Jam Rawal Lakh (1480–1562), was a

Jadeja Jadeja ( Gujarati, Sindhi: , or ''Jāṛejā'') is a Samma Rajput clan that inhabits the Indian state of Gujarat and the Tharparkar district of Sindh, Pakistan. They originated from Sammas of Sindh, a pastoral group, and laid a claim on the ...

Rajput Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...

ruler, who ruled

Kutch State Kutch State was a state within India from 1947 to 1956. Its capital was Bhuj. The state's territory now forms a Kachchh district within the Indian state of Gujarat. History Kutch State was formed out of the territory of the former princel ...

from 1524 to 1548 and later was founder-ruler of

Nawanagar State Nawanagar was an Indian state and then a princely state in the historical Halar region, located on the southern shores of the Gulf of Kutch. It was ruled by the Jadeja Rajput dynasty and became a part of newly formed India. Its capital cit ...

from 1540 to 1562.

Ruler of Kutch

Jam Raval was son of Jam Lakhoji, the chief of

Tera Tera or TERA may refer to: People * Tera Hunter, American professor of history * Tera Patrick (born 1976) American pornographic actress * Tera people, an ethnic group in Gombe State, Nigeria Places * Téra, Niger * Tera, Paphos, Cyprus * ...

branch of Kutch, which was younger to the elder branch of Lakhiarviro, whose ruler at that time was Jam Hamirji. It is believed that Jam Rawal attributed the murder of his father Jam Lakhoji to Hamirji, as he was killed within the territory of Lakhiarviro by Deda (clan) Tamiachi upon instigation of Hamirji. Jam Rawal, in revenge treacherously killed his father's elder brother Rao Hamirji of Lakhiarviro, and ruled Kutch for more than two decades from 1524 to 1548.The Paramount Power and the Princely States of India, 1858-1881 - Page 287

Khengarji I Khengarji I (1510–1585) was an Indian ruler belonging to Jadeja clan of Rajputs. He was the ruler of Morbi from 1538–1585 and later became ruler of kutch State, kutch, assuming title of Rao of kutch, ruling unified kutch from 1548 to 1585. E ...

, who was son of Hamirji had escaped massacre and grew up in

Ahmadabad Ahmedabad is the largest city of the Indian state of Gujarat. Ahmedabad or Ahmadabad may also refer to: Pakistan * Ahmedabad, Punjab, a city in Punjab * Ahmedabad, Gilgit Baltistan, a village in Gilgit-Baltistan * Fort Ahmadabad, or Kot Di ...

. He had enlisted in to the army of

Mahmud Begada Abu'l Fath Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud Shah I ( Gujarati: અબુલ ફત નાસીર ઉદ દિન મહમુદ શાહ), more famously known as Mahmud Begada, was a Sultan of the Gujarat Sultanate. Raised to the throne at a young age ...

and became his confidant. Khengarji I, who was given fiefdom of

Morbi Morbi or Morvi is a city founded as a princely state around 1698 by Jadeja Thakor Saheb Shree Kayoji Ravaji. It is in the Morbi district in the States and territories of India, state of Gujarat, India. It is situated on the Kathiawar peninsula. ...

in 1538 by Sultan Begda, later waged a war against Jam Rawal to claim back the throne of Kutch, with help of armies provided by

Mughals The Mughal Empire was an early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to the highlands of pre ...

and Beghda. Khenagrji I, reconquered whole of Kutch from him in 1548 after waging a war of almost eleven years.

Founding of Nawanagar

Jam Rawal escaped out of Kutch, who according to myth advice was given by

Ashapura Mata Ashapura Mata is an aspect of Devi, a Hindu goddess. She is one of the kuldevis of Kutch and Rajasthan, and the Jadeja clan of Gujarat, Chauhans and Patiyats inhabiting the western Indian provinces. She is a goddess regarded to fulfill the wi ...

in ''dream'' to him and later founded the Nawanagar. He arrived with his retinue, his family and soldiers loyal to him in the

Halar Halar (Haalaar) is a historical region of western India, located by the Gulf of Kutch coast on the northwestern area of Nawanagar, now Jamnagar, in Gujarat State, on Saurashtra peninsula, roughly corresponding to the present Jamnagar District ...

region of

Saurashtra Saurashtra, Sourashtra, or variants may refer to: ** Kathiawar, also called Saurashtra Peninsula, a peninsula in western India ** Saurashtra (state), alias United State of Kathiawar, a former Indian state, merged into Bombay State and since its d ...

. After several battles with a number of local tribes and castes, conquered the

Jodiya Jodia (also spelled Jodiya) is a town in Jamnagar district, Gujarat, India. Jodia was the well-known port of India before 1947. The activity of jodiya Port was at peak in 1980 era. Jodiya Port had railway connectivity till 1978.It has a sainik sc ...

and Amran parganahs from the Dedas,

Dhrol Dhrol is a city and a municipality in Jamnagar district in the state of Gujarat, India. Geography Dhrol is located at . It has an average elevation of 26 metres (85 feet). Demographics India census,https://censusindia.gov.in/pca ...

from the Chavadas, Nagnath port from the

Jethwa Jethwa (Jethva, Jaitwa or Jethi) is a clan of Rajputs and caste of Gujarat. Jethwa surname is also found amongst the Koli Darji, Mistris of Kutch, and Gurjar Kshatriya Kadias castes of Gujarat. Origin It has been suggested that the Sain ...

s, and

Khambhalia Jamkhambhaliya, also known as Khambhalia, is a town and a municipality in Devbhoomi Dwarka district of Gujarat, India. It is the headquarters and the largest town of the district. Khambhaliya is famous for ghee and eggplants all over India. Hi ...

from the

Vadhel The Vadhel (also spelled vadher) are a Rajput clan found in the state of Gujarat in India. They are an offshoot of Rathore of Marwad and claim Suryavanshi descent. Origin About A.D. 1225 Rathore tribes of Vadhel,who are said to have been spru ...

s/Vadhers. He also invaded

Surat Surat (Gujarati Language, Gujarati: ) is a city in the western Indian States and territories of India, state of Gujarat. The word Surat directly translates to ''face'' in Urdu, Gujarati language, Gujarati and Hindi. Located on the banks of t ...

. Thus, he founded the new state of Nawanagar and laid the foundations for his capital of

Jamnagar Jamnagar () is a city and the headquarters of Jamnagar district in the Indian state of Gujarat. The city lies just to the south of the Gulf of Kutch, some west of the state capital, Gandhinagar. The city was the capital of Nawanagar State, Na ...

, which was earlier known as port city Nagnath in August 1540 and assumed title of Jam Sahib of Nawanagar. The State of Nawanagar was in constant state of war since its foundation with its neighbors in order to expand his territories.Gazetteers: Rajkot District - Page 32

Death

Jam Rawal died in 1562. His third son Jam Vibhaji Rawalji, succeeded his to the throne of Nawanagar upon his death in 1562.

References

{{Reflist 1480 births 1562 deaths Maharajas of Nawanagar Rajput monarchs Maharajas of Kutch