Manikgarh fort in the Chandrapur district of Maharashtra was built by the last Mana Naga King – Gahilu. The Mana Nagas settled in this area around 9 CE. Earlier the fort was called Manikgarh after the patron deity of the Mana Nagas – Manikadevi – but later, this was shortened to Manikgarh. According to the local legend the fort was built by a Gond king named Mankyal, so the name was changed to Manikgarh. However, the beam at the entrance gate has a Naga image carved in relief and not the Gond emblem of a lion and an elephant. So this legend is most likely, not true. The strong fortress of Manikgarh which is nearly 1,700 feet high and situated in an unreachable territory, was earlier held by the Gond Rajas of Chanda whose rule extended in the northern side to Nagpur and in the southern part almost up to the Godavari. They were independent till the end of the 16th century. Later they began to give nominal bonding to the Mughals, and then to the Marathas, to whom they finally surrendered in 1751 and lost the kingdom of Chanda.