Bharatpur - The 'Eastern   Gateway to Rajasthan',  was founded  by Maharaja Suraj Mal   in 1733 AD,  it  was once   an impregnable well   fortified    city,   carved   out  of   the   region   formerly   known  as    Mewat. The trio of Bharatpur, Deeg and  Dholpur has played   an important   part  in  the  history  of   Rajasthan.

The   place    was   named     as Bharatpur  after  the   name  of    Bharat,   the  brother  of  Lord      Rama,     whose    other    brother    Laxman     was  worshipped  as  the family  deity of  the  Bharatpur. The   legends     say    the  rulers   Laxman's  name  is  engraved  on  the  state arms and the seals.  The  city  and  the fort   have  been  believed  to  be founded   by  Rustam,  a  Jat  of   Sogariya clan. Maharaja  Suraj Mal     took    over   from  Khemkaran,   the   son    of   Rustam,    and    established    the   empire.  He   fortified  the  city  by  building  a massive  wall around the city.

The interesting aspect of the Bharatpur history is   the domination  of Jats  in  the   region  since  17th   century. Leaders   like     Churaman  and Badan  Singh  brought  the  jats  together  to  mould  them  into a force    to  reckon  with. Suraj  Mal   has   been  the  greatest ruler who made them a formidable  force  and  played  a   very  important   role   in   the  Indian    history  during 19th century.