Kshatriya

Kshatriya is the second of the four varnas of the traditional Hindu social order, the class of rulers and warriors, ranked after the Brahmins. Vedic and later texts assign to Kshatriyas the duties of protecting the people, governing and waging war. Many ruling families in Indian history, including dynasties of other origins, claimed Kshatriya status to legitimise their rule, and Rajput clans traced their descent from the solar and lunar lineages.