1.
Nawab
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Nawab or nawaab is an honorific title ratified and bestowed by the reigning Mughal emperor to semi-autonomous Muslim rulers of princely states in South Asia. Nawab usually refers to males, the equivalent is begum or nawab begum. The primary duty of a nawab was to uphold the sovereignty of the Mughal emperor along with the administration of a certain province, in some cases, these titles were also accompanied by jagir grants, either in cash revenues and allowances or land-holdings. During the British Raj, some of the chiefs or Sardars of large or important tribes were given the title. The term nawab was originally used for the subahdar or viceroy of a subah or region of the Mughal empire. It is a Hindustani term, used in Urdu, Hindi, Bengali and many other North-Indian languages, borrowed via Persian from the Arabic, being the plural of naib. In some areas, especially Bengal, the term is pronounced nobab and this later variation has also entered English and other foreign languages. The term nawbab is often used to refer to any Muslim ruler in north or south India while the term nizam is preferred for a senior official—it literally means governor of region. The Nizam of Hyderabad had several nawabs under him, Nawabs of Cuddapah, Sira, Rajahmundry, Kurnool, Chicacole, Nizam was his personal title, awarded by the Mughal Government and based on the term Nazim as meaning senior officer. Nazim is still used for a collector in many parts of India. The term nawab is still technically imprecise, as the title was awarded to Hindus and Sikhs, as well. With the decline of empire, the title, and the powers that went with it. Other former rulers bearing the title, such as the nawabs of Bengal, some princes became Nawab by promotion, e. g. the ruler of Palanpur was diwan until 1910, then nawab sahib. Other nawabs were promoted are restyled to another style, or to and back. The style for a queen is begum. Most of the dynasties were male primogenitures, although several ruling Begums of Bhopal were a notable exception. Before the incorporation of the Subcontinent into the British Empire, nawabs ruled the kingdoms of Awadh, Bengal, Arcot and Bhopal. The title nawab was also awarded as a distinction by the paramount power, similarly to a British peerage, to persons
2.
Vizier
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A vizier is a high-ranking political advisor or minister. In modern usage, the term has been used for ministers in the Arab world, Iran, Turkey, East Africa Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It is also used in the only absolute Asian monarchy. It is given to the current King Hassanal Bolkiahs second brother, in Brunei, an ordinary vizier is known as Pengiran Temenggong. The word entered into English in 1562 from the Turkish vezir, Wazir itself has two possible etymologies, The most accepted etymology is that it is derived from the Arabic wazara, from the Semitic root W-Z-R. The word is mentioned in the Quran, where Aaron is described as the wazir of Moses, on the other hand, the presence of a Middle Persian word vizīr or vicīr, cognate to the Avestan vīcira, meaning decreer or arbitrator, could possibly indicate an Indo-European origin. In modern Turkey, there is no usage of vezir for any ministry as suggested in the description above, the Muslim office of vizier, which spread from the Persians, Turks, Arabs and Mongols and neighboring peoples, arose under the first Abbasid caliphs. The vizier stood between sovereign and subjects, representing the former in all matters touching the latter, if one such vizier is the prime minister, he may hold the title of Grand Vizier or another title. In Al-Andalus appointed by the Caliph of Cordoba, similarly in many of the emirates and sultanates of the taifas which the caliphate was broken up into. In Muslim Egypt, the most populous Arab country, Under the Fatimid Caliphs. Again since the end of Ottoman rule, remarkably since 1857 (i. e. before the last Wali, Ismail Pasha, was raised Khedive. During the days of the Ottoman Empire, the Grand Vizier was the—often de facto minister, second only to the Sultan and was the leader of the Divan. Vizier was also the title of some Ottoman provincial governors, use of the title indicating a greater degree of autonomy for the province involved. In the Sherifian kingdom of Morocco, a Sadr al-Azam was in office until 22 November 1955, Grand Vizier, Chief Minister or Prime Minister. Wazir al-Amala, Minister for the Interior, Wazir al-Bahr, Minister of the Sea, i. e. for the Navy/ Marine. Wazir al-Harb, Minister for the Army or Minister for War, Wazir al-Qalam, Minister of the Pen. In Oman the Hami/Sultans Chief minister was styled Wazir till 1966, Viziers to the Sultans of Zanzibar, since 1890 filled by British, also known as First ministers, the British Resident s, an extremely direct form of indirect rule. Grand Viziers to the Sultan of Sokoto – this is however disputed, the title Waziri is apparently a derivative of this word, and is a highly regarded chieftaincy title in most of northern Nigeria
3.
Oudh
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The Oudh State or Kingdom of Oudh was a princely state in the Awadh region during the British Raj until 1856. Oudh, the now obsolete but once official English-language name of the state, also written in British historical texts as Oude, the capital of Oudh State was in Faizabad, but the British Agents, officially known as residents, had their seat in Lucknow. The Nawab of Oudh, one of the richest princes, paid for, Oudh joined other Indian states in an upheaval against British rule in 1858 during one of the last series of actions in the Indian rebellion of 1857. In the course of this uprising a few detachments of the British Indian Army from the Bombay Presidency overcame the disunited collection of Indian states in a rapid campaign. Even so, determined rebels continued to wage sporadic guerrilla clashes until the spring of 1859 and this ill-fated rebellion is also historically known as the Oudh campaign. After the British annexation of Oudh, the North Western Provinces became the North Western Provinces, in 1732, under Mughal sovereignty, a senior official of the Mughal Empire established a hereditary polity in Oudh. As the power of the Mughals waned, with the rise of the Maratha Empire, since the state was located in a prosperous region, the British East India Company soon took notice of the affluence in which the Nawabs of Oudh lived. The result would be direct British interference in the state matters of Oudh. Three years later, in 1819, the ruler of Oudh took the style of Padshah, after Oudhs territory was merged with the North Western Provinces, it formed the larger province of North Western Provinces and Oudh. Between 5 July 1857 and 3 March 1858 there was an upheaval by the son of the deposed king joining the Indian Rebellion of 1857. But the dynasty also belonged from the line to the Kara Koyunlu through Qara Yusuf. They were renowned for their secularism and broad outlook, all rulers used the title of Nawab. Scott 1799 –1804 John Ulrich Collins 1804 –1807 John Baillie 1807 –1815 Richard Charles Strachey 1815 –1817 J. R
4.
Safdar Jang
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For the districts in Delhi, see Safdarjung. Abul Mansur Mirza Muhammad Muqim Ali Khan better known as Safdar Jung, was the Subadar Nawab of Oudh from 19 March 1739 to 5 October 1754 and he was a descendant of Qara Yusuf from the Kara Koyunlu. In 1739 he succeeded his father-in-law and maternal uncle, the Burhan ul Mulk Saadat Ali Khan I to the throne of Oudh, the Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah gave him the title of Safdarjung. He was not only effective in keeping control of Oudh, and he was soon given governorship of Kashmir as well, and became a central figure at the Delhi court. During the later years of Muhammad Shah, he gained control of administration in the Mughal Empire. When Ahmad Shah Bahadur ascended the throne at Delhi in 1748 and he was also made the governor of Ajmer and became the Faujdar of Narnaul. However, court politics eventually overtook him and he was dismissed in 1753 and he returned to Oudh in December 1753, and made Faizabad military headquarter. He died in October 1755 at the age of 46 years in Sultanpur near Faizabad, safdarjungs Tomb was built in 1754 and is situated on a road now known as Safdarjung Road, in New Delhi. Several other modern structures near the tomb also carry his name today, abul-Hasan ibn Mirza Ghiyas Beg Media related to Safdarjung at Wikimedia Commons The complete genealogy of Safdarjung can be found here. Indiacoins has an article on Safdarjung here
5.
Asaf-ud-Daula
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Asaf-ud-Daula was the nawab wazir of Oudh ratified by Shah Alam II, from 26 January 1775 to 21 September 1797, and the son of Shuja-ud-Dowlah. His mother and grandmother were the begums of Oudh, asaf-ud-Daula became nawab at the age of 26, on the death of his father, Shujauddaula, on 28 January 1775. When Shuja-ud-Daulah died he left two million pounds sterling buried in the vaults of the zenana, the widow and mother of the deceased prince claimed the whole of this treasure under the terms of a will which was never produced. In 1775 he moved the capital of Awadh from Faizabad to Lucknow and built monuments in and around Lucknow. Nawab Asaf-ud-Dowlah is considered the general of Lucknow. With the ambition to outshine the splendour of Mughal architecture, he built a number of monuments, the Asafi Imambara is a famed vaulted structure surrounded by beautiful gardens, which the Nawab started as a charitable project to generate employment during the famine of 1784. In that famine even the nobles were reduced to penury and it is said that Nawab Asaf employed over 20,000 people for the project, which was neither a masjid nor a mausoleum. The Nawabs sensitivity towards preserving the reputation of the class is demonstrated in the story of the construction of Imambara. During daytime, common citizens employed on the project would construct the building, on the night of every fourth day, the noble and upper-class people were employed in secret to demolish the structure built, an effort for which they received payment. The Nawab became so famous for his generosity that it is still a well-known saying in Lucknow that he who does not receive from the Lord, will receive it from Asaf-ud-Dowlah. The Rumi Darwaza, which stands sixty feet tall, was modeled after the Sublime Porte in Istanbul, is one of the important examples of the exchange between the two cultures. He died on 21 September 1797 in Lucknow and is buried at Bara Imambara, claude Martin Mir Taqi Mir Antoine Polier NIC Website Refer to mapsofindia
6.
