How the Rathores came to the desert
Rao Siha: the family traces its arrival in Marwar to Rao Siha, who came west from Kannauj in the thirteenth century, by family tradition.
Spreading out: his descendants won land village by village across the desert, and Rathore branches still hold estates all over Marwar.
- Arrived
- Thirteenth century, by tradition under Rao Siha
- From
- Kannauj, by family tradition
- First great seat
- Mandore, from the late fourteenth century
- Lineage claimed
- Suryavanshi, descended from the sun
- Mandore: in the late fourteenth century the Rathores took Mandore, the old capital a few kilometres north of present-day Jodhpur.
- The family goddess: the Rathores worship Nagnechiya Mata as their kuldevi, and Chamunda Mata has her temple on the ridge of Mehrangarh.
- The name of the land: Marwar is usually read as the land of death or the land of the desert. Locals prefer the second, and so do we.
- Read the region: our guide to Marwar covers its landscape, dress and food.
- A clan of cousins: Rathore families are spread across Marwar, Bikaner and Kishangarh, all tracing descent to the same early rulers. At any wedding, the bards can recite the links.
Rao Jodha and the fort on the bird hill
Why move: Mandore stood on open ground. The ridge was higher, steeper and easier to defend.
The hermit: the story goes that a hermit living on the hill was moved, and cursed the fort with drought. Jodhpur still glances at the sky in a dry summer.
- The foundation story: tradition says a man named Rajaram Meghwal was buried in the foundations to make the fort safe, and his family was granted land in return. It is told as tradition.
- The name: Mehrangarh is usually read as the fort of the sun, fitting a house that claims descent from it.
- His sons: one son, Rao Bika, rode north and founded Bikaner in 1488. Another, Rao Karamsji, built the fort at Khimsar in 1523.
- See it: our Mehrangarh guide walks you through the gates, the palaces and the galleries.
- The gates: the fort was enlarged by later rulers, and its seven gates record victories over Jaipur and Bikaner as well as the Mughals.
Sultans, Mughals and a handful of millet
Rao Maldeo: in the sixteenth century he made Marwar one of the strongest Rajput states. In 1544 he fought Sher Shah Suri at Giri-Sumel.
The millet jibe: Sher Shah won only narrowly and is said to have remarked that he nearly lost Hindustan for a handful of millet. Marwaris still quote it with pride.
- Into Mughal service: later in the century Jodhpur entered the empire's service, and its princes commanded Mughal armies across India.
- A Jodhpur princess at court: a daughter of the house, known as Jagat Gosain, married Jahangir and was the mother of the emperor Shah Jahan.
- Jaswant Singh I: a great Mughal general of the seventeenth century, who died on imperial service in 1678.
- The break with Aurangzeb: after Jaswant Singh's death the emperor tried to take Marwar into his own hands. The result was decades of war.
Durgadas and the infant king
A baby in danger: Jaswant Singh's heir, Ajit Singh, was born after his father died. Aurangzeb wanted him raised at the Mughal court.
The escape: Durgadas and a band of Rathore nobles smuggled the infant out of Delhi and hid him in Marwar.
- The crisis
- 1678, death of Jaswant Singh I
- The heir
- Ajit Singh, born after his father's death
- The rescuer
- Durgadas Rathore
- The outcome
- Ajit Singh regained Jodhpur in 1707
- The long war: Marwar, with help from Mewar at times, fought the empire for years while the boy grew up in hiding.
- The return: after Aurangzeb died in 1707, Ajit Singh recovered Jodhpur.
- Marwar's model of loyalty: Durgadas is honoured in ballads, statues and school books across Marwar as the perfect servant of his lord.
- See him today: a statue of Durgadas on horseback stands in Jodhpur, and his name is given to roads, schools and colleges across Marwar.
The rulers who shaped the city you see
Man Singh, early nineteenth century
- The patron: a ruler devoted to the Nath yogis, who built temples and supported poets and painters.
- His age: Jodhpur accepted British paramountcy in 1818, during his reign, like most Rajput states.
Jaswant Singh II and Jaswant Thada
- The ruler: he reigned in the late nineteenth century, a time of railways and reform.
- The memorial: his son built Jaswant Thada, the white marble cenotaph below the fort, in 1899.
