Dhar

Dhar lies in Malwa beneath a low hill crowned by a sandstone fortress. Its old earthen ramparts enclosed a roughly circular city surrounded by tanks and moats. The Paramara rulers made Dhar their principal seat in the tenth century, and under King Bhoja it became a celebrated centre of learning. The wealth of the city drew attacks from rival dynasties before Malwa was annexed by the Delhi Sultanate in the early fourteenth century.

Dilawar Khan, governor of Malwa, established himself as an independent sultan in 1401–1402. He built the Lat Mosque in 1405, named for the great iron pillar nearby; an inscription on the pillar records Akbar's visit in 1598. Dilawar's son Hoshang Shah moved the capital to Mandu. Dhar later came under Mughal rule until the Marathas conquered it in 1730, and it became the seat of the Pawar rulers.