Delhi
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Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory of Delhi or NCT, is a city and a union territory of India. It is bordered by Haryana on three sides and by Uttar Pradesh to the east, the NCT covers an area of 1,484 square kilometres. According to 2011 census, Delhis city population was about 11 million, Delhis urban area is now considered to extend beyond the NCT boundary to include an estimated population of over 26 million people making it the worlds second largest urban area. As of 2016 recent estimates of the economy of its urban area have ranked Delhi either the top or second most productive metro area of India. Delhi is the second wealthiest city after Mumbai in India, with a wealth of $450 billion. Delhi has been inhabited since the 6th century BC. Through most of its history, Delhi has served as a capital of various kingdoms and it has been captured, ransacked and rebuilt several times, particularly during the medieval period, and modern Delhi is a cluster of a number of cities spread across the metropolitan region. New Delhi is jointly administered by the government of India and the local government of Delhi. Delhi is also the centre of the National Capital Region, which is a unique interstate regional planning area created by the National Capital Region Planning Board Act of 1985, Delhi ranks among the cities with the worst air pollution in the world. There are a number of myths and legends associated with the origin of the name Delhi, one of them is derived from Dhillu or Dilu, a king who built a city at this location in 50 BC and named it after himself. The coins in circulation in the region under the Tomaras were called dehliwal, according to the Bhavishya Purana, King Prithiviraja of Indraprastha built a new fort in the modern-day Purana Qila area for the convenience of all four castes in his kingdom. He ordered the construction of a gateway to the fort and later named the fort dehali, another theory suggests that the citys original name was Dhillika. The people of Delhi are referred to as Delhiites or Dilliwalas, the city is referenced in various idioms of the Northern Indo-Aryan languages. Dilli dilwalon ka shehr or Dilli Dilwalon ki meaning Delhi belongs to the large-hearted/daring, aas-paas barse, Dilli pani tarse, literally meaning it pours all around, while Delhi lies parched. An allusion to the sometimes semi-arid climate of Delhi, it refers to situations of deprivation when one is surrounded by plenty. The area around Delhi was probably inhabited before the second millennium BC, the city is believed to be the site of Indraprastha, the legendary capital of the Pandavas in the Indian epic Mahabharata. According to Mahabharata, this land was initially a huge mass of forests called Khandavaprastha which was burnt down to build the city of Indraprastha, the earliest architectural relics date back to the Maurya period, in 1966, an inscription of the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka was discovered near Srinivaspuri. Remains of eight cities have been discovered in Delhi
7.
Faizabad
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Faizabad, the old capital of Awadh, is the headquarters of Faizabad District and Faizabad division as well. It is a corporation with Ayodhya in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It was the first capital of the Nawabs of Awadh and has built by the Nawabs, like the Tomb of Bahu Begum. The Legend of Awadh, Umrao Jaan Ada, was born in Faizabad, another legend and Hindi writer Radhika Prasad Tripathi was from this city. Akhtaribai Faizabadi, also known as Begum Akhtar, was born in Faizabad and she was a classical singer who performed Urdu ghazals, dadras, thumris, etc. Among other notable people from Faizabad are Mir Babar Ali Anis, Chakbast is credited to have translated the Ramayana into Urdu for the first time. However, more accurately, the reference is found in Medieval and Modern history, Nawab Saadat Khan made the first settlements along the banks of Ghaghra with a cantonment consisting of a fortress and mud barracks. Due to these temporary dwellings, Faizabad was first known as Bangla, due to his management policy states income rose from Rs.7 to 20 million. Faizabad was developed later on by Saadat Ali Khans second successor, Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula into a capital city, with gardens, palaces, markets, roads. Shuja-ud-Daula also built a fortress on the banks of Saryu after he lost the battle of Buxar in 1764, however, this fort now is nothing more than a hummock, just an edict remains which is pictured here. Faizabad was also a centre of one of battles of the Mutiny of 1857. A detailed history of Faizabad can be read in Tareekh-e-Farahbaksh, written by Munshi Mohd, faiz Baksh, a courtier in the Shuja-ud-Daulas court. This book has been translated into English by Hamid Afaq Qureshi as Memoirs of Faizabad, Faizabad also finds a prominent and detailed mention in Guzishta Lakhnau written by Maulvi Abdul Halim Sharar. The third nawab of Awadh, Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula, shifted the Capital of Avadh to Lucknow in 1775 after his terms with his mother became sour, Saadat Khan, the first Nawab of Awadh, laid the foundation of Faizabad at the outskirt of ancient city of Ayodhya. Suja-ud-daula, the third Nawab of Awadh, settled at Faizabad after 1764 and built a fort known as Chhota Calcutta, now in ruins. In 1765 he built the Chowk and Tirpaulia and subsequently laid out the Anguribagh and Motibagh to the south of it, during the reign of Shuja-Ud-Daula, Faizabad attained such a prosperity which it never saw again. The Nawabs graced Faziabad with several buildings, notable among them being the Gulab Bari, Moti Mahal. Gulab Bari is a building of fine properties, standing in a garden surrounded by a wall
8.
Gulab Bari
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Gulab Bari the Tomb of Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula is in Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. This place has a collection of roses of various varieties set by the sides of water fountains. Gulab Bari is the maqbara of Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula, the third Nawab of Oudh in the campus, further under Sub-section 20 and 20 of Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Monuments and Remains Act,2010. Gulab Bari is surrounded by a wall, built of Lakhauri bricks lime plastered and decorated with plaster mouldings. The enclosure contains the tomb of Shuja-ud-daula along with mosque Imambara, Shahi Hammam, Baradari, the tomb of Shuja-ud-daula was constructed by himself during his lifetime which is approached through an imposing gateway. The central chamber contains the cenotaph which houses the graves of Nawab Shuja-ud-daula, the tomb proper stands in the centre of a Charbagh Garden accompanied by fountains and shallow water channels. The square double-storeyed structure of the mausoleum has a verandah on each side. The dome of the chamber is crowned by inverted louts. Gulab Bari is not only a spot that needs to be visited, it is a place of worship, the locals treat it as a holy place. It is said that the monument is connected to a boali in Lucknow, the fragrance of roses in the Gulab Udyaan brought relief to the busy mind of the nawab and allowed him to work and take decisions. It might have served as soldiers cabin and a house for the servants, today Gulab Bari is though in a poor condition, it still is very important for the locals. It remained very important, remains important and will remain important only if its tourism is boosted, the Nawabs graced Faizabad with several beautiful buildings, notable among them are the Gulab Bari, Moti Mahal and the tomb of Bahu Begum. Gulab Bari is a building of fine architecture, standing in a garden surrounded by a wall. Shuja-ud-Daulas wife was the well known Bahu Begum, who married the Nawab in 1743 and continued to reside in Faizabad, close by at Jawaharbagh lies her Maqbara, where she was buried after her death in 1816. It is considered to be one of the finest buildings of its kind in Avadh, a fine view of the city is obtainable from top of the begums tomb. Bahu Begum was a woman of great distinction and rank, bearing dignity, most of the Muslim buildings of Faizabad are attributed to her. From the date of Bahu Begums death in 1815 till the annexation of Avadh, the glory of Faizabad finally eclipsed with the shifting of capital from Faizabad to Lucknow by Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula. Shuja-ud-daula, the Nawab of Awadh, made Faizabad the capital of Awadh, during his reign Faizabad attained prosperity, which it never saw again
9.
Islam
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Islam is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion which professes that there is only one and incomparable God and that Muhammad is the last messenger of God. It is the worlds second-largest religion and the major religion in the world, with over 1.7 billion followers or 23% of the global population. Islam teaches that God is merciful, all-powerful, and unique, and He has guided mankind through revealed scriptures, natural signs, and a line of prophets sealed by Muhammad. The primary scriptures of Islam are the Quran, viewed by Muslims as the word of God. Muslims believe that Islam is the original, complete and universal version of a faith that was revealed many times before through prophets including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses. As for the Quran, Muslims consider it to be the unaltered, certain religious rites and customs are observed by the Muslims in their family and social life, while social responsibilities to parents, relatives, and neighbors have also been defined. Besides, the Quran and the sunnah of Muhammad prescribe a comprehensive body of moral guidelines for Muslims to be followed in their personal, social, political, Islam began in the early 7th century. Originating in Mecca, it spread in the Arabian Peninsula. The expansion of the Muslim world involved various caliphates and empires, traders, most Muslims are of one of two denominations, Sunni or Shia. Islam is the dominant religion in the Middle East, North Africa, sizable Muslim communities are also found in Horn of Africa, Europe, China, Russia, Mainland Southeast Asia, Philippines, Northern Borneo, Caucasus and the Americas. Converts and immigrant communities are found in almost every part of the world, Islam is a verbal noun originating from the triliteral root s-l-m which forms a large class of words mostly relating to concepts of wholeness, submission, safeness and peace. In a religious context it means voluntary submission to God, Islām is the verbal noun of Form IV of the root, and means submission or surrender. Muslim, the word for an adherent of Islam, is the active participle of the verb form. The word sometimes has connotations in its various occurrences in the Quran. In some verses, there is stress on the quality of Islam as a state, Whomsoever God desires to guide. Other verses connect Islām and dīn, Today, I have perfected your religion for you, I have completed My blessing upon you, still others describe Islam as an action of returning to God—more than just a verbal affirmation of faith. In the Hadith of Gabriel, islām is presented as one part of a triad that also includes imān, Islam was historically called Muhammadanism in Anglophone societies. This term has fallen out of use and is said to be offensive because it suggests that a human being rather than God is central to Muslims religion
10.
