{{Short description|Royal Rajput dynasty of Rajasthan}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2015}} {{Use Indian English|date=December 2015}} {{Infobox noble house | surname = | native_name = | native_name_lang = | other_name = House of Mewar | coat of arms = Coat of arms of Udaipur State.png | coat_of_arms_size = 200px | coat_of_arms_caption = Coat of arms | image = In mewar-state.png | image_caption = Flag of Kingdom of Mewar | type = <!-- Royal house, noble house, etc. --> | parent house = Guhila dynasty | country = Kingdom of Mewar | founded = {{start date and age|1326}} | founder = Rana Hammir Singh | current head = Disputed:<br />Vishvaraj Singh Mewar<br />Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar | dissolution = | final ruler = Bhagwat Singh Mewar | titles = ''Maharana'', ''Rana'' | styles = | deposition = | cadet branches = Chundawat • Ranawat Shaktawat • Kanawat }} The '''Sisodia''' is a Rajput dynasty belonging to the clan that ruled over the Kingdom of Mewar, in the region of Mewar in Rajasthan, India.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schwartzberg |first1=Joseph E. |title=A Historical atlas of South Asia |date=1978 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |page=147, map XIV.4 (e) |isbn=0226742210 |url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/schwartzberg/pager.html?object=186 |access-date=25 March 2021 |archive-date=25 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225003445/https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/schwartzberg/pager.html?object=186 |url-status=live }}</ref> The Sisodias are an off-shoot of the Guhila Dynasty and claim descent from the Suryavamsha (Solar dynasty).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Singh |first=K. S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jHQMAQAAMAAJ&q=sisodia+suryavanshi |title=India's Communities |date=1998 |publisher=Anthropological Survey of India |isbn=978-0-19-563354-2 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Trikha |first=Madhav Hada Translated by Pradeep |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QgsNEAAAQBAJ&dq=sisodia+suryavanshi&pg=PA79 |title=Meera Vs Meera |date=2020-12-07 |publisher=Vani Prakashan Group |isbn=978-93-89915-90-7 |language=en}}</ref>
== Origins == The Sisodia dynasty traced its ancestry to Rahapa, a son of the 12th century Guhila King Ranasimha. He founded the village of Shisoda, in modern day Rajsamand district, as his capital, after which his descendants were called Sisodias. 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 Sisodiya branch, reclaimed control of the region with the help of Baruji Sauda and his Charan allies, re-established the dynasty, and also became the founder of the Sisodia dynasty clan, a branch of the Guhila dynasty, to which every succeeding Maharana of Mewar belonged, and the Sisodias regained control of Chittor, the former Guhila capital.<ref>{{cite book |author=Rima Hooja |title=A history of Rajasthan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tosMAQAAMAAJ |year=2006 |publisher=Rupa |oclc=80362053 |pages=328–329 |isbn=9788129108906 |access-date=27 February 2019 |archive-date=4 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404134542/https://books.google.com/books?id=tosMAQAAMAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Naravane">''The Rajputs of Rajputana: a glimpse of medieval Rajasthan'' by M. S. Naravane {{ISBN|81-7648-118-1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Manoshi|first=Bhattacharya|title=The Royal Rajputs|date=12 August 2023 |isbn=9788129114013|pages=42–46|publisher=Rupa & Company }}</ref> The Sisodiyas were engaged in multiple battles against Sultans of Malwa, Nagor, Gujarat and Delhi.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of Medieval India by Satish Chandra book pdf download |url=https://www.iasnotes.in/2022/11/history-of-medieval-india-by-satish-chandra-book-pdf-download.html |access-date=2024-02-15}}</ref> They were a significant reason in weakening of the adjacent sultanates including the Delhi Sultanate.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Richards |first=John F. |date=1965-01-01 |title=The Economic History of the Lodi Period: 1451-1526 |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/jesh/8/1/article-p47_2.xml |journal=Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient |language=en |volume=8 |issue=1 |pages=47–67 |doi=10.1163/156852065X00020 |issn=1568-5209|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
According to the ''Rajprashasti'' genealogy, one of these – Rana Samar – 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".<ref name="SRS_1971">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tEycu_8H5qkC&pg=PA10 |title=Maharana Raj Singh and His Times |author=Sri Ram Sharma |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |year=1971 |isbn=9788120823983 |pages=2–12 |access-date=20 September 2020 |archive-date=17 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817162449/https://books.google.com/books?id=tEycu_8H5qkC&pg=PA10 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Wessly Lukose|title=Contextual Missiology of the Spirit: Pentecostalism in Rajasthan, India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ccBNAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA50|year=2013|publisher=Wipf & Stock Publishers|isbn=978-1-62032-894-1|page=50|access-date=20 January 2019|archive-date=17 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817162433/https://books.google.com/books?id=ccBNAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA50|url-status=live}}</ref>
== History ==
