old fort
OVERVIEW
Surat Castle is one of the old landmarks of sixteenth century existing in the city and bears a huge significance to its set of experiences. Nonetheless, such an incredible fortress worked to furnish the residents of Surat with a satisfactory protection from the assaults of the trespassers appears to have been forgotten from the personalities of the current age. The Ahmadabad ruler Sultan Mahmood-III (1538-1554), who was particularly irritated by these rehashed annihilations of Surat, requested for building an amazingly impressive palace and recognized the work to Safi Agha, a Turkish warrior who had been honored with the title of Khudawand Khan. Crafted by building the palace was finished in 1546. Later the catch of Surat by the sovereign Akbar (1573) the fortification stayed in the charge of commandants selected from Delhi till it was seized by the Sidhi naval commander of the Mughal armada in 1751. The Sidhi didn't hold the palace for significant stretch, as it was caught by the English in 1759 with rest of the city. However from the first for all intents and purposes autonomous, the English held the palace ostensibly under the Mughal. In badge of this partitioned order, two banners waved from the palace dividers, the English ensign on the south-west, and the Moorish norm on the south-east stronghold. This training was proceeded till, in 1842, on the demise of the remainder of the Nawabs of Surat, the English armada was taken out from the Tapi, and the Moorish standard brought down from the palace dividers. However, as a protection against any exceptional foe, they have for some time been pointless, the palace structures at first were being kept in fix, and until the year 1862, were posted by a little group of European and local soldiers. In that year, as presently not needed, the power was removed, and the abandoned rooms were made over for the convenience of the few workplaces associated with the income and police divisions, in whose occupation the palace has since remained.
History
However in setting of the character of Surat in archaic period a few perspectives have been communicated by various students of history, in every one of the recorded stories Surat has arisen as one of the significant port of worldwide importance on the guide of the world exchange. A Portuguese voyager named Barbosa during his excursion to Gujarat in 1514 has portrayed Surat as a city of extraordinary exchange all classes of product, an extremely huge seaport yielding enormous income to the lord, and regularly visited by a few boats from Malabar and various different ports.
In a matter of seconds before Barbosa was in Gujarat, Surat is said to have been scorched by the Portuguese in 1512. Surat allegedly experienced an entirely ridiculous and piratical assault, in 1530, a second time by the Portuguese under the initiative of Antonio da Silvaria. However the aggressors were gone against by a watchman of 300 ponies and 10000 foot, yet at the primary charge the protectors escaped, and the town was taken and consumed. As they were currently at the conflict with the Gujarat King, the Portuguese again consumed Surat in the following year, 1531. The Ahmadabad lord Sultan Mahmood-III (1538-1554), who was especially irritated by these incessant annihilations of Surat, requested for building an exceptionally solid palace and shared the work with Safi Agha, a Turkish warrior who had been praised with the title of Khudawand Khan. He was furnished with significant financial plan and was requested to plan and construct an extremely amazing palace. Khudawand Khan at first chose three elective destinations for building the palace
Town Tunki where as of now a burial place of Marjan Shami is existing
'Pani ni Bhit' region
The bank of the waterway
Out of which the last option for example bank of the waterway was chosen and finished by the ruler. It has been accounted for that during development stage the Portuguese made a few endeavors to keep Khudawand Khan from finishing the work both by pay off just as forcibly bombing which, they came to assault with a few vessels outfitted with cannons, yet couldn't prevail with regards to keeping him from building the palace. He finished the development of this palace in the year 1546.
FEATURE
This verifiable palace which was arranged and worked somewhere in the range of 1540 and 1546 by Khudawand Khan is one of the main old landmarks of Surat. Based on the bank of stream Tapi on a land plot of around one section of land as displayed in the accompanying figure, it is an unpredictable square in arrangement with its short wing pointing toward the west and, one of the angled wings confronting the north-west being washed by the waterway.
At each corner there is an enormous round tower around 12.2 meters in tallness, the dividers shades rising almost as high as the pinnacles with the thickness of dividers being 4.1 m. The top segments of the strongholds are treated in the Portuguese style. At the point when every one of their endeavors to forestall the development of the palace were bombed they finally attempted to convince Khudawand Khan for not achieving this Portuguese style of the strongholds, yet it was the firm assurance of Khudawand Khan which prompted achieve the whole work precisely according to his unique preparation.
It has been accounted for that to neutralize the assaults of the Portuguese, Khudawand made sufficient safeguard courses of action for introducing the cannons which were brought by him from Junagadh (Some other recorded records statement that he had brought the cannons from Diu, which were left there by Suleman Pasha who fled from the combat zone for Eden). Since the ruler needed to assemble an extremely impressive palace, all the part units of the brick work were reinforced or affixed along with iron strips and the joints were filled-in by pouring the softened lead.
Correspondingly the most extensive level of security according to guard perspective is obviously consolidated in the development of its entry door moreover. This heavenly passage on the eastern wing of the palace is so planned as to give a monstrous construction having solid entryway screens outfitted with distending spikes at the outside veneer, and a beautiful building treatment at the inside Facade.
On contrasting the first narrative confirmations and the current state of this palace apparently a few adjustments have been consolidated into it. The principle among these unique elements are the canal or a trench 18.30m wide on its landward sides and the drapery, 18.30m high. The channel was fixed with blocks and stones in lime mortar and was associated with waterway in such a way as to remain consequently topped off with water.
In the first design there were two entry entryways, one confronting the East and opening on to the Chowk Bazaar side and one more of nearly more modest size confronting the West - towards the stream side and filling in as a door from the harbor and as an office for the immediate passage of products and so on from ships. At the primary entry door there was another particular component - a 'draw-span over the channel. This draw-span was supposedly being seen up to the furthest limit of seventeenth century by numerous individuals of the European and different voyagers. Shockingly these highlights are generally not detectable as of now. The entry door confronting the waterway and the drapery in all actuality do don't really exist and the canal is likewise topped off with earth.
To the extent has been found out, the main change since the palace was worked by Khudawand Khan was in 1760 when, on the eastern side, inverse the entry, the English included a work and passage the external bank of the channel.
Address
dakka ovara, near, makkai pull, Chowk Bazar, Surat, Gujarat 395003, India.