World’s largest cannon (Bara Gazi Toph). Kalabaragi Fort, Karnataka

Longest cannon, Bara Gazi Toph, Fort Kalaburagi .Deccan Digest

Longest cannon, Bara Gazi Toph, Fort Kalaburagi .thehindu.com

Above image: Rehman Patel, researcher, Indo-Islamic Art of North Karnataka, Mohammad Ayazuddin Patel, national award-winning artist, measuring the Bara Gazi Toph (cannon) atop the fort in Kalaburagi (formerly Gulbarga)...............................

The Indian subcontinent in the last 2000 plus years had been ruled by various kings, maharajahs, Sultans. Nawabs and finally by the European colonists, particularly, the English who ruled the vast land for more than 200 years. Hence, India is home to thousands of monuments, both religious and non religious. The latter includes colonial buildings, forts, palaces along with armory, artillery, etc. Equally, the Indian rulers, especially in the northern states like Rajasthan and western states like

Bara Gazi Toph (cannon) Fort Kalaburagi Journeys across Karnataka

Maharashtra and Gujarat had lots of formidable forts built and equipped them with powerful cannons backed by a big army to defend their land as they were vulnerable to raids from the Delhi Muslim rulers and from the NW frontier states.

Longest cannon Bara Gazi Toph, Fort Kalaburagi, Karnataka YouTube

The Bahmani Sultanate, the independent Islamic state of the Deccan , now part of the present day North Karnataka was no exception to it. They ruled the land for about 191 years (1347-1538 A.D.) With the arrival of Portuguese colonists on the western coast of India, the Bahmani rulers became more vulnerable to raids and attacks by the Portuguese army. So they had kept powerful artillery weapons as a deterrent against the enemies. Sultan Allauddin Hasan Bahman Shah, between 1327 and 1424 of the Bahmani Sultanate, was the builder of The Bara Gazi Toph (cannon) located atop the 14th century fort built by him in Kalaburagi ( formerly called Gulbarga city). It measures 29 ft in length, with a circumference of 7.6 ft and is believed to be the largest cannon in the world according to three researchers at Kalaburagi Fort, Mohammad Ayajuddin Patel, Rehman Patel and Mohammad Ismail, who conducted a study on the cannons in the fort and found the 29-feet long Bara Gazi Toph.

The cannon, is made of an alloy of (Panchdhatu) - five metals and measures 2 ft in diameter and is 7 inches thick. There were countless metal experts living in the Bahmani sultanate then. The cannon had 20 rings on its top portion for its movement. During the war time it needed twenty soldiers to pull the cannon. Now it is left with only 5 rings and it is due to lack of security on the part pf the government. According to Mr. Ayazuddin, a national award-winning artist the weight of the cannon would be 80 tones.

Mr. Ayazuddin Patel, a national award-winning artist said that according to the Guinness Book of World Record, the Tsar Cannon in Russia is the world’s largest cannon. The Jaivana Cannon in Jaipur in India is said to be the 10th largest cannon.
The Bara Gazi Toph cannon. which is 6 ft larger than the Jagadamba Bhavani Toph located at the Koulas Fort in Nizamabad district in Telangana, was claimed to be the largest cannon in the world in 2013.
The following are the big cannons in the world:

Tsar Cannon (17.5 feet) 15th century Russia

Pumhart von Steyr (259 cm) 15th Century, Austria

The Basilic-Ottoman (732 cm) Turkish

Faule Mette (181 cm) 15th century, Germany

Malik-e-Maidan (14.6 feet) 16th century, Bijapur, India

Dulle Griet (345 cm) 14th century, Belgium, Europe

Dardanelles Gun (518 cm) 15th century, Turkish

Mons Meg (4.6 m) 15th century, Scottish, Scotland

Faule Grete (250 cm) 15th century,

Jaivana (20.2 feet) 18th century, Jaipur, India

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the State Archaeology Department have not taken any serious steps to make it a popular destination for the tourists and, for no reason, the largest and deadliest cannon in the world kept in the fort in

Kalaburagi is in a state of neglect and lack of periodic care. It is the responsibility of the ASI to protect this historical cannon and take steps to recognize it as one of the longest cannons in the world. It is not properly barricaded, so trespassing by the ant-social people may ruin the surroundings. A proper roof-cover is a must to protect the cannon from harsh weather conditions.