Mughal Empire
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The dynasty, though ethnically Turco-Mongol, was Persianate in terms of culture. The Mughal empire extended over parts of the Indian subcontinent. The beginning of the empire is conventionally dated to the victory by its founder Babur over Ibrahim Lodi, the Mughal emperors were Central Asian Turco-Mongols belonging to the Timurid dynasty, who claimed direct descent from both Genghis Khan and Timur. During the reign of Humayun, the successor of Babur, the empire was briefly interrupted by the Sur Empire, the classic period of the Mughal Empire started in 1556 with the ascension of Akbar the Great to the throne. Under the rule of Akbar and his son Jahangir, the region enjoyed economic progress as well as harmony. Akbar was a warrior who also forged alliances with several Hindu Rajput kingdoms. Some Rajput kingdoms continued to pose a significant threat to the Mughal dominance of northwestern India, the reign of Shah Jahan, the fifth emperor, between 1628 and 1658 was the golden age of Mughal architecture. He erected several monuments, the best known of which is the Taj Mahal at Agra, as well as the Moti Masjid, Agra, the Red Fort, the Jama Masjid, Delhi. By the mid-18th century, the Marathas had routed Mughal armies, during the following century Mughal power had become severely limited, and the last emperor, Bahadur Shah II, had authority over only the city of Shahjahanabad. He issued a firman supporting the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and following the defeat was therefore tried by the British East India Company for treason, imprisoned and exiled to Rangoon. Contemporaries referred to the empire founded by Babur as the Timurid empire, which reflected the heritage of his dynasty, another name was Hindustan, which was documented in the Ain-i-Akbari, and which has been described as the closest to an official name for the empire. In the west, the term Mughal was used for the emperor, and by extension, the use of Mughal derived from the Arabic and Persian corruption of Mongol, and it emphasised the Mongol origins of the Timurid dynasty. The term gained currency during the 19th century, but remains disputed by Indologists, similar terms had been used to refer to the empire, including Mogul and Moghul. Nevertheless, Baburs ancestors were sharply distinguished from the classical Mongols insofar as they were oriented towards Persian rather than Turco-Mongol culture, ousted from his ancestral domains in Central Asia, Babur turned to India to satisfy his ambitions. He established himself in Kabul and then pushed steadily southward into India from Afghanistan through the Khyber Pass, Baburs forces occupied much of northern India after his victory at Panipat in 1526. The preoccupation with wars and military campaigns, however, did not allow the new emperor to consolidate the gains he had made in India, the instability of the empire became evident under his son, Humayun, who was driven out of India and into Persia by rebels. Humayuns exile in Persia established diplomatic ties between the Safavid and Mughal Courts, and led to increasing Persian cultural influence in the Mughal Empire, the restoration of Mughal rule began after Humayuns triumphant return from Persia in 1555, but he died from a fatal accident shortly afterwards. Humayuns son, Akbar, succeeded to the throne under a regent, Bairam Khan, through warfare and diplomacy, Akbar was able to extend the empire in all directions and controlled almost the entire Indian subcontinent north of the Godavari River
11.
Nawab of Awadh
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The Nawab of Awadh or the Nawab of Oudh was the title of the rulers who governed the state of Oudh or Awadh in India during the 18th and 19th centuries. The Nawabs of Awadh belonged to a dynasty of Qaraqoyunlu origin from Nishapur, in 1724, Nawab Saadat Khan established the Oudh State. As the Mughal Empire declined, the emperors lost their power and became puppets and prisoners of their new overlords, Awadh thus grew stronger and more independent. The capital city at the time was Faizabad, all of these rulers used the title of Nawab. LVI Advanced study in the history of modern India, Volume 2, by G. S. Chhabra, Lotus Press,1 January 2005
12.
Subedar
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Subedar is a historical rank in the Nepal Army, Indian Army and Pakistan Army, ranking below British commissioned officers and above non-commissioned officers. The rank was equivalent to a British captain. In Nepalese Army, Subedar = Warrant officer, in British India, subedar or subadar was the second highest rank of enlisted Indian soldiers. It was derived from subahdar, the governor of a province in the Mughal Empire, a subedar is senior to a naib subedar and junior to a subedar major. It was introduced in the East India Companys presidency armies to make it easier for British officers to communicate with native troops and it was thus essential for subedars to be fluent in English. Until 1866, the rank was the highest a non-European Indian could achieve in the army of British India, a subedars authority was confined to other Indian troops, and he could not command British troops. Before the 1947 Partition of India and the independence of India and Pakistan, after 1947 this term was changed to junior commissioned officers. After independence, which came in 1947 with the Partition of India, in the Pakistan Army, the rank has been retained, but the ribbon is now red-green-red. Until 1858, subedars wore two epaulettes with small bullion fringes on each shoulder. After 1858, they wore two crossed swords, or, in the Gurkha regiments, two crossed golden kukris, on each side of the collar of the tunic or on the right breast of the kurta. After 1900, subedars wore two pips on each shoulder, a red-yellow-red ribbon was introduced under each pip after World War I. After World War II, this ribbon was moved to lie between the title and the rank insignia. In the Princely State of Hyderabad under the Nizam, the top rank of administrators, www. Bharat-Rakshak. com/Army/Ranks. html - Illustration of various military insignias including three subedar insignia designs
13.
Grand vizier
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In the Ottoman Empire, the Grand Vizier was the prime minister of the Ottoman sultan, with absolute power of attorney and, in principle, dismissible only by the sultan himself. His offices were located at the Sublime Porte, the term “vizier” was originally a denomination used by the Abbasid Dynasty in the 8th century AD. This position then came to the Ottomans in the early 14th century by way of the Seljuks of Anatolia, during the nascent phases of the Ottoman state, vizier was the only title used. The first of these Ottoman viziers who was titled Grand Vizier was Çandarlı Halil Pasha the Elder, the purpose in instituting the title Grand Vizier was to distinguish the holder of the Sultans seal from other viziers. The initially more frequently used title of vezir-i âzam was gradually replaced by sadrazam, throughout Ottoman history, the grand viziers have also been termed sadr-ı âlî, vekil-i mutlak, sâhib-i devlet, serdar-ı ekrem, serdar-ı azam and zât-ı âsafî. Çandarlı Halil Pasha the Elder reformed the role of the vizier in several ways, several before him held an equivalent but differently named office, he was the first who held the position of “Grand Vizier”, during the reign of Sultan Murad I. He was the first advisor with a military background – his forerunners had come from a more class of men. It is also significant that he was the first of a family that, at the time. Several of Çandarlı Halil Pasha the Elder’s kin went on to hold the office of Grand Vizier in the following his death. Çandarlı Halil Pasha the Younger, the grandson of Pasha the Elder, was highly influential in shaping the role of the Grand Vizier. During the reign of Mehmed II, the Younger opposed the siege of Constantinople, two days after the siege was won by Mehmed II, the Younger was executed for his opposition. After his death, the position of Grand Vizier was chosen nearly exclusively from the kul system, often and this was usually a political move, designed to appease powerful European factions to Ottoman supremacy. Grand Viziers gained immense political supremacy in the days of the Ottoman Empire. Power was centralized in the position of the Grand Vizier during the Köprülü era, Köprülü Mehmed Pasha was a powerful political figure during the reign of Mehmed IV, and was appointed to the office of Grand Vizier in 1656. He consolidated power within the position and sent the Sultan away from the city on hunting trips, next, he forcibly removed any officers suspected of corruption, those who did not leave were executed. He also conducted campaigns against Venice and the Hapsburgs, as well as quelling rebellions in Anatolia, on his deathbed five years later, he convinced Mehmed to appoint his son as the next Grand Vizier, thus securing his dynasty a position of supreme power in the Empire. It was during the Köprülü era that the Ottoman Empire reached its largest geographic expansion across Europe, Asia Minor, in Ottoman legal theory, the Sultan was supposed to conduct affairs of state exclusively via the Grand Vizier, but in reality this arrangement was often circumvented. He might, too, be inclined to take the advice of his mother
14.
Third Battle of Panipat
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The specific site of the battle itself is disputed by historians, but most consider it to have occurred somewhere near modern-day Kaalaa Aamb and Sanauli Road. The battle lasted for days and involved over 125,000 troops. Protracted skirmishes occurred, with losses and gains on both sides, the forces led by Ahmad Shah Durrani came out victorious after destroying several Maratha flanks. According to the single best eyewitness chronicle--the bakhar by Shuja-ud-Daulahs Diwan Kashi Raj--about 40,000 Maratha prisoners were slaughtered in cold blood the day after the battle, grant Duff includes an interview of a survivor of these massacres in his History of the Marathas and generally corroborates this number. Shejwalkar, whose monograph Panipat 1761 is often regarded as the single best secondary source on the battle, says that not less than 100,000 Marathas perished during and after the battle. The result of the battle was the halting of further Maratha advances in the north, and this period is marked by the rule of Peshwa Madhavrao, who is credited with the revival of Maratha domination following the defeat at Panipat. The success of this campaign can be seen as the last saga of the story of Panipat. The decline of the Mughal Empire following the 27-year Mughal-Maratha war led to territorial gains for the Maratha Empire. Under Peshwa Baji Rao, Gujarat, Malwa and Rajputana came under Maratha control, finally, in 1737, Baji Rao defeated the Mughals on the outskirts of Delhi and brought much of the former Mughal territories south of Delhi under Maratha control. Baji Raos son Balaji Baji Rao further increased the territory under Maratha control by invading Punjab in 1758 and this brought the Marathas into direct confrontation with the Durrani empire of Ahmad Shah Abdali. In 1759 he raised an army from the Pashtun and Baloch tribes and he then joined with his Indian allies—the Rohilla Afghans of the Gangetic Doab—forming a broad coalition against the Marathas. The Marathas started their journey from Patdur on 14 March 1760. Both sides tried to get the Nawab of Awadh, Shuja-ud-Daulah, by late July Shuja-ud-Daulah made the decision to join the Afghan-Rohilla coalition, preferring to join what was perceived as the army of Islam. This was strategically a major loss for the Marathas, since Shuja provided much-needed finances for the long Afghan stay in North India and it is doubtful whether the Afghan-Rohilla coalition would have the means to continue their conflict with the Marathas without Shujas support. The Marathas had gained control of a part of India in the intervening period. In 1758 they occupied Delhi, captured Lahore and drove out Timur Shah Durrani and this territory was ruled through the Peshwa, who talked of placing his son Vishwasrao on the Mughal throne. However, Delhi still remained under the control of Mughals, key Muslim intellectuals including Shah Waliullah. In desperation they appealed to Ahmad Shah Abdali, the ruler of Afghanistan, in the final phase the Marathas, under Scindia, attacked Najib
15.
Battle of Buxar
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British army was engaged in the fighting numbered 7,071 comprising 857 British,5,297 Indian sepoys and 918 Indian cavalry. The alliance armys numbers were estimated to be over 40,000, according to other sources, the combined army of the Mughals, Awadh and Mir Qasim consisting of 40,000 men was defeated by a British army comprising 10,000 men. The lack of basic co-ordination among the three desperate allies was responsible for their decisive defeat, according to the British, Durrani and Rohilla cavalry were also present and fought during the battle in various skirmishes. But by midday the battle was over and Shuja-ud-Daula blew up large tumbrils, Mir Qasim also fled with his 3 million rupees worth of Gemstones and later even committed suicide. Mirza Najaf Khan reorganised formations around Shah Alam II, who retreated and he also claimed that the three Indian allies suffered 2,000 dead and that many more were wounded. Another source says there were 69 European and 664 sepoy casualties on the British side and 6,000 casualties on the Mughal side. The victors captured 133 pieces of artillery and over 1 million rupees of cash, the British victory at Buxar had at one fell swoop, disposed of the three main scions of Moghul power in Upper India. Mir Kasim disappeared into an impoverished obscurity, Shah Alam realigned himself with the British, and Shah Shuja fled west hotly pursued by the victors. The whole Ganges valley lay at the Companys mercy, Shah Shuja eventually surrendered, Battle of Plassey A detailed description of the Battle of Buxar
16.
Maratha Empire
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The Maratha Empire or the Maratha Confederacy was an Indian power that existed from 1674 to 1818 and ruled over much of the Indian sub-continent. The Marathas are credited to an extent for ending the Mughal rule in India. The Marathas are Hindu warrior group from the western Deccan Plateau that rose to prominence by establishing a Hindavi Swarajya, known for their mobility, the Marathas were able to consolidate their territory during the Mughal–Maratha Wars and later controlled a large part of India. Chhattrapati Shahu, grandson of Shivaji, was released by Mughals after the death of Emperor Aurangzeb, following a brief struggle with his aunt Tarabai, Shahu became ruler and appointed Balaji Vishwanath and later, his descendants, as the peshwas or prime ministers of the empire. Balaji and his descendants played a key role in expansion of Maratha rule, the empire at its peak stretched from Tamil Nadu in the south to Peshawar in the north, and Bengal and Andaman Islands in the east. In 1761, the Maratha Army lost the Third Battle of Panipat to Ahmad Shah Abdali of the Afghan Durrani Empire which halted their imperial expansion into Afghanistan, ten years after Panipat, the young Peshwa Madhavrao Is Maratha Resurrection reinstated Maratha authority over North India. In a bid to manage the large empire, Madhavrao I gave semi-autonomy to the strongest of the knights. They became known as the Gaekwads of Baroda, the Holkars of Indore and Malwa, the Scindias of Gwalior and Ujjain, the Bhonsales of the Nagpur and the Puars of Dhar and Dewas. In 1775, the East India Company intervened in a Peshwa family succession struggle in Pune, the Marathas remained the preeminent power in India until their defeat in the Second and Third Anglo-Maratha Wars which left the East India Company in control of most of India. A large portion of the Maratha empire was coastline, which had secured by the potent Maratha Navy under commanders such as Kanhoji Angre. He was very successful at keeping foreign naval ships, particularly of the Portuguese and British, securing the coastal areas and building land-based fortifications were crucial aspects of the Marathas defensive strategy and regional military history. The Maratha Empire is also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, the historian Barbara Ramusack says that the former is a designation preferred by Indian nationalists, while the latter was that used by British historians. Maratha power was fragmented among several discrete fragments, although at present, the word Maratha refers to a particular caste of warriors and peasants, in the past the word has been used to describe Marathi people, including Marathas themselves. Shivaji was a Maratha aristocrat of the Bhosle clan who is considered to be the founder of the Maratha empire. Shivaji led a resistance to free the Maratha people from the Sultanate of Bijapur and he created an independent Maratha kingdom with Raigad as its capital and successfully fought against the Mughals to defend his kingdom. He was crowned as Chhatrapati of the new Maratha kingdom in 1674, the state Shivaji founded was a Maratha kingdom comprising about 4. 1% of the subcontinent, but spread over large tracts. At the time of his death is was dotted with about 300 forts, about 40,000 cavalry,50,000 foot soldiers and naval establishments all over the west coast. Over time, the kingdom would increase in size and heterogeneity, Shivaji had two sons, Sambhaji and Rajaram
17.
Shah Alam II
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Ali Gauhar, historically known as Shah Alam II, was the sixteenth Mughal Emperor. He was the son of Alamgir II, Shah Alam II was considered the only and rightful emperor but he wasnt able to return to Delhi until 1772, under the protection of the Maratha general Mahadaji Shinde. He also fought against the British East India Company at the Battle of Buxar, Shah Alam II also authored his own Diwan of poems and was known by the pen-name Aftab. His poems were guided, compiled and collected by Mirza Fakhir Makin, Ali Gauhar was born to Shahzada Aziz-ud-Din, son of the deposed Mughal Emperor Jahandar Shah, on 25 June 1728. Alongside his father, he grew up in semi-captivity in the Salatin quarters of the Red Fort, upon his fathers accession, he became the Wali Ahd of the empire, and became his fathers principal agent, though almost all power lay in the Wazir Imad-ul-Mulks hand. His quarrels with that amir, and fear for his own life, Prince Ali Gauhar, afterwards Emperor Shah Alam II had been the heir apparent of his father Alamgir II. After a daring escape from Delhi, Prince Ali Gauhar appeared in the provinces in 1759, hoping to strengthen his position by gaining control over Bengal, Bihar. Very soon however, Najib-ud-Daula, forced the usurper Feroze Jung III to flee from the capitol after he gathered a large Mughal Army outside Delhi, Najib-ud-Daula and Muslim nobles and then planned to defeat Marathas by maintaining correspondence with the powerful Ahmad Shah Durrani. After Ahmad Shah Durrani decisively defeated the Marathas, he nominated Ali Gauhar as the emperor under the name Shah Alam II, but the conflict soon involved the intervention of the assertive East India Company. Their forces were reinforced by the forces of Shuja-ud-Daula, Najib-ud-Daula, the Mughals were also joined by Jean Law and 200 Frenchmen and waged a campaign against the British during the Seven Years War. Prince Ali Gauhar successfully advanced as far as Patna, which he besieged with a combined army of over 40,000 in order to capture or kill Ramnarian a sworn enemy of the Mughals. Mir Jafar was in terror at the demise of his cohort and sent his own son Miran to relieve Ramnarian. After negotiations assuring peace Shah Alam II was escorted by the British to meet Mir Qasim the new Nawab of Bengal, who was nominated after the sudden death of Miran. Mir Qasim soon had the Mughal Emperors investiture as Subedar of Bengal, Bihar and Odisha, Shah Alam II then retreated to Allahabad was protected by the Shuja-ud-Daula, Nawab of Awadh from 1761 until 1764. Meanwhile, Mir Qasims relations with the British East India company began to worsen, angered by these developments the East India Company sought his ouster. Court intrigues encouraged by the East India company forced Mir Qasim to leave Bengal, Bihar, Mir Qasim on his part encouraged Shuja-ud-Daula the Nawab of Awadh and the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II to engage the British. The battle fought at Buxar, then within the territory of Bengal, soon after the Battle of Buxar, Shah Alam II, a sovereign who had just been defeated by the British, sought their protection by signing the Treaty of Allahabad in the year 1765. Shah Alam II was forced to grant the Diwani of Bengal to the British East India Company in return for a tribute of 2.6 million rupees to be paid by the company from the collected revenue
18.
Mir Qasim
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Mir Qasim was the Nawab of Bengal from 1760 to 1763. However, Mir Jafar was in conflict with the East India company over too many demands, the British eventually overran the Dutch forces at Chinsura and played a major role in replacing Mir Jafar with Mir Qasim. Qasim later fell out with the British and fought them at the Battle of Buxar and his defeat has been suggested as the last real chance of preventing a gradual British expansion in large parts of North East India following Britains victory in the Seven Years War. Upon ascending the throne, Mir Qasim repaid the British with lavish gifts, to please the British, Mir Qasim robbed everybody, confiscated lands, reduced Mir Jafars purse and depleted the treasury. However, he was tired of British interference and endless avarice and like Mir Jafar before him. He shifted his capital from Murshidabad to Munger in present-day Bihar where he raised independent army and he opposed the British East India Companys position that their imperial Mughal licence meant that they could trade without paying taxes. Frustrated at the British refusal to pay taxes, Mir Qasim abolished taxes on the local traders as well. This upset the advantage that the British traders had been enjoying so far, Mir Qasim overran the Company offices in Patna in 1763, killing several Europeans including the Resident. Mir Qasim allied with Shuja-ud-Daula of Avadh and Shah Alam II, the itinerant Mughal emperor, however, their combined forces were defeated in the Battle of Buxar in 1764. Mir Qasim had also attacked Nepal during the reign of Prithvi Narayan Shah and he was badly defeated as the Nepali soldiers had various advantages including terrain, climate and good leadership. The short campaign of Mir Qasim was significant as a fight against British outsiders. Unlike Siraj-ud-Daulah before him, Mir Qasim was an effective and popular ruler, by 1793 British East India company abolished Nizamat and were completely in charge of this former Mughal province. Mir Qasim was defeated by during the Battle of Murshidabad, Battle of Gherain, Mir Qasim died in obscurity and abject poverty possibly from dropsy, at Kotwal, near Delhi on 8 May 1777. His two shawls, the property left by him, had to be sold to pay for his funeral. Mughal Empire Nawabs of Bengal List of rulers of Bengal History of Bengal History of Bangladesh History of India
19.
