Bounded by a wealth of natural beauty, days of glory of Kannur were under the Kolathiri Rajas. Noted by Marco Polo as a spice trading port, it is a key contributor to the cultural, religious, political and industrial heritage of the State. Though various colonial powers, including the Portuguese, Dutch and British, exerted their influence over this rich Malabar Coast region, Kannur enjoys the credit of having been the cradle of many a colourful folk art and folk music of Kerala. Most of the sites of Kannur are a few Km out of town. Formerly a major port area, Kannur is now a city known for its handloom and beedi industries. Some of finest weavers of Kerala come from this district.

Bekal Fort - Bekal (Kasargod District), Fort Kochi - Cochin (Ernakulam District), Bolgatty Palace - Kochi (Ernakulam District), Dutch Palace - Mattancherry (Ernakulam District), Bastion Bungalow Kochi (Ernakulam District), Jewish Synagogue Mattancherry (Ernakulam District), St. Francis Church Kochi (Ernakulam District), Vasco House, Palakkad Fort - Palakkad (Palakkad District).
Renowned Temples
Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple – Thiruvananthapuram, Chuliyar Bhagavathy Temple – Kanhangad, Lake Temple - Ananthapura, Mahaganapathy Temple – Madhur, Triruchambaram Vishnu Temple – Thaliparambu, Sri Mutthapan Temple - Parassinikadavu, Glass Temple – Kottamunda, Mahavishnu Temple – Thirunelli, Sri Mahaganapathy Temple – Thiruvangoor.
Renowned Churches
St. Thomas Malayattoor, St. Mary's Church – Cheriapalli, Thazhathangadi – Valiapalli, St. George's Church – Puthupalli, St. Joseph's Monastery, Mannanam, Kaduthuruthi Valiapalli, Vimalagiri Church, St. Thomas Church – Pala, St. Thomas Church-Cherpungal, Aruvithira Church.
Famous Forts :
St.Angelo's Fort, Bekal Fort, Palakkad Fort.
Religious Monuments
Chottanikkara Temple, Guruvayoor Temple, Sabarimala Temple, Vadakkumnathan Temple, Cheraman Juma Masjid, St. Sebastian Church, The Churches at Muttuchira, Aranmula Temple, Jewish Synagogue.
Forts & Palaces :
Bolghatty Palace - Bolghatty Island (Ernakulam District), Alwaye Palace - Mananthavady (Wayanad District ), Bekal Fort - Bekal (Kasargod District), Krishnapuram Palace - Kayamkulam (Ernakulam District), Mattanchery Palace - Kochi (Ernakulam District), Hill Palace Museum - Thripunithura, (Ernakulam District), Arakkal Palace & Kannur Fort - Kannur District, Koyikkal Palace - Nedumangad (Thiruvananthapuram District).
Houses, Bungalows & Memorials :
Vasco House, Thakur House, Pierce Leslie Bungalow, Koder House, Bishop's House, Bastion's Bungalow, Gundert Bungalow, Mannadi, Chittur Garumadam

K A N N U R

was an important port on the Arabian Sea and carried out trade with Persia and Arabia in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. It was also 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 eighteenth century after Bombay and KarachiSt. Angelo's Fort was built in 1505 by Dom Francisco de Almeida, the first Portuguese Viceroy of India, and this fort is situated along the Arabian sea about 3 km from Kannur town. The ownership of the fort has changed hands several times. In 1663, the Dutch captured it and sold it to the Arakkal royal family in 1772. The British conquered it in 1790 and transformed it into one of their major military stations on the Malabar Coast. It is fairly well preserved as a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India. A painting of this fort and the fishing ferry as a background is on display at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The head of Kunjali Marakkar was cut off body and exhibited in the Fort after his assassination. Here, Kerala Police has posted six tourism police officers for the protection of and guidance to the tourists. Among them, one policeman named Sathyan Edakkad has written and published a book on the history of this fort, named Vasco da Gaamayum Charithrathile Kaanaappurangalum (Vasco da Gama and the unseen pages of history). He has detailed knowledge about the fort and the surrounding places. During the British Raj, Kannur was part of the Madras province in the District of North Malabar. Kannur is the capital city of one and only Muslim Sultanate of Kerala, known as Arakkal. Before that, Kannur was under Kolathiri of Chirakkal.
Demographics

