Padmini's palace and the legend of Chittor
The legend says that Alauddin Khalji, Sultan of Delhi, besieged Chittor in 1303 to win Padmini, queen of Rawal Ratan Singh. He saw her only as a reflection, either in a mirror or in the water of a pool. The fort fell, and Padmini and the women of Chittor committed jauhar. The story was first told in a Sufi poem, the Padmavat, written by Malik Muhammad Jayasi in 1540.
Historians agree that Alauddin Khalji captured Chittor in 1303, but many doubt that Padmini existed as described, as the earliest sources do not mention her. Even so, her story became a symbol of Rajput honour and resistance, and it still carries great emotion in Rajasthan.
The palace by the pool is a later, 19th-century rebuild, with a small pavilion in the water. Your guide tells both the legend and the history, and how the story has been retold over centuries. It is a calm, shaded stop in the middle of a hot morning on the fort.
Questions travellers ask
Good to know
Was Rani Padmini a real person
Historians debate it. Alauddin Khalji's capture of Chittor in 1303 is well recorded, but Padmini first appears in Malik Muhammad Jayasi's poem of 1540, written more than two centuries later. For many in Rajasthan, she is a revered historical figure.
Is Padmini's palace original
The present building is largely a 19th-century reconstruction on the site traditionally linked with Padmini. The pool and the small water pavilion are the focus, recalling the legend that Alauddin Khalji saw her only as a reflection. The story, more than the structure, draws visitors. We stop here in the late morning, as it is a calm, shaded break on a hot day on the fort.
What is the Padmavat
An epic poem in Awadhi written by the Sufi poet Malik Muhammad Jayasi in 1540, telling the story of Padmavati, queen of Chittor, and Alauddin Khalji's siege. It is the earliest known source of the Padmini legend, written more than two centuries after the siege of 1303. Many historians doubt that Padmini existed as described, and your guide at the palace tells both the poem and the history.
Also in Chittorgarh
More hours to plan around