Ahmad Shah Bahadur
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Ahmad Shah Bahadur, Mirza Ahmad Shah, Mujahid-ud-Din Ahmad Shah Ghazi was born to Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah. He succeeded his father to the throne as the 15th Mughal Emperor in 1748 at the age of 22, when Ahmed Shah Bahadur came to power the rule of the Mughal Empire was collapsing, furthermore his administrative weaknesses eventually led to the rise of the usurping Feroze Jung III. Ahmed Shah Bahadur inherited a much weakened Mughal state and he was emperor in title for six years, but left all affairs to state to rivalling factions. He was deposed by the Vizier Feroze Jung III and later blinded along with his mother and he spent the remaining years of his life in prison and died of natural causes in January 1775. Prince Ahmad was born in 1725 to the Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah, the Deccan Wars of 1680-1707 had initiated the final decline of the Mughal Empire well before his birth. As a young Prince Ahmad developed a weakness for women, though this was restricted under his fathers supervision and he is also known to have been an illiterate and never took part in military training. After the death of the Mughal viceroy of Lahore, Zakariya Khan Bahadur, his two sons, Yahya Khan Bahadur and Mian Shah Nawaz Khan, the Emir of Multan, after defeating his elder brother Mian Shah Nawaz Khan declared himself the Mughal viceroy of Punjab. However, the Muhammad Shah seriously mourned the fall of Qamaruddin Khan, after Ahmad Shah Durranis retreat the Mughal aligned Khanate of Kalat, Nawab Amir of Bhawalpur remained aligned to Alamgir II. Only before the prelude to the Third Battle of Panipat became subjects of the Durrani Empire. However, Qamaruddin Khans son Muin ul-Mulk also a war hero from the Battle of Manipur, was placed as the Mughal viceroy of Punjab. The Battle of Manipur had a impact on the tactical prowess of Ahmad Shah Bahadur. Qamaruddin Khan died during the Sirhind conflict and this news led to Muhammad Shah becoming gravely sick and he died soon afterwards. Prince Ahmad ascended the throne on 18 April 1748 and on 29 April 1748 his coronation was held at Red Fort in Delhi and he assumed the title Abu Nasir Mujahid-ud-Din Ahmad Shah Ghazi. The new emperor now began to enjoy his life with women in his harem, together with the emperors mother, who was given a force of 50,000, Javed Khan became effective regent. Javed Khans rise to power and his authority was seen as an affront to the nobility and the aristocracy of the empire, and in particular to the emperors soldiers. Qudsia Begum made every effort to protect the authority that was granted to Javed Khan. These policies brought Safdarjung in conflict with the members of the Turani Faction. In 1750, Javed Khan arrested the Mughal commander Salabat Khan, while imprisoned, Salabat Khan sold all his property to pay his troops in order to halt a possible revolt and thenceforth lived in poverty like a Dervish
20.
Alivardi Khan
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Ali Vardi Khan was the Nawab of Bengal during 1740–1756. He toppled the Nasiri Dynasty of the Nawabs and took powers of the Nawab and he is also one of the few Mughal-era leaders known for his victory during the Battle of Burdwan against the Maratha Empire. Alivardi Khans father was Shah Quli Khan and his mother was the daughter of Nawab Aqil Khan Afshar, alivardis birth name was Mirza Muhammad Ali. His father was an Arab and an employee of Azam Shah, Azam Shah also employed the sons of Mirza Muhammad. But after the death of Azam Shah, the fell into poverty. His two sons Muhammad Ali and Mirza Ahmed managed to find employment under the Subahdar of Orissa, after Shuja-ud-Din was promoted to the post of the Nawab of Bengal, the two brothers future prospects widened. In 1728, Shuja-ud-Din promoted Muhammad Ali to Faujdar of Rajmahal, in 1733, he was assigned as the Naib Nazim of Bihar. A year later he was titled Shuja ul-Mulk, Hassemm ud-Daula and Mahabat Jang, Alivardi Khan aspired for larger authority. On 10 April 1740 in the Battle of Giria, he defeated and killed Shuja ud-Dins successor, thus he took control of Bengal and Bihar. Then on 3 March 1741 he defeated Rustam Jang, deputy governor of Orissa, Orissa also came under control of Alivardi Khan. Immediately after his usurpation of power, Alivardi Khan had his takeover legitimized by the Mughal Emperor Ahmad Shah Bahadur, although he was the Nawab of Bengal he also used titles such as Nizam, he also chose Faujdars from various regions such as Patna, Dacca and Orissa. Since 1742, the Maratha Empire raided Bengal repeatedly ravaging its territories, in the year 1747, the Marathas led by Raghoji, began to raid, pillage and annex the territories of the Alivardi Khan. The enraged Alivardi Khan then dismissed the shamed Mir Jafar, Alivardi Khans defending armies were overrun in Orissa in the year 1751, despite receiving some assistance from Shuja-ud-Daula. But Orissa was ultimately surrendered to the ravaging Marathas by the Mughal Emperor Ahmad Shah Bahadur and these Maratha raids would continue until 1751, when a peace-treaty was settled between Ahmad Shah Bahadur, Alivardi Khan and Raghoji. Alivardi Khan also subdued the revolt of a few unruly Afghans who were trying to separate Bihar from his administration, according to some historians Alivardi Khan reign of 16 years, was mostly engaged in various wars against the Marathas. Towards the end, he turned his attention to rebuilding and restoring Bengal, the Battle of Burdwan was a major confrontation between the Mughal Empires Nawab of Bengal, Alivardi Khan and his invading Maratha opponents Janoji Bhonsle and Bhaskar Pandit. The battle concluded with a victory for the Nawab of Bengal, in the year 1747, the Marathas led by Janoji Bhonsle, began to raid, pillage and annex the territories of the Nawab of Bengal, Alivardi Khan in Orissa. In order to counter the eminent threat Alivardi Khan rallied a Mughal Army of nearly 10,000 troops also consisting of such as Abyssinian Sailors
21.
Nawabs of Bengal and Murshidabad
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The Nawabs of Bengal were the rulers of the then provinces of Bengal and Orissa. Between 1717 and 1765, they served as the rulers of the subah of Bengal, however, they were only nominally subordinate to the Mughal Empire. Siraj ud-Daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal was betrayed in the Battle of Plassey by Mir Jafar and he lost to the British, who took over the charge of Bengal in 1757, installed Mir Jafar on the Masnad and established itself to a political power in Bengal. In 1765 the system of Dual Government was established, in which the Nawabs ruled on behalf of the British and were mere puppets to the British, in 1772 the system was abolished and Bengal was brought under direct control of the British. In 1793, when the Nizamat of the Nawab was also away from them. The last Nawab of Bengal, Mansur Ali Khan abdicated on 1 November 1880 in favour of his eldest son and they had little or no say in the share of the revenue collected and were ceased to use any force. After Indian Independence in 1947 it was declared that the states must accede to either India or Pakistan. Murshidabad became a part of East Pakistan for two days, as it had a Muslim majority and it became a part of India on 17 August 1947, following which the Pakistani flag was brought down from the Hazarduari Palace and the Indian tricolour was hoisted atop it. After merging with India, they had no power as the Government of India took over all the states in India. The house of the Nawabs appeared to have come to end in 1969 with Waris Ali Mirza being the last reigning Nawab and with no clear succession. Although he left three sons and three daughters there was no successor to the title after his death because he disinherited one. During the first partition of Bengal in the early 20th century a new province, in 1911, East Bengal was reunited with Bengal, and the new provinces in the east became, Assam, Bengal Province. The Nawab thus gained rule over Orissa, which were part of Bengal. The majority of modern Bengal is inhabited by Bengali people who speak the Bengali language, the early Sultans of Bengal ruled until 1282 which was followed by the rule of several successive dynasties. Ilyas Shah founder of the Ilyas Shahi dynasty, took charge of the then Bengal. He was one of the independent rulers of Bengal, the Mughal Empire emerged as a powerful Empire in northern India. Babur, who was related to two legendary warriors – Timur and Genghis Khan, invaded north India and defeated Ibrahim Lodi of the Lodi dynasty, babur thus became the first Mughal emperor. He was succeeded by his son, Humayun, at the same time, Sher Shah Suri of the Suri dynasty rose to prominence and established himself as the ruler of the present day Bihar by defeating Ghiyasuddin Shah
22.
Maratha
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The Maratha is a group of castes in India found predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, Marathas are people of India, famed in history as yeoman warriors and they reside primarily in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The general body of lists are often at variance with each other. The term Maratha originally referred to the speakers of the Marathi language, in the 17th century, it emerged as a designation for soldiers serving in the armies of Deccan sultanates. A number of Maratha warriors, including Shivajis father, Shahaji, by the mid-1660s, Shivaji had established an independent Maratha kingdom. After his death, Marathas fought under his sons and defeated Aurangzeb in the war of 27 years, the Confederacy remained the pre-eminent power in India until their defeat by the British East India Company in the Third Anglo-Maratha War. By 19th century, the term Maratha had several interpretations in the British administrative records, in the Thane District Gazetteer of 1882, the term was used to denote elite layers within various castes, for example, Maratha-Agri within Agri caste, Maratha-Koli within Koli caste and so on. In the Pune District, the words Kunbi and Maratha had become synonymous, the Pune District Gazetteer of 1882 divided the Kunbis into two classes, Marathas and other Kunbis. The 1901 census listed three groups within the Maratha-Kunbi caste complex, Marathas proper, Maratha Kunbis and Konkani Marathas, the Kunbi class comprised agricultural workers and soldiers. The upper-class Marathas proper claimed Rajput descent with Kshatriya status, and included princes, some of the Maratha clans claiming Rajput descent include Bhonsales, Chavans, and Pawar. Gradually, the term Maratha came to denote an endogamous caste, from 1900 onwards, the Satyashodhak Samaj movement defined the Marathas as a broader social category of non-Brahmin groups. These non-Brahmins gained prominence in Indian National Congress during the Indian independence movement, in independent India, these Marathas became the dominant political force in the newly-formed state of Maharashtra. The empire also resulted in the relocation of substantial numbers of Maratha and other Marathi-speaking people outside Maharashtra. Today several small but significant communities descended from these live in the north, south. These descendant communities tend often to speak the languages, although many also speak Marathi in addition. Notable Maratha families outside Maharashtra include Scindia of Gwalior, Gaekwad of Baroda, Holkar of Indore, Puar of Dewas & Dhar, Ghorpade of Mudhol, and Bhonsle of Nagpur. These Brahmins supported the Maratha claim to Kshatriya status, but their success in political alliance was sporadic. Marathas have dominated the politics of Maharashtra since its inception in 1960
23.
