Jodhpur Car Rental

Umaid Bhawan Palace

Umaid Bhawan Palace, located in Jodhpur in Rajasthan, India, is one of the world's largest private residences. A part of the palace is managed by Taj Hotels. Named after Maharaja Umaid Singh, grandfather of the present owner Gaj Singh. The palace has 347 rooms and is the principal residence of the former Jodhpur royal family. A part of the palace is a museum.
The groundbreaking for the foundations of the building was carried out on 18 November 1929 by Maharaja Umaid Singh and the construction work was completed in 1943.

History and Legend
Umaid Bhawan Palace was originally designed by H V Lanchester, a well-known Edwardian architect. After the palace disheveled on 18th November 1929, again the foundation stone was laid by Maharaja himself on Chittar hill.
There were around fifty thousand men and women, who worked for more than fifteen years to construct this majestic palace, under the supervision of architect Goldstraw. The architect use to get thousand rupees per month and the workers were paid only fifty paisa a day.
All the colored stones which were used in the construction of the building were brought by a special train. And the skilled workers cut the big pieces of stones into intricate design form. The imposing palace cost Maharaja around rupees 94, 51,565.

Architecture
Umaid Bhawan Palace in Jodhpur Rajasthan is a brilliant example of remarkable constructions. Moreover, now it’s a five star luxurious hotel where one can have a royal stay with all modern comforts.

Acquiring an area up to 26 acres of land, the royal mansion is 110 ft high and showcases sumptuous rooms reflecting a rich bygone era. It is one among the most expensive hotels in Jodhpur. The regal palace constitutes of elegant royal heirlooms, high ceilings, marble corridors, treasure troves, hunting trophies, green velvet lawns and courtyards. The interiors of the palace were firstly designed by Maples of London in Art Deco style, but later, the ship carrying the stuff to Bombay was sunk by Germans in 1942. Afterwards, Maharaja Umed Singh himself bought a polished artist namely Stefan Norblin who was an interior decorator and was familiar with the style of Art deco.

The beautifully designed paintings and furnishings done by Stefan are still well-preserved here. It is the India’s last royal constructions. Moreover, out of total 26 acres of land, fifteen acres comprises of sprawling gardens, its central cupola, a ball room, a library, indoor swimming, billiards room, four tennis courts, 105 ft Darbar hall for audience, a marble pavilion, a nursery, garages that can park twenty motor cars and two marble squash courts.

Other than this, the grand mansion also comprises a unique clock tower, Durbar hall for public gathering, Edwardian drawing room, banquet, cinema hall, a private segment for ladies and billiards room. During its constructions, Umaid Bhawan was the most awaited palace for the’ Maharaos of Kotah’; as before they used to live in a small fort inside the same city. Thus, Umed Sigh decided to build this noble one to comfort the Maharao’s.

Later, in 1930, the palace was extended by the architect George Devon, in order to provide space for Maharaj Kumar Bhim Singh and his wife. This section is still reserved and is not open for public, though, rest of the palace is considered to be the private residence as a heritage hotel. Similar to that of other royal Rajput mansions, Umaid Bhawan palace also has a Mardana section for male and a Zenana section for females with separate entrances.