9 km N of Jodhpur town, lies the ancient town of Mandore – the seat of the Mandorva branch of the Parihar (Pratihara) dynasty. It is said to have been the ancient capital of Marwar, when King Nahar Rao Parihar ruled the region in the 6th century. In 1395, a Mohil princess of the Parihar rulers of Mandore married Chundaji, scion of the Rathore clan of Rajputs and received Mandore as dowry. Chundaji continued to rule Mandore, until 1459 AD, when Rao Jodha, united the surrounding region under his rule and shifted his capital to the newly founded city of Jodhpur.
The ruined fort of Mandore with thick walls built in several stages was one of the finest pieces of architecture. The ruined temples that existed within now form the Mandore gardens. It comprises of an amiable collection of temples, memorials and cenotaphs. Prominent among them is the chhatri of Maharaja Ajit Singh of Marwar, built in 1793. The gardens are also a home to Ek Thamba Mahal, another fine piece of architecture, the hall of the heroes and a temple dedicated to 33 crore gods. The hall of heroes has 16 figurines of the folk heroes carved on a monolith while the temple has figurines of various gods and goddesses.
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