Mughal emperors
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The Mughal emperors were a branch of the Timurid dynasty. From the early 16th century to the early 18th they built and ruled the Mughal Empire on the Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the countries of Bangladesh, India. Their power rapidly dwindled during the 18th century and the last of the emperors was deposed in 1857, with the establishment of the British Raj. The dynasty was of Asian Turco-Mongol origin from a now part of modern-day Uzbekistan. Timur is generally known in the West as Tamerlane the Great and its population at the time has been estimated as between 110 and 150 million, over a territory of more than 3.2 million square kilometres. Ousted from his domains in Central Asia by Uzbek Khan. He established himself in Kabul and then pushed steadily southward into India from Afghanistan through the Khyber Pass, baburs forces occupied much of northern India after his victory at Panipat in 1526. The preoccupation with wars and military campaigns, however, did not allow the new emperor to consolidate the gains he had made in India, the instability of the empire became evident under his son, Humayun, who was driven out of India and into Persia by rebels. Humayuns exile in Persia established diplomatic ties between the Safavid and Mughal Courts, and led to increasing West Asian cultural influence in the Mughal court, the restoration of Mughal rule began after Humayun’s triumphant return from Persia in 1555, but he died from a fatal accident shortly afterwards. Humayuns son, Akbar, succeeded to the throne under a regent, Bairam Khan, through warfare and diplomacy, Akbar was able to extend the empire in all directions, and controlled almost the entire Indian subcontinent north of the Godavari river. He created a new class of nobility loyal to him from the aristocracy of Indias social groups, implemented a modern government. At the same time Akbar intensified trade with European trading companies and he left his successors an internally stable state, which was in the midst of its golden age, but before long signs of political weakness would emerge. Akbars son, Jahangir, ruled the empire at its peak, but he was addicted to opium, neglected the affairs of the state, and came under the influence of rival court cliques. During the reign of Jahangirs son, Shah Jahan, the culture, the maintenance of the court, at this time, began to cost more than the revenue. Shah Jahans eldest son, the liberal Dara Shikoh, became regent in 1658, however, a younger son, Aurangzeb, allied with the Islamic orthodoxy against his brother, who championed a syncretistic Hindu-Muslim religion and culture, and ascended to the throne. Aurangzeb defeated Dara in 1659 and had him executed, although Shah Jahan fully recovered from his illness, Aurangzeb declared him incompetent to rule and had him imprisoned. During Aurangzebs reign, the empire gained political strength once more, Aurangzeb expanded the empire to include almost the whole of South Asia, but at his death in 1707, many parts of the empire were in open revolt. Aurangzebs son, Shah Alam, repealed the religious policies of his father, however, after his death in 1712, the Mughal dynasty sank into chaos and violent feuds
24.
Sadashivrao Bhau
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Sadashiv Rao Bhau was son of Chimaji Appa and Rakhmabai and the nephew of Peshwa Bajirao I. He served as the Sardar Senapati of the Maratha army at the battle of Panipat. Sadashivrao was born at Saswad near Pune and he was the son of Peshwa Baji Raos brother Chimaji Appa. His mother Rakhmabai died when he was barely a month old and his father died when he was ten years old. He was cared by his grandmother Radhabai his aunt Kashibai and he was very bright from early years. His tutor was shrewd Ramchandrababa Shenvi, Nanasaheb stayed in Satara though he had become Peshwa. The campaign continued till May 1747 mostly in the western Karnatak region, all together 36 parganas were captured in this campaign. Sadashivraos first military achievement was in 1760 in Carnatic region with Mahadjipant Purandare and Sakharam Bappu as his political advisers. He conquered from the Nawab of Savanur and subsequently annexed the cities of Kittur, Parasgad, Gokak, Yadwad, Bagalkot, Badami, Navalgund, Umbal, Giri, Torgal, Haliyal, Harihar and he crushed the revolt of Yamaji Shivdev. Mahadjipant Purandare was Diwan of Peshwa during that period, Sadashivrao was Diwan of Bhosale of Nagpur. After the death of Chhattrapati Shahu, Ramchandrababa Shenvi suggested to Sadashivrao to take Peshwai of Kolhapur, Mahadjipant Purandare resigned and Sadashivrao became the Diwan of Peshwa. He successfully led the Battle of Udgir which weakened the Nizam of Hyderabad and he won the fort of Daulatabad. The news of Ahmad Shah Abdalis march towards Delhi and the subsequent death of Dattaji Scindia at the battle of Burari Ghat had arrived, therefore, Sadashivrao was called back from Udgir to Partur where the Council of war was held. It was decided that Sadashivrao would go north to resist the Afghans, in January 1760, news reached the prime minister Nanasaheb Peshwa that Ahmad Shah Durrani better known as Ahmad Shah Abdālī had invaded and captured the Punjab region. Abdali had formed an alliance against the Marathas with other Rohilla chieftains principally Najib-ul-Daula, all the Muslims in north India including Shuja-ud-Daula were persuaded by Abdali and Najib to join the Afghans in the name of religion and to save Islam. Abdali recruited Afghans displaced by the war, Prince Vijay Singh of Jodhpur and Kachawa Prince Madho Singh of Amber also formed an alliance with Abdali but did not join him with their forces. Nanasaheb Peshwa was then at the zenith of his power, having defeated the Nizam at Udgir and he chose Sadashivrao Bhau to lead the Maratha army to Delhi. Unlike Malharrao Holkar and Raghunathrao, both of whom had deep knowledge of northern India, Sadashivrao Bhau was unfamiliar with the personages and this was to prove costly, as he mishandled the regional kings and failed to form alliances with them
25.
Alamgir II
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Aziz-ud-din Alamgir II, was the Mughal Emperor of India from 3 June 1754 to 29 November 1759. He was the son of Jahandar Shah, Aziz-ud-Din, the second son of Jahandar Shah, was raised to the throne by Imad-ul-Mulk after he deposed Ahmad Shah Bahadur in 1754. On ascending the throne, he took the title of Alamgir, at the time of his accession to throne he was an old man of 55 years. He had no experience of administration and warfare as he had spent most of his life in jail and he was a weak ruler, with all powers vested in the hand of his vizier, Ghazi-ud-Din Imad-ul-Mulk. In 1756, Ahmad Shah Abdali invaded India once again and captured Delhi, Marathas became more powerful because of their collaboration with Imad-ul-Mulk, and dominated the whole of northern India. This was the peak of Maratha expansion, which caused trouble for the Mughal Empire. Relations between Alamgir II and his vizier, Imad-ul-Mulk had now deteriorated. Alamgir IIs son Ali Gauhar escaped persecution from Delhi, while Shah Jahan III was placed on the throne and he was born on 6 June 1699 at Multan and was the second son of Maaz-ud-Din, the son of future Emperor Bahadur Shah I. Alamgir II was 7 when his great-grandfather Aurangzeb died in the Deccan and he married his cousin, Princess Sayyid Banu Begum, the daughter of his uncle, Rafi-ush-Shan, on 8 April 1712. After the death of his grandfather, Bahadur Shah I, Aziz-ud-Din was then imprisoned in 1714 and released in 1754, by usurping Vizier Imad-ul-Mulk, he perceived Aziz-ud-Din as a frail personality who would not object his regime. Therefore, on 2 June 1754, Aziz-ud-Din was given the title Alamgir II by the out of his own recommendation. Imad-ul-Mulk was clearly a man of no principles and was criticised for his extreme selfishness. He hired Maratha mercenaries to do his bidding and put all the imperial revenues into his own pocket and he persecuted Ali Gauhar, the elder son of Alamgir II. Since then, relations between Alamgir II and Imad-ul-Mulks regime were so bad that the latter got him assassinated in November 1759 and this development was clearly unwelcome by Imad-ul-Mulk who sought to strengthen his authoritarianism with the undaunted support of the Marathas. Ahmad Shah Durrani then plundered Sikh and Hindu inhabitants in the unstable, Ahmad Shah Durranis relations with the Mughal Emperor, strengthened further when his son Timur Shah Durrani was chosen as the suitor of Alamgir IIs daughter Zuhra Begum. Ahmad Shah Durrani himself also married Hadrat Begum the daughter of the former Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah and he was supported by Mohammad Bahawal Khan II and Muhammad Nasir Khan I. The Maratha set ferries ablaze and stopped supplies from entering Delhi. Imad-ul-Mulk abolished Alamgir IIs incumbent administration and with the support of the Marathas was reappointed Mir Bakshi, in response the Marathas sacked the inhabitants of Taraori, Karnal and Kunjpura
26.
Ahmad Shah Durrani
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Ahmad Shāh Durrānī, also known as Ahmad Khān Abdālī, was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern state of Afghanistan. After the death of Nader Shah Afshar in 1747, Ahmad Shah Durrani was chosen as King of Afghanistan. Within a few years, he extended his control from Khorasan in the west to Kashmir and North India in the east, Durranis mausoleum is located at Kandahar, Afghanistan, adjacent to the Shrine of the Cloak in the center of the city. Afghans often refer to him as Ahmad Shāh Bābā, Durrani was born in or about 1722 to Mohammad Zaman Khan, chief of the Abdali tribe and Governor of Herat, and Zarghuna Alakozai. There has been debate about Durranis exact place of birth. Most believe that he was born in Herat, Afghanistan and he was born as Ahmed Khan. Abdalis father suffered Persian captivity for years at Kirman before being released from prison in 1715. As a refugee, he made his way to India and joined his kinsmen at Multan, after he raised his family there, he was recognized as the scion of hereditary Sadozai chiefs. It is believed that Zaman Khan returned to Afghanistan to fight the Persians and his Afghan rivals, so other sources believe that, Abdali was born at Multan in 1722, after which she returned to Afghanistan to reunite with her husband. He lost his father during his infancy, Durranis forefathers were Sadozais but his mother was from the Alakozai tribe. In June 1729, the Abdali forces under Zulfiqar had surrendered to Nader Shah Afshar, however, they soon began a rebellion and took over Herat as well as Mashad. In July 1730, he defeated Ibrahim Khan, a commander and brother of Nader Shah. This prompted Nader Shah to retake Mashad and also intervene in the struggle of Harat. By July 1731, Zulfiqar returned to his capital Farah where he had been serving as the governor since 1726, a year later Nadirs brother Ibrahim Khan took control of Farah. During this time Zulfiqar and the young Durrani fled to Kandahar where they took refuge with the Ghiljis and they were later made political prisoners by Hussain Hotak, the Ghilji ruler of the Kandahar region. Nader Shah had been enlisting the Abdalis in his army since around 1729, after conquering Kandahar in 1738, Durrani and his brother Zulfiqar were freed and provided with leading careers in Nader Shahs administration. Zulfiqar was made Governor of Mazandaran while Durrani remained working as Nader Shahs personal attendant, the Ghiljis, who are originally from the territories east of the Kandahar region, were expelled from Kandahar in order to resettle the Abdalis along with some Qizilbash and other Persians. Durrani proved himself in Nader Shahs service and was promoted from an attendant to command the Abdali Regiment
27.
