Madikeri Fort

he Palace of the erstwhile kings located inside the Fort, now houses the offices of the Deputy Commissioner. The brick and mortar Palace was built in 1814 by Lingarajendra Wodeyar II.The strong fort of Mercara explains the tale of bravery and battle. In the inner Fort, a temple of Virabhadra was removed by the British in 1855 and in its place built an Anglican Church. The Church, in Gothic style, with color stained glasses has now been converted into a museum. The museum, run by the state archaeology department, is a repository of many antiques of Coorg. The original mud fort was rebuilt in stone by Tipu Sultan. Two life-size elephants made of mortar, catch the eye of the visitor on entering the Fort. The other buildings inside the fort include the Mahatma Gandhi Public Library, the Kote Maha Ganapathi temple and the district prison. The two-storied lofty and spacious structure is 110 feet long. The British renovated the structure twice and in 1933, a clock tower and a portico to park the commissioner's car were added. This temple also forms one of the major temples list competing for Madikeri dasara festival.