Kingdom of Rajpipla
Encyclopedia
The Kingdom of Rajpipla was a princely state
of India
ruled by the Gohil
Rajput
clan from around 1350 till 1948 when it was merged with the Republic of India. It is now part of the state of Gujarat. Its capital town of Rajpipla
is now headquarters of the Narmada district.
The princely state was situated largely between two important rivers of western India—the Narmada
and the Tapti, with the Satpura range in the south. Spanning an area of over 1500 square miles (4,000 km²), of which 600 mi² (1550 km²) were forests and the rest fertile agricultural plains and river valleys, Rajpipla grew to be one of the most prosperous princely states in Gujarat, second only to Baroda. It was also famous for its agate mines.
Chokrana, a Parmar Rajput
prince, originally hailing from the ruling family of Ujjain
in Malwa (now the western part of the state of Madhya Pradesh
), was in the early part of the fourteenth century ruling over the principality of Rajpipla, with his capital at Juna Raj or Old Rajpipla high up in the western Satpuras and deep inside the forests. His daughter was married to the legendary Mokhdaji, the Gohil Rajput warrior chief of Ghogha in Gohilwar, Saurashtra. Chokrana, who had no male heir, adopted his grandson Samarsinhji, younger son of Mokhdaji. Mokhdaji's first wife was a Sarviya princess of Hathasani and their son Dungarsinhji succeeded as chief of Ghogha, part of which later became the princely state of Bhavnagar
.
Samarsinhji acceded to the 'gadi' or throne of Rajpipla around the mid-fourteenth century, assuming the name Arjunsinhji. Since then Rajpipla was ruled by the Gohil Rajput dynasty. The 'Kul Devi' or family deity of the royal family of Rajpipla is Shri Harsiddhi Mataji
.
and the only male survivor of the clan, went on to become chief of an area near modern Idar
in Gujarat. His descendant Kalbhoj or Bappa Rawal seized Chittor and became ruler of Mewar
in 734 AD. A little more than two-and-a-half-centuries later, Salivahan, the Gohil ruler of Mewar moved away with part of the clan from Chittor to Juna Khergarh in Marwar, leaving behind his son Shakti Kumar with the remaining members of his kin. Later, after Ala-ud-din Khilji ravaged Chittor, the Gohils of Mewar regrouped and assumed the name Sisodia.
Meanwhile the Gohils who had migrated under Salivahan ruled over Marwar for more than two centuries. Then after the formation of the Delhi Sultanate, when the Rathores travelled to Marwar in the early part of the thirteenth century, the Gohils were pushed out. They marched back to Saurashtra where they became governors of the Chalukyas, and then carved out their own principalities. The most famous of their chiefs during this period were Sejakji, Ranoji and Mokhdaji, and the princely states that their descendants carved out were Bhavnagar, Rajpipla, Palitana
, Lathi
and Vallabhipur.
Those were turbulent mediaeval times and it was not easy for the Gohils to retain their hold over Rajpipla. They had to face several invasions from the sultans of Ahmedabad
, the Mughal
emperors and later the Maratha
s, even losing their principality for brief periods, each time coming back to power by joining forces with the hill tribes, comprising mainly the 'Bhils', and carrying out guerrilla attacks. In 1730, with the weakening of the Mughal Empire
, the 26th Gohil ruler of Rajpipla, Maharana Verisalji I stopped paying tribute to the Mughals, and his son Maharana Jeetsinhji wrested back Nandod taluka and shifted the capital to Nandod or new Rajpipla town, in the plains on the banks of the river Karjan, a tributary of the Narmada.
When the Marathas grew powerful in the 18th century, the Gaekwars of Baroda exacted tribute from Rajpipla. The stranglehold of the Gaekwars was cast aside with the intervention of the British and accession of the 33rd Gohil ruler Maharana Verisalji II on the 'gadi' of Rajpipla. During the 1857 Mutiny, Rajpipla under Verisalji II rebelled, and for many months relieved itself of the sway of the British. It was not surprising, therefore, that the agitated English, having quelled the Mutiny and transferred power to the Crown, forced Verisalji II to step aside and make way for his son Maharana Gambhirsinhji in 1860 AD.
