Mandsaur

Mandsaur lies where Malwa meets Mewar and is identified with ancient Dashapura. Inscriptions discovered in the region reveal two Aulikara dynasties that ruled from the city. At nearby Sondani, the victory pillars of Yashodharman proclaim his triumph over Mihirakula, while the poet Kalidasa mentioned Dashapura in his Meghaduta. The town is also home to the old temple of Pashupatinath.

In 1732 Maratha cavalry under Holkar surrounded Jai Singh II of Amber at Mandsaur and cut his supplies. After fighting and negotiations, Jai Singh agreed to pay six lakhs and allow Holkar to collect chauth from twenty-eight parganas in Malwa. In 1818 Mandsaur gave its name to a treaty with the Holkar ruler of Indore, ending his part in the Third Anglo-Maratha War.