30/05/2022
-‘ Poonch Fort is an important landmark in Indian history and in present day Poonch city. Built in 1179, this fort stands on a small hilltop covering a magnificent area of 7, 500 sq m. This fort has been a bystander for many political and historical events of Poonch. This exquisite structure not only adds beauty to the city but it’s also an example of a living era in the course of time.’
-‘But what is it now as people call it the Poonch Qila! Once upon a time it was simply awesome but now? It was for everyone’s imagination and correlated it to the pictures of the past!’ But what matters is that it is still a legend!
-‘Now it is nothing but a place where the administration rules the district Poonch as perhaps in the olden time the kings did!’
-‘This fort has witnessed partition and beholds significant secretive stories of Muslim rulers, Dogras and Sikh rulers.’
-‘Even now the Poonch Fort bears typical Mughal architectural influence ( just a few reminiscences remain). Though the foundation was laid by Raja Abdul Razak Khan in 1701 A.D, this fort was completed by Raja Rustam Khan. Poonch district was initially named Rustam Nagar after him.
-‘This fort was under the rule of Maharaja Ranjeet Singh from 1850- 1947 which is also coined as the golden period by historians. Sikh rule was from 1819 – 1846 which reflects the style of construction of a central block. Front block design is reflective of Raja Moti Singh’s compassion towards style and ethnicity. He engaged a European architect in 1850-1892 to reconstruct it.’
-‘By the way this fort has more than 80 rooms that are elegantly designed. There is also a small mosque, a temple and a Gurudwara in the fort premises.’
-‘Poonch Fort of Jammu which is also known as Poonch Qila is one of the historical fort of Jammu and Kashmir. Poonch Fort is situated in the district Poonch of Jammu and Kashmir. It was built by Raja Rustam Khan in the years between 1760 and 1787. The architect who built this huge fort was very fond of Mughal’s architecture and Raja Moti Singh was impressed by the design of the architecture so he kept renovating this fort for 40 continuous years.’