Rawal Jaisal, was a 12th century king, who laid the foundation of Jaisalmer and even the Jaisalmer Fort. Both the fort & city are named after him, and this the Jaisalmer Fort which we see today is a 12th century marvel (1156 AD). The Fort of Jaisalmer is on a hill name, trikuta hill and has been mentioned in India’s history for more than 800 years.

We hear the name of Jaisalmer Fort in history manu times. First, when Alauddin Khalji (sultan of Delhi) attached Jaisalmer, when it was ruled by the ancestors of Rawal jaisalmer, Bhati Rajputs), because his goods, treasure which were leaving for middle east were continuously looted in Jaisalmer.

Then in 1530 AD, Rawal Lunakaran, who was at throne in Jaisalmer, was attached by Amir Ali (an Afghan chief), which resulted the death of thousands locals & even the royal family women, who performed jauhar (tradition where women kill themselves before getting in hands of enemies).

In the later years, Jaisalmer Fort saw some stability when they had marriage relations with Mughals, and even after the decline of Mughal empire, they (Jaisalmer Fort rulers) were left by the Mahartha’s because of their offbeat location.

Laten when the British controlled India, the then rulers of Jaisalmer Fort, accepted British influence but also saw a huge decline in trade & commerce as British didn’t went with the age old road route of trade from India to Middle east & then Europe, they (British) developed the sea ports (like Bombay).

Even after India independence, Jaisalmer remained a low income district. Then in the 2 Indo-Pak War,  Jaisalmer name gets a mention again.

Today, Jaisalmer Fort locals, prefer to live outside the Fort, as now only around 4000-5000 people lives inside the castle & The main income of Jaisalmer is via tourism and below you will find all details on Jaisalmer Fort tourist sites.