) as a result of his efficient administration which included the laying of the 40-mile (64 kilometres) Ankleshwar-Rajpipla railway line, initiated in the first year of his reign, and massive famine relief during the period 1899-1902. But the builder of modern and affluent Rajpipla was his son, Maharana Vijaysinhji, who ascended the 'gadi' in 1915 AD, and proved to be a great administrator, assisted by his 'karbhari' Rasikbhai Dubla. Knighthood was also conferred on Maharaja Vijaysinhji (KCSI
), and he received the hereditary title of 'Maharaja'. The gun salute for the ruler of Rajpipla was increased from 11 to 13.
Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji introduced free primary education and scholarships, and only nominal high school fees were charged. He built a civil hospital, five dispensaries and a veterinary hospital in the State. A criminal-and-civil court was established, pensions were paid to public servants, and the salaries of the police and military were increased. Maharaja Vijaysinhji ordered the laying out of extensive public works and good motorable roads He added the Jhagadia-Netrang section to the 40-mile (64 kilometres) railway line, laid during his father's reign, which connected Rajpipla to Ankleshwar, a junction on the Dehli-Ahmedabad-Bombay line. He also set up a 19-mile (31 kilometres) steam railroad and tramway connecting the towns along the river Narmada with villages in the interior, and a power house supplying electricity and water to Rajpipla town. Even though taxes were reduced in terms of percentage, the revenue of the State increased from Rupees 1,300,000 to Rupees 2,700,000 per annum in the period 1915-1930, and peaked at Rupees 3,600,000 in 1948 when the State merged with the Indian Union. Maharaja Vijaysinhji regularised the land revenue system, and his relief efforts during droughts and floods drew wide appreciation. He had a keen interest in agriculture and improved the quality of cotton, grains and fruits grown in his territory. His town planning in 1927 was far-sighted, and builders were given permission to construct, conditional to leaving 3 to 4 feet (about 1 metre) space for future widening of roads. The designs of new buildings were well integrated and in harmony with the surroundings.
Sports were Maharaja Vijaysinhji's passion. He was a keen horseman and maintained one of the finest stables of race horses in India and England, marked by quality and not quantity. Maharaja Vijaysinhji won the first Indian Derby in 1919 when his horse Tipster led the pack at the finish. His horse Embargo won the Irish Derby in 1926 and Grand Prix in Belgium in 1927. Other horses, like Melesigenes, won him nearly all the big prizes in races at Bombay, Poona and other Indian courses, and in 1932-33 he topped the racing events in India. But, doubtlessly, his best horse was Windsor Lad
, that won the coveted Epsom Derby
of England in 1934. Maharaja Vijaysinhji is still the only Indian owner to have bagged the English Derby, considered the greatest horse race in the world, cheered on by an estimated half a million people on the course that day. King George V and Queen Mary of Britain, who watched the race along with other members of the Royal Family, invited Maharaja Vijaysinhji to the Royal Box and felicitated him on this brilliant victory. In the process the Maharaja completed a brilliant hat-trick of Derby wins: the first-ever Indian Derby, the Irish Derby and the coveted English Derby, making him arguably the greatest Indian racehorse owner.
Maharaja Vijaysinhji spent much of the sporting season in England, and returned to India in the winter when he encouraged outdoor sports like cricket, football and hockey. Sports were made compulsory for students of Rajpipla State. He equipped Rajpipla with a polo ground and gymkhana club. A unique feature of the Rajpipla royal family was its polo team comprising Maharaja Vijaysinhji and his three sons Yuvraj Rajendra Singhji, Maharajkumar Pramod Singhji and Maharajkumar Indrajeet Singhji.
One of Maharaja Vijaysinhji's dreams for Rajpipla, a 150 acre (0.607029 km²) aerodrome, never saw fruition as he had to give up his powers in 1948 AD. But he did lay out an airstrip where aircraft landed in the 1930s and 1940s. He also had plans to build a dam across the river Narmada to facilitate irrigation and generate electricity, and was in the process of working out the investment for it. This was the precursor of the present-day gigantic Sardar Sarovar project.
