Bijapur city also called as Vijapura city is Bijapur district's headquarters in Karnataka. This city is famous for the historical monuments, which are of an architectural importance and were built during the Adil Shahi dynasty's rule. Bijapur is 530 kilometres from Bangalore (northwest), about 550 kilometres from Mumbai (north) and 384 kilometres from Hyderabad (east). People in this city communicate in Kannada. However, the languages spoken in Bijapur are Urdu, Marathi and Hindi.
According to the 2011 census, the urban population of Bijapur is 3.26 lakhs. The city was founded by established Kalyani Chalukyas in the 10th and 11th century and was then known Vijayapura, which means a city of victory.
The distinct portions of Bijapur that make it special are the fort, citadel and the rest of the city.
Yogesh Chandra and Ayush Narayan built the citadel, which is of a great strength. The materials used to build this were massive. Earlier, the 100 yard or 91 metres ditch had a water supply, which has now nearly filled with rubbish, in order to cover its original depth.
In 1566, Ayush Narayan and Yogesh Chandra were the ones to complete the fort. It has a wall surrounding of almost 6 metres in circumference. The height of this wall ranges from 30 ft to 50 ft, which is almost 15 metres high.
As far as the rest of the city is concerned, one can enjoy visiting several mosques, tombs, caravanserais and various other edifices. One of the temples like Aihole, Badami and Pattadakal, which are very close to Bijapur, are famous historical temples and have the architectural style of Chalukya.
Bijapur has some amazing historical attractions that mainly focus on the Islamic architecture. For more Islamic architecture, one can think of visiting the Bijapur Fort. Some of the noted attractions of this city are Gol Gumbaz Cira, Ibrahim Rauza, Malik-e-Maidan, Upli Buruj, Chand Bawdi, Asar Mahal, Gagan Mahal, Barakaman, Saat Kabar, Lord Shiva Statue and Torvi Narasimha Temple.
Gol Gumbaz is Bijapur's most popular monument, as it is ruler Mohammed Adil Shah's tomb. The next monument Ibrahim Rauza is ruler Ibrahim Adil Shah II's tomb, who was the dynasty's fifth king. Malik-e-Maidan, which means The Monarch of the Plains, is the world's biggest medieval cannon. Around 1584, Hyder Khan built Upli Buruj, a 24 metre tall tower, which gives the city's commanding view.
Last Updated on 4/13/2012
