HISTORY AND ORIGIN OF JAISALMER

Jaisalmer was founded by king Jaisa or Jaisal. The word Jaisalmer is said to have been derived from a
combination of words Jaisal and Meru- a local name for jaisal’s fort. Prior to Jaisalmer, the capital of
the state was at lodhurva, which rao jaisal, the ruler of the state, found unsafe from defence point of
view and so shifted it to a new town Jaisalmer, which he considered to be quite safe. Lodhurva still
lies in ruins , 16km north-west of Jaisalmer. the area was widely known as ‘mad dhara’ or
‘vallamandal’ from ancient times. It is generally accepted that after the great war of mahabharatha,
the yadavas of Mathura moved out in large numbers. The forefathers of ruling chiefs of Jaisalmer,
who claimed descent from lord Krishna, the prince of Mathura, migrated to the region sometime in
the sixth century B.C.

Founded with the construction of the fort in 1156, the golden city of Jaisalmer originally became
wealthy from trade because of its position on the camel-train routes between india and central
asia,and the merchants and townspeople built magnificient houses and mansions, intricately carved
from wood and sandstone. Occupied by rajputs, Mughals and maharajas, the city rose again to
prominence in the 17th century because of its links to delhi. The city declined with the rise of
shipping and the port of Bombay, but since partition and conflicts with Pakistan. Moreover, because
of its marvellous architecture and historical importance, it became a tourist attraction point.

In medieval times, Jaisalmer continued to be on the focus of the masses.