BEKAL FORT

Ther r many things on this beautiful earth that u should never miss them

Bekal fort is one among them .It is a famous tourist place in Kerala the land of yoga and Ayur Veda .Bekal fort is the largest and best preserved fort of kerala and has a grate tourist attraction.The fort is situated north of kerala at around 10km north of kanghangad town and has great historical and archeological interest. Bekal Fort, which is about 350 years old, is the largest fort in Kerala. It is proposed to be developed into a tourist complex. This magnificent fort which is nearly 16 hectares in extent built near the Arabian sea and has a beautiful bay on its southern side. The fortification of the semi-circular construction with an imposing frontage is still intact as an architectural monument. The facade of the high walls with the battlement and the entire structure of the fort are architecturally commendable.

HISTORY

SivappaNaik of the Ikkeri dynasty is said to have built the fort in between 1645-1660. But some other historians are of the opinion that the fort was built by the then north Kerala rulers, the Kolathiri Rajas. SivappaNaik of Bednore captured the fort when the Kolathiri Raja stopped paying tributes to him. Later, the fort fell into the hands of Hyder Ali and later into his son, Tipu Sultan. With the over throw of Tipu Sultan, Bekal was incorporated into the dominions of the English East India Company in 1799.

A mosque and a Hanuman temple are located at the entrance of the fort. There is a large tower in the middle of the fort at a height of 10 meters and with a circumference of 27 m. From the tower, one can see the entire fort and the sea on the west and the lush green valleys on the east and the undulating Blue Mountains.it is situated near the sea shore.