Type: Monument - Fort
Province: Azad Jammu and Kashmir
District: Neelum
Period: Historic
Relative Chronology: 1799-1849 CE
Description: The site of Sharda Fort is located on the left bank of river Neelum, in tehsil Sharda. The Madhumati stream passes from the south-east of the fort and joins the main river at 150 m away. The fort occupies a small irregular mound. It can be easily viewed from the Sharda temple in the east. The surrounding area of the fort is occupied by distinctive architecture of wooden and mud houses of village Sharda, mostly inhabited by the Hindko speakers. The fort has square enclosure, with four bastion towers in each corner. The octagonal shaped bastion on the south-east corner of the fort is relatively preserved while the remaining three are almost gone. The tower consists of two storeys and a roof. The wall of the tower has loopholes for viewing and firing. The defensive wall of the fort on the front side is rectangular in shape. There are remains of an entrance in the northern exterior wall of the fort. The material of the construction is the river pebbles, wooden frames and mud. The mud has been used to hold the river pebbles and stones. The large wooden logs of deodar were used in the roof of the fort. The roof of the watch tower is made up of wood and mud. The interior side of the roof is layered with birch bark and plastered over with the thick layer of mud mortar. The fort along with watch tower was built on a strategically important location as a track from Kashmir to Chilas. There is also a direct route from the right bank of Neelum River on the opposite side of the fort along the Sargan Nullah leading to northern areas of Pakistan. In the past, the fort was a complex of barracks and a small garrison consisting over few dozen soldiers with an officer was deployed here. The ruined structure of the Dogra Fort belongs to the 1830s. According to M.A Stein, a square rubble-built structure which stands almost opposite to the temple, on the left bank of the Mudhmuti, was erected in Maharaja Gulab Singh time, to guard the valley against the inroads of marauding Cilasis who, in the Sargan valley, had a convenient route to descend by. The fort must have been constructed on an ancient settlement as evident from the large number of potshards, lying on the surface of the structure of the fort. The structure of the fort is mostly destroyed. The remaining tower bastion of the fort is also partially damaged. The debris of the fallen wall is scattered around. Only the survived bastion is in good state of preservation. The fort belongs to the Dogra Period i.e., 19th century CE.
Latitude: 34.791643414
Longitude: 74.192578312
Ownership: Government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir
Legal Status: Protected by Azad Jammu & Kashmir Preservation and Protection of Antiquities Act, 1986
Title of Publication: Threat to the Cultural Heritage of Pakistan Survey and Documentation of Tangible and Intangible Heritage of Azad Jammu & Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan
Published In: Taxila Institute of Asian Civilizations, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad 2020
Year of Publication: 2020
Bibliography/Reference: Khan, Ashraf, Ghani-ur-Rahman