Sir Pratap Singh, the soldier-regent
Who he was: a son of the house who served as regent of Jodhpur and as a soldier in the British Indian army.
- Polo and breeches: he made Jodhpur famous for polo, and the riding breeches he took to England still carry the city's name.
- The lancers: the Jodhpur Lancers he raised fought in the First World War, and are remembered for the cavalry charge at Haifa in 1918.
Umaid Singh and the palace on Chittar Hill
- The palace: he built Umaid Bhawan between 1929 and 1943, designed by Henry Vaughan Lanchester, partly as famine relief work.
- The style: art deco and Indian at once, in pale sandstone from the hill it stands on.
Hanwant Singh, the last ruling Maharaja
- His reign: he came to the throne in 1947 and saw Jodhpur join India and, in 1949, the new state of Rajasthan.
- His death: he went into politics and died in an air crash in 1952, during the first general election, leaving a four-year-old heir.
The nobles and estates of Marwar
How it worked: the ruler granted estates to his kinsmen and nobles, who owed him soldiers and service. Some thakurs were almost kings in their own villages.
Rohet: Rohet Garh has been held by one family since 1622, and its fort is now a family-run hotel known for Marwari horses.
- Thikana
- A noble's estate, held from the ruler
- Thakur
- The lord of a thikana
- Duty
- Loyalty and soldiers in war
- Today
- Many forts are family-run hotels
- Khimsar: built in 1523 by Rao Karamsji, a son of Rao Jodha, the fort at Khimsar is now Khimsar Fort, at the edge of the dunes.
- Chandelao: Chandelao Garh, a small fort in a farming village, is another family home that welcomes guests.
- Auwa in 1857: the thakur of Auwa joined the great revolt of 1857, one of the few Rajput nobles to do so, and Marwar still remembers it.
- Meet them: staying in a thikana fort is the most natural way to meet a Rajput family. Our journal on rawlas and thikanas explains the system.
From princely state to Rajasthan
Greater Rajasthan: Jodhpur joined with Jaipur, Bikaner and Jaisalmer on 30 March 1949, the day now remembered as Rajasthan Day.
A new heir: after Hanwant Singh's death in 1952, the title passed to his young son, Gaj Singh II.
- Joined India
- 1947
- Joined Rajasthan
- 30 March 1949, as part of Greater Rajasthan
- Privy purses ended
- 1971
- Umaid Bhawan hotel
- From 1971
- Mehrangarh trust
- Set up in the early 1970s
- 1971: the privy purses and official recognition of the rulers were abolished. The family had a vast palace and no state income.
- The answer: part of Umaid Bhawan opened as a hotel in 1971, a museum wing followed, and the family kept a wing as its home.
- A trust for the fort: in the early 1970s Gaj Singh II set up the Mehrangarh Museum Trust to care for the fort as a serious museum.
The family's public work today
Maharaja Gaj Singh II: he came to the title in 1952 aged four. He has served as a diplomat and a member of Parliament, and our profile of Maharaja Gaj Singh tells his public story.
Mehrangarh: the trust runs the fort as one of India's finest museums, with galleries of palanquins, arms, paintings and textiles.
- Jaswant Thada: the trust also cares for the marble cenotaph below the fort.
- The rock park: the Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park, below the fort walls, restores native desert plants to the volcanic rock.
- Music: the Rajasthan International Folk Festival is held at Mehrangarh each autumn.
- Umaid Bhawan: a wing is a hotel run by Taj, a wing is the Umaid Bhawan Palace Museum, and a wing is the family's home.
- The flag: when the head of the family is at home, his flag flies over the palace, and the city notices.
What the court left in craft and dress
Marwar painting: the court workshops produced portraits, hunting scenes and religious works. Under Man Singh, paintings of the Nath yogis filled the palace.
The safa: the Jodhpur turban, tied in bright colours and patterns, is one of the most recognisable in Rajasthan. Read about the turbans of Rajasthan.
- The bandhgala: the closed-collar Jodhpur coat, worn at weddings and formal dinners across India, grew out of the court dress of princely Jodhpur.
- Palanquins and howdahs: the Mehrangarh galleries hold the royal litters and elephant seats used for weddings and processions.
- Textiles: the city's bandhani and leheriya tie-dyes are sold in the lanes around Sardar Market, beneath the clock tower built by Maharaja Sardar Singh.
