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The Indian king Harshavardhan, who belonged to the vibhuti clan basically from Yaduvanshi clan of Yadavs, ruled over not only Rajasthan but also India, after his death the Rajput came in rajasthan history. Harshvardhan was the first to use the word Rajputra, after this the rulers of the region would refer to themselves as rajput or rajpoot. Parts of Rajasthan belonged to the Indus Valley Civilization between about 3500 and 1750 BCE. Excavations at Kalibanga in Northern Rajasthan have revealed the existence of human settlements of the Harappan times on the banks of a river that dried up later, which is believed to be the River Saraswati by some scholars.[3] The historical evidence found in Bairat reflects the presence of Pre-Aryan people. The first Aryan settlement was at the Dhundhar region around 1400 BCE. Matsya or Meena (Sanskrit for fish) was the name of a Kshatriya tribe and the state of the Vedic civilization of India.[4][5][6][7] It lay to south of the kingdom of Kurus and west of the Yamuna which separated it from the kingdom of Panchalas. It roughly corresponded to former state of Jaipur in Rajasthan, and included the whole of Alwar with portions of Bharatpur.[8] The capital of Matsya was at Viratanagar (modern Bairat) which is said to have been named after its founder king Virata.[9] Meenas are brothers and kinsmen of Virata, the ruler of Virat Nagar. They ruled this area(near to Virat Nagar) till 11th century.[10][11]

Rajasthan was a part of the illustrious Mauryan Empire around 321-184 BCE. It had also been a part of Republics like Arjunyas, Hunas, Kushans, Malavas, Saka Satraps and the Yaudheyas. The Guptas reigned in the 4th century. Some Buddhist caves and Stupas have been found in Jhalawar, in the southern part of Rajasthan.

The decline of the 300 year old Gupta Empire in the 6th century led to the political unrest in the Northern India and was followed by an epoch of instability as numerous chieftains tried to gain power. The situation was stabilized when the Gurjara-Pratiharas, the earliest of the Gurjar clan emerged around 700 CE.[12] Gurjar pratihars were well known for their hostility towards Arab invaders.The Arab chronicler Sulaiman describes the army of the Gurjar Pratihars as it stood in 851 CE, The king of Gurjars maintains numerous forces and no other Indian prince has so fine a cavalry. He is unfriendly to the Arabs, still he acknowledges that the king of the Arabs is the greatest of kings. Among the princes of India there is no greater foe of the Islamic faith than he. He has got riches, and his camels and horses are numerous.[13].

Rajasthan includes most of Rajputana, comprising a number of Rajput kingdoms as well as Ahirs Kingdom (which is now ), Jat kingdoms(Bharatpur and Dholpur) and a Muslim kingdom(Tonk). The Jats were rulers in Bharatpur and Dholpur. Tonk was ruled by a Muslim Nawab. The Raos Rajput of Haryana were complete control Rewari, Narnaul,Gurgaon,Jhajjar, Rohtak,some parts of Bhiwani, Alwar, Mahendergarh, Some parts of North Jaipur and Karauli Area. Jodhpur, Bikaner, Udaipur, and Jaipur were some of the main Rajput states. Rajput families rose to prominence in the 6th century,[citation needed] establishing kingdoms in Rajputana and across northern India. Medieval period Samrat Hem Chandra Vikramaditya, Hindu Emperor of Northern India Maharana Pratap, a Rajput ruler and great warrior of his time. Mughal emperor Akbar sent many missions against him. However he survived and ultimately gained control of all areas of Mewar excluding fort of Chittor.

