Jethwas of the Barda hills

Who he is

Title

Rana of the Barda hills

Since

not pinned

Born

not pinned

Confidence

low

The campaign board says the Jethwas make Ghumli their seat about 1220 and hold it until Jadeja horsemen take it in 1313; we could not check this against a source. On 1 January 1200 the earlier Saindhava capital is a temple town (the Navlakha temple, the Vikia stepwell) and its holder is not documented.

What it holds

• Ghumli and the Barda hills
• Porbandar roadstead and the creek landings Miyani and Madhavpur
• The Krishna shrine and pilgrim fair at Madhavpur

How it was acquired

Not documented.

Allies and rivals

Neighbours: the Chudasamas to the south-east, the Vaghers of Okhamandal to the north-west, the Mers of the coast, and the sea.

How things stand that morning

A temple town between two dynasties; the Chaulukyas claim the country as the western rim of Saurashtra.

Wealth

The coastal creeks, a Krishna pilgrim fair, coasting trade to Sind and the Gulf in the fair season.

Military

Not documented.

Threats

• Sea raiders
• The Chudasamas

Places of note

• Ghumli: Hill town with the Navlakha temple and the Vikia stepwell
• Porbandar: Roadstead on the western coast
• Madhavpur: Krishna shrine and spring fair
• Miyani: Creek landing

Where the sources disagree

• The campaign board entry ghumli says the Jethwas make Ghumli their seat about 1220. We have not been able to check the date; we keep the family on the map with the holder 'not known'.

Evidence: Tradition and architecture only; no document of 1200.

"The campaign board" is OMNIA's working map. These notes record where its earlier claims were checked against the sources.

On the map: Drawn on tradition; no document of 1200.

Primary sources for Independent Rajput houses

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• The Crown of Glorious Deeds, Hasan Nizami (Sadr al-Din Muhammad ibn Hasan Nizami of Nishapur) (begun about 1205 at Delhi, carried on to about 1217). The earliest history written in Muslim India and the only contemporary account of Qutb al-Din Aibak's campaigns. Read online
• The Nasirean Generations (a general history of the Muslim dynasties), Minhaj-i Siraj Juzjani (completed 1260 at Delhi). The fullest narrative of the Ghurid conquest of northern India. Read online
• Epigraphia Indica: inscriptions of the Chandelas, Paramaras, Gahadavalas, Chaulukyas, Senas and Eastern Gangas, Various (edited for the Archaeological Survey of India by J. Burgess, E. Hultzsch, F. Kielhorn, Sten Konow, F. W. Thomas and successors) (inscriptions of the 1180s to 1210s; the series ran from 1892). The main record series for the Hindu kingdoms of northern India around 1200. Read online
• Historical Inscriptions of Gujarat, Various (the Chaulukya and Vaghela chanceries), edited by G. V. Acharya (inscriptions of the 10th to 14th centuries; edited 1933 to 1942). The standard corpus of Gujarat's inscriptions. Read online
• Inscriptions of the Paramaras, Chandellas, Kachchhapaghatas and two minor dynasties, Various, edited by H. V. Trivedi (inscriptions of the 9th to 14th centuries; edited 1978 to 1991). The collected records of the Paramaras of Malwa (parts 1 and 2) and of the Chandelas of Jejakabhukti (part 3), re-edited from Epigraphia Indica and earlier journals with new finds.
• The Victory of Prithviraja, Jayanaka (a Kashmiri poet at the Chahamana court) (about 1191 to 1192, left unfinished). A court epic written at Ajmer in the months between Prithviraja III's victory at Tarain in 1191 and his defeat and death in 1192. Read online
• The Wishing-Stone of Narratives, Merutunga (a Jain monk of the Nagendra gaccha) (1305 (Vikrama 1361) at Vadhvan in Gujarat). A Jain collection of historical anecdotes about the kings of Gujarat and Malwa, a century after 1200. Read online