Gulbarga Fort
The Gulbarga Fort is located in Kalaburagi in the Kalaburagi district of North Karnataka. This fort was originally constructed by a hindu king Raja Gulchand, but it was subsequently significantly enlarged in 1347 by Al-ud-din Hasan Bahmani of the Bahmani Dynasty after he cut off his ties with the Delhi Sultanate; Islamic monuments such as mosques, palaces, tombs, and other structures were also built later within the refurbished fort. The Jama Masjid, built later within the fort in 1367, is a unique structure built in Persian architectural style, fully enclosed, with elegant domes and arched columns, unlike any other mosque in India. It was built to commemorate the establishment of the dynastic rule of the Bahmani kingdom at Gulbarga fort between 1347 and 1424, though the capital was initially Daulatabad. It remained the capital of the Bahmani Kingdom till 1424 where after the capital was shifted to Bidar Fort, as Bidar had better climatic conditions
The early history of the region dates back to the 6th century when the Rashtrakutas ruled over the external areas, except Gulbarga. The Chalukyas won back their domain and ruled for over two hundred years. The Kalachuris of Kalyani succeeded them and ruled till the 12th century. At the end of the 12th century, it came under the reign of the Yadavas of Devagiri and the Hoysalas of Halebid. During this period, the Kakatiya dynasty, kings of Warangal were also powerful and took control of the present-day Kalaburagi district and Raichur district. The Kakatiya power was subdued in 1321, and the northern Deccan, including the district of Gulbarga, passed under the control of the Sultanate of Delhi. In the early 14th century, the Deccan was occupied by Muhammad bin Tughluq of the Delhi Sultanate, which included Gulbarga. The revolt of the Muslim officers appointed from Delhi resulted in the founding of the Bahmani Sultanate in 1347 by Alauddin Hassan, who chose Gulbarga (named as 'Ahsenabad' during this period) to be his capital. Gulbarga was the capital of the Bahmani kingdom (1347–1527) (with headquarters at the Gulbarga Fort), a newly founded independent state, until 1424 when the capital was transferred to Bidar. It is said that with the establishment of the Bahmani Kingdom, the Muslim rule took firm roots in the Deccan. Ahmad Shah Wali Bahmani had inducted immigrants from Iraq, Iran and Central Asia, which changed the social, cultural and religious life in the Deccan but was well amalgamated with Hindu traditions.[1][4][5][6][7]The fort was razed to the ground by the Vijayanagar Emperor but was subsequently rebuilt by the Adil Shah dynasty or Bijapur Sultanate, when the Vijayanagar empire was defeated in the Battle of Talikota. [8]The Bahmanis ruled over most of the Deccan until the late 15th and early 16th century, when the kingdom was divided into five independent states. The Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb (r. 1658–1707) captured the fort in the 17th century (1687) and appointed Asaf Jah I ("Nizam-ul-Mulk") as the governor of the Deccan. In the early part of the 18th century, when the Mughal Empire was declining, the Nizam became independent in 1724, and formed the Hyderabad State, of which Gulbarga area was a part. The fort and the Gulbarga district were a part of Kingdom of Hyderabad under the Nizams rule. After India became independent in August 1947, Hyderabad state was annexed to the Indian union in 1948. In 1956, the Indian state of Hyderabad was partitioned among neighbouring states along linguistic lines and renamed as Andhra Pradesh (now Telangana). Most of the Gulbarga district became part of the then Mysore State, later renamed Karnataka, excluding two taluks, which were given to Andhra Pradesh
