Bharatpur - The Eastern Gateway to Rajasthan,
was
founded by Maharaja Suraj Mal in 1733 AD, it was once an impregnable well fortified
city, carved out of the region formerly known as Mewat. The trio of Bharatpur,
Deeg and Dholpur has played an important part in the history of Rajasthan.
The legends say that the place was named as Bharatpur after the name of Bharat,
the brother of Lord Rama, whose other brother Laxman was worshipped as the family
deity of the Bharatpur rulers, Laxman's name is engraved onthe state arms and
the seals. The city and the fort have been believed to be founded by Rustam,
a Jat of Sogariya clan. Maharaja Surajmal took over from Khemkaran, the son
of Rustam and established the empire. He fortified the city by building a massive
wall around the city.
The interesting aspect of the Bharatpur history is the domination of Jats in
the region since 17th century, leader like Churaman and Badan Singh brought
the Jats together to mould them into a force to reckon with. Suraj Mal has been
the greatest ruler who made them a formidable force and played a very important
role in the Indian history during 19th century.
Today Bharatpur is better known for the Keoladeo Natinal Park, a unique bird
place, delight of ornithologists.
Bharatpur is well-known for it world heritage listed bird sanctuary Keoladeo
Ghanna National Park. This is one of the few places in the world where you can
hope to sight hundred of different species of birds in just a few days. Over
400 species different birds have been identified in the park and you see them
all over the place.
Many
tourists travelling to this destination have rate it as the highlight of their
visit. It is just 55 kilometres from Agra and 176 kilometres from Jaipur.
The history of Bharatpur goes back to the epic age of Mahabharta when the Matsya
kingdom flourished in the 5th century BC. Some archaeological remains of this
period can be seen in the Bharatpur Museum. The city is supposed to be named
after Bharat, the brother of Lord Rama. Bharatpur was the stronghold of the
Jats in the 17th and 18th century.
They maintained considerable autonomy though they were allied to the Mughals;
this was largely due to their prowess in the battle and their marriage alliances
with the Rajputs. Their fort in Bharatpur even withstood attacks from the British
in 1805 and 1825 but later they signed a treaty of friendship with the East
India Company. It merged with the union of India at independence.
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