Rawat Fort

Rawat Fort is located in Pothohar Pakistan. It is 17 km east of Rawalpindi on Grand Trunk Road leading towards Lahore.

History

The information displayed at Rawat Fort’s by archaeology department reveals that it was built in early 15th century by Salteen-e-Dehli. However there are some contradictions about the historical background of this fort.

According to some historians, the fort was built by Sultan Masood, son of Sultan Mehmood Ghaznavi in 1036 AD while some other books of history reveal that Sarang Khan, the leader of Gakhar tribes in Pothohar, built the fort in 1546 AD.

The Rawat Fort remained in the use of different conquerors. According to some of the historical evidences the fort was in use of Sultan Masood, son of Sultan Mehmood Ghaznavi, whose rebel soldiers captivated him inside this fort and later they took him to the Gatri Fort near Taxila where they assassinated him. For a long time the fort remained under the possession of Sarang Khan, the tribal leader of Ghakhar tribes. Ghakhars were famous for their chivalry and warrior attitude. Sultan Sarang died along with his sixteen sons while fighting a war with Sher Shah Soori in 1546 AD.

Contradiction: During the reign of Humayun, Sultan Sarang Khan gained much prominence. He became so powerful that he struck his own money, included his name in the khutba and refused to recognize Sher Shah Suri, on the defeat and exile of Humayun in 1540, as the new sovereign of India. Sher Shah Suri sent emissaries to the Gakhar Sultan Sarang Khan to demand his submission and his presence at Sher Shah Suris court. He famously replied that were a warlike people and sent Sher Shah Suri, a sheaf or arrows and a pair of tiger cubs to remind him of the fact. He obstructed by all the means at his disposal the construction in 1541 of Rohtas Fort designed to prevent Humayuns return.

The headquarters of Gakhars was the Sultanpur fort situated eight kilometres from Mangla Fort. This act of open hostility coupled with his rebellious behavior enraged Sher Shah who personally led an expedition against him resulting in the rout of the Gakhars and the capture and subsequent execution of Sultan Sarang. His tomb still exists at Rawat Fort, near Rawalpindi. He was succeeded by his brother Sultan Adam, who had several skirmishes with the troops of Islam Shah Sur. Adam was so powerful that in 1552, Prince Kamran, the rebel brother of Humayun, who had been refused shelter by Islam Shah, sort refuge with him. He was however betrayed and given up to Humayun on his return from exile who had Kamran blinded. Sultan Adam was rewarded with robes of honour, kettle drums and other insignia of nobility.

Construction Plan

The Fort is oblong in plan, measuring 306 feet 9 inches east-west and 348 feet 9 inches north-south with semi circular bastions on the four corners and also on either side of the two gates located on east and north. On the western side of the fort, is located a mosque made up of three big dome shape rooms. The main gate is on the east. Flanking the gates and the mosque along the fortification are small cells each measuring 6 feet 9 inches. Originally, there were as many as 76 cells. In the northwest corner is located a massive tomb. The enclosure wall is crowned with merlons created it the form of pointed arch. The entire construction is in course rubble of sandstones with a sprinkling of brunt bricks. The surface of the mosque, tomb and the gateways was originally treated with lime-surkhi plaster in glaze, only traces of which exist now. The bricks have been used in arches, domes and stringcourses, which also serve as ornamental element.

Shahi Mosque

Shahi mosque made up of three big dome shaped rooms. The mosque was a part of this fort when it was built in ancient times and later it was deserted and the local people use to keep their cattle here. It was a Jungle and there were a number of snakes and other insects around this place until Syed Saeed Shah, a saint, dreamed that the mosque be rejuvenated once again with the prayers and recitation from the Holy Quran.

Graves

The grave of Sultan Sarang Khan is also inside this fort. His 16 sons, who died there fighting, are also buried inside the fort. The building contains some of the old graves and a hexagonal tomb in it and if someone dares to climb through this tomb one may get a panoramic view of the plateau and the Mankiala Stupa.


 

Mankiala Stupa

Mankiala Stupa is a Gandhara era stupa built to memorialize the place where, according to legend, Buddha sacrificed some of his body parts to feed seven hungry tiger cubs.

It was built in the reign of Kanishka (128-151 AD). Mountstuart Elphinstone, the first British emissary to Afghanistan chanced upon this stupa in 1808 AD and penned a detailed account in his memoir 'Kingdom of Caubul' (1815). According to an inscription on a stone the stupa was restored in 1891 by a regiment of the British. Raja Usman was artitect.

In the 1930s a bronze casket and 7th and 8th century gold, silver and copper coins were found in the stupa. The mouth of the stupa has a gaping hole as a result of excavations by relic hunters in the past. It now has a barrier around it for safety reasons.