East India Company
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The company also ruled the beginnings of the British Empire in India. The company received a Royal Charter from Queen Elizabeth I on 31 December 1600, wealthy merchants and aristocrats owned the Companys shares. Initially the government owned no shares and had only indirect control, during its first century of operation the focus of the Company was trade, not the building of an empire in India. The company eventually came to rule large areas of India with its own armies, exercising military power. Despite frequent government intervention, the company had recurring problems with its finances, the official government machinery of British India had assumed its governmental functions and absorbed its armies. Soon after the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, London merchants presented a petition to Queen Elizabeth I for permission to sail to the Indian Ocean, one of them, Edward Bonventure, then sailed around Cape Comorin to the Malay Peninsula and returned to England in 1594. In 1596, three ships sailed east, however, these were all lost at sea. Two days later, on 24 September, the Adventurers reconvened and resolved to apply to the Queen for support of the project, the Adventurers convened again a year later. For a period of fifteen years the charter awarded the newly formed company a monopoly on trade with all countries east of the Cape of Good Hope and west of the Straits of Magellan. Anybody who traded in breach of the charter without a licence from the Company was liable to forfeiture of their ships and cargo, the governance of the company was in the hands of one governor and 24 directors or committees, who made up the Court of Directors. They, in turn, reported to the Court of Proprietors, ten committees reported to the Court of Directors. According to tradition, business was transacted at the Nags Head Inn, opposite St Botolphs church in Bishopsgate. Sir James Lancaster commanded the first East India Company voyage in 1601, in March 1604 Sir Henry Middleton commanded the second voyage. Early in 1608 Alexander Sharpeigh was appointed captain of the Companys Ascension, thereafter two ships, Ascension and Union sailed from Woolwich on 14 March 1607–8. Initially, the company struggled in the trade because of the competition from the already well-established Dutch East India Company. The company opened a factory in Bantam on the first voyage, the factory in Bantam was closed in 1683. During this time belonging to the company arriving in India docked at Surat. In the next two years, the company established its first factory in south India in the town of Machilipatnam on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal
28.
Mir Jafar
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Mir Jafar Ali Khan Bahadur was the first Nawab of Bengal with support from the British East India Company. He was the son of Sayyid Ahmad Najafi. His rule is considered the start of British imperialism in India and was a key step in the eventual British domination of vast areas of the subcontinent. Thus after helping the British defeat Siraj ud-Daulah he became the new Nawab of Bengal in 1757 with military support from the British East India Company as a reward for his betrayal, however, Jafar failed to satisfy constant British demands for money. In 1758, Robert Clive discovered that through his agent Khoja Wajid, Dutch ships of war were also seen in the River Hooghly. Circumstances led to the Battle of Chinsurah, British company official Henry Vansittart proposed that since Jafar was unable to cope with the difficulties, Mir Qasim, Jafars son-in-law, should act as Deputy Subahdar. In October 1760, the company forced him to abdicate in favor of Qasim. However, Qasims independent spirit and plan to force the East India company out of his led to his overthrow. Mir Qasim however refused to accept this and went to war against the company, Jafar ruled until his death on January 17,1765 and lies buried at the Jafarganj Cemetery in Murshidabad, West Bengal, India. In 1747 the Marathas led by Raghoji I Bhonsle, began to raid, pillage and annex the territories of the Alivardi Khan, the enraged Alivardi Khan then dismissed the shamed Mir Jafar. Mir Jafar pretended loyalty to Alivardi Khans successor Siraj Ud Daulah, after Siraj Ud Daulah’s defeat and subsequent execution, Jafar achieved his long-pursued dream of gaining the throne, and was propped up by the British East India company as puppet Nawab. Jafar paid Rs.17,700,000 as compensation for the attack on Calcutta to the company, in addition, he gave bribes to the officials of the company. However, the British defeated the Dutch at the Battle of Chinsurah in November 1759, however, Qasim proved to be both able and independent, strongly condemned the interference of East India company in the governing of his domain. Mir Qasim formed an alliance to force the British East India company out of East India, the Company soon went to war with him and his allies. With the defeat in Buxar, Mir Qasim was eventually overthrown, Mir Jafar managed to regain the good graces of the British, he was again installed Nawab in 1763 and held the position until his death in 1765. But the conflict involved the assertive British East India Company. The Mughals were led by Prince Ali Gauhar, who was accompanied by Muhammad Quli Khan, Hidayat Ali, Mir Afzal and their forces were reinforced by the forces of Shuja-ud-Daula and Najib-ud-Daula. The Mughals were also joined by Jean Law and 200 Frenchmen, the breakup of the centralized Mughal empire by 1750, led to creation of a large number of independent kingdoms
29.
Najib ad-Dawlah
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He was also a tribal chief in 18th century Rohilkhand, who in the 1740s founded the city of Najibabad in Bijnor district, India. He began his career in 1743 as an immigrant from Swabi Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and he was at first an employee of Imad ul mulk. He deserted the cause of the Mughals and joined Ahmed Shah Abdali in 1757 in his attack on Delhi and he was then appointed as Mir Bakshi of the Mughal emperor by Abdali. Later in his career he was known as Najib ad-Dawlah, Amir al-Umra, from 1757 to 1770 he was governor of Saharanpur, ruling over Dehradun. Many architectural relics of the period of Rohilla he oversaw remain in Najibabad, Najib Khan belonged to the umarkhel section of MandanhYousafzai s. He migrated from Swabi, now Pakistan in 1739 to join his uncle Bisharat Khan, in 1752, The Marathas were requested by Safdarjung, the Nawab of Oudh, to help him defeat Najib. The Maratha force left Poona and defeated the Rohillas in 1752, imad-ul-Mulkh appointed Najib ad- Dawlah as the governor of Saharanpur. In 1757, Najib ad-Dawlah, who was then the governor of Saharanpur under Mughal Empire, invaded the city of Dehradun, with his army of Rohillas, and ruled the area for the next decade. His rule was known for its administration, and development of resources, leading to widespread development and prosperity in the area, with emphasis on agriculture. Later on they came to Bengal with Sultan gissues in Balbon lea viing their ancestors vulnerable, Abdalis invasion of 1759 left Najib in effective control of Delhi who was appointed to the post of Mir Bakshi. He had become the de facto ruler of Delhi, while the Mughal emperor was left with no actual power. In the Third battle of Panipat, during the Imperial Maratha Conquests, he allied himself with the Durranis led by Ahmad Shah Durrani (also known as Ahmad Shah Abdali, Najib Khan was shrewd enough to understand changed ground realities after third battle of Panipat. His cunning political acumen was used by Ahmed Shah Abdali to isolate Marathas & preventing them from getting even single ally during their conflict with Durrani power and his opposition to signing of treaty, with Marathas was the main cause of battle being fought at Panipat. He not only provided, Ahmed Shah Abdali, with 40,000 Rohilla troops and he also convinced Shuja-ud-Daula, the Nawab of Oudh, to join Ahmad Shah Abdalis forces against the Marathas. In this battle, the Marathas were defeated and as a consequence Rohilla increased in power, after the war he was made Mir Bakshi of Mughal emperor. He had to become dictator of Delhi state with empty treasury & territory confining to boundaries of Delhi city and he negotiated bought peace with Marathas in 1768 by surrendering Doab. Najib Khan was a Pashtun soldier of fortune, he attained the hand of the daughter of Dunde Khan and this territory thus became in its turn separated from the Empire, and continued for two generations in the family of Najib. He ruled the dwindled Empire for nine years, and died a death, leaving his charge in an improved and strengthened condition
30.
Mirza Jawan Bakht
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Shahzada Mirza Jawan Bakht Bahadur alternative spelling Mirza Javan Bakht, Mirza Jewan Bakht also known as Mirza Jahandar Shah born at the Red Fort, Delhi. He was the eldest son of Emperor Shah Alam II and the grandson of Emperor Alamgir II, the Vizier Imad-ul-Mulk was clearly a man of no principles and was commonly criticized for his extreme selfishness. He put all the imperial revenues into his own pocket and starved the Alamgir IIs family for three days because Timur Shah Durrani had become the son-in-law of the emperor. Mirza Jawan Bakht often recalled the days he wandered around Delhi begging for food supplies, Mirza Jawan Bakht was among the Mughal Princes in the service of Najib-ul-Daula, and received military training from his new mentor Hafiz Rahmat Khan. Najib-ud-Daula conceded defeat and ordered his forces to retreat northwards after being completely overrun, things got a lot worse when Imad-ul-Mulk persecuted Mirza Jawan Bakhts activist father Prince Ali Gauhar. When Ali Gauhar realized that Imad-ul-Mulk was planning to have him assassinated he fled eastwards and sought refuge with Ahmad Shah Bangash and Shuja-ud-Daula the Nawab of Awadh. Imad-ul-Mulk then feared that the Mughal Emperor Alamgir II would recall Ahmad Shah Durrani, or use his son Prince Ali Gauhar, therefore, Imad-ul-Mulk and Sadashivrao Bhau plotted to murder the Mughal Emperor Alamgir II and his family. The Mughal Emperor Alamgir IIs death was mourned throughout the Mughal Empire, Mirza Jawan Bakht is known to have witnessed the looting and this event completely changed his opinion regarding the legitimacy and the immoral authoritarianism of the Maratha renegades. As the Administrator of Delhi and the imperial heartlands including Agra, in the year 1768 the Marathas pillaged Bharatpur, and the Mughal Army began to crumble once again mainly due to the death of Najib-ul-Daula. Mirza Jawan Bakht and Hafiz Rahmat Khan never trusted Najib-ul-Daulas manipulative son Zabita Khan, Zabita Khan caused even greater tribulations when he intentionally attacked and provoked the weakened Marathas, who then overran and set ablaze a large portion of Rohilkhand and captured Najafgarh. One of his first acts was to strengthen and raise a new Mughal Army, Mirza Najaf Khan is also known to have introduced the more-effective Firelock muskets through his collaboration with Mir Qasim, the Nawab of Bengal. Petty, avaricious and insane the eunuch ravaged the palaces in search of the Mughal treasure believed to be worth Rs 250 million. Unable to locate even a fraction of that sum and angered by the Mughal Emperors attempts to him and his Sikh allies. A drunken ruffian, Ghulam Qadir behaved with gross brutality to the emperor, three servants and two water-carriers who tried to help the bleeding emperor were beheaded and according to one account, Ghulam Qadir would pull the beard of the elderly Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II. Alamgir II Shah Alam II Third Battle of Panipat
31.
