Gopalgad fort — Local services in Maharashtra

Fort of Gopal gad (Anjanvel) is situated at south bank of vashishthi river or Dabhol creek. From Mumbai you can take Mumbai - Goa highway till Chiplun from their you can travel till Guhagar which is approx 40km. Guhagar is taluka town from their a nice road will take you to Anjanvel 15km. Narrow road will take you to Gopal gad fort which is situated above small hill next to Anjanvel village

This is very old fort, its written historical records are available from middle age period. However mostly this fort is developed during hindu rule before muslim sultans came in power in order to guard the trade route from karhatak(कर्हाटक) modern day karhad (कऱ्हाड) to port of Anjanvel or Dabhol. Fort Anjanvel was under Adilshahi rule during 17th sanctuary. Great maratha king Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj won this fort from Adilshah of Bijapur during 1660. This area was under maratha rule till Chatrapati Sambhaji maharaj's period, during the time of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's invasion on maratha kingdom after death of Shivaji Maharaj, Aurangzeb ordered Siddis of Janjira to attack maratha area in kokan for mughal kingdom hence siddhi attacked on Guhagar and Chiplun during 1690s and won this fort.

Anjanvel fort was under siddhi's rule till 1745. Marathas did try to take it back during 1733 however because of internal competition between Peshwa and Pratinidhi this task was never successful. In 1744 Chatrapati Shahu maharaj 1st ordered sarkhel Tulaji Angre the chief of maratha navy to take the fort of Anjanvel from siddhi.Chatrapati Shahu maharaj also instructed strictly Britishers of mumbai to stay away from this matter as british east india company was helping the siddhis during wars again maratha kingdom.

Peshwa nanasaheb also pressurized east india company. On 23 January 1745 Tulaji Angre won this fort from killedar siddhi Yakut khan. He renamed this fort as fort Gopal gad

After that this fort was taken over by subhedar Ramji bivalkar in 1756 during the campaign launched by Peshwe Nanasaheb against Sarkhel Tulaji Angre due to conflict between Angre and Peshwe

In 1776 duplicate of Sadashiv rao bhau who was imprisoned in Ratnagiri was escaped and took over gopalgad and neighbouring forts however Peshwa's troops defeated him and fort was again became part of maratha empire till 1818 when colonel Kennedy won this fort for British East india co.

Surprisingly nowadays this fort is a part of private property and owner have developed mango farm inside this fort, but tourist can visit this fort without any permission. Old entrance is now not in use , the road coming from village ends on the hilltop from where you can see the new entrance.Current owner have destroyed fortifications and built the gates. One can see two huge man-made tanks ,one well and remains of many buildings. Mejority part of fortifications are still in good condition. You can go up by steps and take a nice view of Arabian sea and Dabhol creek. Their are two original doors also can be seen while visiting the fort in which one door is at Creek side and other door is at seaside. Bale killa (the main fort) is on hilltop however fortifications developed by siddhi and Angre is also gone down till seashore in which one secret escape door is still available. This part of fort is covered with thick forest and very few people are actually visits their. From eastern fortifications tourist can view huge project of Enron Dabhol powerplant.

Please carry drinking water as it's not available. You can stay at Guhagar and visit this fort and near by lighthouse which is open for tourist...

The majority of the fort is still strong with 7 acres of area. From Anjanawale village you can reach the plateau near the fort (till the road). By this road, we approach the fort and reach the small gate of the West Bank wall. A deep ditch on the ground floor of the fort is excavated. There are 15 bastions on the fort. It has a rounded round stone with round stones. (There was an inscription engraved in the Persian language in 1707 on the plate, but now it is not unkempt). There is a door on the east side of the fort. The fort is 7 meters high and 25 meters in width. This fort is composed of upper coats, ballet and pakot. Part of the pelvic is that this double walled upto the beach, built in 1699 by the Siddhi Khanharakhana. Tulaji Angre constructed the Balakot in the fort. At the extremity of the divide there are arches near the sea. On the side of that there is a thief door and there is a bad water tank in front of him. The intersections have a door to enter the sea. After coming inside, the construction of the tomatoes up to Balakota is in ruins today. In this quarrel, this is a bad water tank near the burglar. After entering the west entrance gate, there are two doorsteps of the guard. In addition to this, the ruins of the fortress of the fort, the ruins of Bandhiv Talab and the small houses of small houses are seen on the fort. The excavated steps of the cast are excavated after the exit of the fort entrance. The water of this well was potable. Gopalgarh is a private property due to the mistake of the Government of Maharashtra. Therefore, the doors of the fort are locked. But look without it regardless of fear. There is a legal fight...

Gopalgad Fort / Anjanvel Fort ( अंजनवेल चा किल्ला/ गोपाळगड) is a fort located 51 km from Chiplun, in Ratnagiri district, of Maharashtra. This fort is an important fort in Ratnagiri district. The Fort is located on a prominent and commanding point for guarding the trade route along the Vashishti River, which runs till,Gavilgad near Chiplunand the Dabhol port which was a busy route in medieval times. It is a fort located on a hill near the sea.

History: No record evidence about the construction period of this fort is known. This fort was captured by the king Shivaji from Mohammed Adil Shah of Bijapur in 1660 during his conquest of Dhabol creek. A dockyard/ship building dock was later built by him and the fort was named Gopalgad. It was later under the control of an Abyssinian general Khairriyatkan from 1699 for further 46 years. It was won by Tulaji Angre in 1745. The general of Peshwa Ramji Mahadev Bivalkar captured the fort in 1756. The Fort was won by Colonel Kennedy in 1818

How to reach: The nearest town is Guhagar which is 46 km from Chiplun. The base village of the fort is Anjanvel which is 13 km from Guhagar. There are good hotels at Chiplun, Guhagar, and Anjanvel, now tea and snacks are also available in small hotels along the coastal road. The trekking path starts from the hillock west of the Anjanvel village. Now there is very safe and wide road up to the fort. It takes about half an hour to reach the entrance gate of...