Surprisingly, Maharaja Vijaysinhji who was known for his long sojourns in Europe and his loyalty to the British crown, started a nationalist movement in Rajpipla in the 1940s. Along with his fellow Gohil Rajput rulers of Udaipur
and Bhavnagar, he was one of the first rulers to hand over his State to the Indian democracy in 1948 along with Rupees 2,800,000 (Rs.28 lakh
s) that were deposited in the State treasury. He urged other Indian rulers to give up their States in the cause of a united nation at a meeting held at Palm Beach, his Napeansea Road residence in Bombay. The state was merged with the Indian Union on 10 June 1948, bringing to an end the 600-year rule of the Gohils over Rajpipla. Maharaja Vijaysinhji died at his estate at Old Windsor in England in 1951 AD, and was cremated at Rampura on the banks of the holy river Narmada, 18 kilometres from his former capital.
Maharaja Vijaysinhji's second son Maharajkumar Pramod Singhji joined the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and served in the Orissa cadre.
Another scion of the Rajpipla family, Indra Vikram Singh, grandson of Maharaja Vijaysinhji and elder son of Maharajkumar Indrajeet Singhji is a sports writer and author of several books, mainly on cricket.
The well known cricketer K.S. Duleepsinhji, nephew of the famous H.H. Maharaja
Jam Saheb K.S. Ranjitsinhji of Nawanagar or Ranji, married Maharaja Vijaysinhji's cousin Rajkumari Jayaraj Kunverba of Rajpipla.
The major part of the erstwhile princely state of Rajpipla now forms the Narmada district in Gujarat, with Rajpipla town as its headquarters, while some portions fall in Vadodara and Bharuch districts.
Princely state
A Princely State was a nominally sovereign entitity of British rule in India that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.-British relationship with the Princely States:India under the British Raj ...
of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
ruled by the Gohil
Gohil
Gohils are Suryavanshi Rajputs who have descended from the Guhilots of Mewar. As per the Sikarwar Khyat, Prince Shiladitya was born on Jesth Sudhi Chaturdashi of V.S 543 . He was the son of Emperor Aditya Sen and Queen Subhaga Devi. Though born at Chitor he was educated at Vallabhi...
Rajput
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
clan from around 1350 till 1948 when it was merged with the Republic of India. It is now part of the state of Gujarat. Its capital town of Rajpipla
Rajpipla
Rajpipla is a city and a municipality in the Narmada district in the Indian state of Gujarat.It was the capital of the former Kingdom of Rajpipla.-Geography:Rajpipla is located at . It has an average elevation of 148 metres ....
is now headquarters of the Narmada district.
The princely state was situated largely between two important rivers of western India—the Narmada
Narmada River
The Narmada , also called Rewa is a river in central India and the fifth largest river in the Indian subcontinent. It is the third largest river that completely flows within India after Ganges and Godavari...
and the Tapti, with the Satpura range in the south. Spanning an area of over 1500 square miles (4,000 km²), of which 600 mi² (1550 km²) were forests and the rest fertile agricultural plains and river valleys, Rajpipla grew to be one of the most prosperous princely states in Gujarat, second only to Baroda. It was also famous for its agate mines.
Chokrana, a Parmar Rajput
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
prince, originally hailing from the ruling family of Ujjain
Ujjain
Ujjain , is an ancient city of Malwa region in central India, on the eastern bank of the Kshipra River , today part of the state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the administrative centre of Ujjain District and Ujjain Division.In ancient times the city was called Ujjayini...
in Malwa (now the western part of the state of Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
), was in the early part of the fourteenth century ruling over the principality of Rajpipla, with his capital at Juna Raj or Old Rajpipla high up in the western Satpuras and deep inside the forests. His daughter was married to the legendary Mokhdaji, the Gohil Rajput warrior chief of Ghogha in Gohilwar, Saurashtra. Chokrana, who had no male heir, adopted his grandson Samarsinhji, younger son of Mokhdaji. Mokhdaji's first wife was a Sarviya princess of Hathasani and their son Dungarsinhji succeeded as chief of Ghogha, part of which later became the princely state of Bhavnagar
Bhavnagar
-Topography:Bhavnagar is a coastal city in the eastern coast of Saurashtra, also known as Kathiawar, located at . It has an average elevation of 24 metres . It occupies area of 53.30 km². General slope dips in the northeasterly direction at the apex of Gulf of Khambhat...