The most notable Sisodia rulers were Rana Hamir (r. 1326–1364), Rana Kumbha (r. 1433–1468), Rana Sanga (r.1508–1528) and Rana Pratap (r. 1572–1597). The Bhonsle clan, to which the Maratha Empire's founder Shivaji belonged, also claimed descent from a branch of the royal Sisodia family.<ref name="S1998">{{cite book|author=Singh K S|title=India's communities|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1lZuAAAAMAAJ|year=1998|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-563354-2|page=2211|access-date=6 October 2016|archive-date=3 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703062630/https://books.google.com/books?id=1lZuAAAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> Nainsi in his book mentioned Shahji descended from Chacha, son of Rana Lakha.<ref>Rajasthan Oriental Research Institute, 1960, Muhnot Nainsi Ri Khyat, Part 1, page 15</ref> Similarly, Rana dynasty of Nepal also claimed descent from Ranas of Mewar.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KVDIvLQDGckC&dq=ranas+nepal+rajput&pg=PA319 |title=Greater Game: India's Race with Destiny and China by David Van Praagh |isbn=978-0-7735-7130-3 |access-date=16 March 2023 |archive-date=7 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407110207/https://books.google.com/books?id=KVDIvLQDGckC&dq=ranas+nepal+rajput&pg=PA319 |url-status=live |last1=Praagh |first1=David Van |date=27 October 2003 |publisher=McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP }}</ref>
According to the Sisodia Chronicles, 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.<ref name="MBB_2015"/>
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.<ref name="MBB_2015"/> The Sisodias were the last Rajput dynasty to ally with the Mughals, and unlike other Rajput clans, never intermarried with the Mughal imperial family.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6dR0CgAAQBAJ&pg=PA37 |title=Royal Umbrellas of Stone |author=Melia Belli Bose |publisher=Brill |year=2015 |page=37 |isbn=9789004300569 |access-date=16 January 2016 |archive-date=17 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817162450/https://books.google.com/books?id=6dR0CgAAQBAJ&pg=PA37 |url-status=live }}</ref> 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.<ref name="MBB_2015">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6dR0CgAAQBAJ&pg=PA248 |title=Royal Umbrellas of Stone |author=Melia Belli Bose |publisher=Brill |year=2015 |pages=248–251 |isbn=9789004300569 |access-date=5 January 2016 |archive-date=17 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817162434/https://books.google.com/books?id=6dR0CgAAQBAJ&pg=PA248 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Serving empire, serving nation: James Tod and the Rajputs of Rajasthan |first=Jason |last=Freitag |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden |year=2009 |isbn=978-90-04-17594-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ib93BhAu43gC |access-date=2011-07-27 |pages=3–5, 49 |archive-date=17 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817160239/https://books.google.com/books?id=Ib93BhAu43gC |url-status=live }}</ref>
== Sub-Clans == * Chundawat - descendants of Rana Chunda Sisodia.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bakshi |first1=S. R. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ldo1QtQigosC&dq=Chundawat+clan&pg=PA444 |title=Early Aryans to Swaraj |last2=S.G |date=2005 |publisher=Sarup & Sons |isbn=978-81-7625-537-0 |language=en}}</ref> * '''Shaktawat''' - descendants of Shakti Singh.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chauhan |first=Brij Raj |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gOPZAAAAMAAJ&q=Shaktawat+descendant |title=A Rajasthan Village |date=1999 |publisher=AC Brothers |isbn=978-81-85489-07-0 |language=en}}</ref> * '''Ranawat''' - descendants of Maharana Pratap. * '''Kanawat''' - descendants of Kanh Singh.
== Princely States == * Kingdom of Mewar * Shahpura State * Dharampur State * Dungarpur State * Barwani State * Pratapgarh State * Banswara State
== List of Rulers == * Rana Hammir (1326–1364) established the sisodiya dynasty * Rana Kshetra (1364–1382) * Rana Lakha (1382–1421) * Rana Mokal (1421–1433) * Rana Kumbha (1433–1468) * Rana Udai I (1468–1473) * Rana Raimal (1473–1508) * Rana Sanga (1508–1527), ''Under his rule Mewar reached its pinnacle in power and prosperity.''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Maharana Sanga; the Hindupat, the last great leader of the Rajput race: Sarda, Har Bilas, Diwan Bahadur, 1867–1955 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming |url=https://archive.org/details/maharanasangahin00sardrich |access-date=2020-08-16 |website=Internet Archive |language=en}}</ref> * Rana Ratan II (1528–1531) * Rana Vikramaditya (1531–1536) * Banvir (1536–1540) * Rana Udai II (1540–1572) * Maharana Pratap (1572–1597), ''13th king of Mewar, notable for his military resistance against the Mughals.'' * Amar Singh I (1597–1620) * Karan Singh II (1620–1628) * Jagat Singh I (1628–1652) * Raj Singh I (1652–1680) * Jai Singh (1680–1698) * Amar Singh II (1698–1710) * Sangram Singh II (1710–1734) * Jagat Singh II (1734–1751) * Pratap Singh II (1751–1754) * Raj Singh II (1754–1762) * Ari Singh II (1762–1772) * Hamir Singh II (1772–1778) * Bhim Singh (1778–1828) * Jawan Singh (1828–1838) * Sardar Singh (1838–1842) * Swarup Singh (1842–1861) * Shambhu Singh (1861–1874) * Sajjan Singh (1874–1884) * Fateh Singh (1884–1930) * Bhupal Singh (1930–1947)
=== Titular Maharanas ===
* Bhupal Singh (1947–1955) * Bhagwat Singh Mewar (1955–1984) * Mahendra Singh Mewar (1984–2024) * Vishvaraj Singh Mewar (2024 - )
== See also == * List of Ranas of Mewar * Chundawat * Rajput clans
== References == {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== *{{Cite book|author=Gopinath Sharma|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jIs9AAAAMAAJ|title=Mewar & the Mughal Emperors (1526-1707 A.D.)|date=1954|publisher=S.L. Agarwala|language=en}}
== External links == *[http://www.saadigitalarchive.org/search/Seesodia Sisodia materials in the South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA)]
{{Rajput Groups of India}} Category:Kingdom of Mewar Category:Rajput dynasties Category:Sisodia dynasty Category:Rajput clans of Rajasthan Category:Solar dynasty Category:Dynasties of India Category:Surnames of Indian origin Category:Social groups of Rajasthan