The Chapora fort is a monument rich in historical lore and intrigue, located on a hillock above the mouth of the Colvale river, overlooking Vagator beach, its name is said to come from Shahpura, or Royal City, for there was a prosperous port and trading settlement here, with a population of Arab traders, well before the arrival of the Portuguese.
When the Portuguese seized the fort in 1543 with the rest of Bardez, it had great military significance for them, as the Chapora river marked the northern boundary of Goa, with Pernem on it’s opposite bank, being the province of the Maharaja of Sawantwadi.
This fort, although formidably built has fallen multiple times to the Maratha might, once in 1684 and again in 1739. In 1741, during the New Conquests, the Portuguese regained the fort and further conquered the Northern territory of Pernem, thus decreasing the military significance of the fort. The fort was abandoned in 1892.
The fort walls follow the natural slopes and drops of the peninsula. This makes them steep and difficult to climb (although not impossible if legend is to be believed). The walls also had irregularly spaced bastions with large embrasures to hold canons. The bastions are topped by cylindrical towers which lend an air of interest to the fort.
The main gate is small and unadorned, and opens on to a wide, open and undulating plateau. Inside the fort, the church, once dedicated to St. Anthony, has disappeared and inside only a few signs exist of the barracks and housing that once filled this vast area. The wide expanse of open space is only a tumble of stones, where a few herds of goats graze and cashew trees grow.
The fort got popularized after the Bollywood blockbuster movie Dil Chahta Hai was filmed here and has now become a popular tourist spot offering a great view of the sunset, since it has a limitless view of the Arabian Sea from its western walls and a spectacular view over the peninsula, the River and the beaches.
Legend:
There is a very interesting story told about Sambhaji’s conquest of this fort. Since the fort is built using the natural slopes of the terrain, it was thought that the enemies of the fort would be unable to scale its walls. However, the shrewd and canny Maratha leader had his men cling to 1.5m long monitor lizards and so easily breached the forts walls.
It is said that the Portuguese general in charge of the fort was so taken aback and reluctantly impressed, that he surrendered the fortification without firing a single shot.
