Jadish Mandir: see JAGDISH TEMPLE.

Jag Mandir (also known as the Lake Garden Palace), an island palace at the southern end of Pichola Lake, Udaipur. Maharana KARAN SINGH II (1620-1628) initiated its building, extending and raising the level of the dam (ca 1620). His son, Maharana JAGAT SINGH I (1628-1652), completed and named it. For a short time in 1623, while still under construction, Jag Mandir served as refuge for the Mughal prince, Khurram, when he was in revolt against his father, Emperor Jahangir (see KARAN SINGH II, MAHARANA). With him were his wife, Mumtaz Mahal and two of their young sons, the princes Dara and Aurangzeb. The small sandstone palace he occupied, the Gul Mahal (now known as Khurram's Palace) is adorned with a lofty dome crowned with the crescent of Islam. Inlaid rubies, onyx, jasper, cornelian and jade once adorned the massive stone slabs lining the interior walls. The palace housed a throne sculpted from a single block of serpentine (the present whereabouts of the throne is unknown). Khurram later took the name of SHAH JAHAN when he succeeded his father as emperor. Apart from the palace, the feature of the island is the line of eight, almost life-size white marble elephants facing JAG NIWAS (now the LAKE PALACE) beyond, built some years later. They guard the boat ramp and entrance, which leads to a virtual wonderland of architecture and gardens.

Jag Mandir's most striking feature is the spacious courtyard of black and white tiles, hemmed on the northern side by the Garden Courtyard of landscaped rose gardens, dotted with palm trees, jasmine bushes, frangipanni trees, bougainvillea and other flowers that attract hundreds of parrots, pigeons, peacocks and other birds. There are cooling fountains and pools, all interested by pathways lined with low marble balustrading. It is here that the Maharana hosts lavish functions, and it is also available for private functions. On the northern side of this is the Darikhana, an open-sided terrace with marble columns. It is here that Arvind Singh Mewar opened the Darikhana Restaurant in July, 2001, for lunches and dinners. The panorama across the lake of the mighty City Palace and the Lake Palace is truly impressive, majestic by day and magic by night. At the eastern end is the small Bara Patharon ka Mahal (Palace of the Twelve Stones), so named because of the twelve solid marble slabs used in its construction. Occupying the southern side are the stately Gul Mahal and the Zanana Chambers (women's quarters). Occupying the western end of the island is the Kunwar Pada ka Mahal (the Palace of the Crown Prince), which, at the time of writing, is undergoing restoration to its former glory.

During the revolt against the British in 1857 (otherwise known as the Sepoy or Indian Mutiny, or the first War of Independence), Maharana SWAROOP SINGH (1842-1861) gave protection to a number of European families, refugees from Neemuch, consisting mostly of women and children. Stating that war was only for men, he lodged them in the safety of the island palace. With its gardens and courtyards, backed by the elegant Gul Mahal, Jag Mandir is a perfect and exotic al fresco setting for private dinners and other functions on Udaipur's delightful balmy evenings. The late Rajmata SUSHILA KUNWARJI, Rani of BHAGWAT SINGH MEWAR and mother of ARVIND SINGH MEWAR, penned a delightful impression of Jag Mandir.

Jag Nivas: see JAG NIWAS.

Jag Niwas (Nivas), now the Lake Palace Hotel, Udaipur. Maharana JAGAT SINGH II laid the foundation stone of the Jag Niwas on April 17, 1743. It covers 21/2 hectares of an island in the middle of Pichola Lake. The palace took about three years to build and was royally inaugurated on January 20, 1746, a lavish ceremony according to the bard, Nandram who recorded the details in his lyrical poem Jagat Vilas. About twenty-nine royal ladies including the Queen Mother of the Maharana witnessed the 3-day ceremony. The Maharana gave twenty-six of his noblemen finest pedigree horses, and the court bards who held positions of great honour and respect, were given gifts of elephants, horses, clothing and jewellery. The palace was a dream in white marble. According to James TOD:

Nothing but marble enters into their composition, columns, baths, reservoirs, fountains, all are of this material, often inlaid with mosaics, and the uniformity pleasingly diversified by the light passing through glass of every hue. The apartments are decorated with historical paintings in watercolours, almost meriting the term fresco from their deep absorption in the wall. The walls both here and in the grand palace (City Palace) contain many medallions in considerable relief in gypsum, portraying the principal historical events of the family.

The target of refreshing lake breezes, the island palace proved to be a cool oasis. So much so that, until 1955 Maharana BHAGWAT SINGH and his family had used Jag Niwas as their summer residence. However, with the incredible setbacks that came with Indian democracy, Bhagwat Singh decided to turn the palace into a hotel, knowing that tourists would bring prosperity to the city and would benefit his former subjects. Reconstruction of Jag Niwas began at the end of 1959; new suites were added along with modern amenities and fittings, and the name was changed to the Lake Palace. Important guests, even during renovations were Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh in 1961, and Mrs. Jacqueline Kennedy and her sister, Princess Lee Radziwill in 1962. On February 1, 1946, the doors of the Lake Palace opened to the first guests. At first, the former rulers of Mewar managed the Lake Palace Hotel; however, in 1971 it was leased to the hoteliers, the Taj Group. With tourism on the increase, the new manager added seventy-five new rooms.