Parenda

Parenda is a fortified town on the Deccan plateau, its strong walls and moat enclosing a compact citadel. Associated with the Bahmani minister Mahmud Gawan, the fort later became an important refuge for the Nizam Shahi rulers of Ahmadnagar. Its bastions and artillery made it a formidable place in the wars that followed the breakdown of the Deccan sultanates.

After the Mughals captured Ahmadnagar, Parenda served as a seat of the Nizam Shahi court. Rival nobles and the regent Malik Ambar struggled for influence around the fortress as the dynasty fought to survive. In 1634 a Mughal army under Mahabat Khan besieged Parenda, but resistance and Shahaji Bhonsle’s operations elsewhere complicated the campaign. The fort remained a valuable prize for the powers seeking to divide the Nizam Shahi territories.