Palakkad Fort

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Palakkad-Fort-outside-view.JPG

Fort dating from 1766, built by Hyder Ali of Mysore. In 1784, after a siege which lasted eleven days, the British Colonel Fullerton stormed the Fort. Later it fell into the hands of the Zamorin’s troops, but was recaptured by the British in 1790. This well-preserved fort is also known as Tipu's (Tipu Sultan, son of Hyder Ali) Fort.

There is a large ground between the Fort and the Palakkad Town hall, known as Kota Maidanam (Fort Grounds). The ground, which had once served as a stable for the elephants and horses of Tipu's army, is now used to stage cricket matches, exhibitions and public meetings. An open air auditorium called "Rappadi", currently under the preservation of the Archaeological Survey of India, is also located within the spacious grounds of the Fort. Additionally, there is a children's park on one side of the Fort.

There is a small Anjaneya (Lord Hanuman) temple inside the fort that attracts a number of devotees.
One of the rare picture by the uploader

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Palakkad_Fort-temple-inside.JPG

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Palakkad-Fort-inside-view22.JPG

The Palakkad Sub Jail is also located within the fort.And civil supplies office also functions inside
It is said that Hyder Ali had plan to build the famous Palakkad Fort here, before it is built in its present location. Granites and rocks are kept here for constructing the fort. But the plan was changed and the fort was constructed at Palakkad. The resulted massive plain land was used by the people of nearby villages as a market of ancient times. Since then this area is known as 'Kottachantha' of which 'Kotta' means Fort and 'Chantha' means Market in malayalam language

It is believed that the name of the next village Kottayi, is derived from the use 'Kottayilekkulla Vazhi/Vayi' meaning 'The way to Fort' which also strongly support Hyder Ali's plan to build the fort here. However, there are no disputes over the arguments on Kottachantha's historical importance connected to Palakkad Fort.

References:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palakkad_Fort
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Palakkad_Fort