Dhar Fort
Situated on the hill, on a rectangular hillock this fort is built of red stone. The construction of this strong and imposing fort could become possible due to solid muram and black stone of this hillock. The main entrance of the fort was built to the west. As mentioned in the diary (roznamcha) of Emperor Jehangir, this was built by Mohammad Tughlak in 1344 A.D. on his way to Devgiri Jehangir used to make a stopover at the Sheesh Mahal inside the fort. The eldest son of Shahjehan, Dara Shikoh had also taken shelter in this fort. In 1732 A.D. the rulers of the Pawar dynasty captured the fort. The construction plan of the fort suggests that it followed the injunctions of samrangan sutradhar as well as typical medieval ideas of strategic fortification. Kharbuja Mahal, Sheesh Mahal and other buildings are important in this fort . Kharbuja palace was built in 16th century A.D. It is called Kharbuja Mahal because of its musk melon shape. During the rule of the Pawars it was the royal palace. During the Maratha struggle Anandi Bai, the wife of Raghunath Rao, took shelter here. She gave birth to Peshwa Bajirao II in this palace.
Due to human vandalism and climatic variation, wooden door panels of the main gates had been damaged badly. Bastions and fortification wall had collapsed due to neglect, lack of maintenance, water seepage and growth of trees and heavy shrubs. Less known palaces/structures had also shown signs of deterioration of various degrees ranging from cracks and structural problems and percolation, to total collapse of certain portions.
The works which were executed effectively to control further deterioration included provision of new wooden door panels as per the old design and pattern, fortification wall was strengthened, plinth protection work was done by using sand stone slab over lime concrete, repairing of kanguras and jharokhas was also carried out to retain the glory of the structure.Burj Dhar Fort
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Sheesh Mahal, East Dhar Fort
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Sheesh Mahal, West Dhar Fort
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