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This town
Padmanabhapuram, is surrounded by a fort with an area of 187 acres. The
ancient capital of Travancore might be constructed before AD 1601. The
palace with an area of seven acres, is situated in the very centre on
the Padmanabhapuram Fort, amidst hills, dales and rivers. The palace
which is situated in Kanyakumari District is under the control of a
Curator of the Archaeological Department of Kerala Government.
The fort which was built with mud originally was dismantled and
reconstructed with granite by Maharaja Marthanda Varma. The height of
the walls varies from 15� to 24� according to the inclination of the
ground.
Entrance Hall:-
The entrance to the main edifice is controlled by another ornamental
gateway with retainers for watch and ward. The gabled entrance has
wooden ceiling profusely ornamented with lotus medallions. The most
striking feature of the entrance is the clock-tower which is one of the
oldest in India erected in 1832 A.D. and still continues to be in
working order.
The first floor the " Poomuham" has a council chamber or "Mantrasala"
which is meant for holding discussions with ministers and prominent
citizens. The floor off this hall, which is polished with the admixture
of coconut shell ashes, eggs fermented in molasses and lime reflects the
figure like a mirror. If you want to feel the effect of nature then you
have to visit this once. Next to the Mantrasala is the Dancing Hall
which was used exclusively for the members of the royal family.
Have ever your heard the king who fed 2000 poor peoples daily ? The King
ruled this part did this.
Feeding 2000 peoples in a single Day at a time !!!! Amazing, isn't it?
The dinning hall which is near to dancing hall is called "uttupura".
With two floors it can accommodate about 2000 people at a time. As the
king fed poor peoples he was called as "Dharmaraja" (means generous
king)
Uppirika Malika : -
The most attractive building in the whole palace is the �Uppirika Malika�
which consists of three storied. ' Uppirika� is the abbreviated term of
�Muppirika� which means the residence of the eldest member of the
family. A wooden cot is erected on the top most floor in the belief that
�Lord Vishnu� the chief deity. The first floor contains a wooden cot
made of 64 medicinal plants, on which Maharaja used to sleep. The
medicinal cot was presented to Maharaja �Marthanda Varma� by the Dutch
East India Company in 1750, as a mark of friendship.
The Navarathri Mandapa: -
To the west of the Zuppirika Mandapa is the Navarathri Mandapa which is
a spacious hall of exquisitely beautiful granite pillars with drooping
pendants reminiscent of the Nayakar style of architecture. In the
Navarathri Mandapa, performances of Bharatha Natya and musical recitals
took place in the royal presence.
Special Attractions :
Landmark : 30 Km from
Kanyakumari
60 Km south of Trivandrum
It is located near to
Trivandrum-Kanyakumari highway.
Other Nearest Places of Interest :
| Nearest Place |
Distance from
Ulakkai AruviWater Falls |
| Kanyakumari |
25 Km |
| Muttom Beach |
12 Km |
| Tirparapu Water Falls |
10 Km |
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How
to Reach :
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| Nearest Airport |
Nearest Railway station |
| Trivandrum (State: Kerala) |
Nagercoil (State : Tamilnadu) |
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