Dindigul Fort

Dindigul Fort, also called Dindigul Malai Kottai, crowns a rock hill in the town of Dindigul in Tamil Nadu. The Madurai Nayak king Muthu Krishnappa Nayak built the hill fort in 1605, along with a fort at its foot. In the 18th century it passed to Mysore and then to Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, and in 1792 Tipu ceded it to the British, who added cannons and sentry rooms in 1798 and kept troops here until 1859. During the Polygar wars it sheltered Queen Velu Nachiyar of Sivaganga and the Maruthu brothers.

The rock is about 900 feet high and the fort has a circumference of 2.75 km. Its double-walled armoury has round vents in the roof and a sloping ceiling, and the fort holds 48 rooms once used to hold prisoners, a kitchen, a horse stable, a commanders' hall and rainwater reservoirs. An abandoned temple stands on the summit, and a few cannons, still sealed with balls, remain.