Army of the Mughal Empire
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The Army of the Mughal Empire was the force by which the Mughal emperors established their empire in the 15th century and expanded it to its greatest extent at the beginning of the 18th century. Although its origins, like the Mughals themselves, were in the armies of central Asia, its essential form and structure was established by the empires third emperor. The army had no regimental structure and the soldiers were not directly recruited by the emperor, instead, individuals, such as nobles or local leaders, would recruit their own troops, referred to as a mansab, and contribute them to the army. The Mughals originated in Central Asia, like many Central Asian armies, the mughal army was horse-oriented. The ranks and pay of the officers were based on the horses they retained, baburs army was somewhat small and looked like an army of Afghan origin. Akbar restructured the army and introduced a new system called the mansabdari system, Mughal emperors maintained a small standing army. Instead the officers called mansabdars provided many of the troops, the Mughal Emperors maintained small standing armies. The emperors own troops were called Ahadis and they were directly recruited by the Mughal emperor himself, mainly the from emperors own blood relatives and tribesmen. They had their own pay roll and pay master, and were better paid than regular hormen sowars and they are gentlemen soldiers, normally on administrative duties in the palace. They also included guards, emperors own body guards shahiwalas. They were better equipped and had their own horses, the emperor also maintained a division of foot soldiers and had his own artillery brigade. The Mughal army had no regimental structure, in this system each officer worked for government was a military officer, responsible for recruiting and maintaining his quota of horsemen. His rank was based on the horsemen he provided, from ten, a prince had the rank of 25000. This called as zat and sowar system, an officer must keep a 1,2 ratio of men to horses. Horses must be verified and branded, preferably an Arabian breed. He must also maintain his quota of horses, elephants and cots for transportation, as well as foot soldiers, soldiers were paid in cash or jagir, cash paid for month to maximum one year, but many chose jagir. The emperor allocated jagir for maintenance of mansabs, the Mughal army had no real divisions, though it had four types of warriors, cavalry, infantry, artillery and navy. The cavalry held the role, and the others were auxiliary
32.
Lucknow
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Lucknow is the capital of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and is also the administrative headquarters of the eponymous District and Division. It is the largest city in Uttar Pradesh, the eleventh most populous city, in North India, it is the third largest city after Delhi and Jaipur. Lucknow has always known as a multicultural city that flourished as a North Indian cultural and artistic hub. It continues to be an important centre of governance, administration, education, commerce, aerospace, finance, pharmaceuticals, technology, design, culture, tourism, music, the city stands at an elevation of approximately 123 metres above sea level. Lucknow district covers an area of 2,528 square kilometres, bounded on the east by Barabanki, on the west by Unnao, on the south by Raebareli and in the north by Sitapur and Hardoi, Lucknow sits on the northwestern shore of the Gomti River. Hindi is the language of the city and Urdu is also widely spoken. Lucknow is the centre of Shia Islam in India with the highest Shia Muslim population in India, historically, the capital of Awadh was controlled by the Delhi Sultanate which then came under Mughal rule. It was later transferred to the Nawabs of Awadh, in 1856, the British East India Company abolished local rule and took complete control of the city along with the rest of Awadh and, in 1857, transferred it to the British Raj. Along with the rest of India, Lucknow became independent from Britain on 15 August 1947 and it has been listed the 17th fastest growing city in India and 74th in world. Lucknow, along with Agra and Varanasi, is in the Uttar Pradesh Heritage Arc, Lucknow is the anglicised spelling of the local pronunciation lakhnau. According to one legend, the city is named after Lakshmana, the legend states that Lakshmana had a palace or an estate in the area, which was called Lakshmanapuri. However the Dalit movement believes that Lakhan Pasi, a ruler, was the settler of the city and is named after him. The settlement came to be known as Lakhanpur by the 11th century, a similar theory states that the city was known as Lakshmanavati after Lakshmana. The name changed to Lakhanavati, then Lakhnauti and finally Lakhnau, yet another theory states that the citys name is connected with Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth. Over time, the changed to Laksmanauti, Laksmnaut, Lakhsnaut, Lakhsnau and, finally. From 1350 onwards, Lucknow and parts of the Awadh region were ruled by the Delhi Sultanate, Sharqi Sultanate, Mughal Empire, Nawabs of Awadh, the British East India Company and the British Raj. Lucknow was one of the centres of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and actively participated in Indias independence movement. Until 1719, the subah of Awadh was a province of the Mughal Empire administered by a Governor appointed by the Emperor, persian adventurer Saadat Khan, also known as Burhan-ul-Mulk, was appointed nizam of Awadh in 1722 and established his court in Faizabad, near Lucknow
33.
Bengal
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Bengal is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in Asia, which is located in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Geographically, it is made up by the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta system, in 2011, the population of Bengal was estimated to be 250 million, making it the most densely populated region in South Asia. An estimated 160 million people live in Bangladesh, while 91.3 million people live in West Bengal, the predominant ethno-linguistic group are the Bengali people, who speak the Indo-Aryan Bengali language. Bengali Muslims are the majority in Bangladesh, Bengali Hindus are the majority in West Bengal. Dense woodlands, including rainforests, cover Bengals northern and eastern areas. In the littoral southwest are the Sunderbans, the worlds largest mangrove forest, in the coastal southeast lies Coxs Bazaar, the longest beach in the world at 125 km. The region has a climate, which the Bengali calendar divides into six seasons. Bengal has played a role in the history of Asia. In antiquity, its kingdoms were known as seafaring nations, at times an independent regional empire, or a bastion of larger empires, the historical region was a leading power of the Indian subcontinent and the Islamic East. Bengali culture has had a significant influence on other cultures, especially in the fields of literature, music, art, architecture, sports, currency, commerce, politics and cuisine. The name of Bengal is derived from the ancient kingdom of Banga, theories on the origin of the term Banga point to the Proto-Dravidian Bong tribe that settled in the area circa 1000 BCE and the Austric word Bong. The term Bangaladesa is used to describe the region in 11th century South Indian records, the modern term Bangla is prominent from the 14th century, which saw the establishment of the Sultanate of Bengal, whose first ruler Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah was known as the Shah of Bangala. The Portuguese referred to the region as Bengala in the Age of Discovery, most of the Bengal region lies in the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta, but there are highlands in its north, northeast and southeast. The Ganges Delta arises from the confluence of the rivers Ganges, Brahmaputra, the total area of Bengal is 232,752 km2—West Bengal is 88,752 km2 and Bangladesh 147,570 km2. The flat and fertile Bangladesh Plain dominates the geography of Bangladesh, the Chittagong Hill Tracts and Sylhet regions are home to most of the mountains in Bangladesh. Most parts of Bangladesh are within 10 metres above the sea level, because of this low elevation, much of this region is exceptionally vulnerable to seasonal flooding due to monsoons. The highest point in Bangladesh is in Mowdok range at 1,052 metres, a major part of the coastline comprises a marshy jungle, the Sundarbans, the largest mangrove forest in the world and home to diverse flora and fauna, including the royal Bengal tiger. In 1997, this region was declared endangered, West Bengal is on the eastern bottleneck of India, stretching from the Himalayas in the north to the Bay of Bengal in the south
34.
Pashtuns
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The Pashtuns /ˈpʌʃˌtʊnz/ or /ˈpæʃˌtuːnz/, historically known by the exonyms Afghans, and Pathan, are an ethnic group native to Afghanistan and North-Western Pakistan. They are generally classified as Eastern Iranian ethno-linguistically, who use Pashto language and follow Pashtunwali, the origin of Pashtuns is unclear but historians have come across references to various ancient peoples called Pakthas between the 2nd and the 1st millennium BC, who may be their early ancestors. Their history is mostly spread amongst various countries of South and Central Asia, as the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan, Pashtuns have been the dominant ethno-linguistic group for over 300 years. The Barakzai dynasty played a role during the Great Game from the 19th century to the 20th century as they were caught between the imperialist designs of the British and Russian empires. There have been many notable Pashtun people throughout history, Ahmad Shah Durrani is regarded as the founder of the modern state of Afghanistan. Under Amanullah Khan, Afghanistan was able to pursue an independent foreign policy, some others include Malala Yousafzai, Shah Rukh Khan, Hamid Karzai, and Imran Khan. They are an important community in Pakistan, which has the largest Pashtun population, Pashtuns attained presidency there and high rankings in sports. They are the worlds largest segmentary lineage ethnic group, according to Ethnologue, the total population of the group is estimated to be around 50 million but an accurate count remains elusive due to the lack of an official census in Afghanistan since 1979. Estimates of the number of Pashtun tribes and clans range from about 350 to over 400, additional Pashtun communities are located in western and northern Afghanistan, the Gilgit–Baltistan and Kashmir regions and northwestern Punjab province of Pakistan. There are also sizeable Muslim communities in India, which are of largely Pashtun ancestry, throughout the Indian subcontinent, they are often referred to as Pathans. Smaller Pashtun communities are found in the countries of the Middle East, such as in the Khorasan Province of Iran, the Arabian Peninsula, Europe, important metropolitan centres of Pashtun culture include Peshawar, Quetta, Kandahar, Jalalabad, Kunduz, and Lashkar Gah. The cities of Kabul and Ghazni in Afghanistan are home to around 25% Pashtun population while Herat, with as high as 7 million by some estimates, the city of Karachi in Sindh, Pakistan has the largest concentration of urban Pashtuns in the world. In addition, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, and Lahore also have sizeable Pashtun populations, about 15% of Pakistans nearly 200 million population is Pashtun. In Afghanistan, they are the largest ethnic group and make up between 42-60% of the 32.5 million population. The exact figure remains uncertain in Afghanistan, which is affected by the 1.5 million or more Afghan refugees that remain in Pakistan. Another one million or more Afghans live in Iran, a cumulative population assessment suggests a total of around 49 million individuals all across the world. A prominent institution of the Pashtun people is the system of tribes. Despite this, many people identify themselves with various clans
Mughal Empire
