|
Jodhpur was
founded by the Rajput chief Rao Jodha in 1459. The city was
the erstwhile capital of the Marwar state. A 10-km-long wall
made of stone and built about a century after the city was
founded, surrounds the old city. There are about 100 towers
in the city, most of which are surrounded by defensive
battlements. It was founded in 1459 A.D. by Rao Jodha-chief
of the Rathore clan of Rajputs who claimed to be descendants
of Rama - hero of the epic 'Ramayana'. Rahores controlled a
large part of Rajasthan, especially during the reigns of Rao
Udai Singh (1581 AD) and his son Raja Sur Singh ((1595), who
conquered Gujarat and a good part of Deccan for the Mughal
Emperor Akbar. The Rathores always had good relationships
with the Mughals and Maharaja Jaswant Singh (1678) supported
Shahjahan in the Mughal struggle for war of succession. Only
problematic relationship they had was with Aurangzeb. After
the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, Maharaja Ajit Singh became
the ruler of Jodhpur. He drove out Mughals from Ajmer and
added substantially to the Mehrangarh Fort. |
