Udaipur was ruled by the Mewar dynasty. They had once ruled over Chittorgarh before Akbar threw them out. This dynasty was always known in Rajasthan for their heroism, chivalry and patriotism. Once upon a time Udaipur was the capital of Mewar. The founder of this beautiful district was Rana Udai Singh. Inspite of being compelled to leave Chittorgarh, their original home; the Rajputs did not give up trying. Thus they established a new and alternative capital at Udaipur. It is said that once when Maharana Udai Singh was out hunting he stumbled upon a sage seated at the banks of the Pichola Lake.

This hermit predicted that the fortunes of the king would take turn for good and he would build a palace in that same place. To commemorate this event the king built a small shrine in the name of Dhuni Mata. It was after this incident that Udai Singh decided to build his new capital in that place. Hence the city of Udaipur came into existence. An artificial lake was built here by the maharana. It was named after him, Udai Sagar. Later he also discovered a pond that had been built by a `banjara` or gypsy. The maharana worked further on this pond and created the man made Pichola Lake. Originally a small palace known as, Nochouki, was established in 1559.

With time the marble structure grew in size and today it is one of the largest palaces in India. Amazingly Udaipur remained untouched by the Mughals. The Sisodiyas intelligently kept themselves at bay from the Mughals. As a result Udaipur is one of those places in Rajasthan that is devoid of any Mughal influence. The Sisodiyas were staunch supporters of their own culture and hence no foreigner could dominate the art and culture of Udaipur. This one clan had kept on holding to the roots of Hinduism in an age when everything was getting influenced by the Mughals.

Their fierceness and sense of independence earned them a lot of respect and an immortal place in the Rajasthani history. The list of Sisodiya rulers that ruled Udaipur is quite long. There are several instances engraved in the pages of history of Udaipur that goes onto prove the dedication that these rulers had for their tradition and culture. Maharana Pratap Singh once refused lunch with Man Singh because the latter had married off his sister to Jahangir. Unable to digest this insult Man Singh declared war on Pratap Singh and defeated him in the battle of Haldighati.

The title of Maharana means great warrior. The Maharana of Udaipur is considered the head of 36 Rajput clans. The descendants of Mewar hail themselves as the descendent of Sun, Suryavanshi. After Udai Singh it was Maharana Pratap Singh who was a fantastic monarch. Fearless and fierce he commanded a lot of respect from his peers. A statue had been built in Udaipur in the memory of the ruler. The statue depicts the Maharana riding his favorite horse Chetak. According to legends Chetak saved the life of his master in the battle of Haldighati in lieu of his own life. Inspite of the rivalry between him and the Mughals he had earned a lot of respect from the Mughal emperor Akbar. On hearing the death news of his bravest challenger he asked the royal poet to compose a verse in Maharana Pratap Singh`s memory.

The later Sisodiya kings were:-

• Rana Amar Singh I

• Rana Karan Singh

• Rana Jagat Singh I

• Rana Raj Singh I

• Maharana Jai Singh

• Rana Amar Singh II

• Maharana Sangram Singh II

• Rana Jagat Singh II

• Rana Pratap Singh II

• Rana Raj Singh II

• Rana Ari Singh II

• Rana Hamir Singh II

• Rana Bhim Singh

• Maharana Jawan Singh

• Maharana Swaroop Singh

• Maharana Shambhu Singh

• Rana Sajjan Singh

• Maharana Fateh Singh

• Maharana Bhopal Singh

• Maharana Bhagwat Singh

• Maharana Arvind Singh