Eight Lectures on India

by Halford John Mackinder

|2.
Map of Northwestern India.| Through the centre of Rajputana, diagonally from the southwest northeastward, there runs the range of the Aravalli hills for a distance of fully three hundred miles, its northern extremity being the Ridge at Delhi on the Jumna River. At the southern end of the Aravallis, but separated from the main range by a hollow, is the isolated Mount Abu, the highest point in Rajputana, standing up conspicuously above the surrounding plains to a height of some five thousand feet. The top is a rugged plateau measuring fourteen miles by four. On this little upland, are the signs both of the antiquity and modernity of Rajputana—on the one hand, the world-famed ruins of Jain temples, and on the other, round the beautiful Gem Lake, the residences of the Agent of the Governor-General and his staff, who maintain the suzerainty of the King-Emperor in Rajputana. East of the Aravalli hills, in the basin of the Chambal tributary of the Jumna-Ganges, is the more fertile part of Rajputana, with the cities of Jaipur, Ajmer, Udaipur, and the old fortress of Chitor. Beyond the Chambal River itself, but within its basin, may be seen on the map the positions of Indore and Gwalior, the seats of the Maratha princes Holkar and Sindhia. Indore and Gwalior, however, belong to the Central Indian Agency and not to Rajputana. West of the Aravalli hills is the great Indian Desert, prolonged seaward by the salt and partly tidal marsh known as the Rann of Cutch. In oases of this desert are some of the smaller Rajput capitals, notably Bikaner. Beyond the desert flows the great Indus river, through a dry although not wholly desert land, in the midst of which, from Hyderabad to the sea, is the delta of Sind, as was said in the last lecture, a second Egypt, fertile and thickly peopled. South of Mount Abu, where the rivers descend from the end of the Aravalli hills to the Gulf of Cambay is another fertile lowland, with the beautiful city of Ahmadabad in the centre of it, but this city is in British territory, being in the Province of Bombay, and therefore outside the Tributary States of Rajputana. Ajmer, beside the Aravalli hills, is in an island of directly ruled British territory completely surrounded by Feudatory Rajputana.

It would be difficult to exaggerate the importance to India of the existence of the great Indian Desert of Rajputana. The ocean to the southeast and the southwest of the Peninsula was an ample protection against overseas invasion until the Europeans rounded the Cape of Good Hope. The vast length of the Himalaya, backed by the desert plateau of Tibet, was an equal defence on a third side. Only to the northwest does India lie relatively open to the incursions of the warlike peoples of Western and Central Asia. It is precisely in that direction, as a great barrier extending northeastward from the Rann of Cutch, that we find the Indian Desert, and in rear of the Desert the minor bulwark constituted by the Aravalli range. Only between the northeastern extremity of the desert and the foot of the Himalayas below Simla is there an easy gateway into India. No river traverses this gateway, which is on the divide between the systems of the Indus and the Jumna-Ganges. Delhi stands on the west bank of the Jumna at the northern extremity of the Aravallis, just where the invading forces from the northwest came through to the navigable waters of the Jumna, which flow southeastward through Hindustan to Bengal.

Aided by such powerful natural conditions, the Rajputs have ever been the defenders of India. Unable to prevent the entry of invaders by the direct way to Delhi, they have maintained themselves on the southern flank of the advance, and to-day their princely families proudly trace their lineage back in unbroken descent from ancestors before the Christian era. In the gateway itself, between the desert and the Himalayas, beyond the limits of Rajputana, dwell another people of warlike disposition, the famous Sikhs. Here are still preserved as Feudatory States the Sikh Principalities of Patiala, Nabha, and Jhind.

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Jama Masjid, Ahmadabad.| |4.
Rani Sipri’s Tomb, Ahmadabad.| |5.
Mohafiz Khan’s Mosque, Ahmadabad.| |6.
Hathi Singh’s Temple, Ahmadabad.| Let us first visit Ahmadabad, in the midst of the fertile lowland at the head of the Gulf of Cambay. The territories of this part of the Bombay Presidency are much mixed with those of the Gaikwar of Baroda, so that the map of the plains round the two cities of Ahmadabad and Baroda almost resembles that part of Scotland which is labelled Ross and Cromarty. Ahmadabad was once the most important Mohammedan city of Western India, and contains many fine architectural monuments, surpassed only by those of the great Mogul capitals, Delhi and Agra. It is reached from Bombay by the Bombay and Baroda Railway along the coast northward. We have here the Jama Masjid or Great Mosque of the city, still one of the most beautiful in India, though it was damaged by an earthquake about a century ago. Then we have another fine building, Rani Sipri’s Tomb. There follows a view of Mohafiz Khan’s Mosque, whose fine minarets remind one of the Citadel at Cairo. Finally, just outside Ahmadabad, is the comparatively modern Temple of Hathi Singh, built of white marble in the Jain style, with many domes.

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The Lake, Mount Abu.| From Ahmadabad the Baroda Railway is continued northward and westward across the southern end of the Rajput Desert to Hyderabad, in Sind, but we will go on our journey by the narrow gauge railway through Rajputana to Mount Abu, which rises like an island of granite from amid the sandy desert. Here is the Gem Lake on the summit of the mountain, a most beautiful sheet of water, set with rocky islets and overhung with great masses of rock, with the Residency or house of the representative of the British Government on its shore, for Mount Abu is the centre from which Rajputana is controlled, as far as is necessary, by the advice of the Viceroy. It is, as we have already said, about 5,000 feet or a mile above the sea level, and the climate is therefore suitable for a hill station. It is used as a sanatorium for British troops and as a hot season resort.

