Karnataka Tours and Travel

Bagalkot is 90 Kms away from the city of Bijapur. According to the legend, the town was believed to be granted to Vajantries (ie. Village orchestra) of Ravana. In inscriptions, the old name of the two was quoted as Bagadage, and headquarters of a unit called Bagadage-70 under the Chalukyas. One of the Bijapur kings said to have presented the town to his daughter as a bangle or ornament money; consequently the place is said to have been called Bagdikot and corrupted to Bagilakote or Bagalkot.

Earlier to this, Vijayanagara kings had held sway over this part of the country. Between 1664 to 1755 this territory was under the management of the Savanur Nawab from whom it was annexed by the Peshwa, Balajirao. During 1778, Haider Ali took possession of Bagalkot and was later held by the Savanur Nawab as his vassal. Again, it fell into the hands of the Marathas by the agreement of Srirangapatnam (1792). In 1800, the provincial manager, Anandarao Bhikaji belonging to the Rastia family residing at Bagtalkot built a palace. In 1810, Peshwa Bajirao II gave the area to Nilkantharao Sarsubedar who held Bagalkot Fort supported by a garrison till Gen. Munro occupied it in 1818. The chief temples of the place are of Shri Bhavani, Panduranga and Kotalesha, Raghavendraswamy Matha and of Motagi Basaveshwara.

There is a Jaina Basadi of Parshwanatha. The place has a Virakta Matha. The Place has several mosques of which Panka Masjid is a very fine stone structure. The civic administration is managed by the municipality. The Basaweshvara Vidyavardhaka Sangha here runs several colleges and educational institutions and the late S.C. Nandimath, noted scholar was closely connected with this organisation. The place was a noted centre of freedom movement and also of unification movement. It is on the banks of the Ghataprabha river and after the completion of second stage of Upper Krishna Project, a large part of the town is expected to be submerged (Already submerged). The place has a cement factory and it is a centre of trade in cotton and groundnut.
Kaladgi is a big village situated on the south bank of the Ghataprabha river, about 24 Km from Bagalkot. In the initial stages of the British regime, cavalry was stationed here by the Southern Maharashtra Jagirdars. It was found to be a very suitable place for the movement of troops. After the war, in 1864 it was made the district headquarters. In 1884 the district headquarter was shifted to Bijapur. In this place is a fine temple of Basavanna, built out of famous Shellikeri Blackstone. In geological circles Kaladgi range is very familiar. The place is well known for fruit gardens. Several old buildings and tombs of the British days still remain at this place. The town has a Town Panchayat and a Khadi Production Unit.

Bagalkot, earlier, a part of Bijapur district, was craved out as a separate district in 1997. This area is home to some of the finest examples of temple architecture in the world.