Forts of the Deccan

Dr. Nicolas Morelle, Archaeologist specialising in India. Associated researcher, LA3M, UMR 7298 CNRS, MMSH (Aix-en-Provence, France). After studies on crusader fortifications and influences between East and West in terms of construction techniques and military architecture, he studied technical interactions in Indian fortifications as part of his PhD thesis on the evolution of military architecture in the Deccan forts of Firozabad, Torgal, Naldurg and Bellary in 2018. In this context, he collaborated with several Indian institutions, including the Institute of Malik Sandal in Bijapur, to study Deccan forts.

Dr. Nicolas Faucherre, Professor of History of Art and Medieval & Modern Military Architecture, AMU, LA3M, UMR 7298 CNRS, Aix Marseille University (Aix-en-Provence, France). He is one of the most eminent specialists of classical fortification in France. He also teaches in Paris, at the Ecole de Chaillot (training of heritage architects) and at the Ecole du Louvre (military archaeology). His research, in addition to his PhD thesis on the citadels of the kings of France, Charles VII and Louis XI, led him to explore the world of the Vauban fortifications: as coordinator of the Vauban Year in 1982 and as historical advisor at the Musée des plans-reliefs de Paris between 1987 and 1992.

Frequently sent abroad for studies and expertise, he was interested in Byzantine and Mediterranean and Asian fortifications, for which he carried out numerous missions in Greece, Turkey, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Bahrain and India. He is an expert at UNESCO for fortified heritage.