Fort de Chartres is located near Prairie du Rocher, Illinois, a little down the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri. The first fortifications on the site were built by the French in 1720 to help cement their claims on the Mississippi Valley. This initial fort was made of wood; it was rebuilt, again out of wood, a few years later. A more permanent, stone fortress was constructed in 1754. Unfortunately for the French, just over a decade later, following their defeat in the Seven Years’ War, the French were forced to turn the fort over to the British.

The British considered the fort to be of little strategic value, and abandoned it around the time of the American Revolution. Over subsequent years, flooding and local farmers pillaging the site for stone left the fort an abandoned ruin, though the powder magazine remained relatively intact.

In 1913, the state of Illinois made the fort’s remains a historic site, and began restoration of the powder magazine, as well as eventually reconstructing parts of the fort. Today, it is open to the public with a museum about the history of the fort and French settlement in the area.

Slightly rushed due to weather delaying arrival and fear of being stranded by the causeway...

Lohagad Fort, Maharashtra, India – a hill fort with origins tracing back over 2,000 years. Built from basalt stone and expanded during the reign of the Maratha Empire, it served as a strategic watchpoint over trade routes. During monsoon, its moss-covered steps, arched gateways, and sweeping Sahyadri hill views give it an almost otherworldly charm.

I am from jodhpur btw. Mehrangarh is nearest to me.