The 'Golden City' of Jaisalmer was founded in the year 1156 by a Bhatti Rajput prime Jaisala named the city from the vulnerable former capital of Lodhruva, 15 kms to the south-east. After he sought counsel of a hermit who lived in a cave near aspring on top of a rocky hill. The sucession of Maharajas of Jaisalmer trace their lineage back to the ruler of Bhatti Rajput Clan Jailasimha. The History of Jaisalmer is as turbulant as the character of its bandit chiefs would lead one to expect. Ferociously independent, inordinately proud of a tenuous "divine" lineage; brave, even foolhardy in battle and often treacherous as allies, the Bhatti Rajputs were the most feared of all desert marauders. When they were on the rampage, the gates of neighboring fortresses were closed and the cowering citizens barred their doors and windows against these "wolf-packs of the wastes." Their major opponents were the powerful Rather clans of Jodhpur and Bikaner and endless ding-dong battles were waged for the possession of a petty fort,or meager waterhole. Cattle-stealing was a major pass time, along with falconry and the hunt.The source of income was the forced levies on the great caravans that traveled the ancient Spice Route on their way to imperial Delhi .

Medieval period
During the Islamic invasion of India, Jaisalmer escaped direct Muslim conquest due to its geographical situation in the desert region. The Rawals of Jaisalmer agreed to pay an annual tribute to the Delhi Sultans. The first siege of Jaisalmer occurred during the reign of Allaud-din Khilji. It was provoked by Bhattis' raid on a caravan filled with treasure. According to local ballads, the Bhattis defended the fort for seven years until the enemy army forced beached the ramparts. Bhattis, facing certain defeat, proclaimed the rite of johar. Later, Sultan Ferozshah also sieged Jaisalmer after the rulers of Jaisalmer raided his camp at Anasagar lake near Ajmer. The siege led to another johar. Jaitsimha's son Duda perished in the attack. Duda's descendants ruled over Jaisalmer for about two centuries. Duda's descendant Lunakarna had a fight with Humayun when the later passed through Jaisalmer en route to Ajmer. Mughal emperor Akbar was married to one of the Jaisalmer princesses. Later, Jaisalmer was ruled by a noble called Sabala Simha, who won the patronage of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan for services rendered in his Peshawar campaign.

Princely Jaisalmer
Facade of a mansion in Jaisalmer was one of the last states to sign a treaty with the British. During the British Raj, Jaisalmer was the seat of a princely state of the same name, ruled by the Bhati clan of rajputs. The present descendant is Brijraj Singh. Though the city is under the governance of the Government of India, a lot of welfare work is carried out by him and his family. The Royal Family still commands a lot of respect from the people. Traditionally, the main source of income was the levies on the caravans. However, the glory of Jaisalmer faded when Bombay emerged as a port and the sea trade replaced the traditional land routes. The partition of India in 1947 lead to closing of all the trade routes on the Indo-Pak border and rendered Jaisalmer a drought-prone desert backwater on the international border. Ironically, skirmishes between India and Pakistan gave Jaisalmer a strategic importance and made it serviceable as an army supply depot. Later, the Rajasthan Canal served to revive the surrounding desert areas. Roads and railroads were then built, knitting the hitherto remote town with the rest of Rajasthan.Later, the Government of Rajasthan decided to promote Jaisalmer as a tourist destination

State : Rajasthan
District(s) : Jaisalmer
Coordinates : 26.92° N 70.9° E
Area : 5.1 km²
Elevation : 225 m Above sea level
Time zone : IST (UTC+ 5:30 )
Codes : Postal : 345 00x
Telephone: +91-+02922
Vehicle : RJ 15
Languages : Rajasthani, Hindi, English