Introduction   

    Udaipur is a city as romantic as a dream, with marble palaces gently afloat in a lake surrounded by low lying hills and other impressive palaces dominating the skyline with their many turrets and cupolas, imposing doorways and delicately chiselled windows

In Udaipur the Visitor finds his dream of India come true for the city combines real beauty with picturesque associations of a great and glorious past. It stands in a valley, AMID green hills on the banks of the wide, sttel blue lake pichola. On little islands in the lake, from the water's edge, rise marble Palaces of pure white that glisten like fairy castles. crowning the ridge, in which the city clusters, along the shores of the lake is palace of the maharana. Within the palace is all the magnificent views of the panorama below.

The Architecture Expension of City     The gypsy had built a dyke upon a stream for his bullocks cross over. Udai Singh further extended this pond and created one of the most picturesque man made lakes in Rajasthan. The Rana named it Pichola after the neighbouring village of Picholi. His new capital was established when in 1559 he built a small palace, Nochouki, on an overlooking ridge. Other buildings and structures soon mushroomed around the palace. With successive generations the marble and granite palace of the Rana spread out, always allowing an architectural excellence quite unique to the Mewar dynasty. The city palace went on expanding until it could claim itself to be one of the largest palaces in the world.

History

   Udaipur, once known as Mewar, is the land that produced a galaxy of patriots and heroes in quick succession, people who etched the name of Rajasthan in every corner of the world. The Mewar dynasty traces its roots to the Sun God. Its history has been a continuous struggle for freedom of religion, thought and land against other Rajput groups as well as the overbearing Mughals and Muslims of bygone eras. Its act of patriotism, heroism, magnanimous behaviour and love for independence can never find any match in the annals of any country.

Udaipur remained Untouched from Mughals     Sisodias, offshoots of the Chauhanas who ruled the Mewar region, were against Mughal dominion and tried every trick possible to distance themselves from them. Udaipur remained untouched from Mughal religious and aesthetics influences and remained so till the coming of the Europeans. Maharana Fateh Singh of Udaipur was the only royalty who did not attend the Delhi Durbar for King George V in 1911. This fierce sense of independence earned them the highest gun salute in Rajasthan, 19 against the 17 each of Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bundi, Bikaner, Kota and Karauli. Udaipur retained its romantic quality and Rosita Forbes, who passed this land of bravery during the decline of the British Raj, described it as "like no other place on earth."