Pages

Saturday, June 15, 2019

Dalmadal Canon, Bishnupur, West Bengal

Dalmadal Canon, Bishnupur, West Bengal
Dalmadal Canon is a large canon located in the central place of Bishnupur town. It is an important landmark of the town. It was manufactured by the Malla Kings. Dalmadal Canon is situated very near to Chinnamasta Temple. Dalmadal Canon is located at about 1.5 Kms from Bishnupur Bus Stand, 4 Kms from Bishnupur Junction Railway Station and 2 Kms from Bishnupur New Bus Stand.


Legends & History
Bir Hambir, the 49th King of Malla dynasty, was very popular. He was a contemporary of the Mughal emperor, Akbar. He converted to Vaishnavism. This canon was manufactured by him in order to protect his kingdom from the Marathas. It is said he spent huge amount of money to manufacture this. In Bengali language, the word 'Dala' means group (enemies in this context) and 'Mardan' means destroy. The canon was probably named as Dalmardan meaning the destroyer of enemies, which later became Dalmadal. As per another theory, the Malla kings used to have a lot of hailstone. One such hailstone of their deity was called as Dalmadal. The canon was probably named after that hailstone.


Gopal Singh (1730-45 CE) was a successor of Bir Hambir. He was very religious but was not very successful in handling problems. During his reign, the Marathas invaded Bishnupur. As per the legend, Lord Madan Mohan (Krishna) fired this weapon with his own hands to protect the town from the Marathas and their leader, Bhaskara Rao. After downfall of the Malla dynasty the royal cannon was carelessly half-buried under the red soil of Bishnupur. But the legend who bears the dormant history of wars in Bengal, established itself over the surface again by the help of the British rulers in 1919.
For brief details, please refer below link;
The Canon
This huge canon is around 12.5 feet and was made with 63 iron rings. It is currently protected by the Archaeological Survey of India whose plaque, like everywhere else where it protects ancient wonders, gives a considerably detailed history about the make and prowess of the canon.


Connectivity
For brief details, please refer below link;
Location

No comments:

Post a Comment