Karan Singh II

Karan Singh II (7 January 1584 – March 1628) was the Maharana of Mewar Kingdom (r. 1620 – 1628). He was one of the sons of Maharana Amar Singh I and the grandson of Maharana Pratap. He, in turn, was succeeded by his son Jagat Singh I.. He succeeded his father on 26 Jan 1620 at the age of 36.
He engaged with Mughals on many occasions during the life of his father before settlement with Mughals. Later he visited Mughal court many times and learned various aspects of administration. He made several reforms after coming to the throne. Also, palaces were enlarged and defenses strengthened. He presided in relatively peaceful times and Mewar prospered under his rule. He also renovated Ranakpur temple in 1621.
An important event in the Maharana's reign was to extend refuge to Prince Khurram (Shah Jahan) in 1623. In 1622 Prince Khurram raised an army with the support of Mahabat Khan and marched against his father and Nur Jahan. He was defeated at Bilochpur in March 1623. Later he took refuge in Udaipur Mewar with Maharaja Karan Singh II. He was first lodged in Delwada Ki Haveli and subsequently shifted to Jagmandir Palace on his request. Prince Khurram exchanged his turban with the Maharana and that turban is still preserved in (Pratap Museum), Udaipur. (R V Somani 1976).
It is believed that mosaic work of Jagmandir inspired him to use mosaic work in Taj Mahal of Agra. A lot of construction activities are known to have taken place during Rana Karan Singh's reign. He constructed water ditches that ran all along the walls of the Lake Pichola. These ditches received stormwater and overflow from Lake Pichola and conveyed it to Lake Udai Sagar from where the water was used for irrigation. Among the constructions in Udaipur city, he built the Gol Mahal and dome at Jagmandir Island Palace, along with a tank in Krishna Niwas.