Rajasthan was inhabited long before 2500 BC and the Indus Valley Civilisation had its foundation here in north Rajasthan itself. The Bhil and the Mina tribes were the earliest dwellers of this area.
Around 1400 BC the Aryans paid a visit and settled forever in the area. The local population was pushed down south and towards the east. Afghans, Turks, Persians and Mughals followed in mixing their blood, first in war then in peace, with the existing original inhabitants. This blending gave the martial lineage to the Rajputs.
From the times of Harsha (7 AD) to the founding of the Delhi Sultanate, Rajasthan was fragmented in competing kingdoms. Perhaps it was during this era by their influence through wealth and power the Rajputs persuaded the Brahmins to link them with the sun, the moon and the fire god.
With the passage of time they were divided into 36 royal clans. Rajasthan finally settled for a long and lasting reign under the colourful and vibrant Rajputs. and it's a surprise that they lasted as long as they did. Considering that they were at a constant state of aggression; if not with a foe, then with each other. After the 14th century their influence declined in the area.
In came the Mughals who gained control of the region through the clever strategy of Akbar, the Mughal Emperor. He performed matrimonial alliances with the Rajputs where faced military failure and thus turned them from fearsome foes to faithful friends. This proud but very divided race was thus brought to some order under the imperial Mughals, by the some deft mixing of marital and martial relations. Akbar gave high offices to many Rajput princes after seeking reconciliation through marriage to a Rajput princess, Jodha Bai, the daughter of the Maharaja of Amber. However, the spunk of the Rajput soul was never really captured, till the spread of the British colonial power. However, when the Mughals weakened they were quick to reassert their dominance. The Rajputs as a community thus has outlived the somewhat tribal Delhi Sultanate, the grand Mughals and the war-like Marathas. In fact to this day their descendants, though stripped of their titles and kingdoms, are revered as rulers by the common man.
