At present the fort is situated at a top most point built with stones. Tippu after building a stone fort called this as “Jafrabad”. In the
year 1790 Veerarajendra took back this fort to his custody. From then
onwards it was in the hands of Haleri kings till 1834. Afterwards British
captured it. There was a Veerabhadra temple to the south of the fort,
which was later on occupied by the British, who converted it into a
prayer hall. Lingaraja, who ruled Kodagu (Coorg) after Veerarajendra rebuilt
a palace in between the year 1812-1814 with brick and mortar. During
British rule, the palace was renovated twice. In 1933, a portico to park
the commissioner’s car and a clock tower was also built. At present
different offices of the district administration are lodged here.
Omkareshwara temple in Madikeri:
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In 1820 a significant building built by Lingarajendra was Omkareshwara
temple. This has both Islamic and Gothic style of architecture. There
is a tank in front of the temple. There is a footpath leading to a small “Mantap”. The surrounding place is abode with peace. There is a story
behind building of this temple. It is said Lingarajendra killed an
honest and pious Brahmin to fulfill his political ambitions. That Brahmin
became a “Brahmarakshasa” and started teasing the king with troubles. It
left the king only when the king brought a “Shivalinga” from Kashi and
installed it after building a temple. The shivalinga was named as “Omkareshwara” and regular rituals were performed. The bars of the windows
of the temple were made of “Panchaloha” and an alphabet “lim” has been
placed in between the bars. Four minars have been built on four corners
of the temple and the central minar is like a globe, which anybody can
see.
The Graveyard (Samadhi) of kings:
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To the north of Mahadevpet in Madikeri city, there is a mount of mud
having Samadhi of Kings. There we can see the samadhis of
Doddaveerarajendra, his wife and Lingarajendra. His brother Lingarajendra completed
the samadhi started by Doddaveerarajendra. Sannaveeraraja built
Lingarajendra’s samadhi in the year 1820.
In the year 1834, in addition to king’s samadhis, “samadhis” were built
for diwans Teppadikeponnappa and “Rajguru” Rudrappa. We can see
samadhis built for army chief Biddanda Bopu, who was the commander-in-chief
for the army of Doddaveeraraja and Chikkaveeraraja and his son Somaiaha’s
samadhi too. On the samadhi of Biddanda Bopu, there is a plate carved
in Kannada praising him for his bravery shown in the wars fought against
Tipu Sultan.
All the samadhis of kings are in Islamic style and there is an alphabet “lim” in between two bars of windows.
Raja seat:
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This is a place situated in the heart of Madikeri, where the kings used
to spend their evening time enjoying the natural beauty. This is a
place, from where you can see the far off green hills and the paddy fields,
which are there in valleys. The tar roads look like serpents, which run
between the thick forests. It is a very good place from where we can
see the snows and clouds moving on the top of green hills. There is no
other place from where we can see the wonderful sunset and enjoy the
beauty of nature. The Government has many plans to make this place more
beautiful.
Bhagamandala:
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This is a pilgrimage center situated 39 kms to the west of Madikeri. To
reach this place there are enough good roads from both Madikeri and
Veerarajpet. This is a place, where Kannika and Sujyothi, the two
tributaries to Cauvery join. This is known as “Triveni Sangama”. Near to this
sangama, there are four temples, where Eshwara, Subramanya, Vishnu and
Ganapathi are installed.
This is also known as “Bhagundeshwara Kshetra”. The pilgrims before
going to Talakaveri take a dip in the sangama and perform “Karmas”
(rituals) to their ancestors. (Known as “pindapradhana”). During the Cauvery
festival and Tula Sankramana, tourists and pilgrims will assemble here
in large numbers. There is a stone “Shasana” carved in Tamil language
inside “Bhagundeshwara” temple. In between the year 1785-1790 it seems
that Tipu had converted it into a fort and had a company of his army. He
had named Bhagamandala as “Afesalabad”. In 1790 King Doddaveeraraja
took Bhagamandala back after having a fierce battle for five days. During
the time of this battle there was a damage caused breaking three copper
plates by the “Firangis” directly handled by Doddaveeraraja, which were
later on replaced by four silver plates. The style of the temples built
in Malayali style brings the memory of temples in the far off Nepal.
Talakaveri:
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After performing the “Karmas” to the ancestors taking a bath at
Bhagamandala, one has to tread about 8 kms towards Brahmagiri hills, where one
can land up at the birthplace of river Cauvery known as Talakaveri.
This Brahmagiri is situated amidst green hills. There is a parapet wall of
30 by 3 feet to a tank. There is another tank adjacent to this, which
is of a square 2 and ½ feet. It is in this tank that Cauvery takes her
birth and flows. As per the local puranas, every year on a particular
day and at a particular time the river Cauvery springs out and gives “Darshan” to her devotees. This is on 17th October every year. That day is
known as “Tula Sankramana”.
There are temples at Talakaveri of Agasthyeshwara and Lord Ganapathi.
The Brahmagiri hill at the birthplace of Cauvery is about 300-feet
height. It is believed that “Saptha Rishis” had gone for a penance here and
got “Moksha”. In evidence of this we can see seven “agni kundas” even
today.
In earlier times, only young people could have climbed the Brahmagiri
hills but now the Madikeri Lion’s Club have put about 435 stone steps
and has made it easy for the pilgrims to go on top and have a view of the
natural beauty. We can see Kudremukh, Chamundi Hills of Mysore and
Vainad hills of Malbar and if there is good clear weather, we can have a
clear view of Nilgiri Hills and Arabian Sea from the peak of Brahmagiri.
Chettalli:
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This is in the Madikeri-Siddapur road about 24 kms from Madikeri. There
is a modern research center for agriculture . It is spread in an area
of about 170 acres. There is a coffee research center also.
Iggutappa devara betta:
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About 32 kms from Madikeri. This is situated near Ayyangeri forest in “padithara valley”. There is a peak, which is a pilgrimage center and a
holy place for both Kodavas and Hindus. The deity Subramanya is called “Iggutappa” by the kodavas. The people of this district perform special
poojas frequently. Irpu:
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This is a very important holy place and pilgrimage center situated at
48 kms from Veerarajpet(Virajpet is about 30 kms from MAdikeri) very
near to the Kurchi village of South Canara on the banks of
Lakshmanthirtha, where a Shiva temple had been constructed, the deity, it is believed
was installed by Sriramachandra himself. On Mahashivarathri people from
all over the district assemble here, after taking a dip in the river
Lakshmanthirtha they offer poojas to Lord Shiva. Around Irpu towards
Vainad there is another peak Brahmagiri Shikara, which is known for its
natural beauty.
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