We belong to the royal Rajput clan of western India, the Rathore's. Rathore's are a Rajput tribe of India. The clan traces its lineage back to Rama, the mythical hero of the Hindu epic Ramayana and through him back to the sun god Surya himself. Which is why the Rathores also call themselves Suryavanshi or family of the sun. The Rathores hail from the Marwar region of western Rajasthan and inhabit in the Idar state of Gujarat and also in Chhapra & Muzaffarpur district of Bihar in a very small number. Their native languages are Hindi, Gujrati, Punjabi and dialects such as Rajasthani, Marwari.
When Mohammed Ghori Attacked India in 1193 A.D. the major power holder were Tuars/Tomars of Delhi, Rathors of Kannauj, Chauhans of Ajmer and Gehlots of Mewar. They all were at times either allies or at war with each other and all princes of India paid homage to one or the other. Muslims took advantage of these hostilities.
It is said that Sheoji, a surviving grandson of Jaichand, made his way into the western desert with a group of faithful followers, finally settling in the town of Pali in Marwar, which was ruled by another branch of the Pratiharas. Sheoji is regarded as the patriarch of the entire Rathore clan and all Rathores and Rathods trace their patrilineage back to him.
The Rathores gradually spread across Marwar, forming a brotherhood of landowners and village chieftains, loosely bound to each other by ties of clan and caste. An epoch in the history both of Marwar and of the Rathores was marked by Rao Jodha, a warrior who founded a kingdom that grew to encompass all of Marwar. He also founded the city of Jodhpur in 1459, and moved his capital thither from Mandore. One of his sons, Rao Bika, established the town of Bikaner in 1488, in the Jangladesh region lying to the north of Marwar; that town was to become the seat of a second major Rathore kingdom. Some of these migrations from Marwar into Gujarat caused changes in language and the spelling of Rathore to Rathod, which is seen in clans present in Gujarat. the present day Rathore settlers from Haryana, Gujrat and other nothern regions trace their history back to the Jodhpur darbar.
Rathore's have many gotras, most of these gotras are from the name of the great warriors of the past and gotras are being used by their family members. Some of these gotras are: Jodha, Bidawat, Banirot, Chanpawat, mertiya and so forth.
Rao Chanpa, Brother of Rao Jodha has many successors settled in different parts of Rajasthan, Gujrat and Haryana. They are called Chanpawat Rathores.
The Rathore Dynasty is divided into 40 plus khanps or branches, with five being the most prominent.
On 25th July, an exciting event had occurred in the imperial court at Agra Fort. Mir Bakshi Salabat Khan had uttered a provocative remark to Amar Singh Rathore, which stirred up his feelings to a fever pitch; and he spontaneously thrust his dagger in the chest of Salabat Khan, the latter died on the spot. To take vengeance on Amar Singh Rathore, the Emperor's security officers, guards and mace bearers, made a ruthless assault upon him, and a gruesome fight had started. Amar Singh offered a tough resistance, but he was soon overpowered by the Emperor's men, and finally was slain. To recover the dead body of Amar Singh, laid in the Emperor's custody, was a mighty challenge before Ballu Chanpawat. At that crucial moment, Ballu had displayed rare qualities of fidelity, honor and bravery which made him a figure of high regard. Nothing daunted Ballu, he entered into the Agra Fort, hurriedly picked up the corpse, or the severed head, and put it on horseback; pressed his thighs in sudden quick pull, and gave a twitch to the horse. The horse in quickness, with the speed of a bullet, dashed, and leapt over the ramparts; it fell by the sight of the moat, where it breathed its last. Ballu had carried out his plan successfully; brought the corpse or the severed head of Amar Singh Rathore from the jaws of death; and handed over the same to his 'ranies' (wives) who were waiting for it in order to become 'Sati'. Ballu's valorous feat was unparalleled in the historical records of the world. This incident had happened on 26th July, 1644.
