Bhadra Fort. . . . Ahmedabad’s Royal Citadel

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Many of my posts have explained places within the medieval walls of the old city of Ahmedabad such as the Pols, Manek Chowk,day  market and night eatery, the wonderful markets, architectural decoration and details,  Friday Mosque, and now I want to write about the Bhadra Fort.  It was the fortification of the medieval city which sadly is mostly in ruins today. There are several local and international groups that are working to restore and preserve the fort and plan a museumBhadra_fort_inscription and galleries that will be open to the public to present the history of ancient Ahmedabad.

The fort consisted of 14 towers, 8 gates and 2 large openings  into 43 acres of gardens, buildings, and open spaces.  The East wall is on the river bank.

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Stepping carefully over the old bricks to reach a short-cut through the wall. . . . . .

One of the very interesting details is this tower and clock. It (the clock)  was brought to Ahmedabad from London  in 1847 by the British East India Company.  It was lit by electricity in 1915  and was Ahmedabad’s first electrical connection.  Plans to restore the tower and clock  are  a large part of the grand scheme.

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All this reconstruction on the busy streets is  hard to image in the Western mind, but it is  just all in a day’s work in India!

Pictures of one of my favorite markets and night eatery….Manek Chowk and then the Teen Darwaza. . . . .  .

Manek_Chowk_1Eatery that goes well into the night. . .  .

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Busy market street during the day. . . . .

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And remember this elegant Teen Darwaza?

Namaste. . . . .This Is Incredible India!

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About annetbell

I am a retired elementary teacher, well seasoned world traveler,new blogger, grandmother, and a new enthusiastic discoverer of the wonderfully complex country of India. Anne
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15 Responses to Bhadra Fort. . . . Ahmedabad’s Royal Citadel

  1. acuriousgal's avatar acuriousgal says:

    I hope they renovate the fort, what a beautiful place!!

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  2. S.K. Nicholls's avatar sknicholls says:

    I always look at these sort of ruins and think, “Wow! We think we have an advanced civilization,” when really, the civilizations that came before us were doing so much more with less. We could not begin to produce such intricate beauty and stature in the modern world.

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    • annetbell's avatar annetbell says:

      Such a great point! And for years, we in the west knew little about the incredible Indus River Valley Civilizations! Our loss….but now lots of people are learning about this wonderful area! Namaste. . .

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  3. Wonderful spotlight on a beautiful fort and city, which I am yet to visit! Love seeing the sights and sounds of my native land thru your posts:)

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  4. Dalo Collis's avatar dalo2013 says:

    Nice write up and great shots of the fort…hope they renovate as there is so much to learn from history.

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  5. wow! the pictures surely don’t do the place justice, but they’re pretty impressive just the same. the sea of people really struck me, reminding me of the post in which you shared population per city. and, the citadel must be amazing in person. it’s even more impressive… thinking about the electrical project undertaken almost 100 years ago. your travels are enviable.

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  6. Swati Singh's avatar Swati Singh says:

    Great post and really nice pics 🙂

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  7. hemantbavle's avatar hemantbavle says:

    You know annetbell , I guess you have been to more places in ahmedabad than me… even being born in ahmedabad( yeah! i live in pune, n lived in various parts of india). 🙂 Nice pics 🙂

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    • annetbell's avatar annetbell says:

      Well, people come to New York to see Niagara Falls which is several hours from me and I have never seen it! I think this is universal to want to see places far away and take for granted places near-by. So glad you are enjoying my blog!

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