Rani Karnavati: Difference between revisions

| name       = Rani Karnavati

| death_date = 8 March 1534

| spouse     = [[Rana Sanga]]

| issue     = [[Vikramaditya Singh (Maharana)|Vikramaditya]]<br>[[Udai Singh II]]<br>Padmavati Bai

| mother = Rani Sa of Bundi  

| father = Rao Nirbudh of Bundi

|image=File:Rani karnavati.jpg}}

'''Rani Karnavati''' also known as '''Rani Karmavati''' (died 8 March 1534), was a [[princess]] and temporary ruler from [[Bundi]], [[India]].  She was married to [[Rana Sanga]] of [[Chittorgarh]], the capital of [[Mewar]] Kingdom. She was the mother of the next two Ranas, [[Vikramaditya Singh (Maharana)|Rana Vikramaditya]] and [[Udai Singh II|Rana Uday Singh]], and grandmother of the legendary [[Maharana Pratap]]. She served as regent during the minority of her son, from 1527 until 1533. She was as fierce as her husband and defended Chittor with a small contingent of soldiers until it inevitably fell to the Gujarat army which was led by the bahadur shah of Gujrat.  She refused to flee and performed Jauhar to protect her honour.

After [[Babur]] had captured the throne of Delhi in 1526 AD, Rana Sangram Singh or Rana Sanga of Mewar lead a confederation of [[Rajput]] Kings against [[Babur]] to capture the throne of Delhi. But in The [[Battle of Khanua]] in 1527, the combined Rajput forces were defeated due to Babur's superior tactics, Cannons and artilleries and Rana Sanga poisoned by his colleagues.

The antagonized nobles were not ready to fight for Vikramaditya and the imminent battle was sure to be another blot in the history of Sisodias. Rani Karnavati wrote to the nobles to come forward for the sake of the honour of the [[Sisodia]]s, and was able to persuade the nobles to fight for Mewar, if not for Vikramaditya. Their sole condition was that Vikramaditya and Uday Singh should go to Bundi during the war for their personal safety. Some later legends say that the Rani also sent a Rakhi to the [[Mughal Emperor]] [[Humayun]], calling him a brother and asking for help. Thus her name became irrevocably linked to the festival of [[Raksha Bandhan]]. However this is not supported by any contemporary writer and modern historians like Satish Chandra consider this to be a fable rather than a historical fact.<ref>History of Medieval India by Satish Chandra pg.212</ref>

Realizing that defeat was imminent, Karnavati and the other noble ladies of the court immolated themselves in a mass suicide by fire known as [[Jauhar]] on March 8, 1534 A.D., while all the men donned saffron clothes and went out to fight to the death and thus committed Saka. This is the occasion for the second of the three Jauhars performed at Chittor.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=oGVSvXuCsyUC&pg=SL1-PA51&dq=rani+karnavati+humayun&hl=en&sa=X&ei=b2RMUpSTFIOJrQfBtoCoBQ&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=rani%20karnavati%20humayun&f=false Encyclopaedia of Indian Events & Dates]</ref><ref>[http://www.streeshakti.com/bookK.aspx?author=16 KARNAVATI, QUEEN OF CHITTOR ]</ref> Later, Humayun captured Chittor from Bahadur Shah on his way back to Gujarat by capturing Mandu in 1535.

[[Category:Rajput Princesses]]