Motorcycling to Datia and nearby forts

Hi There
   It has been a long time ,that I wrote the blog as well as I rode,actually it was just a month that I was not able to ride ,primarily due to commitment at work as well as weather . Its rainy season here!!!.Every time as one travels from or towards Gwalior a massive fort attracts attention in Datia, this is the famous Datia Fort of Maharaja Bir Singh Deo.

  Route                            Jhansi-Datia- Badoni Fort-Dabra-Maharaja Fort (Simariatal)-Jhansi

 Road Condition             Fit for all types of motorcycles.

 Road side assistance   Friendly people.

Food                                 Had breakfast in Datia.

Datia Fort and Palace

   We started late since destination was nearby,by the time we reached Datia it was 0900 am and  it was time for a quick bite.Just opp the Datia temple we saw this place with piping hot poha,feshly made with almost no oil,we just hogged it !!! almost three plates each ,with tummy fully it was time to explore.

   The first stop was the Datia Palace,it was the residential palace constructed much later than the Bir Singh palace.After independence it was converted into land revenue office,some of its original architecture still remains. 

    However after the office was shifted it lies abundant,a sad state of such a magnificent and glorious building.

Bir Singh Palace

   After winding through the narrow alleys of Datia we  reached the  Famous  Datia Palace. As we comes at the mouth of the alley we halted in front of a magnificent giant beautiful palace,      7 storeys, it is  gigantic, looks like it is jetting in the sky and thanks to restoration work in progress its is maintained neat and clean.

   

   Datia Fort was build by Bir Singh Deo,it is believed that the fort was build with the treasure that was looted by Bir Singh Deo,when he killed Abdul Fazal on request of prince Jehangir.    Bir singh and his next generations remained loyal to the mugals till death of Aurangzab.There after with rise of British, they become loyal to British.

    In 1625 when Jehangir was on his way to Kabul, he was seized by Mahabat khan,Bir singh  immediately launched a campaign by sending his son Bhagwan Rao .Victorious Bagwan rao was bestowed Datia by his father. 

    Bhagwan rao was also an important member of mughal campaign in Bijapur.In 1631,his son Shubhkaran continued the same and helped aurangzeb in his campaigns in Deccan against the Mighty Marathas.

    Dalpat rao son of Shubkaran continued the campaigns in Bijapur,Golconda,Adoni and Gingee. From Gingee he brought back a huge gate as a trophy ,which was installed in Datia.

    In first war of Independence 1857,Rani of Datia saw a chance to take revenge against the Jhansi as well as cut away from grip of Marathas of Jhansi.Intially along with Orchha they attacked Jhansi on two fronts,but the attack  miserably failed were in, not only Rani Laxmibai defeated them both at the same time but they also had to pay a hefty fine to Jhansi.

    Thereafter they waited for almost six months for British forces to attack Jhansi and helped them to annex Jhansi. Datia was also instrumental in capture of father of Rani Laxmi Bai -Moropant Tambe who was hanged by the British in Jhansi.For their service the British approved the titel of Maharaja to the rulers of Datia in 1865.

   The palace is a 7 storey structure ,build at the banks of Karan sagar Lake.It took nine years to build and 35 lac rupees ,its construction started in 1614,however no ruler stayed in the palace.
Due to ongoing restoration work one can see fine examples of the famed Datia art.

   

Badoni Palace

      The next stop was Badoni ,it is loacted about 10 kms from Datia on Gwalior road.This place has got both the Palace which is located near a tank and the fort,the royal family still resides in the village.

     Since this Fort and palace was under Scindias it remained almost untouched ,basically built to keep an eye on the movement towards Gwalior from Jhansi side.

     The palace has got still good remains of building,however the fort is absolutely in ruins with many parts crumbling.

Badoni Fort

   The  Fort is located about 1.5 Kms from the palace and  located right in the Badoni Village. Abandoned and absolutely in the ruins .The beauty of the construction of the fort is ,using the lay of the ground to construct the fort there by incorporating the huge rocks ,which not only gave stability ,but also provides a solid defense.

   Making it difficult to blast the fort walls .Not much to seein the fort and  it can be skipped .

Maharaja Fort

     After visit of the Badoni fort it was time to move to the last destination the Maharaja Fort located ahead of Dabra ,in village Simirya Tal .

     The road through Dabra is a huge choke point ,extremely bad it took almost 40 mins to clear a small stretch of 2kms,thereafter the road  opens up.To reach the fort one has to turn towards St Peters School ,just pass through it and you are on to the fort road.Ride for 10 mins and you can see the fort ,after crossing the railway line you reach the fort. 

    You have to go through narrow village road to reach the base,thereafter climb for 5 mins and you are at the door of the fort.

   The Fort keeper had rebelled against the Scindias in 1857 and supported the troops of Rani Laxmibai.As the british lead by  Hugh Rose moved after capture of Jhansi to liberate Gwalior,they had to  fight their way out through this area, since this fort stood as a thorn on their way to Gwalior.

    In the ensuing battle  a the fort was blasted and its occupants moved to Gwalior to fight the decisive battle .

  Accept for few portions of the outer wall nothing much is in the fort all ruined ,fallen and blasted.

   

   As it was past noon it was time to head back home ,the journey was pleasant,as it had started drizzling,bringing respite to the intense heat .The Datia palace is worth the visit it is at a short distance from Jhansi ,and it is live example of the famous Datia art.The Datia part was covered in June,while Badoni and Maharaja fort were visited in August.

  Till next blog Ride Safe Firm Saddle Adios.