JAIPUR HISTORY

        The city owes its name, foundation and planning to the great warrior – astronomer Maharaja Jai Singh ΙΙ {(1693 – 1743). Jai Singh’s predecessors had enjoyed good relations with Mughals and he was careful to preserve this alliance. In 1727, with Mughal power on the wane, Jai Singh decided the time was right to move from his cramped hillside fort at nearby Amber fort, but later he felt the need of shifting his capital city with the increase in population and growing scarcity of water. Jaipur is the first planned city of India and the King took great interest while designing this city of victory. He consulted several books on architecture and architects before making the lay out of Jaipur.  He laid out the city, with its surrounding walls and rectangular blocks, according to principles set down in the Shilpa – Shastra, an ancient Hindu architectural treatise. In 1728 he built Jantar Mantar, Jaipur’s remarkable observatory.

        Forts, palaces, architectural marvels and tales of valour, all in their own way, bear testimony to the glory that Jaipur is and was just after it was conceived by Sawai Jai Singh in 1727. Located 262 kilometers from Delhi, jaipur was the first planned city in northern India. Jaipur's history dates back to the 12th century when the Kachchwaha clan of Rajputs arrived at the old fort palace of Amber in the Aravalli Hills. The Kachchwaha belonged to the Kshatriya, or the warrior caste of Hindus, but they traced their origins back to the sun, via Kusa who the twin son of the god Rama.

        In 1876 Maharaja Ram Singh had the entire old city painted pink, a colour associated with hospitality, to welcome the prince of wales, and the tradition has been maintained. Jaipur is still one of the beautiful cities in India with most of its forts and palaces perfectly in shape. Forts and palaces in and around Jaipur are what attract tourists to the Pink City. Jaipur has a number of fine hotels that provide best hospitality service to guests touring Jaipur. Crossland travel offers complete information on Jaipur and online booking for hotels in Jaipur.