Derawar Fort Pakistan

Derawar Fort, Derawar Fort Rd, Derawar, Bahawalpur, Punjab, Pakistan

In the desert of Cholistan, the soldiers are long gone, but one of the most remarkable forts of the medieval world still exists as private property, owned by the royal Abassi family who also keep a necropolis for their family on the property.

Gps Locations 28.7677146

Gps directions / 28.7677146,71.3359361

Derawar Fort (Urdu: قِلعہ دراوڑ‎), is a large square fortress in Ahmadpur East Tehsil, Punjab, Pakistan. Approximately 130 km south of the city of Bahawalpur, the forty bastions of Derawar are visible for many miles in the Cholistan Desert. The walls have a perimeter of 1500 metres and stand up to thirty metres high.

Gps Locations 28.767698

Gps Coordinates / 28.767698,71.3353282

Derawar fort was first built in the 9th century AD by Rai Jajja Bhati, a Hindu Rajput ruler of the Bhati clan, as a tribute to Rawal Deoraj Bhati the king of Jaisalmer and Bahawalpur. The fort was initially known as Dera Rawal, and later referred to as Dera Rawar, which with the passage of time came to be pronounced Derawar, its present name.

Gps Locations 28.7678942

Gps Coordinates / 28.7678942,71.3353362

In the 18th century, the fort was taken over by Muslim Nawabs of Bahawalpur from the Shahotra tribe. It was later rebuilt in its current form in 1732 by the Abbasi ruler Nawab Sadeq Muhammad, but in 1747 the fort slipped from their hands owing to Bahawal Khan's preoccupations at Shikarpur. Nawab Mubarak Khan took the stronghold back in 1804. 1,000 year-old catapult shells were found in the debris near a decaying wall in the fort.

Gps Locations 28.768061

Gps Coordinates / 28.768061,71.3349101

Nawab Sadeq Muhammad Khan Abbasi V, the 12th and last ruler of Bahawalpur state, was born in the fort in 1904.

Gps Locations 28.7683079

Gps Coordinates / 28.7683079,71.3354095

This historically significant fort presents an enormous and impressive structure in the heart of the Cholistan desert, but it is rapidly deteriorating and in need of immediate preventive measures for preservation.

Gps Locations 28.7691284

Gps Coordinates / 28.7691284,71.3351883

Derawar Fort is more than 1 kilometer in circumference and 30 meters high, featuring 40 stunning bastions rising out of the vast expanse of empty desert. Its ramparts are wide and smooth, creating an imposing structure unlikely to be breached by advancing forces and, more useful for modern times, an unique appearance more compelling than typical straight-walled castles.

Gps Locations 28.767389

Gps Coordinates / 28.767389,71.3366897

Gps Locations 28.7687926

Gps Coordinates / 28.7687926,71.3351382

It’s very difficult to reach Derawar Fort in its remote location, and typically one needs to hire a special guide to take them on the full-day journey to the site of the fort. That said, pretty much anyone can go look at it, but to go inside, one needs special permission from the Amir of Bahawalpur, so visitors need to plan ahead to get the full experience.