St. Angelo Fort
According to the 2001 census of India,[1] Kannur has a population of 63,795. Males constitute 48% of the population and females, 52%. Kannur has an average literacy rate of 83%, higher than the national average of 59.5%. Male literacy is 84% and female literacy is 83%. In Kannur, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Places in Kannur
St. Angelo Fort. Mappila Bay is seen in the distance.
Indian Naval Academy: It is Asia's largest naval academy located at Ezhimala which is approximately 35 km north of Kannur.
St. Angelo Fort: It was built in 1505 by the first Portuguese Viceroy of India, Dom Francisco de Almeida. In 1663, the Dutch captured it and then in 1772, they sold the fort to the Arakkal King. In 1790, the British Captured it and it was under British until 1947.
Payyambalam Beach is a famous Kannur beach with an unbroken coastline of a few kilometres. From the beach, one can see ships in transit along the Malabar coast, from beyond Calicut (Kozhikode) moving towards Mangalore, Goa and Bombay (Mumbai). The well laid out garden and the massive landscaped sculpture of Mother and Child erected by noted sculptor Kanayi Kunhiraman makes it extremely captivating.
Arakkal Museum, located in Ayikkara, is a museum dedicated to the Arakkal family, the only Muslim royal family in Kerala, south India. The museum is actually a section of the Arakkalkettu (Arakkal Palace). The durbar hall section of the palace has been converted into a museum by the Government of Kerala. It was opened in July 2005 after a massive renovation work and is managed by the Arakkal Family Trust.
The Cannanore Lighthouse

near the Sea View Park is another place of interest. The first lighthouse at Kannur was built in 1843 by the British at St. Angelo's Fort. Over the years, the lighthouse was renovated and in 1948, it was moved to the current location. The lighthouse is still in use.
The Cannanore Cantonment

is one of the 62 cantonments in the country and the only one in Kerala. It was established by the British in the 19th century and is still an important location for Indian armed forces
The Defence Security Corps (DSC) Centre and DSC Records is located in Kannur town, on the road to Payyambalam Beach. The area is a part of the Cannanore Cantonment and is well-maintained by the Cantonment Board. The DSC centre at Kannur is the mother depot to all platoons in the country.
Baby Beach, so-called because it is smaller than its larger neighbour, Payyambalam Beach. St. Angelo Fort is adjacent to it. The baby beach is part of the Cannanore Cantonment and access may be restricted at times.
Meenkunnu Beach at Azhikode, just a few kilometres from the town.
Mappila Bay in Ayikkara, near the St. Angelo fort, is a major fishing harbor overlooking the Arabian Sea.
The Azhikkal Ferry — near Azhikode, about 10 km from Kannur town, where the Valapattanam river joins the Arabian sea. The Azhikkal ferry gives a magnificent view of the sunset. There is a granite pathway here which stretches 2 km into the sea.
The Kannur City Center is a prominent shopping center on Fort Road.
The Sea View Park, near the Payyambalam beach is overlooked by the Government Guest House. The Park is at an elevation from the sea level and gives a magnificent view of the sunset.
Kannur Central Bus Terminal,its Kerala's biggest bus terminal, located at Thavakkara,its also India's first bus terminal to be developed on a build-operate-transfer(BOT)basis.
Vismaya amusement park,the Vismaya amusement park is at Parassinikadavu, 17 km from Kannur town. The amusement park is located in 30 acres of land and can handle 3,000-3,500 visitors at a time.
Thana,The hot spot of Kannur,located on National Highway #17 through which most of the inter-district commutation takes place.
Peralassery Subrahmanya Swami Kshetram, 14 km from Kannur on Koothuparamba Road. It has been believed that Lord Rama stayed here when he was going in search of Sita Devi.
Anjarakandy,Asias largest Cinanamon estate is here 18 km from Kannur which was established by East India company in 1797 as a cinnamon plantation. A historical war between Pazhassi raja and British army was fought out from here in the year 1903, Kannur Medical college is also located here

Deepavali celebrations are extending well into the week for Kollywood with two of the three film released this weekend coming up trumps at
the box office. While KS Ravikumar-directed Surya flick Aadhavan has had phenomenal opening weekend collections, the Jeyam Ravi-starrer Peranmai too has done pretty well. Trade sources peg Aadhavan's opening weekend box office collections at around Rs 8.5 crore across the state. The distribution rights of the Rs 30-crore film, produced by Udhayanidhi Stalin's Red Giant Movies, is expected to be over Rs 25 crore. On the other hand, the Rs 15-crore-plus Peranmai has been produced and distributed by Ayngaran International (in which Eros International holds 51% stake). Its collections from Friday through Sunday is said to be roughly Rs 3 crore. "Both the films have been performing well at the BO and will definitely earn profits for their makers," veteran distributor Tirupur Subramaniam told ET. He went on to add that this was the biggest "blockbuster" Diwali after 2005, when the superhit Sivakasi (with Vijay and Asin in the lead) was released.

(Economic Times)