The Kachhwahas of Amber and Jaipur

In 1727, Sawai Jai Singh II began building a new capital on the plain below the hills of Amber. Unlike the old hill capitals of Rajasthan, it was planned from the start: a grid of broad streets, market bazaars, city blocks for different trades, and a royal palace at the centre. Beside the palace he built a set of giant masonry instruments to observe the sky. The city was Jaipur; the observatory was the Jantar Mantar. Both are now UNESCO World Heritage Sites — and both are the work of a dynasty that rose through alliance with the Mughals.

Origins in Dhundhar

The Kachhwahas traced their descent to Kusha, son of Rama — hence the solar lineage. The founder of their power in Rajasthan is traditionally Dulherai (tenth–eleventh centuries), who established control over the region called Dhundhar, around present-day Jaipur. The family later made Amber its capital, with a fort-palace on the hill above Maota lake.

The Mughal alliance

The Kachhwaha–Mughal alliance transformed the dynasty's fortunes. Service in the empire brought high rank, large jagirs, wealth and influence far beyond Rajasthan. It also brought criticism, then and later, from those who saw it as submission — a debate worth presenting in balance.

Sawai Jai Singh II (ruled c. 1699/1700–1743)

Jai Singh II was a statesman, a builder and one of the most accomplished astronomers of his age. The Mughal emperor Aurangzeb is said to have given him the title Sawai ("one and a quarter"), implying he was more than an ordinary man.

The founding of Jaipur

• Founded in 1727; planned with the architect Vidyadhar Bhattacharya.
• Laid out on a grid following principles associated with the Shilpa Shastra (vastu), with wide streets, planned bazaars and nine blocks.
• Surrounded by walls with gates; the City Palace at the centre.
• The city was painted pink much later, in 1876, to welcome the Prince of Wales during the reign of Sawai Ram Singh II — hence the "Pink City".

Astronomy

Jai Singh II built observatories (Jantar Mantars) at five places:

He compiled astronomical tables known as the Zij-i-Muhammadshahi, dedicated to the Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah, and sent scholars to study European astronomy.

Other achievements

Jai Singh II also performed the Ashvamedha sacrifice, a rare royal ritual in the eighteenth century, and played a leading role in Rajput politics — including the Hurda conference (1734), where Rajput rulers met to plan joint action against the Marathas.

Later rulers

• Sawai Pratap Singh built the Hawa Mahal (1799), the "Palace of Winds", designed by Lal Chand Ustad, with its hundreds of small windows allowing royal women to watch street life unseen. He was also a poet (writing as Brajnidhi) and patron of music and painting.
• Sawai Ram Singh II (nineteenth century) introduced modern institutions — schools, a hospital, the Maharaja's School of Art, gas lighting and waterworks — and had the city painted pink in 1876.
• Sawai Man Singh II became the Rajpramukh of Rajasthan after integration in 1949.

Why the Kachhwahas matter for RAS

1. The Mughal alliance that shaped Rajasthan's history.
2. Man Singh and Mirza Raja Jai Singh — key figures in Mughal politics.
3. Jaipur — a planned city and UNESCO site.
4. Astronomy — Jai Singh II's observatories, a rare scientific legacy.
5. Integration — Jaipur as capital of modern Rajasthan.

Practice

Prelims-style:

1. Which Kachhwaha ruler first allied with Akbar, and in which year?
2. Who negotiated the Treaty of Purandar with Shivaji?
3. Who was the architect associated with the planning of Jaipur?
4. In which year was Jaipur city inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site?
5. Who built the Hawa Mahal?

Mains-style (50 words): Describe the features of Jaipur as a planned city.

Mains-style (100 words): Assess the contribution of Sawai Jai Singh II to science and urban planning.