Patiala is a city in southeastern Punjab, northwest India. It is the fourth largest city in the state and is the administrative capital of Patiala district. Patiala is centered around the Qila Mubarak (the 'Happy Castle'), built by the Sidhu Jat Sikh chief Ala Singh, who founded the royal dynasty of the state of Patiala in 1763 and after whom the city is named.
In popular culture, the city remains famous for its traditional Patiala shahi turban (a type of headdress), paranda (a tag with tassels for braiding hair), Patiala salwar (a type of women's trousers), jutti (a type of footwear) and Patiala pin (a measure of drink). Patiala is also known as the royal city and the beautiful city.
The state of Patiala was founded in 1763 by Ala Singh, a Jat Sikh chieftain, who laid the foundation of the Patiala fort known as Qila Mubarak, around which the present city of Patiala is built. After the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761, in which the Marathas were defeated by the Afghans, Afghan command prevailed throughout Punjab. It is at this stage that the rulers of Patiala began acquiring royal flags. The state of Patiala experienced an incessant power struggle for more than forty years with the Afghan Durrani Empire, the Maratha Empire and the Lahore Sikh Empire.
In 1808, the Raja of Patiala concluded a treaty with the British against the Sikh ruler Maharaja Ranjit Singh of Lahore in 1808, thus becoming a collaborator in the great process of empire building by the British in the Indian subcontinent. Patiala became a 17-gun salute state during the British Raj. The rulers of Patiala such as Karam Singh, Narinder Singh, Mahendra Singh, Rajinder Singh, Bhupinder Singh and Yadvindra Singh were treated with respect and dignity by the British.
The city of Patiala was designed and developed according to a plan similar to that of the temple architecture. The first settlers of Patiala were the Sirhind Hindus, who opened their trading establishments outside the Darshani Gate.
