Sewri Fort

Sewri Fort was completed by the British in 1680 as a watchtower on a quarried hill on Parel island, overlooking Mumbai harbour, the eastern seaboard and the mainland. It was one of several defences raised after attacks in 1672 by the Siddis, a naval power allied to the Mughals, and it held a garrison of 50 sepoys under a subedar, with eight to ten cannons. The Siddi general Yadi Sakat invaded in 1689 with 20,000 men and took Sewri first, then Mazagon, before sacking Mahim. It later helped repel a Portuguese attack in 1772, then served as a prison and a Port Trust godown.

High stone walls with an inner ring enclose it on a cliff about 60 metres high, and the inner doorways are set at right angles to the main entrance to block a frontal assault. Inside are a pentagonal room, a long domed corridor and vaulted structures. It is a Grade I heritage structure and looks over the Sewri mudflats, where migratory birds, notably lesser flamingos, gather.