Rani Tal, Nahan
lake · 315 m away
viewpoint4 min from Nahan
Nahan Fort
Nahan Fort, also called Nahan Palace, was the seat of the Sirmaur rulers who founded the town in 1621. Gurkhas sacked it in 1810; the outer wall still stands.
What it is
Nahan Fort, also called Nahan Palace, was the seat of the Sirmaur rulers. Raja Karam Prakash founded Nahan in 1621 and made it the capital of Sirmur, then a princely state. The fort sits inside the town, so its wall runs along ordinary streets, with shops and parked scooters beside it.
Photos: Harvinder Chandigarh (CC BY-SA 4.0) — via Wikimedia Commons, resized.
Getting there
About 4 minutes by road from the centre point we measure from, roughly 1.4 km, and easily reached on foot from most of the town. It is a stop on both the one-day plan and the two-day plan.
What to look at
The crenellated outer wall is the part you can see from the street, and it is worth walking along. Signs on the walls mark the property as private, so treat the wall and the gate as the visit and ask locally before assuming you can go in.
The history is the real interest. In 1810 Gurkha forces under Ranjor Singh Thapa attacked and ransacked the fort and palace. They are reported to have used the recovered material to build Jaitak Fort, the hill fortress about 15 km away that later saw a major battle of the Anglo-Nepalese War.
When to go
March–April or October–November, when Nahan is dry and mild. See when to visit Nahan for the monthly figures.
Around it
Rani Tal is the town's central pond and temple. Trilokpur Temple is the day trip out. For costs and timing across every stop, see things to do in Nahan.
Plans that include this
All 2 plans that stop here →
Day plan · First visitClassic
One day in Nahan — Nahan Fort and Rani Tal
A one-day Nahan plan: Nahan Fort, the former Sirmaur royal palace, and Rani Tal, the town's own pond and temple that gave Nahan its name. Free copyable plan.
Best Mar–Apr · Oct–Nov
See the plan →
1 night · 2 days · First visitClassic
Two days in Nahan — Nahan Fort, Rani Tal and Trilokpur Temple
A two-day Nahan plan: Nahan Fort and Rani Tal on day one, then Trilokpur Temple, a major Sirmaur pilgrimage site built in 1573, on day two. Free copyable plan.
Best Mar–Apr · Oct–Nov
See the plan →Nearby places
Questions people ask
What is Nahan Fort?
Nahan Fort, also known as Nahan Palace, was the royal seat of the Sirmaur rulers. Raja Karam Prakash founded the town in 1621 and made it the capital of Sirmur, then a princely state. What survives today is largely the crenellated outer wall, in the middle of the streets.
Who attacked Nahan Fort, and what happened to it?
Gurkha forces under Ranjor Singh Thapa attacked and ransacked Nahan Fort and its palace in 1810. Jaitak Fort, about 15 km away, is reported to have been built from the material recovered from the ruined Nahan Fort, which links the two places.
Can you go inside Nahan Fort?
Do not count on it. Signs on the walls mark the property as private, and access is not guaranteed. Treat the outer wall and the street it runs along as the reliable part of the visit, and ask locally if you want to know whether any part is open.