At a distance of 240 m from Magadi Bus Station, 12.5 km from Savanadurga Hill, and 45 km from Bangalore City Junction, The Kempegowda Fort located in Magadi was originally built by Kempegowda, the founder of Bangalore as a mud fort in 1537. Unfortunately, a large portion of Kempegowda Fort lies in ruins today, with only parts of the fort had survived. This is one of the popular trekking destinations to visit around Bangalore.

The Sultan of Bijapur won Bangalore from the stranglehold of Kempegowda II in 1638. From then on, Kempegowda made Magadi the capital of his territories. For nearly ninety years, Kempegowda and his successors ruled the Magadi region where Kempegowda II built a fort that housed the offices of his administration and the stone fortress of Savanadurga. The Gowda rule ended when the Dalavayi Deva Raja, a general in the Mysore Army captured the last of the rulers. In 1728, the Mysore army breached the weak fort of Magadi and the fortress of Savanadurga and Magadi fell into the hands of the Mysore kingdom.