Why Jodhpur is the Blue City ?

Histroy of Jodhpur

According to the Rajasthan District Gazetteer of Jodhpur and the Hindu epic Ramayana composed up to the 4th century AD, the Abhiras (Ahirs) were the main inhabitants of Jodhpur and later the Aryans spread into the region. It is interesting to note that the Ghantiyali pillar inscription of 996 indicates the existence of Ahirs in the Jodhpur region during this period. Jodhpur was part of the Gurjara Pratihara empire and was ruled by a powerful Pratihara king until 1100 AD. Jodhpur was founded in 1459 by a Rajput king of the Rathore dynasty, Raj Jodha I. Raj Jodha succeeded in conquering the surrounding region from the English Raj and thus established a kingdom which came to be known as Marwar. Since the nearest town was Mandore, the city initially served as the capital of this kingdom. Jodhpur soon assumed that role. Even during the warrior's lifetime, the city was located on a strategic road connecting Delhi to Gujarat. This helped it to profit from a flourishing trade in opium, copper, ration, sandalwood, dates and other tradable goods.

Famous in Jodhpur

Mehrangarh Fort
Jaswant Thada
Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur
Ghanta Ghar Jodhpur
Toorji Ka Jhalra Bavdi
Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park
Mandore Garden
Machia Biological Park, Jodhpur
Kaylana Lake
Shree Chamunda Mata Temple
Bishnoi Village Safari Jodhpur
Mandore
Bal Samand Lake
Mahamandir Temple

1. Mehrangarh Fort

The chief warrior of the Rathore clan is credited with the origin of Jodhpur in India. He established Jodhpur as the capital of Mewar in 1459. The previous capital was Mandore. He was one of the 24 sons and became the 15th Rathor ruler. After 1 year of his accession to the throne, Jodha decided to shift his capital to the safer place of Jodhpur as the 1000-year-old Mandore was no longer considered a tourist attraction. With the expert help of Rao Nara, the army of Mewar was relocated to Mandore. Along with this, Jodha gave Rao Nara the title of Diwan. With the help of Rao Nara, new fort was built on a rocky hill 9 km south of Mandore. According to Danti, in order to build the fort, he had to remove the only human inhabitant of the hill, a sadhu named Chidiya Nath Ji, the lord of birds. He was a person whose followers were the local people and hence he was influential in the area. When he was asked to remove him, he flatly refused. This happened many times, then Rao Jodha had to do extreme extremes. He took measures and sought help from another Saklesh Har saint Karni Mata who was a Hindu warrior sage born in the Charan caste. She came there on the request of the state and asked Chidiya Nath ji to leave immediately. Seeing a great power, he left immediately but cursed Rao Jodha that Jodha, there should not be any shortage of water in your house. Rao Jodha succeeded in making the saint happy by building a house and a temple. Karni Mata kept the ideal stone of Mehargarh fort. Today only the Rathores of Bikaner and Jodhpur forts have children in their hands. The ideal stone of both was kept by Shri Karni Mata. All the other Rajput forts of Rajasthan were abandoned by their sisters for some reason or the other. Only the Rathores of Jodhpur and Bikaner still have children with them. The local people consider this fact a miracle and give it to Shri Karni Mata. Rao Jodha also gave the villages of Mathania and Chaupasin to two Charan Sardars whom he had sent to stop Anirudh from coming to Jodhpur from Manmohi. To ensure that the new site would prove auspicious, he buried alive a man of the Meghwal caste, Raja Ram Meghwal, who had volunteered to serve the king as it was considered auspicious in those days. Raja Ram Meghwal was promised that in return his family would be looked after by the Rathores. His family was given land and even today his descendants live in Rajbagh near Sursagar. The construction of the Halki Fort was originally started in 1459 by Jodhpur's founder Karo Jodha, but much of the fort as it stands today dates back to the time of Maharaja Jaswant Singh between 1638 and 1678. It is spread over five kilometres on top of a high hill in the centre of the city. Its walls, which are 36 metres (118 ft) high and 21 metres (69 ft) wide, protect some of Rajasthan's most beautiful and historic palaces. One of the oldest traditional communities, the Karo Walia community had the knowledge of breaking large stones and was used along with others to build the fort.

