Jammu

Jammu stands on the Tawi River between the northern plains and the Himalayan hills. Known for its temples and shrines, it was the centre of a hill state whose rulers appear in the chronicles of neighbouring Kashmir and Delhi. Timur passed through Jammu on his return from India in 1398.

In 1423 Jasrat Khokhar defeated Raja Bhim Dev and brought Jammu under his authority. Mughal chronicles later described it as a powerful hill state; Akbar established suzerainty over Jammu and its neighbours while leaving their kings considerable autonomy. In the eighteenth century Raja Ranjit Dev ruled from Jammu, serving as a Mughal agent in the Dogra hills. The Sikh Bhangi Misl sacked the city and made it a tributary during his reign.