Attock Fort (Attock Khurd)

The fort is on a hillside to the left and the Indus River beside it to the right. It was constructed by the Mughal Emperor Akbar and the Persian-Afghan building tradition of Sher Shah Suri visible in Rohtas Fort were followed in the construction of the Attock fort, while at the same time portraying the early Mughal architecture. The fort consists of 4 gates and its parameter wall is 1600m long. The gates are named the Delhi gate, Lahori Gate, Kabuli Gate and Mori Gate. It is a fine representative of the military architecture of Akbar. This fort was built at Attock Khurd during the reign of Mughal Emperor Akbar from 1581 to 1583 CE under the supervision of Khawaja Shamsuddin Khawafi to protect the passage of the River Indus. It was captured by the Marathas in 1758 CE, but was recaptured by Ahmad Shah Duran after the third battle of Panipat in 1761 CE. This fort played very prominent role in Afghan-Sikh wars during the Battle of Attock. It was captured by the Sikhs in 1812 CE and remained their strong hold until they were defeated in 1849 C by the British forces and the fort came under their control. After independence in 1947 Pakistan Army took control of the fort and it became headquarters of the 7th division of Pakistan Army.