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Monuments of Kurnool

The monuments of Kurnool are few in number but interesting to note. Kurnool is the chief town of the Kurnool district in Andhra Pradesh. It lies 34 miles from Dhone on a rocky spit of land at the confluence of the Hindri River and Tungabhadra river. Kurnool was once the capital of Andhra Pradesh from 1953 to 1956 when Hyderabad took its place as capital. The ruins of an ancient fort are still to be seen in the town and rank among the chief attractions here.

The Odders, who used to cart stones for the construction of the Alampur temple in the twelfth century AD, used the site of the town as a haling ground. Here, they used to grease their cartwheels with oil which was locally supplied by the local sellers of oil. They were the ones who called the place `Kandanavolu`, and in course of time it came to be known as Kurnool.

The monuments in Kurnool include the ruins of the ancient fort, Kondareddy Buruju, the Mausoleum of Abdul Wahab and a couple of temples and mosques.

The chief highlight of the city is the remains of a royal fort. It belonged to the medieval kingdom of the Vijayanagar Empire from the 14th to ten 16th century. A number for Persian and Arabic inscriptions are contained herein which through light on various aspects of historical interest. The fort was dismantled in 1862, but four bastions and three gates survive.

Within the old fort area are the ruins of the Palace of the Nawabs. Found here is the palace of Gopal Raju, the last Hindu rulers of Kurnool.

The Kondareddy Buruju is a prominent landmark in Kurnool.It was originally a part of the Kurnool fort.Buruju means a turret. Story goes that Konda Reddy, a revolutionary who had opposed the Nawab of Kurnool had been imprisoned here. He died in imprisonment and the fort was named after him. The monument is built in the shape of a massive pillar with arches. Two flights of steps are found here. One leads to the first storey and the other leads to the second one. There is an underground passage here which is said to lead to Alampur.A beautiful view of the city can be obtained from the summit. The fort is protected under the ancient monuments protection act.

The most interesting building is the dome-shaped Mausoleum of Abdul Wahab. It was built in 1570 and is an imitation of one at Bijapur which commemorates the first Nawab, who converted many former temples into mosques.

There are numerous mosques and a fine ornamental fountain presented by the Maharaja of the Maharaja of Vizianagram, who was renowned for his interest in providing free fresh drinking-water for the needy. Major places of historical interest include- the Sai Baba Temple on the banks of the river Tungabhadra near the District Court is famous as Dakshina Shirdi, Sri Nagareswara Temple for Nagara and Eswara, the main god of Kurnool. Sri Venkateswara Temple, Sri Lakshmi Venkateswara Temple is a Venkata Ramana colony, Sri Nimishambha Temple, Sri Ayappa Swamy Temple, Sri Ganapathi Temple among the Hindu places of worship.

Amongst the Muslim holy sites are Roja Dargah, Lal Masjid, Jumma Masjid which is one of the oldest Masjid of Kurnool, Masjid-e-Gounda, Gadda, Masjid-e-Quba, Gadda, Gopal Diddi Dargah, Dargah Ameen Baba. A Church can also be seen here, known as the Coles Centennial Baptist Church.

In 1750 the town was destroyed by de Bussy. Though the town of Kurnool does not have too many monuments, the few that it does harbour are well worth a visit.