Korigad Fort Trek, Lonavala, Maharashtra

Korigad fort is situated in Lonavala in Peth Shahapur, Ambavne village in state of Maharashtra. It comes under Pune District. This fort is situated at Paunmaval plateau which is at 700m above sea level where as The top height of the fort is around 930m above sea level. It lies at the edge of Deccan plateau so one can see the deccan as well as konkan very clearly.

Also this fort is called in various other names such as (Kuvarigad/Koraigad/Koari/Kunwari/Koraigad)

(District Pune, Dist. Maval/Mulshi) Type: Giridurg Altitude: 929 m

History of the Korigad Fort. (Source: Korigad)

1) A.D. On the death of Mahmadshah Bahmani (the head of the Bahmani Empire) in 1482, in his will he made Malik Naib (originally Malik Hasan and his title Naib), the trustee of the Bahmani kingdom, as the chief vizier of his son, Sultan Mahmud. Later, Malik Naib gave his son Ahmad the responsibility of establishing Jahagiri. He was sent from Daulatabad to Jutrar. He etc. S. In the campaign of 1482-83, he conquered the forts of Shivneri, Chavand, Lohgad, Tung, and shifted his march to Koar (Korigarh). A.D. In 1490, Ahmad overthrew the Bahmani Sultanate and established an independent Nizamshahi. Then Korigarh came under Nizamshahi. Later in AD The fort was under Nizamshahi for 146 years till 1636.

2) A.D. In 1636, Shah Jahan of Delhi and Muhammad Adil Shah of Bijapur captured the Nizamshahi and divided the territory of the Nizamshahi when Korigarh came under the control of Adilshahi.

3) During the Nizamshahi, Korigarh's mulkha was called Paud Maval or Korbarse. Dhamale was Deshmukh at that time. After the decline of the Nizamshahi, even if the Adilshahi came to power, the countrymen there as well as Korigarh and

The fort of Ghangad belonged to Damale Deshmukh.

4) AD In 1647, Chhatrapati Shivaraya sent Dadoji Konddev to Maval to bring Korigarh to Swaraj. Dadoji fought with Damale Deshmukh or Musaddegiri and brought the fort into Swarajya.

5) AD In the Treaty of Purandar with Mughal Sardar Mirza Raje Jaising in 1665, twenty-three forts were given to the Mughals and out of the 12 forts that were under Swaraj, Kuwari (Korigarh) was under Swaraj. 

6) AD After the death of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj in 1689, the Mughals took over most of the Maratha forts, including Korigarh. Where Shakavali mentions "this year Kul Gad Mogle took".

7) Aurangzeb ordered Mansur Khan (Alibeg), the Fort and Faujdar of Junnar, to capture Korigarh. Alibeg gave this responsibility to his son Muhammad Kazim. Kazim, with the help of military officer Rayaji Bahulkar, fitted the fort's keeper Sonaji Farjat and tied the fort with a mala (a rope made by tying a knot in a tree branch at a particular place to climb up) and the Mughal army entered the fort. A fierce battle took place in the fort. Girjoji Nimbalkar and Dinkarrao died a heroic death. Finally, on 12 November 1695, the Mughals attacked the fort.

8) On the orders of Shankaraji Narayan Sachi, Navaji Balakawade brought Korigarh back under the control of the Marathas. (The year must be before 1700 AD as Navaji Balakawade died in 1700.)

9) A.D. In 1713, Korigarh, the western gateway of Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, was captured by Sarkhel Kanhoji Angre. On 28th February 1714, Kanhoji Angre became the mandalika of Shahu Maharaj. Korigarh was taken over by Shahu Maharaj as per the agreement reached. 

10) Sardar Awase was in charge of Paud Maval during the rule of Peshwa, he also rebelled against the British, at that time Korigarh was taken over by the British, but Awase negotiated with the Peshwas and returned to Korigarh.

11) In AD 1818 Lt. Col. Prother moved his march towards Korigarh after taking over the forts of Lohgad, Visapur, Rajmachi, Tung and Tikona. Britishers had to make concerted efforts to conquer Korigarh. Finally, on 17 March 1818, the British captured Korigarh.

