A pillow of rock

Dindigul's name is usually explained from the rock itself: thindu, a pillow or headrest, and kal, rock. The great bare dome of granite rising from the town was an obvious stronghold on the road between the Kongu country and Madurai, and the Madurai Nayak ruler Muthukrishnappa Nayak built the hill fort on it in 1605, with a second fort at its foot.

Changing hands

In the 18th century Dindigul passed to the Kingdom of Mysore. Hyder Ali, who served as its governor here before he rose to power, and later Tipu Sultan valued the fort as a frontier post, and it was fought over repeatedly in the wars of the period. After the defeat of Mysore, the East India Company took full control by 1799 and garrisoned the fort for some decades. Today it is a protected monument of the Archaeological Survey of India.

On the summit

Steps cut into the rock lead up through gateways to the ramparts, where you can walk past barracks, a gunpowder store, cannon points and spy holes looking out over the town and the plains. At the top stands an abandoned temple with carved pillars, its deity long since moved to the town below. Come early: there is little shade on the climb, and the light over the Sirumalai and Palani hills is best in the morning.