A Brief History of Gwalior

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The city of Gwalior is accounted as one of the most visited tourist destinations in India. This erstwhile princely city has been known for its association with the rise and fall of many dynasties down the ages. A brief history of Gwalior will reveal the interesting tale behind the nomenclature of the city.

A Brief History Of Gwalior


Gwalior is a city located at northern Madhya Pradesh and it is about 122 miles away from Agra. Legends say that Gwalior was named after a sage named Gwalipa. The then ruler of the region was the famous Kachhwaha clan King named Suraj Sen. It is said that the sage helped the king to recover from the fatal disease he was suffering by making him drink water from a nearby pond of immense medicinal value. Being recovered from the disease the king was so fulfilled with gratefulness that he built a fort and named it Gwalior at the honour of the sage. The adjoining area gradually adopted the name of the fort, Gwalior.

The following is a brief history of Gwalior in chronological order.
  • Ruins reveal that the region of Gwalior has witnessed the Paleolithic age. Cave paintings of the middle Stone Age and pottery works of the Iron Age have also been excavated from the adjoining areas of the city of Gwalior.
  • The ancient name of Gwalior is Gopadri or Gopgiri. Even the city find its name mentioned in the Maharbharata epic as Gopalkaksh.
  • During the 2 nd century AD the region was ruled by the Nagvans.
  • In the 5th century AD Gwalior was ruled by the famous Kachhwaha king Suraj Sen, who started building the legendary fort of Gwalior.
  • Mihir Bhoj over took the reign of Gwalior between 836 AD and 882 AD.
  • The possession of Gwalior was taken over by the second ruler of the Kachapghat Rajvans named Vrajdaman from the hands of the king of Kanauj.
  • Mangleraj and Kirtiraj were his successive rulers.
  • In the year 1021 AD, Gwalior came under the attack of Mahmud of Gazni. The fort of Gwalior was then overtaken by one of his officials named Malik Bahauddin Tughluq.
  • In 1195-96 AD the then ruler of Gwalior was allowed to rule over the region after he accepted the supremacy of the invader.
  • After that, Iltutmish was appointed by Qutbuddin Aibak as the kiledar of the fort of Gwalior.
  • Later in the 14 th century Vir Singh Dev of Tomars took the possession of Gwalior by taking the advantage of the declining power of the Delhi sultanate. The Tomars ruled the kingdom of Gwalior from AD 1486 to AD 1526.
  • Ibrahim Lodhi took over the control of Gwalior after killing the son of Man Singh, Vikramaditya in the first battle of Panipat.
  • After that, the place remained under the control of the Mughals.
  • From the Mughals a very strong clan named the Marathas occupied Gwalior.
  • The third battle of Panipat in 1761 led to the weakening of the Marathas and the Jat ruler named Lokandra overpowered Gwalior. Although, again Gwalior was overtaken by the Scindhia king named Mahadji Scindhia in 1765.
  • It was the center of revolutionary activities during the British rule. Soldiers of the nearby cantonment lead a brave struggle for liberation from the clutches of the British Raj. The great Rani of Jhasi, died here in 18th June 1958 while battling against the British.
History Of Gwalior



The city is now the part of the state of Madya Pradesh of independent India. Gwalior, having a historical backdrop is spotted with the ruins of the splendor of eventful past.