Gwalior Fort
| Gwalior Fort | |
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| Part of Madhya Pradesh | |
| Madhya Pradesh, India | |
Gwalior Fort
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 Gwalior Fort
Gwalior Fort
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| Coordinates | 26°13′49″N 78°10′08″E / 26.2303°N 78.1689°E |
| Type | Fort |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | Government of Madhya Pradesh |
| Open to the public |
Yes |
| Site history | |
| Built | 8th century and 14th century |
| Built by | Hindu Kings of India |
| In use | Yes |
| Materials | Sandstones and lime mortar |
Gwalior Fort (Hindi: ग्वालियर क़िला Gwalior Qila) is an 8th-century hill fort near Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, central India. The fort consists of a defensive structure and two main palaces, Gujari Mahal and Man Mandir, built by Man Singh Tomar. The fort has been controlled by a number of different rulers in its history. The Gujari Mahal palace was built for Queen Mrignayani. It is now an archaeological museum. The oldest record of "zero" in the world was found in a small temple, which is located on the way to the top. The inscription is around 1500 years old.
The word Gwalior is derived from one of the Hindu words for saint, Gwalipa.
The fort is built on an outcrop of Vindhyan sandstone on a solitary rocky hill called Gopachal. This feature is long, thin, and steep. The geology of the Gwalior range rock formations is ochre coloured sandstone covered with basalt. There is a horizontal stratum, 342 feet (104 m) at its highest point (length 1.5 miles (2.4 km) and average width 1,000 yards (910 m)). The stratum forms a near-perpendicular precipice. A small river, the Swarnrekha, flows close to the palace.
The exact period of Gwalior Fort's construction is not certain. According a local legend, the fort was built by a local king named Suraj Sen in 3 CE. He was cured of leprosy, when a sage named Gwalipa offered him the water from a sacred pond, which now lies within the fort. The grateful king constructed a fort, and named it after the sage. The sage bestowed the title Pal ("protector") upon the king, and told him that the fort would remain in his family's possession, as long as they bear this title. 83 descendants of Suraj Sen Pal controlled the fort, but the 84th, named Tej Karan, lost it.
Historical records prove that the fort definitely existed in the 10th century. The inscriptions and monuments found within what is now the fort campus indicate that it may have existed as early as the beginning of the 6th century. A Gwalior inscription describes a sun temple built during the reign of the Huna emperor Mihirakula in 6th century. The Teli ka Mandir, now located within the fort, was built by the Gurjara-Pratiharas in the 9th century.
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