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Built in the year 1537 by Kempe Godwa II, a chieftain of the Vijayanagar Empire the Bangalore Fort in Bangalore is one of the few historical monuments in the city. So if you are planning for sightseeing in Bangalore, visit the Bangalore Fort in Karnataka and travel back in time. The Bangalore Fort, first built out of mud by the founder of the Bangalore city was later expanded by Mysore's celebrated son, Tipu Sultan. But between Kempe Godwa and Tipu Sultan the fort changed hands for quite a few times passing through the regimes of the sultans of Bijapur, the Mughals and the Wodeyars of Mysore.
Among the many gates that once guarded the Bangalore Fort, there is only one that is used today. Though the enormous original gate has been lost to time, the three massive iron knobs gives a hint of the enormity of the doors that was once a part of the fort. Also inside the fort is a massive gate that still has the original doors (with iron spikes existing on the upper half of the door), that once stood on the entrance. However, the doorway that is in use now is the Delhi gate which is richly decorated with fine Persian friezes on the inner and outer walls and some typical images that is characteristic of Karnataka style of art. The images include lotuses, peacocks, elephants, birds, half elephant and half bird motifs.
Within the thick and protective walls of the Bangalore Fort exists a Ganapathi temple that was built back in the 16th century. And on the doorway there is a plaque that marks the spot where in Lord Cornwallis and his army broke through during the British assault and captured the fort from Tipu Sultan. The fort is of an unusual and rare oval shape.
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