Kirti Stambh

Kirti Stambh is a 15th century tower situated at Chittorgarh fort in Rajasthan, India. The 22 metre high tower was built by a rana khumbha to commemorate his victory against Mahmud Khilji of Malwa.

Chittor in Rajsthan is the most famous of all forts in India. It is famous for the story of Padmini taking part in jauhar when Alauddin Khilji had besieged the fort.

Actually Chittor has a history going back several centuries. It was an ancient center of Jain tradition. Chittor is adjacent to the ancient city of Madhyamika. The Jain inscriptions at Mathura from the Kushana period (1-3rd cent) mention a "Majjhimilla" branch of the "Kottiya" gana, indicating that it was a major Jain center. The famous Acharya Haribhadra Suri (6th cent) was born in Chittor and wrote "Dhurtopakhyana" there. There was a scholar Elacharya at Chittor from whom Vira-senacharya (9th cent) learned the ancient Shat-khandagama and Kashayapahuda. Vira-senacharya later the famous "Dhavala" and "Jayadhavala" on the basis of these books. It was the residence of Jinavallabha who propagated the Vidhimarga in the 12th cent. In the 15-17th century, it was the seat of a Bhattaraka. The tower is built in the Solanki style. It is 30 feet at the base and narrows down to 15 feet at the top . It is dated approximately around the 12th century AD. Kirti Stambh is older than another tower in the same fort, known as the Vijay Stambha (Tower of Victory).