Kachwaha

The Kachwaha (Kachhwaha) are a Rajput clan that ruled several kingdoms and princely states in India, including Alwar, Maihar, and Talcher. Their most prominent kingdom was Jaipur (Jainagara), founded by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II in 1727. The Maharaja of Jaipur is considered the head of the extended Kachwaha clan.

History of Kachwahas

T.H. Hendley, in his Rulers of India and the Chiefs of Rajputana (1897), suggests that the Kachwaha clan is believed to have initially settled at Rohtas (Rahatas) on the Son River, which is now part of Bihar. He notes that their prominent seats of power included Kutwar, Gwalior, Dubkhund, Simhapaniya, and Narwar (Nalapura), all of which are located in present-day Madhya Pradesh. This westward migration to Madhya Pradesh is attributed to Raja Nala, the legendary founder of Narwar.

Historians assert that the Kacchapaghatas, much like the Chandellas and Paramaras, began as tributaries to the dominant powers of the region. They argue that it was only after the fall of Kannauj, the regional power following the collapse of Harsha's empire in the 8th–10th centuries AD, that the Kacchapaghata state emerged as a significant force in the Chambal valley of present-day Madhya Pradesh. This view is largely supported by archaeological findings, including Kacchapaghata coinage minted in the Gupta style and Gopaksetra inscriptions.

Rudolf Hoernle (1905) links the Kachhwas to the Gurjara-Pratiharas, noting similarities between the names of the rulers of Kannauj in the mid-10th century and the recorded line of eight Kachwaha rulers of Gwalior, based on the Sas-Bahu inscription of Mahipal.

Following Sumitra, the rulers of Narwar included Madhubramh, Kanh, Devanik, and Isha Singh. The Sas-Bahu inscription, dating to 1093, provides a genealogy of the ruling family, tracing it up to Mahipal, who passed away sometime before 1104.