Sinhagad Fort

Ghera Sinhagad, Maharashtra, India

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Sinhagad Fort, also known as Kondhana, is a historic hill fortress located about 25–35 kilometres southwest of Pune in the Haveli taluka of Maharashtra, near the Ghera Sinhagad area in the Sahyadri (Western Ghats) range.

The fort sits on an isolated cliff at around 1,290 metres above sea level and was strategically important for controlling the route between the Deccan plateau and the Konkan coast, changing hands between the Mughals, the Deccan sultanates, and the Marathas.

It is most famous for the nocturnal Battle of Sinhagad in 1670, where the Maratha commander Tanaji Malusare scaled the cliffs to recapture the fort and died in the fight, leading Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to rename Kondhana as “Sinhagad,” meaning “Lion’s Fort,” in his honour.

Today the compact fort remains a major trekking and heritage destination, with two main gates, ruins of old structures, memorials to Tanaji and Rajaram I, and sweeping views over the surrounding hills and villages, and it is open throughout the year for visitors travelling by vehicle or on foot from Pune.