Q4. What were the building styles of Rajputana forts?

Ans. Rajputanas use slab and beam technique in which one stone was put on another and they were stacked. The gaps were filled with coping stones.

Q5. What kind of forts were built by Alauddin Khilji?

Ans. For the first time in India, Alauddin Khilji built the city fortress complex model. In which the whole city was fortified.