Pratapgarh javli
Pratapgarh javli, 1908
Fortress in the Javli taluka of Satara District, Bombay, situated in 17degree 55' N. and 73degree 35' E., 8 miles south-west of Mahabaleshwar, on a summit of the Western Ghats commanding the Par ghat; and dividing one of the sources of the Savitri from the Koyna, an affluent of the Kistna. The fort, 3,543 feet above sea-level, looks from a distance like a round-topped hill, the walls of the lower fort forming a sort of band or crown round the brow. The western and northern sides are gigantic cliffs, with an almost vertical drop in many places of 700 or 800 feet. The towers and bastions on the south and east are often 30 to 40 feet high, while there is in most places a scarp of naked black rock not much lower. In 1656 Sivaji, the founder of the Maratha power, selected this almost impregnable position as one of his principal forts. Pratapgarh was the scene of his treacherous murder of the Muhammadan general Afzal Khan, who had been sent against him by the Sultan of Bijapur. In 1659 Sivaji decoyed Afzal Khan to a personal interview by a pretended submission, the two leaders being each attended by a single armed follower. Sivaji stabbed the Musalman general, and gave the signal to his ambushed army to attack the Muhammadan troops, who, bewildered by the loss of their chief, were utterly routed. In the Maratha War of 1818 Pratapgarh was surrendered to the British by private negotiation, though it was an important stronghold and was held by a large garrison.
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
