Kachhwaha

The Kachhwahas were a Rajput clan of Dhundhar in northeastern Rajputana, ruling Amber and later Jaipur. They claim descent from Kusha, son of Rama. Their ancestors are said to have ruled Gwalior. In the eleventh century Dulha Rai received Dausa from the Chauhans and established the Dhundhar kingdom; his successor Kakil seized Amber.

Amber's rise began under Bharmal, who married his daughter to Akbar in 1562 and became a Mughal vassal. His grandson Man Singh I became one of Akbar's foremost Rajput generals. Jai Singh I commanded in the Deccan and extracted the Treaty of Purandar from Shivaji in 1665.

Sawai Jai Singh II reasserted independence in 1708, founded Jaipur in 1727 and built the Jantar Mantar observatories. After his death in 1743, succession wars and Maratha tribute drained the state; in 1818 Jaipur entered a British subsidiary alliance.