Dulha Rai’s Conquest of Dausa: The Early History of Kachwahas

An informative and interesting read on the life and times of the legendary ’bridegroom prince’, Dulha Rai. The inception of the kingdom of Dhundhar (later the princely state of Jaipur) is ascribed to Dulha Rai, who is remembered as the progenitor of the Kachwaha dynasty of Rajputana. His career and rise to power is deeply linked with the district of Dausa and its principal seat of power, the enigmatic Dausa Fort. Details of his life and achievements (late tenth-eleventh century), however, remain a murky subject, while his family background and its history are also topics which are largely unexplored till date. This is due to the lack of first-hand information and understanding of the early medieval period in which the events of his life transpired. By piecing together various clues and analysing historical records, Maharaj Devraj Singh-the grandson of Jaipur’s last ruling maharaja, Sawai Man Singh II, and his wife, Maharani Gayatri Devi-attempts to narrate the hitherto unknown history of his ancestors in the centuries prior to their move into Rajasthan, during which time they were known as the Kachaphaghatas of Gwalior and Narwar.