Srirangapatna, the abode of Sri Ranganatha has a chequered history. During the time of hoysala ruler Udayaditya, brother of Vishnuvardhana, a small town flourished here. A fort was built here in A.D. 1454 by the local Nagamangala chief Timmana Dandanayaka during the Vijayanagara rule and it was directly ruled by Vijayanagara viceroys.

Mysore Wodeyars took possession of this place during the reign of Raja Wodeyar, which ultimately became the capital of Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan till it was captured by the British in a.D. 1799. Buit in a.D. 1784, the summer palace of Tipu Sultan is in the Indo-Islamic style, constructed mostly of teak wood. It is situated outside the fort on the bank of river Kaveri. It is rectangular in plan and stands on a raised platform.

Open corridors run along its four sides with wooden pillars at the edges of the plinth. White the eastern and western wings have walls, the other two wings have recessed bays with pillars supporting the roof of the upper storey. There are four staircases for the upper storey. The most striking feature of the building is that the entire space on the walls and the roof, pillars, canopies and arches is painted artistically.

The outer walls depict battle scenes and portrait paintings, while the interior wals are decorated with scroll of thin foliage and floral pattern. The paintings on the western wall emphasis the glorious victory of Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan over the English contingent led by Colonel Bailey in 1780.

The eastern wall contains many portraits of contemporary rulers in five rows. Presently, the ground floor of the palace is utilised for Archaeological site museum amidst a garden maintained by Archaeological Survey of India.

Entrance Fee:
Citizens of India and visitors of SAARC (Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Maldives and Afghanistan) and BIMSTEC Countries (Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Myanmar) – Rs. 25 per head.

Others:
Indian Rs. 300/- per head
(Free entry to children up to 15 years)