Shergarh Fort, Baran, Rajasthan India

The Shergarh Fort is situated in the Atru tehsil of Baran District alongside the Parban River. The fort is a little detached from the main town and has ancient Jain and Brahmanical temples. A stone edict dating back to 790 AD, also known as Koshvardhan, can be found at this site.

Shergarh is supposed to have been named after its capture by Shershah of the Sur dynasty in course of his Malwa campaign. The ancient name of this town was Kosavardhana, “the increaser of treasury”. Being a place of strategic importance, Shergarh was ruled by different dynasties from early times. An inscription found here refers to Samanta Devadatta who ruled in A.D. 790 and built a Buddhist temple and monastery here. Hindu rulers patronized Buddhism, Saivism and Jainism. The temple of Somnatha was the principal place of worship in tenth-eleventh century A.D.  The Lakshminarayana Temple, consisting of a sanctum, antarala, mahamandapa and ardhamandapa is well preserved and is assignable to the eleventh century A.D. An inscription in this temple narrates the genealogy of the Paramara kings of Dhar from Vakpati to Naravarman. An inscription of A.D. 1228 records that a devotee of Siva built here a water-house. 

The fort  is situated about 7 km south of Dholpur city on the left bank of the Chambal river near a road bridge on the National Highway No. 2.  The fort was built earlier and was enlarged, repaired and used by Shershah Suri in A.D. 1540. The stone fort has four gates and is entered from east through a large gate.  The fort has palace buildings, a temple of Hanuman and a tomb, besides some ruined structures.