The archaeological evidences at Bharatpur have proved that the history of this state dates back to the era of the Mahabharata. It was one of those many places where the Pandavas visited while they were on exile for 13 years. It was part of the Matsya Desh, which literally means the Land of Fish. The people of Matsya Desh helped the Pandavas in the battle of Kurukshetra too. Steeped in mythology the history of Bharatpur sounds quite interesting to the tourists. But the history of Bharatpur develops in the medieval ages under the reign of the Jats.

In the later half of the 17th century the Jats of Sinsini village and that of Thoon rose up in arms against the Mughals. The leaders were father and son, Bhajjasingh and Rajaram. The Jats claim that they are descendants of moon god. They fought for their independence from the Mughal rule and in the 18th century the struggles became very active. Under the leadership of people like Churaman and Badan Singh this race put up a united front against the then Mughals. Their attacks became especially strong during Aurangzeb`s rule in India. However in the year 1721 Churaman was killed by the Mughals. At the end of the long strife Bharatpur was recaptured from the Mughals and the title of raja was conferred upon Badan Singh by Jai Singh II of Jaipur.

Conflicts between Rajputs and Jats were also common in Bharatpur. However the intensity of this strife was kept in check through marriage alliances. Lay incidents are recorded in history of Alwar regarding the power struggle between the Rajputs and Jats. But overall the greatest and mightiest foes of the Jats were the Mughals.

Several forts and palaces were constructed by the ruling power to beautify the region. Today these monuments throw ample light on the by-gone eras. After the death of Badan Singh his eldest son, Raja Suraj Mal, succeeded the throne. He was the one who brought political stability to Bharatpur. He also consolidated the empire further. The royal treasury was put to good use under him. He used the resources to build splendid palaces and forts. The most remarkable buildings were the Deeg Palace and the Bharatpur Fort. Later in his life Suraj Mal went ahead with his expansion policies. He invaded the cities of Agra and Delhi. These raids added huge sums of money to the royal treasury. For the next 13 years the rulers of Bharatpur Agra under their sovereignty. During these battles Suraj Mal were killed by the Mughals while he was attacking to Delhi.

With the death of Suraj Mal, his son, Jawahar Singh, was announced the next king. Much of the history of Bharatpur also got affected by the advent of the British. In a battle with Ranjit Singh (one of Suraj Mal`s son) the British troops were forced to retreat. They incurred heavy losses and finally the British were compelled to enter into an agreement with the Jats of Bharatpur. In this siege the British troops were led by Colonel Lake. This agreement did not fruitful in the long run and by 1825 they and brought Bharatpur under their supremacy.

To sum it up the 3500 years old history of Bharatpur mainly consisted of power struggles. However the Jats made Bharatpur an important chapter in the history of Rajasthan. The monuments that they had built still attract tourist from far and wide. Although they were not as popular as the Rajputs in Rajasthan but their deeds of courage and persistence at least immortalized their names in the history of Bharatpur.