  mandu or mandavgad is a ruined city in the present-day mandav area of the dhar district. it is located in the malwa region of western madhya pradesh, india, at 35&nbsp;km from the dhar city. in the 11th century, mandu was the sub division of the tarangagadh or taranga kingdom . this fortress town on a rocky outcrop about  from indore is celebrated for its fine architecture. ==history== the earliest reference to mandu is available in the sanskrit inscription of 555 ad, which tells that mandu was a fortified city even in the 6th century bc. it gained prominence in 10th and 11th century under the parmars (who called it mandavgarh), from whom the control was snatched by khiljis in 1305.http://naresh-lalwani.sulekha.com/blog/post/2006/11/enchanting-rani-roopmati.htm mandav or mandu's was earlier known by the name of "shadiabad" meaning the city of happiness (anand nagari), it was after the name of princess mandvi chouhan of khandwa, the name was given by then ruler allauddin khilji. mandu city is situated at an elevation of 633 metres (2079&nbsp;feet) and extends for  along the crest of the vindhya range, overlooking the plateau of malwa to the north and the valley of the narmada river to the south. these acted as natural defences and mandu was originally the fort-capital of rajput parmara r
Cities_and_towns_in_Dhar_district Cities_in_Malwa Dhar_district Former_capital_cities_in_India Former_populated_places_in_India Forts_in_Madhya_Pradesh Ghost_towns_in_India Ruins_in_India Visitor_attractions_in_Madhya_Pradesh