The city of Jhalawar was founded by Jhala Zalim Singh (First), who was the then Dewan of Kota state (1791 A.D.). He established this township, then known as Chaoni Umedpura, as a cantonment. The township was surrounded with dense green forests and wild animals.
Jhala Zalim Singh often came here for hunting and he liked the place so much that he wanted to develop it as a township. The objective to develop this place as a military cantonment was due to the fact that Maratha invaders passed through this central place from Malwa towards Kota to capture Hadoti states.