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Royal House of Mewar: Legend has it that the Sisodias
of Mewar are descended from Lord Rama whose life story is told
in India's great epic, the Ramayana. They came from the borders
of Kashmir and by the second Century B.C. they had moved south
to what is now Gujarat, founding, as they went, several cities
along the coast, one of which was called Vallabhai. The
chronicles of the bards tell us that in the sixth century
Vallabhai was sacked by strangers from the west. The Queen
of Vallabhai, Pushpavati, who was on a pilgrimage offering
prayers for her unborn child, heard of the destruction of
Vallabhai and the death of her husband while traveling through
the Aravalli hills in the north. Despairing, she took refuge
in a cave, and there gave birth to a son whom she called Guhil,
or "cave born." Then, entrust her child to a maidservant,
the queen ordered a funeral pyre lit, and walked into it to
join her dead husband's soul. Guhil, or Guhadatta, was befriended
by the Bhils, tribal aborigines who had lived in the Aravalli
hills since well before 2000 B.C. Amongst the Bhils, Guhadatta
grew in power, and became a chieftain. His progeny came to
be known as Guhilols.
In the seventh century the Guhil moved north, and down to
the plains of Mewar, changing their name to Sisodia, after
a village they encountered on the way. The descendants of
Guhadatia were the great Ranas, Rawals and Maharanas of Mewar,
builders of forts and palaces, whose exploits in peace and
war are unmatched in valor and chivalry.By the time of India's
independence, the royal line of Mewar had ruled for 75 generations,
1,400 years; the oldest of Rajasthan's ancient dynasties.
The Founding of Udaipur: In 1 567, the capital
of Mewar, Chittor, was sacked for the third time by the armies
of the Mughal Emperor Akbar; Rana Udai Singh 11 withdrew into
the hills and ravines of the Aravalli. One morning, the rana
was out by Lake Pichola hunting. While mounted and on the
move he performed the difficult feat of spearing a fast-moving
rabbit. Then, a short distance away, he saw a sage meditating.
The Rana dutifully paid full respects to the holy man. "Where,
0 Revered One," the rana asked the sage, having recounted
the fall of Chittor, "should 1 build my next capital city?"And
the sage answered, as sages will, "Why, right here of course,
where your destiny has brought you to ask such a question."And
that's what Udai Singh did.Surrounded by forests , lakes and
the protective Aravalli range, the new capital of Mewar was
certainly less vulnerable location then Chittor.Maharaja Udai
Singh died in 1572 and was succeeded by his son, Pratap, who
bravely defended Udaipur from subsequent Mughal Attacks.
Rana Pratap (ruled 1572-97) was palace one of the great warrior
kings of right, Mewar. He lived in troubled times. Emperor Akbar, the Great Mughal ,emblem
was expanding his domains, irresistibly in and, across the
subcontinent. He had already sacked the Mewar stronghold,richly
Chittor, driving Pratap's father, Rana Udai Singh II, out
towards a new life in the new capital, Udaipur. Rana Pratap
gallery was imbued with stories of the lost em greatness of
Mewar and obsessed with pieces a desire to recover its territories,
and the the the fort of Chittor, the soul of Mewar. The indomitable
Pratap threw him- is the self against the might of the Mughal
armies again and again, losing the battle of Haldighati, losing
every fort, including Kumbalgarh, retreating to the hills
and ravines of the Aravallis where sometimes his family hadn't
enough to cat. In these years of adversity, they were sustained
by loyal Bhil tribesmen, whose ancestors had, centuries earlier,
supported the rana's ancestor, Guhadatta.
Rana Pratap was one of the two Rajput kings who refused to
accept Mughal suzerainty or compromise with Akbar: no daughter
of Mewar was ever given to a Mughal emperor or prince in marriage.
The other Rajput ruler similarly to hold out against the Mughals
was the king of Bundi. Akbar allowed both states to survive
and the next generation of rulers had to accept reality and
sign treaties with the Mughals.eventually, Pratap freed Udaipur
and much of Mewar from the Mughals Niwas, grip but he failed
to win his heart's part of the desire: Chittor.
After struggling against the Mughals, Udaipur was later attacked
by the Marathas.
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An end to the bloody battles and instability came with British
Intervention in the early 1900 century, when a treaty was
signed which pledged to protect Udaipur from invaders. Along
with all other Princely states, Udaipur surrendered its Sovereignty
and became a part of a United India. |
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