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Udaipur It is known for its Rajput-era palaces.
Particularly famous is the Lake Palace, which
covers an entire island in the Pichola Lake.
Many of the palaces have been converted into
luxury hotels.
Udaipur was the capital of the Rajput kingdom
of Mewar, ruled by Ranawats & other 23 branches
of the Sisodia clan. The founder of Udaipur
was Rana Udai Singh . The ancient capital of
Mewar was Nagda, located on the Banas River
northeast of Udaipur. Legend has it that Maharana
Udai Singh came upon a hermit while hunting
in the foothills of the Aravalli Range. The
hermit blessed the king and asked him to build
a palace on the spot and it would be well protected.
Udai Singh established a residence there. In
1568 the Mughal emperor Akbar captured Chittor,
and Udai Singh moved the capital to the site
of his residence, which became the city of Udaipur.
As the Mughal empire weakened, the Sisodia ranas,
and later maharanas, reasserted their independence
and recaptured most of Mewar except the fort
of Chittor. Udaipur remained the capital of
the state, which became a princely state of
British India in 1818. After India's Independence
in 1947, the Maharaja of Udaipur acceded to
the Government of India, and Mewar was integrated
into India's Rajasthan state.
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Lake
Palace