But this was not the end of Ballu's story. The same day the Emperor's forces were in chase of Ballu. A grim battle had occurred outside the Agra Fort between Ballu's men and Emperor Shah Jahan's forces, where the valiant Rathore cut the troops of the enemy and threw each corpse a headless torso. Ballu fought the battle in his euphoric spree even when beheaded. The battle-great Ballu thus made history - different and distinct from other warriors known in history.
Th. Nahar Singh Ji stayed for some time at Mahansar in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan. Then he left the place after sometime due to draught conditions and proceeded towards Hissar district in Haryana and constructed a mini fort at a place Bhana near Hissar. After some time he got friendly with the Nawab of Fatehabad and got influenced by the Sant Fakir Baba Mansagar Ji Maharaj at village Dhingsara near Fatehabad and shifted there. With the blessings of Mansagar Baba he got married at an old age because he lost all his four sons in Jodhpur battle. He got married to Tanwar Rajputs in Bikaner district and was blessed with three sons.
In 1883 he was appointed as the S.P of Sirsa district, the only Indian gazetted officer in British rule. Hissar district which was from Loharu to Fazilkan was broken into two districts, Hissar and Sirsa. Th. Nahar Singh Ji was the S.P of Sirsa and remained in service for 3 years only but due to his old age he resigned from the post and the district was again clubbed with into Hissar district. Here he was rewarded with 14 villages. Th. Nahar Singh Ji laid out the plan of Sirsa city with architectural help of Hissar D.C.
Early History...
Based on khyats ("traditional accounts") written in seventeenth century, it is surmised that the Rathores were originally feudatories of the Ujjaini-based Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty, and may perhaps have been domiciled in the vicinity of Kannauj in the heyday of that dynasty. Pratihara-ruled Kannauj was sacked by Mahmud of Ghazni in 1019, which ushered in a chaotic period for that area. A family known to us as the Gahadvala dynasty gained control of Kannauj and ruled for nearly a century; their best-known monarch was Raja Jaichand, their last king.When Mohammed Ghori Attacked India in 1193 A.D. the major power holder were Tuars/Tomars of Delhi, Rathors of Kannauj, Chauhans of Ajmer and Gehlots of Mewar. They all were at times either allies or at war with each other and all princes of India paid homage to one or the other. Muslims took advantage of these hostilities.
It is said that Sheoji, a surviving grandson of Jaichand, made his way into the western desert with a group of faithful followers, finally settling in the town of Pali in Marwar, which was ruled by another branch of the Pratiharas. Sheoji is regarded as the patriarch of the entire Rathore clan and all Rathores and Rathods trace their patrilineage back to him.
Rathores in Rajasthan...
Rathore dynasties ruled a number of kingdoms and princely states in Rajasthan and neighboring states before India's independence. Jodhpur (Marwar) was the largest kingdom, followed by Bikaner (also known as Jangladesh). The two states (Jodhpur and Bikaner) had many major and minor thikana's ( Thikana was the jagir and each Jagir included many villages as per the thikana). Each Thikana had a Thakur who in turn paid revenue to the Maharaja of the state and also provided with well trained soldiers to the Maharaja in Battle.
The Rathores gradually spread across Marwar, forming a brotherhood of landowners and village chieftains, loosely bound to each other by ties of clan and caste. An epoch in the history both of Marwar and of the Rathores was marked by Rao Jodha, a warrior who founded a kingdom that grew to encompass all of Marwar. He also founded the city of Jodhpur in 1459, and moved his capital thither from Mandore. One of his sons, Rao Bika, established the town of Bikaner in 1488, in the Jangladesh region lying to the north of Marwar; that town was to become the seat of a second major Rathore kingdom. Some of these migrations from Marwar into Gujarat caused changes in language and the spelling of Rathore to Rathod, which is seen in clans present in Gujarat. the present day Rathore settlers from Haryana, Gujrat and other nothern regions trace their history back to the Jodhpur darbar.
Rathore's have many gotras, most of these gotras are from the name of the great warriors of the past and gotras are being used by their family members. Some of these gotras are: Jodha, Bidawat, Banirot, Chanpawat, mertiya and so forth.
