Jodhpur

Jodhpur, in western Rajasthan, is the historic capital of the Kingdom of Marwar. The city was founded in 1459 CE by Rao Jodha, a Rathore Rajput chief, who shifted his capital from nearby Mandore to a safer rocky hill called Chidia-tunk. He began building the massive Mehrangarh Fort here, around which the walled city of Jodhpur developed.

Located on the key trade route between Delhi and Gujarat, Jodhpur prospered through commerce in opium, copper, silk, sandalwood and other goods, helping the Rathore rulers consolidate a powerful desert kingdom. In the 16th century, Marwar came into conflict and later alliance with the Mughal Empire, eventually becoming one of its important Rajput partner-states.

After Mughal decline, Jodhpur navigated Maratha pressure and internal struggles but retained its status as a princely state under British paramountcy in the Rajputana Agency. On 11 August 1947, Maharaja Hanwant Singh signed the Instrument of Accession to India; in 1949 Jodhpur was integrated into the new state of Rajasthan.

Today Jodhpur is Rajasthan’s second-largest city, celebrated as the “Blue City” for its indigo houses and as a major cultural, tourist and handicraft centre.