Best Tourist Destinations of Pakistan: The Rohtas Fort
Pakistan has some of the world’s most interesting and beautiful sights that can prove to be a great attraction for tourists. Rohtas Fort can easily be classified as one of the most formidable and largest forts in the Indian subcontinent.
Rohtas Fort is situated 8-kilometers south of the GT road near the city of Jhelum, Punjab. It was built on the hilltop within Tilla Jogian Range. This fort is 810 meters above sea level. The emperor Sher Shah Suri ordered the construction of this huge fort in the year 1541 and its construction was completed around 1549.
The architectural design of the Rohtas Fort is an amazing amalgamation of South Asian, Turkish, and Middle Eastern artistic traditions. Rohtas Fort spans a vast area of 70 hectares. It is enclosed by 4 kilometers of formidable walls.
These outer walls are 10 to 13 meters thick, and 10 to 18 meters high. This fort has 12 gates and 68 bastion towers. All 12 gates are made of ashlar stone.
The 12 Gates of the Rohtas Fort:
The names of these 12 gates are as follows;
- Sohail Gate
- Shah Chandwali Gate
- Kabuli Gate
- Shishi Gate
- Kashmiri or Mori Gate
- Langar Khani Gate
- Talaqi Gate
- Khwas Khani Gate
- Gatali Gate
- Tulla Mori Gate
- Sar Gate
- Pippli Gate
There are a few other attractions in the fort, besides the 12 gates.
Royal Masjid:
The small masjid located near the Kabuli Gate is “Shahi Masjid.” This masjid is the most ornamented part of this whole fort. It consists of a prayer compartment and a small courtyard. This prayer compartment is approximately 7 meters deep and 19 meters long. The prayer compartment is divided into three equal chambers.
There are several domes inside the masjid but none of them could be seen from the outside. Its outer walls are covered with attractive round-shaped designs with Islamic verses scripted in them. These designs are surrounded by lilies.
Stepwells:
This fort houses 3 step-wells or Baolis that are made by cutting deep into the limestone. These step-wells were used for providing water to the soldiers, horses, elephants, etc. The Central Baoli is located in the middle of the fort for the soldiers and animals. It has 148 steps. Royal Baoli is located near the Kabuli Gate. It was used by the Royal family members and it consists of 60 steps. The small baoli that is located near the Sar Gate is known as Sar Baoli. It was most liked used by the soldiers.
Other Major Attractions:
Other major attractions of this fort are the Rani Mahal, Haveli Man Singh, and the Gurudwara Chowa Sahib. Gurudwara Chowa Sahib is located near the Talaqi Gate, just outside the Rohtas Fort. On the gates and in the masjid, beautiful stone carvings could easily be found. These carvings are either Arabic engravings or sunflowers. The stonework with an inscription reading the name of “Allah” is the most noteworthy one.
The Six Kalimas are beautifully calligraphed on the outer walls of the masjid. The strong walls of the Rohtas Fort also contain hundreds of Machicolations/ small drains leading from the inside to the walls outside. These drains were used to pour molten lead or numerous other hot liquids on the attacking soldiers to stop them from scaling the fortress walls.
Rohtas Fort was nominated as a World Heritage Site in the year 1997. The high level of authenticity and integrity of the Rohtas Fort is also noteworthy. Those of you coming from Islamabad or Lahore can easily reach this fort by using the Grand Trunk Road (GT Road).