Rao Chanpa, Brother of Rao Jodha has many successors settled in different parts of Rajasthan, Gujrat and Haryana. They are called Chanpawat Rathores.
The Rathore Dynasty is divided into 40 plus khanps or branches, with five being the most prominent.
- JODHA - descended from Rao Jodha, founder of Jodhpur.
- CHANPAWAT - descended from Rao Chanpa.
- KUMPAWAT - descended from Rao Kumpa.
- UDAWAT - descended from Rao Uda, grandson of Rao Jodha.
- MERTIA - descended from Rao Duda, son of Rao Jodha.
Our genealogy tree from Raja Jaichand of Kanauj to Rao Chanpa Ji
Jaichand of Kanauj
|
SETRAM
|
SIHAJI
| +1273
ASTHAN ————————— SONANJI
| +1292 |
DOOHAD IDAR (first dynasty)
| +1309
RAIPAL
| +1313
KANHAPAL
| +1323
JALANSI
| +1328
CHADA
| +1344
TIDA
| +1357
KANHADEV ——————— SALKHA
| +1374
MALLINATH —————————— JAIT MAL ————————————— VIRAMDEV
|+1410 | | +1383
JAGMAL Gurhamalani CHUNDA
| | +1422
Jasol Kotra RANMAL
|
| +1438
JODHA ———————————————————————————————————— CHANPA —————— AKHAIRAJ
| +1488 | |
BIKA ———KARAMSI—RAIPAL ——— DUDA —————————— SHUJA CHANPAWAT Kumpawat
|+1504 | 1523 | | +1515
BIKANER KHIMSAR MERTIA UDA ————— SAGA ————— BAGHA
| |
Udawat Sagawat
A detailed genealogy tree of our family at Dhingsara and Bajekan can be found here: http://bajekan.abhinayrathore.com/family.php. The chivalrous Ballu Singh Chanpawat
Ballu Chanpawat Rathore (A.D. 1591-1644), of Harsolaw in Marwar was a dauntless warrior of the period. He had a glorious line of ancestry. He was a man of sterling qualities, and of unimpeachable character. In him there was a confluence of the streams of valor and self-respect; both flowed together plenteously in him. He had fought 34 battles in his career. But these battles alone were not enough to put him among the worthies of history. What gave him an abiding place in history was his miraculous valor, demonstrated by him at the Agra Fort in July, 1644.
On 25th July, an exciting event had occurred in the imperial court at Agra Fort. Mir Bakshi Salabat Khan had uttered a provocative remark to Amar Singh Rathore, which stirred up his feelings to a fever pitch; and he spontaneously thrust his dagger in the chest of Salabat Khan, the latter died on the spot. To take vengeance on Amar Singh Rathore, the Emperor's security officers, guards and mace bearers, made a ruthless assault upon him, and a gruesome fight had started. Amar Singh offered a tough resistance, but he was soon overpowered by the Emperor's men, and finally was slain. To recover the dead body of Amar Singh, laid in the Emperor's custody, was a mighty challenge before Ballu Chanpawat. At that crucial moment, Ballu had displayed rare qualities of fidelity, honor and bravery which made him a figure of high regard. Nothing daunted Ballu, he entered into the Agra Fort, hurriedly picked up the corpse, or the severed head, and put it on horseback; pressed his thighs in sudden quick pull, and gave a twitch to the horse. The horse in quickness, with the speed of a bullet, dashed, and leapt over the ramparts; it fell by the sight of the moat, where it breathed its last. Ballu had carried out his plan successfully; brought the corpse or the severed head of Amar Singh Rathore from the jaws of death; and handed over the same to his 'ranies' (wives) who were waiting for it in order to become 'Sati'. Ballu's valorous feat was unparalleled in the historical records of the world. This incident had happened on 26th July, 1644.
