Person · Rathore minister & protector
Durgadas Rathore
Also known as Durgadas
The Marwar nobleman Durgadas Rathore (13 August 1638 - 22 November 1718), chief minister of Jaswant Singh of Marwar who after Jaswant Singh's 1678 death at Jamrud protected the infant Ajit Singh (born 1679) from Aurangzeb's attempt to seize Marwar and convert the Rathore line to Islam. His 1679-1707 campaign across Marwar, Mewar and the Thar desert kept Ajit Singh in hiding until Aurangzeb's 1707 death, when Ajit Singh ascended the Marwar throne. Durgadas is called 'Jat ki Rajya Diwali' in Marwari oral tradition for restoring the Rathore dynasty. His 1718 cenotaph at Ujjain and the Jodhpur Rathore royal house's 1978 memorial honour him.
- Date
- 1638–1718
- Function
- Social reform & movement
- Confidence
- Established / referenced
Connections (1)
- OpposedDara Shikoh
Durgadas Rathore (1638-1718) of Marwar and Aurangzeb (1618-1707) opposed each other from 1679 to 1707 after Aurangzeb's attempt to seize the Marwar throne and convert the Rathore line to Islam following Jaswant Singh's 1678 death. Durgadas's 28-year defence of the infant Ajit Singh across Marwar and Mewar was one of the central Rajput resistance narratives of Aurangzeb's reign and continues through the 1707-1710 Rathore restoration of Ajit Singh after Aurangzeb's death.
Sources
Standard biography; regional historiography.
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