The site is so fortified that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the Maratha king, ranked it as the "most impregnable fortress in India", and it was called the "Troy of the East" by the British.

The fort is closely associated with Raja Tej Singh, who unsuccessfully revolted against the Nawab of Arcot and eventually lost his life in a battle.

The complex has a seven-storeyed Kalyana Mahal(marriage hall)which has a pyramidical shikhara or summit on top, granaries, prison cells, and a temple dedicated to its presiding goddess called Chenjiamman.

The Mughals, on their capture of the fort in 1698 A.D., named it Nusratgadh in honour of Nawab Zulfiqar Khan Nusrat Jung, the commander-in-chief of the besieging army.

Though Gingee became a part of the Nawab's territory in 1714, the young and courageous Tej Singh became a legend and his life, love and brave but tragic end were eulogised in various ballads.

[13] As per one account, the fort was built during the 15–16th century by the Gingee Nayaks, the lieutenants of the Vijayanagara Empire and who later became independent kings.

[15] During Aurangzeb's campaign in the Deccan, Shivaji's second son who had assumed the throne, Rajaram, escaped to Jinji (Gingee)and continued the fight with Moghuls from Ginjee.

It was later passed on to the Carnatic Nawabs who lost it to the French in 1750 before the British finally took control in 1761 despite losing it to Hyder Ali for a brief period.

Connecting them – forming an enormous triangle, a mile from north to south, punctuated by bastions and gateways giving access to the protected zones at the heart of the complex.

It has a seven-storeyed Kalyana Mahal (marriage hall), granaries, prison cells, and a temple dedicated to its presiding Hindu goddess called Chenjiamman.

The naturally strong rock where the fortress is located is further strengthened by constructing embrasure walls and gateways along all possible shelves and steep edges.

This citadel contains important buildings apart from the living quarters of the royalty, like the stables, granaries, and meeting halls for the public, temples, mosques, shrines and pavilions.

Draupadi, a Hindu goddess, beheaded a hundred heads of the demon and Kamalakanni is believed to have protested that she would become a widow.

The lower fort consists of Arcot Gate, Pondicherry Gate, which the French probably improved during their occupation (1751–1761), the Prison on top of Pondicherry Gate, Royal Battery, Venkataramanaswami Temple, Pattabhi Ramaswami Temple, Sadatulla Khan's mosque, Chettikulam and Chakrakulam tanks, platform where Raja Desingh was killed in a war, large stone image of Hanuman, prisoner's well, where the prisoners condemned to death were thrown and left to die of starvation.

There is a site museum at the entrance of the fort set up by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) containing sculptures about periods and many dynasties that ruled Gingee.

[5] The second important hill with an impressive citadel is called Krishnagiri, also known as the English Mountain, perhaps because of the British residents who occupied the fort here for some time.

Another fort, connected with Rajagiri by a low rocky ridge, is called Chandrayan Durg, Chandragiri or St. George's Mountain.

Gingee today, with its ruined forts, temples and granaries, presents a different picture from the glorious splendor of its bygone days.