Palakkad Fort

En un regard

Le château en bref

In the centre of the town of Palakkad, on a gentle rise, the so-called Tipu's Fort is one of the best-preserved in Kerala. Built in granite for Hyder Ali of Mysore, it occupies a square of about fifteen acres defined by high walls, corner bastions and a central bastion, all surrounded by a moat. The western entrance was once crossed by a drawbridge. The original interior buildings, the commandant's quarters, stables and granaries, have mostly disappeared, but the enclosure retains its massiveness. The fort bears witness to the struggle between the kingdom of Mysore and the English East India Company for control of the Palakkad Gap, a strategic passage between Malabar and Coromandel. Today, the enclosure houses a sub-jail, a column to the martyrs and the Rappadi, an open-air auditorium, while the small temple of Hanuman stands at the entrance and the vast esplanade of the Kotta Maidan hosts fairs and exhibitions.