Prithviraj Chauhan fought a brave battle against the foreign invader Muhammad Ghori and defeated him in the first battle of Tarain in 1191 but was defeated in the seventeenth battle with Ghori. After getting defeated for sixteen times, Ghori begged for his life saying a sentence with a literal meaning "I am your cow, Forgive". In the seventeenth battle, a traitor from Chauhan's kingdom supported Ghori's army and landed up in the defeat. What happens after this is clear from the local folk songs still prominent in Rajasthan. It is said that Prithviraj was taken to Afghanistan along with his raj-kavi cum friend, Chandbhar. In Ghori's court, Prithviraj and Chandbhar were brought in shackles. Prithviraj was asked to show the art of archery, wherein he could aim and shoot just by hearing the sound. It is also known as Shabdbhedi-baan. Ghori asked him to show him this art. To make game interesting for himself, he got his eyes pierced with hot iron rods. Chandbhar says, "A king, though as a prisoner, can receive command only from a king. So it would be an honour if you command Him to shoot". Then he says few verses or poetry, few of those lines were, "Char baans chobis guz, aangal asht pravan, taa upar sultan hai, mat chooko Chauhan". Chaar baans meant four bamboos stick, chaubis guz as approximately 24 yards, aangal asht praval meant eight fingers width. All this combined gave the exact location of Ghori sitting on his throne i.e. 4 bamboos stick high, 24 yards away and exactly eight fingers up was the Ghori sitting. "Go ahead O Chauhan and don't miss the aim". This is how Prithvi Raj kills Ghori in his court and obviously to meet his own death. Grave of Prithvi Raj Chauhan is present till date next to Ghori's grave.

After the defeat of Chauhan around 1200, a part of Rajasthan came under Muslim rulers. The principal centers of their powers were Nagaur and Ajmer. Ranthambhor was also under their suzerainty. At the beginning of the 13th century, the most prominent and powerful state of Rajasthan was Mewar. The Rajputs resisted the Muslim incursions into India, although a number of Rajput kingdoms eventually became subservient to the Delhi Sultanate. Mewar led others in resistance to Muslim rule: Rana Sanga fought the Battle of Khanua against Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire.

In between 1540 to 1556, Afghans were in control of most of North India. Rajasthan born Samrat Hem Chandra Vikramaditya also called Hemu,the Yadav Rajput Rulers who started his career as a supplier of various merchandise to Sher Shah Suri empire held various positions in capital Delhi as 'In charge of Food Affairs', 'Minister of Internal Security' and 'Prime Minister-Cum-Chief of Army' with Islam Shah and Adil Shah, who ruled from Punjab to Bengal. Hemu crushed the first rebellion in 1553 at Ajmer where he killed the Afghan Governor Junaid Khan and appointed his own man as governor. Hem Chandra won several battles (22) against Afghan rebels and Mughal king Akbar and won all of them without losing any. He defeated Akbar's army at Agra and Delhi in 1556, and became a 'Vikramaditya' king after 350 years of foreign rule at Purana Quila in Delhi. Hemu lost in the Second battle of Panipat on 7 November 1556, and was killed.

In order to gain the trust of the Rajput rulers, the Mughal Emperor Akbar arranged matrimonial alliances. He also sought reconciliation with the hostile Rajputs after performing the matrimonial alliances. He himself married the Rajput princess- Jodha Bai who was the daughter of the Maharaja of Amer. He granted high offices to a large number of Rajput princes and this maintained very cordial relations with these Rajputs. Soon most of the Rajputs were transformed into friends of Akbar from adversaries and many of them surrendered their kingdoms to Akbar. Rulers like Raja Maan Singh of Amer were trusted allies. However all Rajput rulers were not ready to accept Akbar’s dominance and preferred to remain independent. One such ruler was Raja Uday Singh of Mewar, who founded the city of Udaipur. He never accepted Akbar's supremacy and was at constant war with him. Akbar forcefully seized Chittor, his capital. After his death, this struggle was continued by his son – Rana Pratap. He fought a terrible battle with Akbar at the Haldighat pass where he was defeated and wounded. Since then Rana Pratap remained in recluse for 12 years and attacked the Mughal ruler from time to time. He fought valiantly throughout his life never ceded his independence to the Mughal ruler. An ancient ruin in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.

The traditional sacrifice and the self-respect of the Rajput women are also worth mentioning while discussing the imperial rule of Rajasthan during the medieval epoch. When the Rajput rulers were forced to surrender their kingdoms to other invaders, the Rajput women in order to protect their chastity and self-respect used to light up a pyre and together they used to jump into the fire thus sacrificing and ending their own lives. This custom of collective sacrifice was known as Jauhar.

