The Awadh region has been a politically important region for at least the past 2500 years. Currently, the region comprises almost 25 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh (UP), with voters contesting the ongoing Lok Sabha in key locations such as Ayodhya Faizabad, Rai Bareilly, Amethi and Lucknow. exercising their right to vote in elections. Much of Awadh’s history is shrouded in darkness, and myths are commonly invoked to fill in the blanks. But it is the region’s rich and colorful history that underpins its famous yet under attack mixed Ganga-Jamuni culture.
Awadh, also known as Kosala, was one of the 16 Mahajanpadas, or kingdoms, that existed from the 6th century BC to the 4th century BC. It is also said to be the setting for one of his two great epics of Hinduism, the Ramayana, and modern-day Ayodhya, which is believed to be the birthplace of Ram.
Bimbisara, empire builder (5-6 BC). He laid the foundation of the Maurya Empire. Buddha, a monk. and Mahavira, the founder of Jainism—all of whom fought, preached, and converted in the lush, fertile plains of present-day Awadh region. Described by both the Mughals and the British as the granary and garden of India, its rich soil has always fascinated people. They are organizing armies and causing ongoing conflicts.
Oud’s men
Any account of Awadh’s history is incomplete without looking at the indigenous communities that live in the area. The Nishads survive till today and live on the banks of Sarayu, Ganga, Gomti, Yamuna, Son and other rivers in Uttar Pradesh. Besides the Nishads along the river, the Bars (also called the Rajbars due to their royal past) are also prevalent in the area, one of the other major indigenous communities found here. occupies one. Although both Baars and Nishad are socio-economically marginalized, they remain politically important. For example, Rai Bareilly’s only known parliamentary seat takes its name from Barauli, which according to local tradition was the capital of the Bal kingdom. However, in the absence of conclusive evidence, it is difficult to speculate on the exact dates of their era and rule, or how they lost political power.
Awadh has a strong tradition, and in fact, the Bar community across Uttar Pradesh has a stronghold on the fact that King Suheldev, a respected king among the Bars, was the successor of Mahmud Ghazni’s legendary general Salar Masud in the 11th century. (remembered as Ghazi Mian or holy warrior) and killed him. It was Masood’s wedding day in the 19th century.
Shahid Amin is Conquest and Community: The Afterlife of the Warrior Saint Ghazi Miyan, this tradition is based primarily on the Mirati Masdi, or Mirror of Mas’ud, a Persian hagiography written in the 1620s. However, historically speaking, accounts written six centuries after an event are usually not considered authentic or accurate. Nevertheless, today’s religiously polarized politics mean that Suheldev is positioned as a hero and defender of Hinduism against the invader Masud, and in these accounts Suheldev There is little mention of the fact that he was beheaded by Massoud’s commanders immediately after killing Massoud.
Awadh during the Mughal era: Formation of a complex culture
Although various Afghan tribes maintained a presence in the region since the Ghaznavid raids and the Sultanate period, the first mention of the Subah of ‘Oudh occurred during the reign of Emperor Akbar (1556- 1605), when Afghanistan was one of the tribes of Afghanistan. More than a dozen states were under the rule of the Mughal Empire.
The death of Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707 plunged the Mughal kingdom into a crisis from which it could never recover. Feudal kingdoms like Bengal and Hyderabad were largely independent of the central authority in Delhi, and each tried to serve its own interests first.
The Oudh region was also in constant turmoil, and the small village of Ayodhya was about to enter a decisive period in its history. The Mughal Emperor Farooq Siyar appointed two little-known Hindus in quick succession as governors of Oudh. The first Hindu governor was Chhabile Ram. After his death in 1719, his nephew Gildar Bahadur was appointed governor. In 1722, Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah appointed his minister Mir Muhammad Khan as governor of Oudh. Mir Muhammad Khan then adopted the title of Saadat Khan, declared himself the independent Nawab of Oudh, and built Qila Mubarak in Ayodhya. According to legend, the first land grant to Ramanandi Akhara took place during the era of Saadat Khan.
Saadat Khan’s successor, Abu-i-Mansur Khan Safdarjung (1739–1754), moved the capital a few kilometers to the west to what was first known as “Bangla”. The name comes from the wooden mansion built there as the new state capital. . Later on, it came to be known as Faizabad.
In 1775, Asaf Daullah, the grandson of Safdarjung, moved the capital of Awadh from Faizabad to Lucknow, which was being developed as a city comparable to the now disappearing and prestigious Shahjahanabad (Delhi). Ta. Asaf, the first Awadh-born Nawab, is believed to have started the construction of Lucknow’s famous Bara Imambara as a relief against drought, and the site has since been given the rather ominous title of ‘Monument to Famine’. I started earning nicknames. Some couplets from the time even equate him with God.
Jis ko na de maura
Usco de Asafdaula
(For those whom God does not give
Asaf-ud-Daulah will give it to you)
Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula died in 1797. Over the next 60 years or so, Awadh came to be ruled by his seven men. Nawab. With a few exceptions, they all continued to patronize religious groups and individuals. The Lucknow court became famous for its patronage of poetry, dance, and music, and the war became a distant memory. A syncretic Hindustani culture flourished and its spread was epitomized by Wajid Ali Shah, the last king of Awadh, who in 1855 established a religious dispute between Hindus and Muslims over places of worship. In response to a complaint about the dispute, he is believed to have said:
Hum ishq ke band hain mazab se nahin waqif
Ghar kaaba hua tu kya, butcana hua tu kya?
(I’m a loving person, but I don’t know much about religion)
Is it the Kaaba or a temple?
Annexation of Awadh and the Rebellion of 1857
On February 7, 1855, the British annexed Awadh. Nawab Wajid Ali Shah neither resisted nor accepted and announced his plans to go to London on March 12, 1855 to make his case to the King of England. However, he was unable to cross Calcutta and ended up staying in a small fortress, Mattia Burtu, under British guard until his death in 1887.
In 1851, Lord Dalhousie described the Kingdom of Awadh as “the cherry that will one day fall into our mouths”. It has been ripe for a long time. Professor Rudranshu Mukherjee writes in ