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History of
Jaipur
Jaipur, the pink city was founded in
1727 by Maharaja Jai Singh II, a Kachhwaha Rajput,
 who ruled from
1699-1744. Initially his capital was Amber, which lies at a distance of
11kms from Jaipur. 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.
After several battles with Marathas, Jai Singh was keen on the security
aspect of the city. Due to this reason, he focused on his scientific and
cultural interests to make a brilliant city. Being, a lover of mathematics
and science, Jai Singh sought advice from Vidyadhar Bhattacharya, a
Brahmin scholar of Bengal, to aid him design the city architecture.
Vidyadhar referred the ancient Indian literature on astronomy, books of
Ptolemy and Euclid, and discussed the plan with the King.
With a strategic plan, the construction of the city started in 1727. It
took around 4 years to complete the major palaces, roads and square. The
city was built following the principles of Shilpa Shastra, the Indian
Architecture. The city was divided into nine blocks, out of which two
consist the state buildings and palaces, whereas the remaining seven
blocks were allotted to the public. In order to ensure the security, huge
fortification walls were made along with seven strong gates.
According to that time, architecture of the town was very advanced and
certainly the best in Indian subcontinent. In 1853, when Prince of Wales
visited Jaipur, the whole city was painted in Pink color to welcome him.
Still, the neat and broadly laid-out avenues, painted in pink provide a
magical charm to the city. Jaipur is rich in its cultural and
architectural beauty, which can be traced in the various historical and
aesthetic places that reside in the city. This city of victory really wins
the hearts of the people with its splendid charisma.
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