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Prithviraj
Prithviraj
Raja of Amber
Reign	17 January 1503 – 4 November 1527
Predecessor	Chandrasen
Successor	Puranmal
Died	4 November 1527
Wives	Apurva Devi (Bala Bai) of Bikaner; Princess of Mewar;
Issue	Puranmal; Bhim Singh; Bharmal;
Dynasty	Kachwaha
Father	Chandrasen

Prithviraj Singh I (? –1527), also known as Prithvi Singh I, was a 16th-century Rajput ruler of Amber. He was a monarch of strong religious inclinations and during his reign, Amber became increasingly politically active. He took part in the Rajput alliance against the Mughal emperor Babur, fighting against the latter in the Battle of Khanwa alongside Rana Sanga of Mewar in 1527. Three of Prithviraj's sons successively followed him as ruler of Amber, with many of his descendants also populating the kingdom's highest aristocracy in subsequent centuries.

Reign

Prithviraj ascended the throne of Amber after the death of his father, Raja Chandrasen, in 1503.^[1] With his rule, Amber, which had been experiencing a long period of stagnation, was revitalised, entering an era of extensive political activity.^[2] This may be shown through his marriage to a Mewari princess,^[3] to whose house the rajas of Amber owed homage.^[4]

Prithviraj was a fervent devotee of the Hindu deity Krishna, taking as his spiritual teacher an ascetic who took the name Krishna-das (slave of Krishna). This guru bestowed on the Raja two sacred idols; Narasimha, which has a temple in Amber, and Sitaram, which has one in Jaipur.^[1] The latter idol was from then on carried at the head of the Amber army in battle.^[3] At one point, Prithviraj made a pilgrimage to Dwarka, where he was initiated as a monk in the monastery.^[1]

In March 1527, he, alongside his son Jagmal and a number of relations, fought under Rana Sanga of Mewar in the fatal Battle of Khanwa against the Mughal emperor Babur.^[4] This was the last of the great battles fought by the Rajputs, during which Sanga was debilitated after being struck by an arrow. Prithviraj, alongside Rao Maldev of Marwar and Rao Akheraj of Sirohi, escorted the injured Rana to safety.^[5]

Death

Prithviraj did not long survive the battle, dying on 4 November 1527, two months before Rana Sanga's death. Like the latter, who was poisoned by his nobles in order to avoid further conflict with Babur, historian V.S Bhatnagar suggests that Prithviraj's death may also have been unnatural, noting that his successors later readily offered their allegiance to the Mughals.^[6]

Family

Prithviraj had nine wives from multiple clans, by whom he had eighteen sons and three daughters. Twelve of these sons reached adulthood, with three eventually became rajas of Amber: Puranmal, Bhim Singh and Bharmal.^{[note 1]} Nine of his sons, alongside three collateral relations, were also awarded estates in perpetuity for them and their descendants. These families are termed the baro kotri (twelve chambers) of the House of Kachwaha, who later formed the highest aristocracy of Jaipur.^[1]

Notes

^ Bhim Singh and Bharmal were both sons of Prithviraj's Rathore queen, Bala Bai,^[1] daughter of Rao Lunkaran of Bikaner.^[7] Puranmal's mother may also have been this woman,^[8] though other identifications include her being Prithviraj's Tonwar wife.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Sarkar, Jadunath (1984). A History of Jaipur: C. 1503-1938. Orient Longman Limited. pp. 31–33. ISBN 81-250-0333-9.
^ Prasad, Rajiva Nain (1966). Raja Man Singh of Amber. p. 3.
^ ^a ^b Nathawat, P. S.; Khangarot, R. S. (1990). Jaigarh, the invincible fort of Amber. RBSA Publishers. p. 31. ISBN 9788185176482.
^ ^a ^b Bhatnagar, V. S. (1974). Life and Times of Sawai Jai Singh, 1688-1743. Impex India. p. 6.
^ Khan, Refaqat Ali (1976). The Kachhwahas under Akbar and Jahangir. Kitab Publishers. p. 2.
^ Bhatnagar, V.S (1974). Life and Times of Sawai Jai Singh, 1688–1743. Impex India. p. 6. The latter is believed to have been poisoned by a section of his nobles who were opposed to his resolve to face Babar again. The possibility of Prithviraj having met an unnatural death like Sanga, and for the same very reason, cannot be ruled out, especially when we note that his successors, instead of maintaining the struggle against the foreign foe, readily paid allegiance to him.
^ Singh, Rajvi Amar (1992). Mediaeval History of Rajasthan: Western Rajasthan. p. 1518.
^ Hooja, Rima (2006). A history of Rajasthan. Rupa & Co. p. 482. ISBN 9788129108906.