The Sisodia is an Indian Rajput clan who belong to Suryavanshi lineage. A dynasty belonging to this clan ruled over the kingdom of Mewar in Rajasthan.[1] The name of the clan is also transliterated as Sesodia, Shishodia, Sishodia, Shishodya, Sisodya,Sisodiya, Sisodia(Ranawat Rajput).
Origins[edit | edit source]
The Sisodia dynasty traced its ancestry to Rahapa, a son of the 12th century Guhila king Ranasimha. The main branch of the Guhila dynasty ended with their defeat against the Khalji dynasty at the Siege of Chittorgarh (1303). In 1326, Rana Hammir who belonged to a cadet branch of that clan; however reclaimed control of the region, re-established the dynasty, and also became the propounder of the Sisodia dynasty clan, a branch of the Guhila dynasty, to which every succeeding Maharana of Mewar belonged, the Sisodias regain control of the former Guhila capital Chittor.[2][3][4]
According to the Rajprashasti genealogy, one of these ā Samar Singh ā married Prithi, the sister of Prithviraj Chauhan. His grandson Rahapa adopted the title Rana (monarch). Rahapa's descendants spent some time at a place called Sisoda, and therefore, came to be known as "Sisodia".[5]
History[edit | edit source]
| Sisodia Rajputs of Mewar II (1326ā1884) | |
|---|---|
| Hammir Singh | (1326ā1364) |
| Kshetra Singh | (1364ā1382) |
| Lakha Singh | (1382ā1421) |
| Mokal Singh | (1421ā1433) |
| Rana Kumbha | (1433ā1468) |
| Udai Singh I | (1468ā1473) |
| Rana Raimal | (1473ā1508) |
| Rana Sanga | (1508ā1527) |
| Ratan Singh II | (1528ā1531) |
| Vikramaditya Singh | (1531ā1536) |
| Vanvir Singh | (1536ā1540) |
| Udai Singh II | (1540ā1572) |
| Pratap Singh I | (1572ā1597) |
| Amar Singh I | (1597ā1620) |
| Karan Singh II | (1620ā1628) |
| Jagat Singh I | (1628ā1652) |
| Raj Singh I | (1652ā1680) |
| Jai Singh | (1680ā1698) |
| Amar Singh II | (1698ā1710) |
| Sangram Singh II | (1710ā1734) |
| Jagat Singh II | (1734ā1751) |
| Pratap Singh II | (1751ā1754) |
| Raj Singh II | (1754ā1762) |
| Ari Singh II | (1762ā1772) |
| Hamir Singh II | (1772ā1778) |
| Bhim Singh | (1778ā1828) |
| Jawan Singh | (1828ā1838) |
| Sardar Singh | (1828ā1842) |
| Swarup Singh | (1842ā1861) |
| Shambhu Singh | (1861ā1874) |
| Sajjan Singh | (1874ā1884) |
| Fateh Singh | (1884ā1930) |
| Bhupal Singh | (1930ā1955) |
| Bhagwant Singh | (1955ā1971) |
The most notable Sisodia rulers were Rana Hamir (r. 1326-64), Rana Kumbha (r. 1433-68), Rana Sanga (r.1508ā1528) and Rana Pratap (r. 1572-97). The Bhonsle clan, to which the Maratha empire's founder Shivaji belonged, also claimed descent from a branch of the royal Sisodia family.[7] Similarly, Rana dynasty of Nepal also claimed descent from Ranas of Mewar.[8]
According to the Sisodia Chronicals, when the Delhi Sultan Alauddin Khalji attacked Chittorgarh in 1303, the Sisodia men performed saka (fighting to the death), while their women committed jauhar (self-immolation in preference to becoming enemy captives). This was repeated twice: when Bahadur Shah of Gujarat besieged Chittorgarh in 1535, and when the Mughal emperor Akbar conquered it in 1567.[9]
Frequent skirmishes with the Mughals greatly reduced the Sisodia power and the size of their kingdom. The Sisodias ultimately accepted the Mughal suzerainty, and some even fought in the Mughal army. However, the art and literary works commissioned by the subsequent Sisodia rulers emphasized their pre-Mughal past.[9] The Sisodias were the last Rajput dynasty to ally with the Mughals, and unlike other Rajput clans, never intermarried with the Mughal imperial family. Women from other Rajput clans that had marital relations with the Mughals were disallowed from marrying with the Sisodias.[10] The Sisodias cultivated an elite identity distinct from other Rajput clans through the poetic legends, eulogies and visual arts commissioned by them. James Tod, an officer of the British East India Company, relied on these works for his book Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, or the central and western Rajpoot states of India (1829-1832). His widely read work further helped spread the views of the Sisodias as a superior Rajput clan in colonial and post-colonial India.[9][11]
See also[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ā For a map of their territory see: Schwartzberg, Joseph E. (1978). A Historical atlas of South Asia. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 147, map XIV.4 (e). ISBN 0226742210.
- ā Rima Hooja (2006). A history of Rajasthan. Rupa. pp. 328ā329. ISBN 9788129108906. OCLC 80362053.
- ā The Rajputs of Rajputana: a glimpse of medieval Rajasthan by M. S. Naravane ISBN 81-7648-118-1
- ā Manoshi, Bhattacharya. The Royal Rajputs. pp. 42ā46. ISBN 9788129114013.
- ā Sri Ram Sharma (1971). Maharana Raj Singh and His Times. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 2ā12. ISBN 9788120823983.
- ā Wessly Lukose (2013). Contextual Missiology of the Spirit: Pentecostalism in Rajasthan, India. Wipf & Stock Publishers. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-62032-894-1.
- ā Singh K S (1998). India's communities. Oxford University Press. p. 2211. ISBN 978-0-19-563354-2.
- ā Greater Game: India's Race with Destiny and China by David Van Praagh
- ā 9.0 9.1 9.2 Melia Belli Bose (2015). Royal Umbrellas of Stone. Brill. pp. 248ā251. ISBN 9789004300569.
- ā Melia Belli Bose (2015). Royal Umbrellas of Stone. Brill. p. 37. ISBN 9789004300569.
- ā Freitag, Jason (2009). Serving empire, serving nation: James Tod and the Rajputs of Rajasthan. Leiden: Brill. pp. 3ā5, 49. ISBN 978-90-04-17594-5. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
Further readings[edit | edit source]
- Gopinath Sharma (1954). Mewar & the Mughal Emperors (1526-1707 A.D.). S.L. Agarwala.