The marital empires of maharajas: 10, 20... and even 140 wives

The marital empires of maharajas: 10, 20... and even 140 wives

The practice of polygamy was prevalent among the Indian aristocracy. Maharajas often had more than one wife, a norm born out of political necessity and desire for male heirs. For instance, Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala had 10 wives and 350 concubines. Bappa Rawal, the 8th-century king of Marwar, married 140 women. Raja Udai Singh of Marwar had 27 wives.