While exploring Shirur taluka of Pune district and Parner taluka of Nagar district, we get to see a large number of fortress and Nagarkot (city forts). One such fortress and the remains of Nagarkot can be seen in the javala village. This fortress in the javala village is known as Jagirdar Somvanshi fortress. The jawala village is 82 km from Pune city via Shirur and 17 km from Parner. At one time the jawala village may have been situated within the protection of ramparts but today these ramparts are completely destroyed and only two gates remain. There is a stream on one side of the village and there is a market on the bank of this stream. After entering the jawala village from this market, one can reach the fortress after crossing two gates. Both these doors are built at right angles at some distance from each other and the first door is facing west and the second door is facing north. ... Both these gates are still in decent condition with only their round arches having collapsed. The ramparts around both the gates have been destroyed with passage of time. Both these doors are built out of stone and the height of the inner door is higher than the outer door. There is a temple of Maruti in front of the second door and there is a shrine next to the door. A short distance from here is the Jagirdar fortress. This square shaped fortress is spread over one acre and there are total six bastions, four at the four ends of the fortress and two near the gate. The north-facing door of the fortress and the two bastions next to it are built in stone and this work is done very neatly. The height of the ramparts is 25-30 feet and the lower part of it is made of stones and the upper part is made of white clay. The arch of the door is carved with a lotus on both sides and a sculpture holding an elephant in its claws. It seems that these stones with its sculptures, lotus and other carvings are from another old construction. The main door still has a wooden sub-door. Inside the door there are guard rooms on both sides. Inside the fortress are newly built houses of Jagirdar descendants and the original remains inside have been completely destroyed. In the rampart to the left of the door is a small enclosed stairway leading to the top of door as well as the bastion. Except for the ramparts in the direction of the door, the ramparts on the other sides have collapsed to some extent, so it is not possible to walk around on it. The entire village can be seen from the upper part of the door. 15 minutes is enough to see the entire fortress. Some families in Maharashtra still bear their dynastic names, the Somvanshi Kshatriya family of Javle being one of them. Although history does not know exactly when this family came to Maharashtra, this Somvanshi family came into contact with Bajirao Peshwa during the northern campaigns of the Marathas. Davalji Somvanshi of the Somvanshi family is mentioned in the battle of Palkhed with the Nizam. A branch of this Somvanshi family became permanent in a nearby village. Damajirao is considered the progenitor of this branch. His son Padmajirao Somvanshi got the Deshmukhi (responsibility) of javala village on 31 January 1859 after the uprising of 1857, while Anandrao Krishna Rao Somvanshi got the Jahagir of jawala village as a reward on 2 April 1872. But it is not known for what act this reward was given to him. As the javala village is the village of his Jagiri, he is known here as Somvanshi Jagirdar.
© Suresh Nimbalkar