MAHARANA PRATAP- SAVIOUR OF RAJPUTANA

How The Foreigners Attacked India

Maharana Pratap was an enigma! History calls him a fearless warrior, just ruler and someone who would  do anything to protect his country. He has been an inspirational figure for every king  and their subjects. He has had a profound influence on me as a person which made me sit here today and and pen his story.

Who was Pratap? Was he an ordinary boy with extraordinary courage? How was he as a person? What made him so popular among his people? How did he manage to defend Mewar from the mighty Akbar with whole his enmity goes back to his childhood days? These are some of the most intriguing questions, inspirational events and some unbelievable tales I have read over time that made me take some time to write about him and present his valor and courage in front of you.

Rajasthan, which is in north-western part of India shares its border with the present day Pakistan. It is place known for its rich culture, heritage  and tradition. Rajasthan has a rugged terrain and is famous for Thar desert.

Around 400 years back, with the might of their huge armies, foreign forces, one after another, were invading the Indian territories. Afghans, Turks and then the Mughals...all had one burning desire... establishing their control over a prosperous India. But even in these hard times, there was one province which gave a bold fight to these enemies... and that was the gleaming rajya of the Rajputs- Mewar! For the rajputs, no sacrifice weighed more importance than freedom.

But despite this unprecedented courage, Mughal forces often dominated over the courageous Rajputs and it seemed the desires of these enemies would be fulfilled before long. In this troubled time, the soil of Mewar gave birth to its bravest son, Maharana Pratap who became an emblem for courage for the entire country. This is the story of a great warrior king, who in personal life is an ideal son to his father, a loving son to his step mother who hates him, a soothing leader to his people in their difficult times and trials. He is most surprisingly the man who only had love for his brothers, who in turn were either filled with jealousy, or hatred as they wanted themselves to be the rulers of Mewar. Many of these brothers went in the service of Akbar, but as history proves, his love would change his jealous brothers melodramatically in times of War.
The story of Maharana Pratap is not just the story of king who was a great warrior and who lead the army of his kingdom to victory against the armies of another empire. The story of Maharana Pratap is also not the story of a Rajput prince, who got his throne as a birthright from his father and ruled their state as a king in comfort. This story is actually the journey of a boy Pratap, who much later would earn his title Maharana, through his own deeds and dedication.

The was a very brave kingdom Mewar in Rajasthan  which was very popular for giving birth to fearless warriors at that time. For example Bappa Rawal who startes the sisoda clan, Rana Hamir Singh who started the clan of the Ranas, Rana Kumbha who never lost a battle under the shadow of eklingji  (Shiva) and the Rana Sanga who had only one hand and one eye but was a lion when he entered the battlefield,etc. without them India would have been nothing but a slave to the foreigners. when  the foreigners started  invading India (Bharat). They started to loot temples and jewels.Their aim was to conquer India, but they could not conquer as there were fearless warriors who were ready to sacrifice their life for saving their state or country and for their people. The mughals and Afghans wanted to rule the rajputs and conquer  Rajputana. Mewar was at its golden peak during the rule of Rana Kumbha. Rana Kumbha was a fearless warrior and never lost a battle. He defeated the Afghans and the Arabs. To celebrate his victory he built the vijay stambh or the victory tower. His victories were possible because of his faithful ministers who never betrayed him at any cost. His most faithful minister was his own brother Rawat chundawat who took the Beeshma pratigya or oath in which he and his descendant would always protect the royal family and the throne of Mewar. When the foreigners India invading India the soil of Mewar gave birth to fearless and strong warriors such as Rana Hamir Singh  who was the first king to use the title Rana before his name and was the founder of the Sisoda clan and a suryavanshi. So, when Babur the first mughal ruler started attacking India, rana Sanga almost defeated Babur due to betrayal he lost the war against Babur. So, his son Rana udai Singh became the 56 ruler of Mewar.  So,  he had 17 wives and 15 children. His first wife was maharani Jaivanta Bai who was the mother was Pratap.

The next chapter is about the birth of Pratap...