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The Dilwarra Temples, Mount Abu.| |9.
The Same, nearer view.| |10.
Door of the Adinat, Mount Abu.| |11.
Sava Munda, Mount Abu.| |12.
The Same, another view.| |13.
Paras Wanath Temple, Mount Abu.| Mount Abu is famous for its Dilwarra temples, probably the most ancient of the Jain temples of India. We heard of the Jains at the close of the last lecture. This is a distant view of the Dilwarra temples among the palm trees. We see that the surface of the plateau is very rugged. Here is a nearer view of the temples, and here a doorway of the most ancient of them, built probably about the time of the Norman Conquest of England. Next we have two views of another temple, erected some two hundred years later. The carving of the small domes and vaults is most delicate, and stands almost unrivalled even in India, a land essentially of painstaking labour in small details. Finally, we have a view of yet another temple, said to have been built by the workmen in their spare time during the erection of the greater temples we have just seen. In spite of the dilapidation of many centuries, and of unskilled restoration in places, these ruins are still extremely beautiful amid the rugged scenery of the Mount. The British Station on Mount Abu was attacked during the Mutiny, but the attack was beaten off.

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Sir Pratab Singh.| |15.
Dolat Singh.| |16.
Himat Singh.| One of the most progressive of the Rajput States, and the oldest, is Jodhpur, whose Prime Minister was, until lately, the distinguished officer Sir Pratab Singh, now Maharaja of his own little State of Idar, in the plain at the foot of Mount Abu. We have his portrait here, and those of his son and grandson.

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H.H. The Maharana of Udaipur.| |18.
The Palace, Udaipur.| |19.
The Same.| |20.
Udaipur, from the Jag Mandar.| |21.
Jag Mandar, Udaipur.| |22.
Jag Newas, Udaipur.| Udaipur is the capital of another of the greater Rajput States, Mewar, which was founded in the Roman times of European chronology. This is a portrait of the Maharana of Udaipur, who is the highest in esteem of all the Rajput princes. Udaipur is one of the most beautiful cities in India, with its palaces and ghats reflected in the clear waters of a lake. Here are two views of the palace of the Maharana, built of granite and marble, rising to a hundred feet above the surface of the lake. Here we have the city seen across the lake, and then there follow two views showing the temples and terraces by the water’s edge.

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The Ganesh Gate, Chitor.| |24.
The Tower of Victory, Chitor.| East of Udaipur city, but in the same State, is the rock fortress of Chitor, anciently the capital, a most conspicuous object, standing high and isolated above the surrounding country. The slopes of the hill are covered with a thick jungle, and the summit is crowned with ruins of palaces and temples. The road which leads up to the top is about a mile in length, and on it at intervals are seven gateways. We have here a view of one of them, the Ganesh Gate. This roadway was the scene of a terrible struggle in the middle of the 16th century, when the invading Musulmans under Akbar attacked the Rajput stronghold. The citadel was at length taken, but the Rajputs sold their freedom dearly, nearly ten thousand of them falling in the battle. The old city of Chitor is now decayed and reduced to a mere village, but it still contains interesting ruins, notably the two Jain Towers of Victory and Fame. The Tower of Fame is the older, built in the time of our King Alfred. This is a view of the Tower of Victory, built in the early 15th century. It has nine stories. A stairway in the centre leads to the top. The dome has recently been restored, having been wrecked by lightning.

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The Durga, Ajmer.| |26.
The Same, The Tomb of Chisti.| |27.
The Arhai-Din-Ka-Jhompra, Ajmer.| |28.
The Lake, Ajmer.| |29.
The Durga Bazaar, Ajmer.| |30.
Mayo College, Ajmer.| Ajmer, now under direct British rule, is another ancient and beautiful spot, set in a hollow among low hills, and surrounded by a wall. It was the scene of many struggles between the Musulmans and the Rajputs, and was finally taken by Akbar in the middle of the 16th century. One of the principal buildings is the Durga, venerated both by Hindus and by Musulmans. We have here a view of the courtyard of the Durga. Notice to the right hand the huge metal cauldron set in stone. It is used for the cooking of rice given in charity, which is divided between poor pilgrims and the attendants at the shrine. Here is the Tomb of Chisti in the Durga. Next is a Muhammadan Mosque, called the Arhai-Din-Ka-Jhompra, which, tradition says, was built with divine assistance in two and a half days. Then we have a view of the lake at Ajmer. On the bank are a number of marble pavilions. This is one of them. Close by, on a small hill overlooking the lake, is the house of the Chief Commissioner of Ajmer, and Agent to the Governor-General for Rajputana. Here we have a street in Ajmer. And here is the Mayo College, for the education of the sons of the Rajput chiefs, an institution of the greatest importance, as it were the loyal Eton of India, for the Rajput Maharajas have the deepest instinct of personal loyalty to the Suzerain Lord, a result at once of their feudal pride, their religion, and their intelligence as rulers. The College was opened in 1875, and contains about a hundred students. The main building, seen in this view, is of white marble.