Taragarh Fort & Mosque - Ajmer

The imposing walls of Taragarh fort

A few km away, overlooking the city of Ajmer stands tall the fort walls of Taragarh, the seat of the Chauhan rulers. Built at the time when the Aravalli mountains were believed to be above the snowlines, the fort has the fame of being the first hill fort built in Asia and the oldest hill fort in the world. Built in 1354 A.D. by King Ajaypal Chauhan on the summit of Taragarh Hill, its thick battlements run along its brow, completely enclosing the table-land. The walls are about 3 km in circumference, and the fort can only be approached by steep and very roughly paved slopes on which a long winding road has been constructed recently.

The fort wall is massive built in stone and has six gates with the main gate named ‘Laxmi gate’ surmounted with exquisitely carved stone elephant. The second gate known as ‘Phuta Darwaja’ is as strong and solid as main gate. The second line of defense starts with the embattled parapet on both sides of this gate. Other gates named ‘Bhawani Pol’, ‘Hathi Pol’, ‘Arkat ka Darwaja’ are thrown across the ascent. Many bastions have been raised in the crenellated rampart wall called Ghenga Darwaja, Gugandi, Nakarchi ka burj, Bandra Burj, Imali ka burj and Fateh Burj etc. Here is situated the holy Dargah of a great martyr and Saint Hazrat Meeran Sahib Khing Sawar. The magnificent fort is known for its water harvesting system with several massive stone reservoirs that were used for water storage.

The Taragarh fort has a special place in the history of Ajmer as it was an important military hub during the Mughal reign in the region. The fort was the key to Rajputana and for this very reason was attacked many a times. From Roshan Ali, Sahabuddin Gauri to Bahadur Shah and Sher Shah, several armies invaded the fort. The fort was converted to sanatorium for European troops during the British Raj.