Chanderi Fort located atChanderi inAshoknagar District ofMadhya Pradesh state inIndia is situated at a distance of 127 km fromShivpuri and 37 km fromLalitpur and about 45 km fromEsagarh and 38 km from Mungoali It is located on a hill southwest of theBetwa River. Chanderi is surrounded by hills, lakes and forests and there are several monuments. Chanderi finds mention inMahabharata. Shishupal was the king of Mahabharata period.
Chanderi is located strategically on the borders ofMalwa andBundelkhand. History of Chanderi goes back to the 11th century, when it was dominated by the trade routes of Central India and was proximate to the arterial route to the ancient ports ofGujarat as well as toMalwa,Mewar,Central India and theDeccan. Consequently, Chanderi became an important military outpost.
Chanderi Fort, a vastRajput fort, dominates the skyline of the lovely old town of Chanderi. The main gate of the fort is known as the "Khooni Darwaza". Chanderi fort is situated on a hill 71 meter above the town. The fortification walls were constructed mainly by the Hindu rulers of Chanderi. To the southwest of the fort there is a curious gateway called katti-ghatti made through a hill side.
Chanderi is mentioned by the Persian scholarAlberuni in 1030.Ghiyas ud din Balban captured the city in 1251 forNasiruddin Mahmud,Sultan of Delhi. SultanMahmud Khilji ofMalwa captured the city In 1438 after a siege of several months. In 1520Rana Sangha ofMewar captured the city, and gave it to Medini Rai, a rebellious minister of Sultan Mahmud II of Malwa. The Mughal EmperorBabur captured the city from Medini Rai, In 1529Raja Puran Mal defeatedBabur's forces and captured the city. He ruled on chanderi for 11 years, and in 1540 it was captured bySher Shah Suri, and added to the governorship of Shujaat Khan. The Mughal EmperorAkbar made the city asarkar in thesubah of Malwa. TheBundelaRajputs captured the city in 1586, and it was held by Ram Sab, a son of Raja Madhukar ofOrchha. In 1680 Devi Singh Bundela was made governor of the city with his commander in chief and prime minister of chanderi state Maharaja Chaubey Bhim singh, and Chanderi remained in the hands of his family until it was annexed in 1811 byJean Baptiste Filose for theMaratha rulerDaulat Rao Sindhia ofGwalior. The city was transferred to theBritish in 1844. The British lost control of the city during theRevolt of 1857, and the city was recaptured by SirHugh Rose on February 14, 1858.Richard Harte Keatinge was awarded theVictoria Cross for leading this assault. The city was transferred back to the Sindhias of Gwalior in 1861, and became part ofIsagarh District of Gwalior state. After India's independence in 1947, Gwalior became part of the new state ofMadhya Bharat, which was merged into Madhya Pradesh on November 1, 1956.
24°43′12″N78°07′48″E / 24.72000°N 78.13000°E /24.72000; 78.13000
