Chittorgarh and Kumbhalgarh, sentinels of Udaipur.

Before Udaipur became capital of the erstwhile princely state of Mewar, the great fort of Chittorgarh was the capital and stronghold of the Mewar kings- see my post below: Udaipur, Palaces and Lakes. and Link

The second "sentinel" of the Mewar kingdom , Khumbalgarh, was built later and is the second great fort of this kingdom. Both forts are marvels of engineering, built on steep hill slopes with walls/ ramparts extending for several kilometers. These awesome forts were very necessary, in defense of the State, because the Mewar kings were one of the few from the Princes of Rajasthan who chose the policy of defiance to all successive Muslim dynasties from Delhi or Gujrat.

Fiercely proud of their very ancient lineage, see link , the Mewar princes considered themselves as defenders of Hinduism and would not give up their defiant attitude. When faced with defeat, mass jauhar, self immolation, by the ladies, and fight to the finish and certain death by the men was their deliberate choice.

These forts thus stand as silent testimony to death and suicide as well as triumph and victory, depending on the fortunes of the Mewars..........see link .

For the history of Chittorgarh fort go to this link and you find a story of great valour, fierce battles, mass suicide and fight to the finish and certain death. Chittorgarh remained the Mewar capital for 834 years, from 734 A.D. when the first ruler of this clan, Bappa Rawal, captured it and made it his capital, and upto 1568 A.D. when the Mughal emperor sacked the fort, and the young Udai Singh escaped. He then made Udaipur his capital.

Chittorgarh fort is famous for the Vijay Khumba, Tower of Victory, built by Rana Kumbha, in 1448, to commemorate his victory over the Muslim forces of Malwa and Gujrat.

Rana kumbha also built the massive Kumbalgarh Fort, named after him- it is some 64 kms north
of Udaipur; this fort was never taken by any invading army and is considered second to Chittorgarh in strategic importance. go to this link for Kumbhalgarh.

First 5 pictures, Chittorgarh Fort, and the rest of Kumbhalgarh Fort.

Chittorgarh Fort, getting there

whereas Chittorgarh fort is situate at Chittorgarh town (see link above), Kumbhalgarh fort stands alone in a region north of Udaipur, hence to reach by road from Udaipur-rentals, public bus, taxis.