PAST 

The cultural landscape of Champaner-Pavagadh, as other sacred sites in the subcontinent, is a palimpsest of continuous building and destruction over the ages.  The layers are mostly lost in the hilly crags and buried in foothills, yet enough is visible to the naked eye, to give a sense of grandeur of historic cities that were once there.  What attracted the Rajput and Islamic rulers to the site was its commanding location and the highly defensible fort that could be built there.  Proximity to the goddess temple was no doubt significant to the Rajputs.  Bhil tribesmen living on the hill always worshipped the great goddess who became a patron deity of the Rajputs as well.  The Rajputs were overthrown by Mehmud Begada, Sultan of Gujarat, after a prolonged siege in 1484 CE.  The Sultan built a city—Champaner at the foothills of Pavagadh—which became the capital of greater Gujarat for half a century, until it was devastated by yet another siege, this time by the Mughal emperor Humayun.  By 1611 CE, Champaner was covered by a dense jungle, lost and forgotten in time. 

Historic Landscape Layers

Architecture