Jhansi was an independent princely state ruled by the Maratha Newalkar dynasty under suzerainty of British India from 1804 till 1853, when the British authorities took over the state under the terms of the Doctrine of Lapse, and renamed it the Jhansi State. Before the takeover, it was under the Peshwas from 1728 to 1804. The fortified town of Jhansi served as its capital.

Newalkar dynasty were Marathi Karhade Brahmins, who were the Maharajas of Jhansi from 1769 to 1858. Their family deity was goddess Mahalakshmi. The Newalkars were sardars under Peshwa Madhavrao I, and later became Maharajas of Jhansi in Central India as an independent member of the Maratha Empire until 1818. Later, their kingdom became a princely state under the protectorate of British India.