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| Ramnagar Fort | |
|---|---|
| Part ofRamnagar, Varanasi | |
| Uttar Pradesh,India | |
 Entrance of the Ramnagar Fort | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Fort |
| Location | |
  Ramnagar Fort | |
| Coordinates | 25°17′N83°02′E / 25.28°N 83.03°E /25.28; 83.03 |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1750 |
| Built by | Balwant Singh |
| Materials | chunarsandstone |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | Anant Narayan Singh |
TheRamnagar Fort is afortification inRamnagar, Varanasi,India. It is located near theGanges on its eastern bank, opposite to theTulsi Ghat. Thesandstone structure was built in 1750 by Kashi Naresh MaharajaBalwant Singh. The current king and the resident of the fort is Anant Narayan Singh, who is also known as theMaharaja of Benares even though this royal title has been abolished since 1971.[1][2]
_-Benares-..jpg)
The fort is at a scenic location on the eastern right bank of the Ganges River, opposite to the Varanasi Ghats. It is 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) from Varanasi and 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from theBenares Hindu University by the newly built Ramnagar bridge. With the bridge built it hardly takes 10 minutes to reach the fort from BHU. Boat ride to the fort fromDashashwamedh Ghat in Varanasi takes about an hour.[citation needed] A painted statebarge with a twin emblems in the form of horses could be seen moored to the landing stage.[3] There is a well laid out garden within the fort which forms the approach to the palace.[3][4]
The Ramnagar Fort was built byKashi Naresh MaharajaBalwant Singh in 1750. Inscriptions on the outer ramparts of the fort date it to the seventeenth century.[3]
_-Benares-..jpg)
The building was constructed with creamy-colouredchunarsandstone. The fort houses the Veda Vyasa Temple, a museum, and the king's residential complex.[5] There is also aDakshin Mukhi temple ofHanuman, which faces towards south.[6]
The fort has been built on high ground, which is above the flood level.[7] The fort has many carved balconies, open courtyards and pavilions.[5] Only a part of the structure is open for public viewing as the rest of it is the residence of Kashi Naresh and his family. The flag on the fort is raised when the Maharaja is in residence in his palace fort.[1] Within the fort, the palace has two white towers, which are accessed by a flight of steps. At the end of the flight of steps, there is an archway and many courtyards that lead to the white tower.[3]The private residence of the Maharaja is on one side of the tower while the Durbar Hall and reception rooms are on the other side. An inscription on the fort wall attests "Fortified House of the Rajah of Benares, with his state Boat".[8]
The museum is known as Saraswati Bhawan. The museum is in what used to be theDurbar Hall or the Public Audience Hall of the fort.[5] It is well known for its unusual and rare collections ofAmericanvintage cars, bejeweledsedan chairs,ivory work, medieval costumes, gold and silver brocaded royal Palakis (Palanquins in the shape of a lotus flower). It has elephant saddles carved out of silver, jewellery, costumes made ofkimkhwa silk (finest product of the weavers of Varanasi), an impressivearmoury hall withswords, oldguns fromAfrica,Burma andJapan.[9] The old armoured matchlocks, ornatehookahs, daggers, portraits of Maharajas, black musical instruments which have turned white because of neglect of maintenance and there is a rare astronomical clock.[2] This clock shows not only the time but also the year, month, week and day, and the astronomical details of theSun,Moon and otherplanets. This clock was made in 1852 by theAstronomer at the Court of the Royal Palace of Varanasi.[citation needed] In addition,manuscripts, especially religious writings, are housed in the museum. Many books illustrated in theMughal miniatures style are also part of the collections.[1][2][7] There are five hundred and thirty-five illustrations expressing Islamic ethos, each having a decorative border with ornate floral designs orcartouches.[10][11]
The fort palace appears very vibrant and colourful when beatified during the one-month-longRam Lila festival where different episodes ofRamayana are enacted. On this occasion, a colourful pageant or procession ofRamayana epic is presented as part of theDussehra celebrations that is held in October as perGregorian Calendar, with the burning of the effigy ofRavana, the demon king, and his associates, which signifies victory of good over evil. The festival also includes a procession of various antique displays of Royal possessions.[5] The Maharaja continues his family tradition of attending the annual month-long Ram Lila drama festival held in the streets behind the fort by riding on a decorated elephant at the head of the procession.[11] In olden days, the drama was performed by the native regiments and the epic story of Ramayana scripture was read through the month-long festival.[12][13] Other festivals held in the fort are in the month of Magh (January and February) in front of the Veda Vyasa temple where pilgrims visit Ramnagar. In the month ofPhagun, (February and March) a festival calledRaj Mangal is held in the fort with a procession of boats with people, dancing and singing; it starts from the Asi Ghat, goes along the river in front of the fort.[13]
Because of its scenic location on the banks of the Ganges, the fort and the palace are frequently used as an outdoor shooting location for films. The film titledBanaras is one of the popular movies shot here.[1][2] It was the seventh pit stop ofThe Amazing Race 18.
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