Chapora Fort Goa | el Liven
Channel: el Liven
Date: 2021-05-27

Abandoned in turn by the Portuguese, Marathas and Adil Shahis this fort tells a strange tale of struggle for control of North Goa.  Stunning sea views, bastions, bartizans, ramparts, wallwalks, and hidden gates await.

#ChaporaFort #Goa #elLiven

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Description:
Chapora Ft lies on a 70m high promontory guarding the mouth of the Chapora River to the North. The approach road winds along the river through Chapora village on its east side. A short walk up a paved path brings us to the main entrance. Chapora Fort was built in the early 1500s by the Adil Shahi sultans of Bijapur. Later taken over by the Portuguese in 1543, it was finally abandoned in 1892 when the Portuguese acquired the properties beyond Pernem. 

The main entrance leads through a barrel-vaulted vestibule to an open ground. The parapet is of small laterite blocks. Embrasures in the parapets have commanding views from the bastions. In between the parapet are irregular embrasures, these were for the canon. A key feature of this fort is the presence of these cylindrical turrets or bartizans. They provided a lookout with views over the land. To the south is Vagator beach and you get a panoramic view of the Arabian sea to the west. There are unpaved wall-walks along the parapets. One of them traverses the north side with a view of Pernem district. Chapora Fort was the last boundary for all the southern rulers. Whether it was the Adil Shahi's or the Portuguese. It was overlooking the Chapora river which formed the nothern-most boundary . You can see the Chapora river winding down to the Arabian sea. In 1683 the Marathas under Sambhaji crossed this river and overran the fort but had to retreat soon after. 


The fort walls and bastions were extensively reconstructed by the Portuguese in 1717. A small gate leads to the fortalice below. It was built to control river traffic. The quay is still used by local fishing boats. The Bhonsle's of Sawantwadi captured the fort in 1739 and held on to it for two years. However, after the Portuguese conquered Pernem the fort lost it's importance. It was abandoned in 1892.

Within the fort walls is an undulating plateau covered with wild grasses. No structures have survived. In this large open area villagers took refuge from the Maratha raids Wild flowers like dandelions, and touch-me-nots (M. pudica) shelter in the hollows. Exuberant blooms of the Paper Flower Climber (Calycopteris floribunda), and Giant Milk Weed (Calotropis gigantea) edge the ramparts. Towards the sea is a stand of fig trees. Nature has slipped in to reclaim whats hers.

Credits
🎬 Shotcut https://www.shotcut.org/
🎵 https://archive.org/details/BestGoaKonkaniSongs/
🎛🎚🎧 Audacity https://www.audacityteam.org/
Image credits:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Muhammad_Adil_Shah_II_with_courtiers_and_attendants.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Blason_of_Goa_(ancient).svg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sambhaji_painting_late_17th_century.png


📚 References:
Amita Kanekar. Portuguese Sea Forts - Goa with Chaul, Korlai and Vasai. Jaico. 2015
https://goa-tourism.com/chapora
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapora_Fort
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Indischer_Maler_um_1615_(I)_001.jpg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibrahim_Adil_Shah_II
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sambhaji
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maratha_Invasion_of_Goa_(1683)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammed_Adil_Shah,_Sultan_of_Bijapur

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:23 Entrance
1:05 Ramparts
1:15 Bartizan
2:06 Walkway
2:29 Chapora River
2:49 Fortalice Gate
3:22 Interior
3:55 Arabian Sea