Gwalior Fort

The Fort of Gwalior
Madhya Pradesh, India
The "Man Mandir" palace built by Tomar Rajput ruler Man Singh Tomar (reigned 1486–1516 CE), at Gwalior Fort
The Fort of Gwalior is located in India
The Fort of Gwalior
The Fort of Gwalior
The Fort of Gwalior is located in Madhya Pradesh
The Fort of Gwalior
The Fort of Gwalior
Coordinates26°13′49″N 78°10′08″E / 26.2303°N 78.1689°E / 26.2303; 78.1689
TypeFort
Site information
Owner
Open to
the public
Yes
Site history
Built6th century, The modern-day fort, consisting a defensive structure and two palaces was built by King Man Singh Tomar,[1] later renovated by Scindia ruler under the Supervision of General Sardar Surve in 1916
In useYes
MaterialsSandstone and lime mortar
Battles/warsNumerous
EventsNumerous
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The Fort of Gwalior or the Gwalior Fort, also known as the Gibraltar of India,[2] is a defence hill fort in Gwalior, India. Mughal Emperor Babur gave it the title "pearl amongst the fortresses of Hind" because of its impregnability and magnificence. The history of the Fort goes back to the 5th century A.D. or perhaps to a period still earlier. The old name of the hill as recorded in ancient Sanskrit inscriptions is Gopgiri or Gop Parvat. The current structure of the fort has existed at least since the 8th century, and the inscriptions and monuments found within what is now the fort campus indicate that it may have existed as early as the beginning of the 6th century, making it India's one of the oldest defence fort in existence. The modern-day fort, embodying a defensive structure and two palaces was built by the Tomar Rajput[3] ruler Man Singh Tomar.[1] It has witnessed the varying fortunes of the Guptas, the Hunas, the Pratiharas, the Kachhwahas, the Tomaras, the Pathans, the Mughals, the English and the Scindias who have left their landmarks in the various monuments which are still preserved.

The present-day fort consists of a defensive structure and two main palaces, "Man Mandir" and Gujari Mahal, built by Tomar Rajput ruler Man Singh Tomar (reigned 1486–1516 CE), the latter one for his Gurjar wife, Queen Mrignayani.[1] The second oldest record of "zero" in the world was found in a small temple (the stone inscription has the second oldest record of the numeric zero symbol having a place value as in the modern decimal notation), which is located on the way to the top. The inscription is around 1500 years old.[4][5]

  1. ^ a b c d Paul E. Schellinger & Robert M. Salkin 1994, p. 312.
  2. ^ "Gibraltar of India". 19 March 2022.
  3. ^ Romila Thapar (2003). The Penguin History of Early India: From the Origins to AD 1300. Penguin Books Limited. p. 179. ISBN 978-0-14-193742-7. Other claiming to be Rajput and descent from Solar and lunar lines established themselves as local kings in Western and Central India. Among these were the Chandelas present in 12th century in Bundelkhand, the Tomaras also subject to the earlier Pratiharas ruling in Haryana region near Dhilaka, now Delhi, around 736 AD and later established themselves in Gwalior region
  4. ^ You Can Visit the World's Oldest Zero at a Temple in India Archived 16 September 2017 at the Wayback Machine, Smithsonian magazine.
  5. ^ Joseph, George Gheverghese (2016). Indian Mathematics: Engaging with the World from Ancient to Modern Times. World Scientific. ISBN 978-1786340634. In a temple on the path up to Gwalior Fort [...] where we find a circular zero in the terminal position. [page needed]