- Mojaris and leather: the embroidered slippers sold in the old city were once made for the court and its nobles. Our guide to mojari shoes explains what to look for.
Where to see the Rathore story
Mandore
- Why go: the old capital, with tall temple-like cenotaphs of Rathore rulers in a shady garden.
- When: late afternoon, when langurs play among the monuments.
Mehrangarh
- Why go: Rao Jodha's fort, with painted palaces, the handprints of queens at the gate and galleries of royal treasures.
- When: opening time, before the groups.
Jaswant Thada
- Why go: the marble cenotaph of Jaswant Singh II, glowing above a small lake below the fort.
- Look for: portraits of the Rathore rulers inside.
Umaid Bhawan
- Why go: the last great palace of princely India, with a museum of the twentieth-century court.
- Stay: in the hotel wing, if you want one truly grand palace night.
Bal Samand and Ajit Bhawan
- Bal Samand: a lake palace on the edge of the city, now Bal Samand Lake Palace, with gardens and orchards.
- Ajit Bhawan: Ajit Bhawan, a family palace that became one of the first heritage hotels in Rajasthan.
Festivals with a royal accent
Dussehra: an old warrior festival in Marwar, when weapons and horses are honoured by many Rajput families.
The Marwar Festival: held in autumn around the full moon of Sharad Purnima, with folk music and dance at the fort and around the city. See our Marwar Festival page.
- Folk music at the fort: the folk festival at Mehrangarh brings the Langa and Manganiyar musicians of the desert into the courtyards.
- Polo: Jodhpur remains a polo city. Our polo page explains when and where to watch.
- Dates: most festivals follow the lunar calendar, so we confirm them each year.
Courtesy in a royal city
Greet with khamma ghani: the Rajasthani greeting is heard all over Marwar. Say it with joined hands and a slight bow.
Hukum and Bapji: you will hear staff say Hukum to members of old families, and the city say Bapji of its head. Guests needn't use either, but it is gracious to recognise them.
- Ask about the history: guides and staff love questions about the fort, the palace and the rulers.
- Leave private life alone: we never discuss the family's private affairs, and we ask guests not to either.
- Photographs: don't photograph members of the family without asking, and respect the private wing of Umaid Bhawan.
- Learn more: our page on meeting the royal families explains how we arrange visits with respect.
What most visitors miss
The handprints at the gate: inside one of Mehrangarh's gates, small handprints mark the queens who died on the pyre of Maharaja Man Singh in 1843. We point them out with care, and we never celebrate them.
The Chamunda temple: at the far end of the ramparts, the temple of the fort's goddess is still a place of daily worship for Jodhpur families.
- The family portraits: at Jaswant Thada, the portraits of the Rathore rulers let you put faces to the names.
- The private dome: at Umaid Bhawan, look up at the great central dome from the museum side. The family's wing lies beyond it.
- The view from Mandore: few visitors climb the small hill behind the cenotaphs. From the top you see why Jodha left the plain for the ridge.
- The walk down: leave Mehrangarh on foot through the rock park and the blue lanes. Our piece on Jodhpur's blue city explains the colour.
Before you go
Give it two nights at least: one morning for Mehrangarh, one afternoon for Mandore and Jaswant Thada, and an evening at Umaid Bhawan.
- Arrive at opening time: Mehrangarh is calmest and coolest first thing, and the audio guide or a trust guide adds a great deal.
- Dress for the ramparts: comfortable shoes and a hat. The fort is steep and the sun is strong even in winter.
- Read first: our short history of Rajasthan and the Rajput dynasties give the background in an evening.
Who will love the Rathore story
History lovers: Mandore to Umaid Bhawan is one family's story told in stone over five centuries.
Horse lovers: the Rathores' cavalry past lives on in the Marwari horse and in polo.
- Allow
- Two or three nights in Jodhpur
- Best months
- October to March
- Pairs with
- Rohet, Khimsar, Bikaner, Udaipur
- Good for
- History lovers, families, horse lovers
- Families: the fort's cannons, palanquins and ramparts thrill children, and the blue city below is a maze worth exploring.
- Who might skip it: if you want a beach-slow holiday, Jodhpur's steep fort and busy old city may feel demanding. A night at a lake palace or village fort balances it.
- Planning it: our Jodhpur itinerary and the Mewar and Marwar journey build the family's story into a wider route.