2. Jaswant Thada

Jaswant Thada is a memorial located in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. It was built in 1899 by Maharaja Sardar Singh of Jodhpur state in memory of his father Maharaja Jaswant Singh II and serves as the cremation ground for the royal Rajput family of Marwar. The memorial is made of intricately carved sheets of Makrana marble. These sheets are extremely thin and polished so that the sunlight scatters the glittering stone. The memorial grounds include a carved Gajban, a tiered garden and a small lake. The grounds have three other memorials. The mausoleum of Maharaja Jaswant Singh displays portraits of the rulers and Maharajas of Jodhpur.

3. Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur

The history of the construction of Umaid Bhawan Palace is linked to the curse of a saint who had said that a period of bad luck would come during the rule of the Rathore dynasty. Thus after the end of Pratap Singh's nearly 50-year reign, Jodhpur faced famine and drought for a period of 3 consecutive years in the 1920s. The farmers of the region, facing this threat, sought help from the then Maharaja Umaid Singh who was the 37th Rathore ruler of Marwar in Jodhpur so that they could get some employment so that they could survive in the harsh conditions. To help them, the Maharaja decided to build a grand palace. He appointed Henry Lancaster as the port architect to prepare the plan of the palace. Lancaster was a contemporary of Edward Lutyens who planned the building of the New Delhi Government Complex. Manchester built the palace on the lines of the Delhi Bhawan complex by adopting the theme of the rock and pillars. The palace was designed as a blend of western technology and Indian architecture. The palace was built of golden yellow Boluva stone with two wings. Makrana marble has also been used and Barami teak wood has been used for the interior woodwork. When the palace was completed it had 347 rooms several courtyards and a large banquet hall that could seat 300 people. The architectural style is considered to represent the art style prevalent at that time which is also known as Indore look style. The palace did not function fully after several years of infighting in the royal family. Udham Singh who stayed in the place for only 4 years died in 1947. His successor Hanuman Singh also died at a young age. He won the 1952 general election and was returning home after this victory when his plane crashed and he died. Gajj Singh II who was his father's successor decided to convert a part of the palace into a hotel in 1971.

4. Ghanta Ghar Jodhpur

The tower was built by Maharaja Sardar Singh, from whom the adjacent Sardar Market takes its name. An ancient clock tower stands tall, preserved in the middle of the city, believed to be the sole source for tracking time for locals in earlier times. The top of this tower gives an amazing panorama of the city

5. Toorji Ka Jhalra Bavdi

Turji ka Jhalra, also known as Tourji ka Jhalra is a stepwell in Jodhpur. It was built during the reign of Maharaja Abhay Singh Rathore between 1724 and 1749 by his wife Rani. Suryaji ka Jhalra is a historic water source that was used by local people for centuries. It has since been developed as a tourist attraction. Tulsi ka Jhalra is a stepwell. It has a long corridor that descends to the water level. According to the stepwells are an important part of the underground architecture of western India and were built between the 7th century and the 19th century. It was an important place for public water use. It was built by the Rani. The stepwell has been restored and is now a popular tourist attraction.

6. Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park

7. Mandore Garden

Mandore is an ancient town and was the seat of the Gurjar Pratiharas of Mandaviya Pura who ruled the region in the 6th century. Even after the disintegration of the empire, a Gurjar family continued to rule Mandore. This family formed an alliance with the Rathore chief Rao Chunda (1383 to 1424) for the first time in their reign against the Tughlaq dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. Rao Chunda married a Pratihara princess of Mandore and received the kingdom of Mandore in dowry. The fort served as the capital of his family until 1459. Rao Jodha shifted the kingdom to the newly founded city of Jodhpur. Ranmal Rathore ascended the throne of Mandore in 1427. Apart from ruling Mandore, Ranmal also became the chieftain of Mewar, assisting Maharana Mokal, the father of Rana Kumbha. After the assassination of Maharana Mokal in 1433, Ranmal continued as the administrator of Mewa with Rana Kumbha. In 1438, Rana Kumbha signed a power-sharing arrangement. Jodha decided to end this war and had Rao Ranmal of Chittor killed and captured Mandore. Ramal's son Jodha fled to Marwar. During his escape from Chittor, Jodha was accompanied by about 700 gunmen. A brave Kailash tried to stop the pursuers at Someshwar Dere. As a result of the battle near Chittor, Jodha's warriors suffered heavy losses. When the warriors reached Mandsaur, they had only 7 men with them. All the warriors left the temple and headed towards the forests. With great difficulty, they reached a village near present-day Bikaner safely. For 15 years, the warriors tried to recapture Mandore but to no avail. The couple finally got a chance to attack in 1453 when Rana Kumbha faced simultaneous attacks from the sultans of Malwa and Gujarat. Mandore suddenly got the upper hand. Jodha's service brought the warriors to an end and captured Mandore with relative ease. Jodha and Kumbha settled their differences to face their common enemies and the Muslim rulers of Gujarat. Mandore was the capital of the erstwhile princely state of Marwar Jodhpur state before Jodha moved it to Jodhpur where he built Mehargarh. Mandore became the royal cremation ground after the death of Maharaja Jaswant Singh II, the second jaswant thada, which was celebrated as the royal cremation ground by all the kingdoms of Marwar.

8. Machia Biological Park, Jodhpur

The idea of creating a zoological park near Jodhpur was first proposed in 1982–83, when a portion of the Machia Forest Block was earmarked for development. In 1990, 604 hectares of this forest area were declared protected under the Rajasthan Forest Act to facilitate the development of a biological park. The need for a modern zoo arose due to outdated enclosures at the previous city zoo and the withdrawal of recognition by national authorities. After a prolonged period of planning and construction, the park was inaugurated by Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje on 20 January 2016.

9. Kaylana Lake

Kaylana Lake is located 8 km west of Jodhpur in Rajasthan, India. It is an artificial lake, built by Pratap Singh in 1872. The lake spreads over an area of 0.84 km2 (0.32 sq mi). In ancient times this region had palaces and gardens made by two rulers of Jodhpur - Bhim Singh and Takhat Singh. These were destroyed to make Kaylana Lake. The lake is situated between igneous rock land formations. It receives its water from Hathi Nehar (translation: elephant canal), which is further connected to the Indira Gandhi Canal. The natural vegetation here mostly consists of Babool (Acacia nilotica and Kumat trees, and various migratory birds such as Siberian cranes are seen here in the winter season. The city of Jodhpur and all the surrounding towns and villages depend on Kaylana lake as a source of drinking water.

10. Bal Samand Lake

The Balsamand Lake Palace was built later as a summer palace on its shore. The lake is surrounded by lush green gardens that house groves of trees like mango, papaya, pomegranate, guava and plum. Animals and birds like the jackal and peacock also call this place home.

Famous Temple in Jodhpur

Shree Chamunda Mata Temple
Mahamandir Temple
Masuriya Temple
Shree Pal Balaji Temple
Achal Nath Temple

Famous Food in Jodhpur

Dal Baati Churma
Mirchi Bada
Pyaaz Kachori
Shahi Samosa
Mawa Kachori

Famous Universities in Jodhpur

Jai Narain Vyas University (JNUV)
Agriculture University, Jodhpur
Jodhpur National University (JNU)
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Jodhpur

Famous Museum in Jodhpur

Umaid Bhawan Museum
The Singariya Coin ( Money) Museum