Alwar

The ancient name of Alwar is Salva or Salwa (tribe).[2][3]Alwar was a part of the Matsya Kingdom, one of the 16 ancient Mahājanapadas.[4] In late Vedic texts (such as the Jaiminiya Brahmana), the Salva or Salvi tribe is described as a non-Vedic tribe that occupied Kurukshetra and conquered the Kuru Kingdom[5]

The Salvas settled along the Yamuna river and the Alwar province of Rajasthan after attacking the Kuru kingdom, and they later accepted Vedic culture by the end of the Vedic era as they converged with the remaining Kurus and the Surasena mahajanapada, near Matsya kingdom.[6]

The Darbar of Raja Bakhtawar Singh of Alwar in 1810

From time to time, different clans came to rule Alwar include the Jadauns of Braj, Nikumbh, the Khanzada Rajputs, the Badgujar Rajput, and the Naruka Rajputs who took the control over this area. The Maratha Empire also ruled this region for a short period. Rao Raja Pratap Singh Naruka, took the Alwar Fort (among other) from the Jat Raja of Bharatpur and laid down the foundation for modern day Alwar. After Battle of Mandan, many area was annexed by Rao Mitrasen Mitra Sen Ahir.

Hemchandra Vikramaditya (Hemu), born in Machari, Rajgarh, a village in Alwar, was a Hindu emperor of North India during the 16th century. This was a period when the Mughals and Afghans were vying for power in the region. Hemu captured Delhi on 7 October 1556 after defeating the Mughal forces in the Battle of Delhi in the Tughlaqabad area in Delhi, and became the de facto emperor. He won twenty-two battles in succession and became the last Hindu emperor of Delhi. In 1556, after his defeat in the Second Battle of Panipat, he was executed and Mughal regime was restored in North India.

Neemrana

Alwar State, a princely state established in 1770, was established by a Kachwaha Rajput named Pratap Singh Naruka who was earlier a jagirdar of "Dhai Gaon" (two-and-a-half villages) near Machari. His successor Bakhtawar Singh Naruka was defeated after launching an armed incursion into neighbouring Jaipur State (ruled by their Kachwaha seniors, erstwhile overlords of his predecessor) and being forced to accept the consequent treaty mediated by East India Company prohibiting him from political relations with other states without the consent of the colonial British.[7] According to the "Gazetteer of Ulwar" published by the British raj, Alwar State was subdivided into four regions:

• Rath region: current Behror and Neemrana, was ruled by Lah Chauhan Rajput zamindar who had descended from Prithviraj Chauhan.[8] Sahesh Mal was a son of Raja Sangat Singh Chauhan. Sangat was the great-grandson of Chahir Deo Chauhan, brother of famous king Prithviraj Chauhan.[9] In accordance with the pledge by the Raja Sangat Singh Chauhan to his younger queen for marrying her in his old age, her two sons from him were bestowed the Rath area and its headquarter of Mandhan near Neemrana.[8] King Sangat Singh Chauhan's 19 sons from the older queen set out to seek their fortunes.[8] Of the 19 brothers, Harsh Dev Chauhan and Sahesh Mal Chauhan arrived in the Gurgaon district.[8] Lah Chauhan, the ruler of Rath, was a son of raja Sangat Singh Chauhan by the younger Rani whose two sons became inheritors of Raja Sangat Singh's territory of Rath with its headquarter at Mandhan when other 19 sons from the other wives were required to quit the kingdom as per the promise of Raja Sangat.[8][10][11][12]

New residential Buildings in Neemrana Alwar

• Wai region: current Bansur and Thana Ghazi, was ruled by Shekhawat rajput zamindars.
• Narukhand region: current Rajgarh and Laxmangarh, was ruled by Naruka clan of Rajputs same as that of the ruling kings of the Alwar State
• Mewat region: current Palwal and Nuh districts, had the highest population of the Meo Muslims.

Alwar acceded to the dominion of India following the independence of India in 1947. On 18 March 1948, the state merged with three neighbouring princely states (Bharatpur, Dholpur and Karauli) to form the Matsya Union. On 15 May 1949, it was united with neighbouring princely states and the territory of Ajmer to form the present-day Indian state of Rajasthan. Alwar was designated as part of the National Capital Region, resulting in additional development projects including rapid-rail to Delhi and drinking water improvements.[13] The military cantonment of Itarana lies on the outskirts of Alwar.

The Fairy Queen, a national treasure (cultural artifact) of India and the world's oldest working locomotive engine (c. 1855 CE),[14] operates as a tourist luxury train between Delhi and Alwar.

Bala Qila (lit. "High Fort"), also known as Alwar Fort, is a fort approximately 300 meters above the city, founded by the 15th-century Khanzada Rajput ruler Hasan Khan Mewati and built on the foundations of a 10th-century mud fort.[15] Situated on the Aravalli Range, the fort is 5 kilometres long and about 1.5 kilometres wide with turrets, a large gate, a temple, and a residential area.[16]

The City Palace, also known as Vinay Vilas Mahal, built in 1793 CE by Raja Bakhtawar Singh, blends the Rajputana and Islamic architectural styles and has marble pavilions on lotus-shaped bases in its courtyard. The palace houses Government Museum, Alwar with a collection of manuscripts, including one depicting Emperor Babur’s life, Ragamala paintings and miniatures, and historic swords that once belonged to Muhammad Ghori, Emperor Akbar and Aurangzeb; and a golden Durbar hall. This palace that once belonged to the Maharaja (lit. Great Ruler) has now been converted into a District Administrative office also housing the District Court.[17]

The Sariska Tiger Reserve, a National Park and Tiger Reserve, is located in the Aravali hills only a few kilometres away from Alwar. Declared a Wildlife reserve in 1955 and a National Park in 1982, it is the first reserve in the world to have successfully relocated tigers. The sanctuary, which became a part of India's Project Tiger in 1978, also preserves other species including rare birds and plants.[18]

Bhangarh Fort, branded as the fourth most haunted palace in the world, and the most haunted palace in Asia, is a 17th-century fort built by Bhagwant Das for his younger son Madho Singh I. The fort, a monument protected by the Archaeological Survey of India and is known for its association to legends and paranormal activities,[19] is a tourist attraction for visitors across the world.[20]

Siliserh Lake is 19th century lake created by Maharaja Vijay Singh of Alwar, situated 8 miles southwest of Alwar.

Hill Fort Kesroli, a 14th-century fort, has now been converted into and is conserved as a heritage hotel.[21]

Alwar has a monsoon-influenced hot semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSh) with long, extremely hot summers and short, mild to warm winters.The climate here is considered to be a local steppe climate. The average maximum temperature in the summers ranges between 41 °C (106 °F) to average minimum of 28 °C (82 °F). The winter temperature falls in the range average high of 21 °C (70 °F) of to average low 8 °C (46 °F). Alwar experiences a short monsoon. The average annual rainfall is about 67 cm which mostly falls in July & August due to monsoon.[26] The highest temperature ever recorded in Alwar is 50.6 °C (123.1 °F) on 10 May 1956 & lowest is −0.8 °C (30.6 °F) recorded on 12 January 1967. It had record of highest temperature ever recorded of India till 2016, when a town Phalodi in Jodhpur district of Rajasthan recorded 51.0 °C (123.8 °F) on 19 May 2016.