SLC28-W4 | Worldwide Travel Explorer : Explore Historical & Cultural Spots in your country.

Today, in the 3rd week of Steemit Challenge 28, I will be participating in @max-pro Sir SLC28-W4 | Worldwide Travel Explorer : Explore Historical & Cultural Spots in your country. - competition, I hope everyone enjoys it.

Today I went to the Hajiganj Fort in Narayanganj city. Below is brief and clear information about this historical place—

🏰 Introduction to Hajiganj Fort

Hajiganj Fort is a historical Mughal fort located on the banks of the Shitalakshya River in Narayanganj district. It was built in the 17th century during the Mughal period.

The fort was originally built to prevent pirate attacks.

During the Mughal rule, the river was the main means of trade and communication, so many pirates used to attack there in various ways.

	Entrance

🧱 Architectural Features

• Made of a square structure.

• Made of thick high walls.

• There are towers and surveillance systems for guards.

📍 Location

Narayanganj Sadar is located in a place called Hajiganj, on the banks of the Shitalakshya River, and it has been named in accordance with the name of this place. It is located 1 kilometer away from the Sadar and can be easily reached by rickshaw from the Sadar.

	Field

🌿 Current Status

• Currently, it is one of the historical tourist attractions, but it is open 24 hours a day for locals and tourists. No tickets are required to enter.

• There is a field inside where everyone plays.

• There is a gate at the entrance that has no doors. This gate, made in ancient times, seems to make everyone attractive.

• Since it is open 24 hours a day, everyone comes to visit here at any time, and it is now under the government's control.

Hajiganj Fort is a historical Mughal architectural water fort in Bangladesh. There is some disagreement about when it was built, but it is believed to have been built in the 17th century and played a very important role in the security of Dhaka at that time.

🏛️ History

• Hajiganj Fort is seen as a water fort built by the Mughal emperors, which was built to prevent attacks by Mughal and Portuguese pirates from attacking Dhaka.

• It is a “Triangular Water Fort” — Hajiganj Fort was one of the three water forts, of which Sonakanda Fort and Idrakpur Fort were also part.

• The fort was originally known as Khizirpur.

	Design

🧱 Architecture and Design

Main Structure: It is built of brick and stone moulds and plaster, with a wall surrounding it.

Shape: Although initially a rectangular structure, it has outer walls and round corner towers in several places. And each round has a staircase in front of it.

National Religious Design: Reflects the Mughal style — carved designs on the doors, lotus decorations, designs on the entrances, etc. can be seen.

Defensive Design

Bastions/Towers: There were several round or square towers at the corners, from which the guards could observe the surroundings and fire weapons.

	Old house

	Road

	Mosque

Fast Entrance: The fort had only one entrance, which faced the river; As a result, entry and exit to the fort were easy via the river.

There are no permanent buildings inside the fort — it is believed that soldiers used tents in the past.

Current status

Although the fort wall is eroded or damaged in some places, it still stands permanently and is an interesting place for historical architecture lovers.

My YouTube Video Link

The thing that impressed and attracted me the most when visiting Hajiganj Fort is the extraordinary combination of history and the river-centered defense system.

	War Cannon

	The wounds of war cannons

Particularly striking things are-

The location of the fort along the Shitalakshya River shows how skillfully the rulers of that time used the river for security, while the river was the only means of communication and a natural shield. Seeing the thick walls of the fort and the location of the cannons, I understood how it was designed to prevent pirates and enemy attacks. The large holes for placing cannons, and the conditions for placing such cannons on all four sides, made me interested again.

	Soldiers' stand

The biggest lesson I learned from going here is—
👉 History becomes much more alive when you experience it not just on the pages of books, but in real life, as I was able to demonstrate and understand today.

Another aspect that attracted me was the simple but powerful design of the architecture of the Mughal period—even though there is no extra decoration, there is a deep strategy and strength within it. This has made the fort survive for ages.

All in all, Hajiganj Fort has shown and taught me that our rivers, geography and history—these three together have shaped the past of Bengal.

Real-life moments can be enjoyed only by visiting them. This fort is circular in shape, and there are 6 circular places for soldiers from where they used to stand and watch the enemies, and there are stairs to climb and descend at each place. Currently, since it is open to everyone, they come here to visit. I also went there to visit them.

	Stairs

This is a place much higher than the flat land, so even though there are houses nearby, it looks relatively low, yet this place is still on high ground. This is one of the historical places of our country. There is a road next to it which is suitable for walking. The history of this place is on Wikipedia; I am giving its link below.