Eight inscriptions have been found on the rocks close to the Narasimha temple located within the fort premises. These inscriptions are seriously damaged, but appear to be from the reign of the
Western Chalukya king
Vikramaditya VI (r. c. 1076–1126 CE). The earliest of the existing fortifications and other structures can be dated to the late Chalukya period. The fort later came under the control of the
Vijayanagara Empire. During the reign of
Venkata II (r. c. 1584–1614), the Vijayanagara lost the fort to the
Qutb Shahi dynasty. The
Mughals appear to have controlled the fort after their conquest of the Qutb Shahi capital
Golconda. Around 1746 CE, the
Maratha general
Murari Rao captured the fort, and made it his permanent residence eight years later. He repaired the fort, and commissioned the
stucco ornamentation of the small gateways. In 1775 CE, the
Mysore ruler
Hyder Ali attacked and besieged the fort. After two months, Murari Rao was forced to surrender, as he ran out of water supplies. The fort later came under the control of the
East India Company. Its administrator
Thomas Munro was buried at the cemetery located at the foothill. == Demographics ==