Amber or Amer, is a city near Jaipur city in

Jaipur district Jaipur District is a district in the state of Rajasthan in Northern India.the city of Jaipur, which is Rajasthan's capital and the largest city, is the district headquarters. It is the tenth most populous district in India (out of 640). Etymo ...

in the

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

. It is now a part of the

Jaipur Municipal Corporation Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC) is municipal corporation of Jaipur city in Rajasthan state in India. Jaipur Municipal Corporation is responsible for maintaining the city's civic infrastructure and carrying out associated administrative dutie ...

. The picturesque situation of Amber at the mouth of a rocky mountain gorge, in which nestles a lake, has attracted the admiration of travellers, including

Victor Jacquemont Venceslas Victor Jacquemont (8 August 1801 – 7 December 1832) was a French botanist and geologist known for his travels in India. Biography Born in Paris on August 8, 1801, Victor Jacquemont was the youngest of four sons of Frédéric Franço ...

and

Reginald Heber Reginald Heber (21 April 1783 – 3 April 1826) was an English Anglicanism, Anglican bishop, a man of letters, and hymn-writer. After 16 years as a country parson, he served as Anglican Diocese of Calcutta, Bishop of Calcutta until his de ...

. It is seen to be a remarkable example for its combined Rajput-Mughal architecture. The

Amber Fort Amer Fort or Amber Fort is a fort located in Amer, Rajasthan, India. Amer is a town with an area of located from Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. Located high on a hill, it is the principal tourist attraction in Jaipur. Amer Fort is known f ...

, a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

, is the top tourist attraction in the Jaipur area.

History

Amber was a

Meena Meena () is a tribe from northern and western India which is sometimes considered a sub-group of the Bhil community. It used to be claimed they speak Mina language, a Spurious languages, spurious language. Its name is also transliterated as ' ...

state that replaced

Khoh Khoh, also known as Khogong, was the capital of the kingdom of Amber which was located in the Dhundhar region of Rajputana. Which was located just five miles to the east of Jaipur city and was ruled by the Chanda clan of Meenas. Rao Chandrasen ...

as the capital of

Dhundhar Dhundhar, also known as ''Jaipur region'', is a historical region of Rajasthan state in western India. It includes the districts of Jaipur, Neem ka Thana, Dantaramgarh part of Sikar District lying to the east of the Aravalli Range, Dausa, ...

after Kakil Deo, the son of

Dulha Rai Dulha Rai was the founder of the Kachhwaha dynasty and also the 1st king from this dynasty who ruled the territory of Dhundhar, with his capital at Khoh in present-day Rajasthan. He started his rule from Dausa which he obtained as a dowry from ...

, defeated the Meenas. The state of Jaipur was earlier known as

Amber Amber is fossilized tree resin. Examples of it have been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since the Neolithic times, and worked as a gemstone since antiquity."Amber" (2004). In Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen (eds.) ''Encyclopedia ...

or Dhundhar and was controlled by Meena chiefs of five different tribes who were under suzerainty of the Bargurjar Rajput Raja of Deoti. Later a

Kachhwaha The Kachhwaha is a Rajput clan found primarily in India. They claim descent from the Suryavanshi (Solar) dynasty. Etymology According to Cynthia Talbot, the meaning of word ''Kachhwaha'' is tortoise. Origin There are numerous theories on ...

prince Dulha Rai destroyed the sovereignty of Meenas and also defeated Bargurjars of Deoli and took Dhundhar fully under Kachwaha rule. Much of the present structure known as

is actually the palace built by Mughal Emperor Akbar's

Navaratnas Navaratnāḥ (Sanskrit dvigu ''nava-ratna'', , ) refers to a distinguished assembly of nine learned and virtuous individuals who adorned the royal sabhā (court) of certain illustrious List of Indian monarchs, bhūpati-s (kings) in History of ...

Raja Man Singh I who ruled from 1590 to 1614 AD. The palace includes several spectacular buildings, such as the

Diwan-i-Khas Diwan or Divan is a term of Arabic origin referring to various types of reception halls. The term occurs in various examples of Islamic architecture, where it can also refer to a government council chamber (related to the ''divan''), as well as in ...