To avenge his (Rao Amar Singh Rathore) death, his retainers, headed by Ballu Chanpawat..., put on their saffron garments, and a fresh carnage ensued within the 'Lal Quila' (Red Fort of Agra)... The pillars of Agra bear testimony to their deeds, nor shall they ever be obliterated from the records of time: they made their obeisance to Amar in the mansions of the sun.
~ James Tod : Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan
Ballu Chanpawat and Bhao Kumpawat who were then in Imperial service, at once joined the Nagaur forces. Ballu came to Agra Fort to take the corpse of with one thousand Rajputs, and Bhao went to arrange the pyre of 'Sati' and corpse and corpse of Amar Singh Rathore.
~ Harnath Singh Dundlod : Rao Amar Singh and Balluji Chanpawat
चलियो चांपो चंड, अमर पिंड धर अषव पर।
पहुँचयो प्रबल प्रचंड, मुगलां दल देखत मुदै।।
(The battle-great Chanpawat Ballu
Hurriedly put the corpse of Amar on his horse
And in a tempestuous mood carried it away
The Mughal enemy was stunned and shocked.)
प्राचिर ऊपर पूग्ग, कोई नय नंहलरव कमध।
पैली पारहि पुग्ग, कपि शिर खाई लाँघकर।।
(Dauntless Ballu, reckless of danger
Went up to the top of a tower;
From that point the agile horse in a first action
Jumped over the bulwark and the moat.)
To commemorate the valorous feat of Ballu's horse, who had jumped over so high ramparts of Agra Fort and fell adjacent to the moat where he died on the spot (26th July 1644), the Emperor Shah Jahan got constructed an effigy of the horse in red sandstone.By the sheer dint of his miraculous valor shown by Ballu Chanpawat at the Agra Fort, he unquestionably earned an immortal place and an undying fame in the annals of history.
~ Thakur Mohan Singh Kanota : Chanpawato-Ka-Itihas
Migration of Th. Nahar Singh Ji from Jodhpur to Haryana
In the early 19th century Th. Nahar Singh Ji as Chief of Army Staff of Jodhpur State with Pokhran Thakur Sahab and other thakurs of Jodhpur state fought battle with the temporary crowned prince of Jodhpur for 14 years for justice to the actual heir of the throne. He lost all his four sons in that ongoing battle. Eventually when he felt that there is no end to the battle, he left Jodhpur with Maharaja Dhaukal Singh Ji (the actual heir of the throne). On their way towards north, when they were approaching towards Bharatpur, Britishers were fighting with the Bharatpur rulers and were not able to break through the Bharatpur fort for which they demanded help from Th. Nahar Singh Ji who was traveling with a large number of Rajput warriors with him. A treaty was signed between Britishers and Th. Nahar Singh Ji, that if they help them in breaking the Bharatpur Fort, they will recognize Dhaukal Singh Ji as His Highness and give property in reward. After conquering the Bharatpur Fort and getting the Britishers to win the battle Maharaja Dhaukal Singh Ji was given the title of HH and was awarded the property of Jahajgarh of 28 villages.Th. Nahar Singh Ji stayed for some time at Mahansar in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan. Then he left the place after sometime due to draught conditions and proceeded towards Hissar district in Haryana and constructed a mini fort at a place Bhana near Hissar. After some time he got friendly with the Nawab of Fatehabad and got influenced by the Sant Fakir Baba Mansagar Ji Maharaj at village Dhingsara near Fatehabad and shifted there. With the blessings of Mansagar Baba he got married at an old age because he lost all his four sons in Jodhpur battle. He got married to Tanwar Rajputs in Bikaner district and was blessed with three sons.
In 1883 he was appointed as the S.P of Sirsa district, the only Indian gazetted officer in British rule. Hissar district which was from Loharu to Fazilkan was broken into two districts, Hissar and Sirsa. Th. Nahar Singh Ji was the S.P of Sirsa and remained in service for 3 years only but due to his old age he resigned from the post and the district was again clubbed with into Hissar district. Here he was rewarded with 14 villages. Th. Nahar Singh Ji laid out the plan of Sirsa city with architectural help of Hissar D.C.