.
Samarsinhji acceded to the 'gadi' or throne of Rajpipla around the mid-fourteenth century, assuming the name Arjunsinhji. Since then Rajpipla was ruled by the Gohil Rajput dynasty. The 'Kul Devi' or family deity of the royal family of Rajpipla is Shri Harsiddhi Mataji
Harsidhhi
Harsidhhi is considered one of the aspect of Amba and also Kalika, the Hindu Devi.Her temples are found in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.-Kuldevi:She is worshiped as Kuldevi by many Kshatriya and Rajput clans of India...
.
Gohil Rajputs
The origin of the Gohil Rajput clan goes back to the sixth century AD when Muhideosur Gohadit or Guhil, born after the sack of VallabhiVallabhi
Vallabhi is an ancient city located in Saurashtra peninsula in Gujarat, in western India, near Bhavnagar. Also known as Vallabhipura, it was the capital of the ancient Maitraka dynasty.- Origins and history :...
and the only male survivor of the clan, went on to become chief of an area near modern Idar
Idar
Idar is a city and a municipality in Sabarkantha district in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is located about 30 km north of Himatnagar and 25 km from Gujarat's border with Rajasthan...
in Gujarat. His descendant Kalbhoj or Bappa Rawal seized Chittor and became ruler of Mewar
Mewar
Mewar is a region of south-central Rajasthan state in western India. It includes the present-day districts of Pratapgarh, Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Rajsamand, Udaipur, Dungarpur, Banswara and some of the part of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The region was for centuries a Rajput kingdom that later...
in 734 AD. A little more than two-and-a-half-centuries later, Salivahan, the Gohil ruler of Mewar moved away with part of the clan from Chittor to Juna Khergarh in Marwar, leaving behind his son Shakti Kumar with the remaining members of his kin. Later, after Ala-ud-din Khilji ravaged Chittor, the Gohils of Mewar regrouped and assumed the name Sisodia.
Meanwhile the Gohils who had migrated under Salivahan ruled over Marwar for more than two centuries. Then after the formation of the Delhi Sultanate, when the Rathores travelled to Marwar in the early part of the thirteenth century, the Gohils were pushed out. They marched back to Saurashtra where they became governors of the Chalukyas, and then carved out their own principalities. The most famous of their chiefs during this period were Sejakji, Ranoji and Mokhdaji, and the princely states that their descendants carved out were Bhavnagar, Rajpipla, Palitana
Palitana
Palitana is a city in Bhavnagar district, Gujarat, India. It is located 50 km southwest of Bhavnagar city and is a major pilgrimage centre for Jains.-History:...
, Lathi
Lathi, Gujarat
Lathi is a city and a municipality in Amreli district in the Indian state of Gujarat.-Geography:Lathi is located at . It has an average elevation of 141 metres .-Demographics:...
and Vallabhipur.
Those were turbulent mediaeval times and it was not easy for the Gohils to retain their hold over Rajpipla. They had to face several invasions from the sultans of Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad also known as Karnavati is the largest city in Gujarat, India. It is the former capital of Gujarat and is also the judicial capital of Gujarat as the Gujarat High Court has its seat in Ahmedabad...
, the Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
emperors and later the Maratha
Maratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
s, even losing their principality for brief periods, each time coming back to power by joining forces with the hill tribes, comprising mainly the 'Bhils', and carrying out guerrilla attacks. In 1730, with the weakening of the Mughal Empire
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
, the 26th Gohil ruler of Rajpipla, Maharana Verisalji I stopped paying tribute to the Mughals, and his son Maharana Jeetsinhji wrested back Nandod taluka and shifted the capital to Nandod or new Rajpipla town, in the plains on the banks of the river Karjan, a tributary of the Narmada.
