In The Beginning The district of Jodhpur was known as the ancient kingdom of ‘Marwar, the land of Death’ and was the largest kingdom in Rajputana, the third largest of the Indian Kingdoms, after Kashmir and Hyderabad.

Jodhpur the former capital of Marwar state, retains much of its medieval character and saw its beginnings in 1549, when the city was called Jodhgarh. The Rathor clan of Rajputs fought and ruled from the virtually impregnable fort until their territory covered some 35,000 sq. miles making it the largest Rajput state.

According to Rathor tradition, the clan traces its origins back to the Hindu god, Rama, hero of the epic Ramayana, and thence to the sun. Therefore the Rathors belong to the Suryavansha (solar race) branch of the Kshatriyas, the warrior caste of Hindus. Later, in 470 A.D. Nayal Pal conquered the kingdom of Kanauj, near modern Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh. Kanauj, the Rathor capital for seven centuries, fell in 1193 to the Afghan invader's led by Muhammad Ghori.

The fleeing ruler, Jai Chand, drowned in the Ganga River, but his son or grandson, Siyaji, had better luck. An expedient marriage alliance between the Rathore Sihaji and the sister of a local prince enabled the Rathores to consolidate themselves in this region. They prospered to such a degree that they managed to oust the Pratiharas of Mandore, nine km to the north of present day Jodhpur. He later set himself up as an independent ruler around the wealthy trading centre of Pali, just south of Jodhpur. His descendants flourished, battled often, won often and in 1381 Rao Chanda ousted the Parihars from Mandore which then became the Rathore seat of government.

Rathore fortunes then turned. Rao Chanda's son and heir, Rainmal, won praise for his capture of Ajmer and was then entrusted with the care of his orphaned nephew, destined to inherit the Mewar throne of Chittor. Rainmal may well have had his eyes on this fine, hilltop fort, but court intrigue and treachery stopped him. In 1438 he was doped with opium, and shot dead. This triggered bitter feuds, ending with Mewar and Marwar becoming separate states. Rathor legend continues in various versions. One is that Jodha, one of Rainmal's 24 sons, fled Chittor and finally, 15 years later, recaptured Mandore in 1453. Five years later he was acknowledged as ruler. A holy man sensibly advised him to move his capital to hilltop safety.

By 1459, it became evident that more secure headquarters was required. The high rocky ridge nine km to the south of Mandore was an obvious choice for the new city of Jodhpur, which was enhanced by a fortress of staggering proportions and to which Rao Jodha's successors added over the centuries.

Mewar and the Mughuls Rao Ganga Singh of Jodhpur (reigning from 1516 to 1532) fought alongside the army of the great warrior king of Mewar, Rana Sanga, against the first Mughal emperor, Babur. Over the next half century or so, the rulers of Jodhpur allied themselves with Babur's grandson, Akbar.

Several rulers of Jodhpur became trusted lieutenants of the Mughals, such as Raja Surender, who conquered Gujarat and much of the Deccan for Akbar, and Raja Gaj Singh, who put down the rebellion of the Mughal prince, Khurram, against his father, Jahangir. With the support of the Mughals, the court of Jodhpur flourished and the kingdom became a great centre of the arts and culture. In the 17th century Jodhpur became a flourishing centre of trade for the camel caravans moving from Central Asia to the parts of Gujarat and vice versa. In 1657, however, Maharaja Jaswant Singh (who reigned from 1638 to 1678) backed the wrong prince in the great war of succession to the Mughal throne. He was in power for almost twenty-five years with Aurangzeb before he was sent out to the frontier as viceroy in Afghanistan. Aurangzeb then tried to seize his infant son, but loyal retainers smuggled the little prince out of his clutches, hidden, they say, in a basket of sweets.

Political Strife The kingdom of Jodhpur then formed a triple alliance with Udaipur and Jaipur, which together threw off the Mughal yoke. As a result, the maharajas of Jodhpur finally regained the privilege of marrying Udaipur princesses something they had forfeited when they had allied themselves with the Mughals. A condition of these marriages, however, was that the sons born of the Udaipur princesses would be first in line to the Jodhpur throne. This led to considerable jealousy and nearly a century of turmoil followed, culminating in Jodhpur falling under the influence of, first, the Marathas and then, in 1818, the British.

Sir Pratap Singh In the 1870's, a remarkable man came to the fore in Jodhpur: Sir Pratap Singh, a son of Maharaja of Jodhpur. He himself ruled a neighbouring kingdom called Idar and abdicated to become Regent of Jodhpur, which he ruled, in effect, for nearly fifty years. Sir Pratap Singh was a great warrior and the epitome of Rajput chivalry. Over the years he became an intimate friend of three British sovereigns and at Queen Victoria's durbar he is said to have presented her not with mere jewels, like everyone else, but with his own sword, his most valuable possession as a Rajput warrior. Sir Pratap Singh laid the foundation of a modern state in Jodhpur, which Maharaja Umaid Singh (who ruled from 1918 to 1947) built upon. Jodhpur was not merely the largest of the Rajput states, but also one of the most progressive. In 1949, after the independence of India, it was merged into the newly created state of Rajasthan.

Today The city of Jodhpur prospered because of its location on the strategic Delhi - Gujarat trading route and today stands out as one of the more popular cities visited in India and is one of many in the country where a number of luxury hotels were once (and at time still are) Royal residences. FYI: The city of Jodphur owes its name to the trousers worn by horse riders called ‘jodphurs’. No wonder the people of the city play an excellent game of polo!