[4] The state's ruler, the Maharaja of Patiala, was entitled to a 17-gun salute and held precedence over all other princes in the Punjab Province during the British Raj.

[6] The ruling house claims descent from Rao Hem Hel of Jaisalmer, the third son of Jaisal, who settled in 1185 at Bhatinda.

[11] Hem Hel managed to take control of territory located south of Muktsar and expelled the previous Punwar rulers from the tract.

[12] Between 1526 and 1560, the ancestral family of the later Patiala rulers was headed by chaudhary Bariam, a Phulkian Jat.

[13] This grant allowed Bariam to collect revenue from the badlands located to the southwest of Delhi.

[3] In 1696, Guru Gobind Singh is believed to have blessed the family, having issued a hukamnama edict on 2 August 1696 (2 Bhadon 1753 Bk.

[6][14] The Sikh guru also gifted Rama and Tiloka a battle-standard and eleven weapons, which is seen as bestowing a special accord onto the family.

[6] In 1702, Rama and Tiloka underwent the pahul ceremony at Damdama Sahib, with their Khalsa baptism being conducted by Guru Gobind Singh himself.

[13] Ala Singh’s leadership and military prowess enabled him to establish Patiala as a significant princely state in the Punjab region.

[3] Patiala State was founded by Ala Singh as a chiefship slightly later in March 1762 after Ahmad Shah Abdali bestowed Ala Singh with the raja title, gifting him with a robe-of-honour, nagadas (war drums), the right to coin money, and an embrace.

[18] Also in 1763, Ala Singh constructed a mud-fortress around a mound, known as the Qila Mubarak (meaning "blessed fort").

[19][3] For Karam Singh's support during the Anglo-Nepalese War, which took place between 1814 and 1816, the British Empire awarded him territory in the hill states, extending Patiala State's territory to areas in what is now Himachal Pradesh, including Shimla and Chail.

[19] After 1857 and during the rule of Narinder Singh, Patiala State's territory was expanded for the final time.

[19] Narinder Singh's services and the support to the British Empire resulted in Patiala State gaining sovereign rights in the Narunal division of Jhajjar, in modern Haryana, and he purchased the taluka of Khamanu.