When the Marathas grew powerful in the 18th century, the Gaekwars of Baroda exacted tribute from Rajpipla. The stranglehold of the Gaekwars was cast aside with the intervention of the British and accession of the 33rd Gohil ruler Maharana Verisalji II on the 'gadi' of Rajpipla. During the 1857 Mutiny, Rajpipla under Verisalji II rebelled, and for many months relieved itself of the sway of the British. It was not surprising, therefore, that the agitated English, having quelled the Mutiny and transferred power to the Crown, forced Verisalji II to step aside and make way for his son Maharana Gambhirsinhji in 1860 AD.
1900s and Maharaja Vijaysinhji
The golden period of Rajpipla during the modern era began when Maharana Gambhirsinhji's son Maharana Chhatrasinhji, the 35th Gohil 'Raja' of Rajpipla came to the 'gadi' in 1897 AD. Rajpipla witnessed rapid progress over the next half-century. Knighthood was conferred on Maharana Chhatrasinhji (KCIEOrder of the Indian Empire
The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1878. The Order includes members of three classes:#Knight Grand Commander #Knight Commander #Companion...
) as a result of his efficient administration which included the laying of the 40-mile (64 kilometres) Ankleshwar-Rajpipla railway line, initiated in the first year of his reign, and massive famine relief during the period 1899-1902. But the builder of modern and affluent Rajpipla was his son, Maharana Vijaysinhji, who ascended the 'gadi' in 1915 AD, and proved to be a great administrator, assisted by his 'karbhari' Rasikbhai Dubla. Knighthood was also conferred on Maharaja Vijaysinhji (KCSI
Order of the Star of India
The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes:# Knight Grand Commander # Knight Commander # Companion...
), and he received the hereditary title of 'Maharaja'. The gun salute for the ruler of Rajpipla was increased from 11 to 13.
Maharaja Sir Vijaysinhji introduced free primary education and scholarships, and only nominal high school fees were charged. He built a civil hospital, five dispensaries and a veterinary hospital in the State. A criminal-and-civil court was established, pensions were paid to public servants, and the salaries of the police and military were increased. Maharaja Vijaysinhji ordered the laying out of extensive public works and good motorable roads He added the Jhagadia-Netrang section to the 40-mile (64 kilometres) railway line, laid during his father's reign, which connected Rajpipla to Ankleshwar, a junction on the Dehli-Ahmedabad-Bombay line. He also set up a 19-mile (31 kilometres) steam railroad and tramway connecting the towns along the river Narmada with villages in the interior, and a power house supplying electricity and water to Rajpipla town. Even though taxes were reduced in terms of percentage, the revenue of the State increased from Rupees 1,300,000 to Rupees 2,700,000 per annum in the period 1915-1930, and peaked at Rupees 3,600,000 in 1948 when the State merged with the Indian Union. Maharaja Vijaysinhji regularised the land revenue system, and his relief efforts during droughts and floods drew wide appreciation. He had a keen interest in agriculture and improved the quality of cotton, grains and fruits grown in his territory. His town planning in 1927 was far-sighted, and builders were given permission to construct, conditional to leaving 3 to 4 feet (about 1 metre) space for future widening of roads. The designs of new buildings were well integrated and in harmony with the surroundings.
Sports were Maharaja Vijaysinhji's passion. He was a keen horseman and maintained one of the finest stables of race horses in India and England, marked by quality and not quantity. Maharaja Vijaysinhji won the first Indian Derby in 1919 when his horse Tipster led the pack at the finish. His horse Embargo won the Irish Derby in 1926 and Grand Prix in Belgium in 1927. Other horses, like Melesigenes, won him nearly all the big prizes in races at Bombay, Poona and other Indian courses, and in 1932-33 he topped the racing events in India. But, doubtlessly, his best horse was Windsor Lad
Windsor Lad
Windsor Lad was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. As a three-year-old in 1934 he won both the Epsom Derby and the St Leger in record time. In 1935 he won the Coronation Cup and the Eclipse Stakes before his career was ended by injury....
