Though Ratlam estate is founded by Ratan Singh and descended from Mahesh Das Rathore of Jhalore, the kingdom was seized during the reign of Kesho Das. A few years later, Chhatrasal, a younger brother of Ratan Singh received the same estate from Aurangzeb and one should treat Chhatrasal’s accession as the start of Ratlam’s history. Though, technically the current state of Ratlam is a different one as compared to the one founded by Ratan Singh, the new state still treated Ratan Singh as the founder of the kingdom. It is possible that Chhatrasal specifically asked for Ratlam as an estate in return for some other province because of the family ties involved. The kingdom carried the motto Ratanasya Sahasam Tadvansh Ratnam(The exploit of Ratan Singh is the Glory of his Family) and the dagger with which Ratan Singh tamed the elephant is still preserved at Ratlam.
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