KANNUR : FAMOUS NOT ONLY FOR POLITICS....BUT ALSO...

Kannur is a city in the south Indian state of Kerala. It was once an ancient trading port. kannur is located north of Kozhikode, south of Kasargod and Mangalore, west of the Western Ghat regions of Kodagu and Wayanad, and east of the Laccadive Sea. Kannur district is one of the 14 districts along the west coast in the the state of Kerala, India. The town of Kannur is the district headquarters and gives the district its name. The old name, Cannanore is the anglicised form of the Malayalam name "Kannur". Kannur district is bounded by Kasaragod District to the north, Kozhikode district to the South and Wayanad District to the southeast. To the east the district is bounded by the Western Ghats, which forms the border with the state of Karnataka. The Arabian Sea lies to the west. Paithalmala is the highest point in the Kannur District. Enclosed within the southern part of the district is the Mahe district of the Union Territory of Pondicherry. The district was established in 1957. Kannur is the sixth-most urbanized district in Kerala, with more than 50% of its residents living in urban areas. Kannur has an urban population of 1,21,898, which is the second largest in Kerala after Ernakulam district. 

HISTORY

Kannur was an important trading centre in the 12th century with active business connections with Persia and Arabia. It served as the British military headquarters on India's west coast until 1887. In conjunction with her sister city, Tellicherry, it was the third largest city on the Western coast of British India in the 18th century after Bombay and Karachi. St. Angelo Fort was built in 1505 by Dom Francisco de Almeida, the first Portuguese Viceroy of India. The Dutch captured the fort from the Portuguese in 1663. They modernised the fort and built the bastions Hollandia, Zeelandia and Frieslandia that are the major features of the present structure. The original Portuguese fort was pulled down later. A painting of this fort and the fishing ferry behind it can be seen in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam. The Dutch sold the fort to king Ali Raja of Arakkal in 1772. The British conquered it in 1790 and used it as one of their major military stations on the Malabar Coast. During the 17th century, Kannur was the capital city of the only city of the only Muslim sultanate in the malabar region, known as Arakkal. During the British Raj, Kannur was part of the Madras province in the North Malabar District. 

Must visit places in Kannur

St. Angelo fort Kannur                                

Payyambalam Beach

           

Light House Kannur

Parassinikadavu Sree Muthappan Temple

Thalassery Fort

Palakkayam Thattu

Vismaya Water Theme Park

Madayipara