In early 1100 AD, the Abyssinian
Sidis established the Janjira and Jafarabad state. Major historical figures from Murud-Janjira include men such as Sidi Hilal,
Yahya Saleh and
Sidi Yaqub. noticeboard at fort entrance
Itbarrao Koli & Malik Ambar of Janjira Itbarrao Koli was the
Patil of Janjira Island and a chief of the
Kolis who built this island in the 15th century for Kolis to live on peacefully away from pirates. The origin the old Wooden Garrison can be traced down to the fifteenth century when some local fishermen of Rajapuri constructed a small wooden fort on a huge rock to protect themselves and their families from the pirates. However, the
Nizam Shahi Sultan of
Ahmadnagar Sultanate wanted to capture this wooden garrison purely for strategic reasons, and when his general Piram Khan captured it,
Malik Ambar—his spokesperson who was also an Abyssinian regent of Siddi origin—decided to construct a solid rock fortress in place of the original wooden structure. This fort was originally called Jazeera Mahroob Jazeera. The island fortress was under control of the
Adil Shahi dynasty of
Bijapur Sultanate until the reign of Ibrahim II when the Janjira fort was lost to the Siddis. At some point, Yaqut Khan were appointed as
Nawab of Janjira island state. In 1539, According to accounts written by the Portuguese admiral
Fernão Mendes Pinto, the
Ottoman fleet that first arrived in
Aceh (prior to the
Ottoman expedition to Aceh led by
Kurtoğlu Hızır Reis), included 200
Malabar sailors from
Janjira to aid the region of
Batak and
Maritime Southeast Asia. According to
Ottoman records, a combined force from the Ottomans and Janjira mariners routed a Portuguese fleet in 1587 at
Yemen. From this moment onwards Janjira played an important role in resisting Portuguese influence in the region. In the late 1600's, during the rule of the Mughal emperor
Aurangzeb, Sidi Yaqut received a subsidy of 400,000 rupees. He also owned large ships which weighed 300–400 tons. According to records, these ships were unsuitable for fighting on the open sea against European warships, but their size allowed for transporting soldiers for amphibious operations.
Independence In 1621, the Siddis of Janjira became exceptionally powerful as an autonomous state to the point that the commander of Janjira, Siddi Ambar the Little, successfully defied his overlord
Malik Ambar's attempt to replace him. Siddi Ambar the Little is accordingly considered the first Nawab of Janjira state. Despite repeated attempts by the
Portuguese, the
British and the
Maratha to subdue the island fortress, all of these efforts failed to displace the island's Siddi rulers. The Siddis were themselves allied with the
Mughal Empire. One example of such a failed attack was the account of the 10,000 soldiers who were sent by the Maratha
Peshwa Moropant Trimbak Pingle, and who were roundly repulsed by the Janjira army in 1676. During this
Maratha assault, the Marathas, led by Chatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj, attempted to scale the
granite walls but failed in their attempts.
Chatrapati Shivaji maharaj's son
Chatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj even attempted to tunnel his way into the fort and was very close to capturing the fort. His attempt was thwarted when a Mughal army attacked the Maratha capital city, forcing Sambhaji to withdraw his forces from the siege and return to the Maratha capital. He built another sea fort in 1676, known as
Padmadurg or Kasa fort, to challenge Janjira. It is located northwest of Janjira. Padmadurg took 22 years to build and is constructed on 22 acres of land. In January 1682, Sambhaji, the second Maratha ruler, laid siege against the Siddis of Janjira. He dispatched Dadaji Raghunath Deshpande, a Maratha general, to commence the operation and promised pledged to appoint him as one of the eight Pradhans of the Maratha empire if he successfully captured the Janjira fort. During the siege, Sambhaji tried different strategies such as assigning some of his allies to fake defection to the Janjira side, Filling a channel of eight hundred yards wide and thirty feet deep with stones and rock fragments, aiming to create a causeway for the assaulting parties. Around 1731, the local
Thanedar (ruler) who was an ally in the Muslim Mughal garrison, declared independence. Thereafter the
Thanedar and the local
Kolis were devoted to piracy, repeatedly attacking ships and disturbing commercial traffic from
Surat. Sidi Hilal, the prince of the dynasty of
Janjira which was then ruling Surat, attacked the Kolis, destroyed their boats and captured them demanding a hefty fine. In the year 1736, the
Siddis of Murud-Janjira set out in a battle with the forces of the Peshwa
Baji Rao. On 19 April 1736, the Maratha warriors Nanaji Surve and
Chimaji Appa attacked the gathering forces in the encampments of the Siddis near
Rewas. Chimaji Appa advised Siddi Sat to run from battle field otherwise Nanajirao will have no mercy on him but Siddi Sat captured Nanajirao Surve and took him to Sagargad fort. Nanajirao rescued himself and beheaded Siddi Sat along with his entire family and his army. Nanajirao Surve was rewarded with village name Kusgao. When the confrontation ended, 1,500 Siddis, including their leader Siddi Sat, had been killed. Peace was brokered in September 1736, but the Siddis were confined to only
Janjira,
Gowalkot, and
Anjanvel, with their power greatly reduced. The forts of Gowalkot and Anjanvel were then captured by
Tulaji Angre in 1745, and the Siddis only remaining possession was the island of Janjira. However, Janjira remained unconquered until it became part of Indian territory after independence from the British in 1947. == Gallery ==