, that won the coveted Epsom Derby
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
of England in 1934. Maharaja Vijaysinhji is still the only Indian owner to have bagged the English Derby, considered the greatest horse race in the world, cheered on by an estimated half a million people on the course that day. King George V and Queen Mary of Britain, who watched the race along with other members of the Royal Family, invited Maharaja Vijaysinhji to the Royal Box and felicitated him on this brilliant victory. In the process the Maharaja completed a brilliant hat-trick of Derby wins: the first-ever Indian Derby, the Irish Derby and the coveted English Derby, making him arguably the greatest Indian racehorse owner.
Maharaja Vijaysinhji spent much of the sporting season in England, and returned to India in the winter when he encouraged outdoor sports like cricket, football and hockey. Sports were made compulsory for students of Rajpipla State. He equipped Rajpipla with a polo ground and gymkhana club. A unique feature of the Rajpipla royal family was its polo team comprising Maharaja Vijaysinhji and his three sons Yuvraj Rajendra Singhji, Maharajkumar Pramod Singhji and Maharajkumar Indrajeet Singhji.
One of Maharaja Vijaysinhji's dreams for Rajpipla, a 150 acre (0.607029 km²) aerodrome, never saw fruition as he had to give up his powers in 1948 AD. But he did lay out an airstrip where aircraft landed in the 1930s and 1940s. He also had plans to build a dam across the river Narmada to facilitate irrigation and generate electricity, and was in the process of working out the investment for it. This was the precursor of the present-day gigantic Sardar Sarovar project.
Surprisingly, Maharaja Vijaysinhji who was known for his long sojourns in Europe and his loyalty to the British crown, started a nationalist movement in Rajpipla in the 1940s. Along with his fellow Gohil Rajput rulers of Udaipur
Udaipur
Udaipur , also known as the City of Lakes, is a city, a Municipal Council and the administrative headquarters of the Udaipur district in the state of Rajasthan in western India. It is located southwest of the state capital, Jaipur, west of Kota, and northeast from Ahmedabad...
and Bhavnagar, he was one of the first rulers to hand over his State to the Indian democracy in 1948 along with Rupees 2,800,000 (Rs.28 lakh
Lakh
A lakh is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to one hundred thousand . It is widely used both in official and other contexts in Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and is often used in Indian English.-Usage:...
s) that were deposited in the State treasury. He urged other Indian rulers to give up their States in the cause of a united nation at a meeting held at Palm Beach, his Napeansea Road residence in Bombay. The state was merged with the Indian Union on 10 June 1948, bringing to an end the 600-year rule of the Gohils over Rajpipla. Maharaja Vijaysinhji died at his estate at Old Windsor in England in 1951 AD, and was cremated at Rampura on the banks of the holy river Narmada, 18 kilometres from his former capital.
Rajpipla after 1971
The title of Maharaja of Rajpipla passed on to Maharaja Vijaysinhji's eldest son Rajendra Singhji, and after his demise in 1963 to Raghubir Singhji. The Indian princely order was finally abolished in 1971. Raghubir Singhji runs a heritage hotel at Vijay Palace in Rajpipla. Raghubir Singhji's daughter Minaxi has a son Ranajay Chand and daughter Dharini. His only son Manvendra caused a sensation when he openly declared that he is gay.Maharaja Vijaysinhji's second son Maharajkumar Pramod Singhji joined the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and served in the Orissa cadre.
Another scion of the Rajpipla family, Indra Vikram Singh, grandson of Maharaja Vijaysinhji and elder son of Maharajkumar Indrajeet Singhji is a sports writer and author of several books, mainly on cricket.
The well known cricketer K.S. Duleepsinhji, nephew of the famous H.H. Maharaja
Maharaja
Mahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
Jam Saheb K.S. Ranjitsinhji of Nawanagar or Ranji, married Maharaja Vijaysinhji's cousin Rajkumari Jayaraj Kunverba of Rajpipla.
The major part of the erstwhile princely state of Rajpipla now forms the Narmada district in Gujarat, with Rajpipla town as its headquarters, while some portions fall in Vadodara and Bharuch districts.