Diu Fort is known by the name of Prace de Diu amongst the Portuguese. It is one of the prime spots for the travellers who want to check Daman & Diu off their bucket lists. It falls on the coast of the Arabian Sea touching borders with Valsad, Daman and Junagarh, Gujarat.
History of Diu Fort
Hitherto known as Fortaleza se Sao Tome, the fort of Diu has one extensive history to read about. Cutting to the chase as the Portuguese did after almost all the empires were done ruling the land. The Mauryans to Kshatrapas, Guptas and Maitrakas, Chavdas and even the Chaulakyas, Diu has been secular to its emperors. As mentioned in the never-ending transcripts, Diu was taken over by Allaudin Khilji in 1529 from the reign of Rajputs. Later, Bahadur Shah (Sultan of Gujarat) annexed it in 1530. And allied with Portuguese while fighting with Humayun for the territory.
The fort was constructed in the year 1535 by D. Nuno da Cunha and the Turks captured the fort in the year 1538 by attacking it brutally and then the fort was rebuilt by D. Joao de Castro in 1546. Until the year 1561 from the year 1537, the fort was under the control of the Portuguese until they were ousted by the Govt. of India in a military action – Operation Vijay.
Beauty beyond words
Words cannot suffice the stateliness of this structure that consists of cannons and iron shells from the Portuguese period. Sea is all you can see from all three sides and there are three entrances with five windows and a stone gallery. It has this mysterious lighthouse at the end and multiple assemblies that will lure you with their mesmerizing architecture in a way that you won’t be able to decide which one to enter first.
Saint Francis of Assisi Church is instilled on the top of a hill which is now converted into a Hospital but boasts the European architecture in every element of its existence. St. Paul’s Church was last renovated in 1807 but makes for a beautiful composition executed in Baroque style. St. Thomas Church is this gigantic museum holding ancient idols, sculptures and old stone inscriptions.
Diu fort spreads over an area of 5.6 hectares including residences for the noble. There are also prison, warehouses and barracks for soldiers to store their arms and ammunition. There is so much to see that it might take you a couple of hours to roam around and another hour to just stand and look at it in awe.
How to reach Diu?
You can fly down to Diu Airport from any of the major cities of India like Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, etc, or oscillate in the train till Delwada station which is 8 kms away from the Union territory. The bus station is called Jethibai named with relation to Jethalal from Taarak Mehta ka Ulta Chashma. (Just kidding guys ;)). But yes, you can take the bus for Mumbai, Gujarat and other places from this station.
This post is written by Akshita Parihar. She lives in Dharamkot, a hamlet nestled at the foothills of the mighty Himalayas. Akshita documents i.e. photographs and writes about the folks in their natural element. A spiritual seeker and a nihilist. She left Bombay after working in the advertising industry as a copywriter for 4 years to dig in the culture of this country. This anthropology enthusiast also loves to illustrate, dance and hum Leonard Cohen and Johnny cash songs on the guitar.
Thank you Akshita for taking time in between running a cafe at Dharamshala to share your experience and recommendations for people looking to know more about Diu Fort. This isn’t Akshita’s first guest post on the site so if you’re planning to go to Bir then check out her Quick Guide To Bir-Billing in Himachal Pradesh. And, if you’re planning to go to Goa anytime soon and looking for recommendations that does not include beaches then go read Goa Beyond The Beaches.