Paranda Fort is situated in Paranda, a small town in the Osmanabad district in the state of Maharashtra, India. It is protected monument by the Archaeological Survey Of India.
Paranda fort is a solid construction of medieval age. Its rampart walls being double-fortified by 26 strong rounded bastions, one of which tank the main entrance on the northern side. Further it has a protective moat or khandak around connected with the fort by a wooden draw bridge Some of the bastions in strategic places are mounted with huge cannons which can aver be seen today. These were mostly cast by Dutch craftsmen and one of them bears the name Husain Arabs, an Arab engineer in the service of the Bijapur. In one of the store rooms there are a few more cannons of which one is quite huge and an which is inscribed "Sarkar Nabab Mir Nizam All Khan Nearly 300 round shot are found. The round shot a.k.a cannon ball are still kept in the fort today.
Paranda fort is now a state protected monument under the Maharashtra Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites & Remains Act. 1960.
History
The earliest mention of the fort is found during the reign of Mahmud Shah Bahmani, when its command was given to a nobleman titled Khan Jahan. In the
Imperial Gazetteer, its construction is attributed to
Mahmud Gawan, although contemporary sources do not mention this. The fort remained in the territory of the
Bahmani Kingdom, and later their successor state, the Ahmadnagar Sultanate, ruled by the Nizam Shahi dynasty. During this period, it was on the border between three rival states—the Nizam Shahi, Adil Shahi, and Qutb Shahi sultanates, and as such, was the scene of constant skirmishes.
After the capital of Ahmadnagar was conquered by the Mughal Empire, Paranda became the seat of the Nizam Shahi, and remained so almost until the end of the dynasty. It was sold by its governor to the Adil Shahi for a sum of 300,000 huns.
The fort was unsuccessfully besieged twice by the Mughal Empire during the reign of Shah Jahan.
Cannons at the fort
File:Large cannon at Paranda fort.jpg|Mulukh-e-maidan
File:Cannon at Paranda fort.jpg|Kalal bangdi cannon I
File:Third largest cannon of Paranda fort.jpg|Kalal bangdi cannon II
File:Magar toph at Paranda fort.jpg|Magar (Crocodile) faced cannon
File:Light weight cannon at Paranda fort.jpg|Short mobile cannon gun
File:Short mobile cannon cum gun at paranda fort.jpg|Large storage of short mobile cannon gun
File:Dutch Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC) cannon at Paranda fort.jpg|Cannon made by Dutch/United East India Company - Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC) 1627
Description
The fort is shaped like a parallelogram, with the northern and southern walls being slightly longer than the remaining two. The outermost defence consists of a
glacis encircling the entirety of the fort. This is followed by an outer wall, rising to a height of 13 feet.
Jami Masjid
The mosque building has three entrances, to the north, south, and east. Of these, the main entrance is the eastern one, in the form of a porch, which is entered through a large arched doorway.
Gallery
File:First door of Paranda fort.jpg|Main entrance door
File:Wood and metal door at Paranda fort.jpg|Abandoned Metal door
File:Bastion of Paranda fort.jpg|Bastion
File:Bastion of Paranda fort - II.jpg|Bastion with window
File:Sacred monument at Paranda fort.jpg|Sacred monument
File:Entrance complex of Paranda fort.jpg|Entrance complex
File:Ganesha sculpture at Paranda fort.jpg|Ganesha sculpture
File:Structure of Paranda fort.jpg|Structure
File:Bastion and fortification of Paranda fort.jpg|Bastion and fortification
File:Construction inside fort.jpg|Construction inside fort
File:Moat and double fortification build to protect the Paranda fort.jpg|Moat and double fortification protection
