Warangal Forts
Warangal Fort
 
Warangal fort, which dates back to the 13th century, is 2 km away from the Warangal Railway station. The fort was destroyed by invaders and only remnants can now be seen. The fort had three layers of protection, remnants of which can still be seen today. The first layer is a mud wall, currently about 40 feet high and several kilometers in circumference, encircling the fort. The second layer is a wall up of granite rock. The fort has famous stone gateways, about 50 feet high and still standing, a masterpiece carved from a single rock. They are called Kirti Toranas (The gateways of glory) of Kakatiyas. They have become a widely replicated symbol for Andhra Pradesh tourism.
Kush Mahal Warangal Fort
 
The only courtly building to survive is Kush Mahal attributed to Sitab Khan, alias Sitapati a Hindu chief, and Governor of Warangal under the Bahmanis in the early sixteenth century. This is the only royal palace in Warangal, though not belonging to the Kakatiya kings.
The Kush Mahal does not resemble any of the Bahamani buildings of the Deccan. The palace is smaller in scale but strikingly similar to the sixteenth century Hindola Mahal in Mandu, capital of the Malwa kingdom near Indore in Madhya Pradesh.
Kush Mahal is the only royal palace in Warangal that survives: though it does not belong to the Kakatiya kings. George Michell, UK based scholar of Indian architecture opined that being at the geometric centre of the fort and near the Shiva Temple, Kush Mahal may have been built over the site of an original Kakatiya palace, which like the Shiva temple was dismantled.
Warangal East & west Entrance Forts
 
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