Rajasthan's formerly independent kingdoms created a rich architectural and cultural heritage, seen today in their numerous forts and palaces (Mahals and Havelis) which are enriched by features of Muslim and Jain architecture. Maratha Empire

Since the early 1700s, the Maratha Empire began expanding northwards, led by Peshwa Baji Rao I of Pune. This expansion finally brought the newly founded Hindu Maratha Empire in contact with the Rajputs. Rajasthan saw many invasions by the Marathas, under military leadership of Holkars and Scindhias. Most of Rajputana passed under the control of the Maratha Empire and continued to pay tribute to Pune till the British East India Company replaced the Marathas as paramount rulers.[14] Modern period

Rajasthan had never been united politically until its domination by Mughal Emperor Akbar. Akbar created a unified province of Rajasthan. Mughal power started to decline after 1707. The political disintegration of Rajasthan was caused by the dismemberment of the Mughal Empire. The Marathas penetrated Rajasthan upon the decline of the Mughal Empire. In 1755 the Maratha general Scindia occupied Ajmer. The beginning of the 19th century was marked by the onslaught of the Pindaris. Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II, inspecting Jaipur State forces deployed in the Middle East during World War II.

The Rajput kings concluded treaties with the British in the early 19th century, accepting British sovereignty in return for local autonomy and protection from the Marathas. Following the Mughal tradition and more importantly due to its strategic location Ajmer became a province of British India, while the autonomous Rajput states, the Muslim state (Tonk), and the Jat states (Bharatpur and Dholpur) were organized into the Rajputana Agency. In 1817-18, the British Government concluded treaties of alliance with almost all the states of Rajputana. Thus began the British rule over Rajasthan, then called Rajputana. Post independence

At the time of India's Independence in 1947, Rajasthan consisted of 19 Princely States, two chieftains and a British administered province of Ajmer-Merwara besides a few pockets and territories outside its main boundaries.

It took seven stages to form Rajasthan as defined today. In March 1948 the Matsya Union consisted of Alwar, Bharatpur, Dhaulpur and Karauli was formed. Also, in March 1948 Banswara, Bundi, Dungarpur, Jhalawar, Kishangarh, Kota, Pratapgarh, Shahpura and Tonk joined the Indian union and formed a part of Rajasthan. In April 1948 Udaipur joined the state and the Maharana of Udaipur was made Rajpramukh. Therefore in 1948 the merger of south and southeastern states was almost complete. Still retaining their independence from India were Jaipur and the desert kingdoms of Bikaner, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer. From a security point of view, it was vital to the new Indian Union to ensure that the desert kingdoms were integrated into the new nation. The princes finally agreed to sign the Instrument of Accession, and the kingdoms of Bikaner, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Jaipur were merged in March 1949. This time the Maharaja of Jaipur, Man Singh II was made the Rajpramukh of the state and Jaipur became its capital. Later in 1949, the United States of Matsya, comprising the former kingdoms of Bharatpur, Alwar, Karauli and Dholpur, was incorporated into Rajasthan. On January 26, 1950, 18 states of united Rajasthan merged with Sirohi to join the state leaving Abu and Dilwara to remain a part of Greater Bombay and now Gujarat.

In November 1956 under the State Re-organisation Act, 1956 the erstwhile part 'C' State of Ajmer, Abu Road Taluka, former part of princely State Sirohi (which were merged in former Bombay), State and Sunel Tappa region of the former Madhya Bharat merged with Rajasthan and Sirohi sub district of Jhalawar was transferred to Madhya Pradesh. Thus giving the existing boundary Rajasthan. Today with further reorganisation of the states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. Rajasthan has become the largest state of the Indian Republic. Location of historical Sunel-Tappa region,shown with red colour in map.

The princes of the former kingdoms were constitutionally granted handsome remuneration in the form of privy purses and privileges to assist them in the discharge of their financial obligations. In 1970, Indira Gandhi, who was then the Prime Minister of India, commenced under-takings to discontinue the privy purses, which were abolished in 1971. Many of the former princes still continue to use the title of Maharaja, but the title has little power other than status symbol. Many of the Maharajas still hold their palaces and have converted them into profitable hotels, while some have made good in politics. The democratically elected Government runs the state with a chief minister as its executive head and the governor as the head of the state. Currently, including the new district of Pratapgarh, there are 32 districts, 105 sub-divisions, 37,889 villages, 241 tehsils and 222 towns in Rajasthan.

Gurumukh Nihal Singh from Rajasthan was appointed as first governor of Rajasthan. Hiralal Shastri was first nominated chief minister who worked from 7 April 1949, after two more nominated chief ministers Tikaram Paliwal became first elected chief minister from 3 March 1951. See also