Golconda Fort – Quick Guide Golconda Fort – Overview Golconda fort is situated at a place called Golconda which is 11km away from Hyderabad. The rulers of Qutb Shahi dynasty made the city their capital. Their ruling period was from 1518 to 1687. Golconda has many mines where many diamonds like Kohinoor, Nassak Diamond, Hope Diamond and many other diamonds were produced. Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital of Telangana state in India and is spread in an area of 650km2Hyderabad was ruled by Qutb Shahi dynasty for around a century and later came under the rule of Mughals from 1724. Asif Jah I was the Mughal viceroy who started a dynasty named Nizams of Hyderabad who ruled for around 150 years. Hyderabad is also famous for its delicious dishes especially Hyderabadi Biryani and Hyderabadi Haleem. Hyderabad is also known as city of pearls as it is a trading center of pearls and diamonds. Visiting Hours Golconda fort can be visited from 9:00am to 5:30pm. The fort is opened on all days except Fridays. Light shows are also conducted in the fort in English, Hindi and Telugu. Two shows are conducted daily at different times. The English shows are conducted on all days at 6:30pm from November to February and at 7:00pm from March to October. The Telugu shows are conducted every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 7:45pm from November to February and 8:15pm from March to October. The Hindi shows are conducted every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday on the same timings as the Telugu shows. Tickets The visitors have to pay an entry fees in order to visit the fort. For Indian, tourists, the price of the ticket is Rs. 5 whereas for foreigners, the price is Rs. 100. If the tourists want to take still camera then they have to pay Rs. 25. If the tourists want to watch light shows then they have to buy the tickets on the basis of classes in which they want to sit. If the tourists want to watch the show in executive class, they have to pay Rs. 140 for adults and Rs. 110 for children. For normal class, the price of ticket for adults is Rs. 80 and for children it is Rs. 60. The ticket counter for sound and light show opens at 5:30pm. Best time to visit The period from October to February is the best time to visit Hyderabad as the weather is very pleasant. In rest of the months, the climate is either hot or is rainy. During summer months, the temperature rises up to 45 degree Celsius. During rainy days, the climate becomes very humid though mornings and evenings are pleasant. Where to Stay? There are more than 1000 hotels in Hyderabad which include, economy hotels, budget hotels and star hotels. The tourists can stay in the hotel of their choice and enjoy the facilities provided to them by the staff Golconda Fort – History Golconda fort was previously called Mankal and was built by Rajah of Warangal in 1143. The fort was built of mud on a hilltop. Golconda Fort under Kakatiya and Musunuri Dynasties Kakatiya dynasty built the Golconda fort to defend the western part of their kingdom. The fort was built on top of a granite hill. Rani Rudrama Devi and her successor Prataparudra strengthened the fort further. After this, Musunuri dynasty took over the fort by defeating Tughlaqi army. Later the fort was given to the rulers of Bahmani sultanate by Musunuri Kapaya Nayak. Golconda Fort under Bahmani Sultanate and Qutb Shahi Dynasty Bahmani Sultanate got the fort from Musunuri dynasty. Quli Qutb-ul-Mulk was sent by the Bahmani Sultanate as a governor of Hyderabad. Later Bahmani dynasty declined and Quli Qutb–ul-Mulk founded the Qutb Shahi dynasty. The kings of this dynasty strengthened the fort and expanded it. The kings of Qutb Shahi dynasty later shifted the capital to Hyderabad in 1590. The Mughal Emperor Aurungzeb besieged the fort for one year and its ruin started from 1687 Diamonds in Golconda Fort The mines in the fort are popular for producing diamonds like Kohinoor, the Hope diamond, and many others. The diamonds were produced in Kollur, Parotala, and Atkur mines. The mines in the city made it a trading center of diamonds. These mines helped the kings of Qutb Shahi dynasty and Nizams to become rich. Golconda Fort – Architecture Golconda Fort is a very large fort consisting of temples, mosques, palaces, halls, apartments and other structures. The fort is spread in around 11km area and has beautiful architecture. The fort is divided into four forts each having apartments, worship places, halls, etc. Gates Golconda Fort has eight gates out of which the main gate is Fateh Darwaza or the Victory Gate. This gate was built to commemorate the victorious march of Mughal Emperor Aurungzeb. The gate has steel spikes to protect it from elephants. The length of the gate is 25ft and width is 13ft. Balahisar Darwaza was built according to Nawabi style. The gate is very magnificent and was used to inform the residents of the fort about the danger. This was done through clapping which could be heard to top of the fort. There are statues of mystical beasts and lions on both sides of the gate. Eastern gate is the only gate through which tourists can enter the fort. It is the biggest entrance of the fort. Mosques Ibrahim Quli Qutb Shah Mosque − was built by Ibrahim the son of Quli Qutb Shah. After crossing the main gate, there are staircases that lead to the mosque. The mosque has now been ruined but still two minarets can be found along with three entrances adjacent to each other. Taramati Mosque − was built by Taramati in 1518 during the reign of Ibrahim Qutb Shah. The mosque includes one minaret each on the four corners. The courtyard of the mosque is very big which reaches the ramparts Temples Sri Jagdamba Mahakali Temple is located on top of the