The Astronomical Observatories of Jai Singh c4.4

c4.4

Jai Singh mixed in most of the trouble and warfare of the long period of anarchy that coincided with his reign; but he distinguished himself more as a statesman than a soldier and has been termed the Machiavelli of his day. He was the founder of a new capital, named after him Jainagar or Jaipur, which in his time became a centre of learning; he erected caravansarais in many of the provinces; and he built astronomical observatories at five of the principal cities of Hindustan. He conceived and carried out a scheme of scientific research that is still a notable example; and his influence is still a living one. The observatories he erected are, in the words of his historian, "monuments that irradiate a dark period of Indian History."³