Rajasthan Travel Destinations Guide
Rajasthan is the land of forts and palaces , some large , some small , some pretty, some plain, but all of them with a history. The land has seen pleasure, pain, peace, war, luxury, and desert barrenness. Some forts and palaces attract hordes of visitors, while some stand off the beaten track, seeing none but a quiet bird or stray cattle. Each of the forts and palaces in Rajasthan has a tale to tell, a tale from the days gone by, when kings rode off to war, and beautiful queens awaited victory or death, depending on the outcome of the battle.
Rajasthan has seen turbulent times. It was constantly under attacks either from Mughals , British armies , and the Marathas, or faced the destruction caused when Rajput rulers fought each other over territory.
Certain pockets of the region, where rulers made peace with their enemies, or learnt how to hunt with hounds and run with foxes, the grim toll of battle was less. Here, the palaces are more beautiful, the forts less foreboding, and the atmosphere – even after centuries – more relaxed.
When the Rajput rulers were not at war, they lived it up in style. Before the days of democracy, when the rulers had free reign over the land, they built forts and palaces to provide food for work programs in months of famine. They could gift lands to their favorite courtier, and build palaces to house their retinue of wives and concubines. Their pleasure palaces saw evenings of riotous living, complete with dancing girls and dinners consisting of whatever they had hunted that day.
Those were times of intrigue, when plots were hatched and the king’s pleasure was everything. While horse trading is a common political practice today as well, in the days of yore, it posed some threat to life and liberty. The Jai Mahal, for example, was built by a man who was known for his Machiavellian cunning and crafty political alliances. Of course, he suffered for his greed and arrogance, and all that remains of him is the splendid pleasure house he built.
The Chittorgarh Fort is the site of the famous “love story” of Allaudin Khilji. The infatuated Allaudin tried to carry off the beauteous, and much married, queen of Chittor. When he failed, he resorted to battle. He never got her though, for the queen committed suicide and her husband, the king of Chittor, died with his army of Rajput soldiers fighting Allaudin’s mighty army. The grim fort has now passed into the legend, and visitors will be taken to see the underground cellars where the beautiful Padmini stepped into flames to save herself from Allaudin.
You will hear many other stories, about kings and commoners, men and women, warriors and traders, as you begin your journey to the forts and palaces of Rajasthan.
Tourism Rajasthan Blog 