Gwalior's imposing fort sprawls over the three kilometer long narrow out-crop of sandstone.Its mighty turreted battlements encompass a number of palaces, temples and several water tanks.

The Gwalior Fort history goes back over 1000 years. During this period of 1000 yrs, Gwalior Fort has been annexed by many rulers, including the Tomars, the Mughals, Marathas and the Britishers, and finally in the early 19th century, the fort was passed on to the Scindias. The fort has been a mute witness to some of the final and most dramatic events of the Mutiny, in mid 1858. Rani of Jhansi, the heroine of the Indian independence, was killed here during the final assault on the fort in 1858.

Among the fort palaces, the ‘Gujuri Mahal’ was built by Raja Man Singh to woo his favourite Rani " Mrignayani ". The elegant sandstone palace now houses the Gwalior archeological museum exhibiting sculpture, inscriptions, and paintings.

' The Man Mandir' is one of the finest Hindu palaces built by Tomar ruler Man Singh, is also known as the 'Chit mandir' or 'the painted palace' for the rich ceramic mosaics that encrust its façade. Next to it is the Vikram mandir and further down the Karam mandir. The Teli-ka-mandir is the oldest surviving monument in the fort.It consists of a huge rectangular sanctuary tower capped with an unusual vaulted-arch roof.

'Suraj Kund'(water tank) a hundred meter long tank is located at the north of the Teli-ka-mandir, whose magical waters are supposed to have cured the tenth-century ruler Suraj Singh, later Suraj Pal of leprosy. Also there is the large 'Jauhar Kund' where the women of the Parihar court performed mass suicide by self immolation, to avoid capture by enemies advancing armies.