Trek Route to Korigad

Trek route to Korigad is very easy. It can be graded as very easy trek. It takes around 45 mins to trek which is around 1.5km hike from the deccan base. One can park vehicles at base in Peth Shahapur near highway and start the trek which passes through jungles and meets up with the stairs at the base of Korigad. The route is very easy, wide and marked. No chance of getting lost. 

Other route is from Ambey Valley village where a tar road goes straight at the base of the fort from where stairs start. 

After climbing the stairs one comes across a resting point where there is a Ganesh temple and a small cave.

One can rest here for a brief period of time and then continue to climb the stairs till you reach Mahadarwaja or Ganesh Darwaja of the Fort. On the way one can see small caves and a water tank from where you can even drink water as it is quite clean.

After entering the Mahadarwaja, one can enter the vast plateau at the top of Korigad. It is a huge plateau of around 34 acres. The fort is entirely fortified and most of the walls are still intact. One can almost walk the whole perimeter of the fort on walls. The vast plateau is mostly empty with 2 to 3 big lakes and temples. The housing or wadas are in ruins now and the stones are all scattered.

Korigad Fort Perimeter Walls and Bastion.

Korigad Fort Perimeter Walls and Bastion.

Korigad Fort Perimeter Walls and Bastion.

There are small underground caves and bunkers on the west side of the fort that one can easily see.

One can keep walking and reach the west gate, which is also a darwaja from where Sarkhel Kanhoji Angre came up and captured the fort. Going further one can reach the south bastion of the fort.

West Gate of Korigad Fort

Thick walls of Korigad fort.

Also there is a Mahadev temple, Korai Devi temple and a Vishnu temple on top of Korigad.

Korai devi temple

Old deep mahal and stone idols on top of Korigad.

On the south bastion of Korigad there is a chor darwaja or thief door which it descend to Ambavne village. The chor darwaja has stairs which opens on the base of the fort. Also one of the chor darwaja is blocked by rock debris. This is the third route to gain access to the fort.

Korigad is best visited in monsoon for to see its lakes waterfalls and lush greenery whereas to explore the fort winter season is good as during monsoon it is covered under dense fog. There are total 6 canons on the fort. They are kept in Mahadev temple at entrance where as the big ones are kept facing the west at the west end of the fort. The biggest of the canon is named Lakshmi Tof.

Other Information regarding Korigad (Source: Internet)

One interesting story associated with Korigadh revolves around its capture by Dadoji Konddev, a trusted lieutenant of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.

Legend has it that when Dadoji Konddev arrived at Korigadh to bring it under Maratha rule, he found it to be heavily fortified and defended by Damale Deshmukh, the local ruler. Despite facing significant resistance, Dadoji was determined to succeed in his mission.

In a clever and daring move, Dadoji devised a plan to deceive the defenders of Korigadh. He decided to employ a strategy that played on the superstitions and beliefs of the enemy.

Under the cover of darkness, Dadoji and his men stealthily approached the fort. Instead of launching a direct assault, they initiated a series of mysterious and eerie activities around the fort. They set fire to haystacks to create smoke, mimicked ghostly sounds, and even used torches to cast eerie shadows on the walls of the fort.

Terrified by these supernatural phenomena, the defenders of Korigadh began to believe that the fort was haunted by malevolent spirits. Fearful for their safety, they abandoned their posts and fled from the fort, leaving it virtually undefended.

Seizing the opportunity, Dadoji and his troops swiftly entered the fort and claimed it in the name of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The clever ruse orchestrated by Dadoji Konddev not only enabled the Marathas to capture Korigadh without a prolonged battle but also became a legendary tale of strategic brilliance and resourcefulness in Maratha history.

Also it is said that the Jewellery after 1818 from the Korai devi temple was given to Mumba Devi (Godess of Mumbai) (Source: Harish Kapadia Book)

KORIGAD VIDEO DOCUMENTARY

KORIGAD TREK SUMMARY

Korigad Fort Trek Route and Map