, and the elaborately painted Ganesh Pole built by the renowned warlord Mirza Raja

Jai Singh I Mirza Raja Jai Singh I (15 July 1611 – 28 August 1667) was the senior most general ("Mirza (noble), Mirza Raja") and a high-ranking mansabdar at the imperial court of Mughal Empire as well as the Kachhwaha Rajput ruler of the Jaipur State, Ki ...

(Man Singh I's grandson). The old and original fort of Amber, dating from earlier Rajas or the Mair or Maidh period, is what is known in the present day as Jaigarh Fort, which was actually the main defensive structure rather than the palace itself. The two structures are interconnected by a series of encompassing fortifications. Amber was capital of the

Kachwaha The Kachhwaha is a Rajput clan found primarily in India. They claim descent from the Suryavanshi (Solar) dynasty. Etymology According to Cynthia Talbot, the meaning of word ''Kachhwaha'' is tortoise. Origin There are numerous theories on ...

until 1727 when the ruler of Amber, Sawai

Jai Singh II Sawai Jai Singh II (3 November 1688 – 21 September 1743), was the 30th Kachwaha Rajput ruler of the Kingdom of Amber, who later founded the fortified city of Jaipur and made it his capital. He became the ruler of Amber at the age of 11, after ...

founded a capital Jainagara (

Jaipur Jaipur (; , ) is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the List of cities and towns in Rajasthan, largest city of the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had ...

), named after him, about nine kilometers south of Amber. After the founding of this new town, the royal palace and houses of prominent persons were shifted to Jaipur. The priests of

Shila Devi Shila Devi Temple is a historic Hindu temple located inside the Amer Fort in Jaipur, Rajasthan. The temple is dedicated to Goddess Durga in her form as Shila Devi and is one of the prominent Shakti shrines in the region. It was established in ...

temple, who were

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

Brahmins Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

, continued to live in the fort (to this date), while the Jaigarh fort above the palace also remained heavily garrisoned. The capital of Kachwaha was supplanted by the modern city of Jaipur, which is the capital of the

state in India.

Controversy over renovation practices

Poor site management and development pressures have dramatically altered the historical integrity of Amber. The building that rings around the Jaleb Chwok courtyard "has been converted to a market place with shops selling showpieces and dresses. They have cafeterias, cyber cafés, etc.", according to the

Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...

. In the summer of 2009, the Rajasthan High Court launched a three-member panel charged with investigating the controversial renovations and determining to what extent the cultural heritage of the site was compromised.

Visitor attractions

Maota Lake Maota Lake is located in Amber, in the Indian state of Rajasthan. The ancient name of the lake is "Mahavata", but it is commonly known as Maota due to the large trees located near the lake. Location and description Maota Lake is located in t ...

* Jagat shiromani Temple *

Jaigarh Fort Jaigarh Fort is situated on the promontory called the Cheel ka Teela (Hill of Eagles) of the Aravalli range; it overlooks the Amer Fort and the Maota Lake, near Amer in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. Raja Kakil Dev captured the Amber region from ...

*Nahargarh Biological Park *Panna Meena ka Kund

stepwell Stepwells (also known as vav or baori) are wells, cisterns or ponds with a long corridor of steps that descend to the water level. Stepwells played a significant role in defining subterranean architecture in western India from the 7th to the ...

Water Gateways Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

Nahargarh Biological Park

This park is home to

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

whose numbers have declined over the years, such as the

Indian leopard The Indian leopard (''Panthera pardus fusca'') is a subspecies of the leopard (''P. pardus''). It is widely distributed on the Indian subcontinent. It is threatened by illegal trade of skins and body parts, and persecution due to human-leopard ...

. The flora is representative of the Khathiar-Gir dry deciduous forests

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

In media

Various scenes were produced for the 2011 British film ''

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel ''The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel'' is a 2011 British comedy-drama film directed by John Madden. The screenplay, written by Ol Parker, is based on the 2004 novel ''These Foolish Things'' by novelist Deborah Moggach, and features an ensemble c ...

'' in and around Amber.

Gallery

The fort in 1985 3 step stepwell

References

External links

{{Authority control Cities and towns in Jaipur district Former capital cities in India History of Jaipur Jaipur Tourist attractions in Jaipur