The state formed a part of the Delhi Territory in the Ceded and Conquered Provinces.

The state of Pataudi was established in 1804 by the British East India Company, when Faiz Talab Khan, an Afghan Muslim Pashtun of the Barech tribe, who was made the first Nawab, aided them in their battle against the Maratha Empire, during the Second Anglo-Maratha War.

[1] The 8th Nawab, Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, played cricket for both England and India and captained the latter.

His son the last Nawab also captained the Indian cricket team.

[2][3] The former Pataudi Palace was a hotel for some time, but is now owned privately by Saif Ali Khan, the current patriarch of the family.