History of Desert Festival

The city of Jaisalmer rolls back to the 12th Century where the city was first discovered by the Rajput king, Maharawal Jaisal Sing. But ancient histories reveal that before the capturing of the city by the Turks with Ala-ud-din-khilji the place was inhabited by the Rajput Bhat is. The city like most others in the royal state of Rajasthan has been a witness of several bloody battles between the Rajputs and the Islamic conquerors that tried to capture the ruling seat as well as the Bhatti rulers. The Bhatti rulers had later migrated to some other parts after the capture by Khilji, most of which is now in Pakistan. During the British Rule, the Bhatti rulers went on to rule the state of Jaisalmer which was a key stopover to the trade routes to Central Asia, Egypt, Arab and Persia, which is why it was home to several trade fairs and festivals akin to the Jaisalmer Desert Festival of today.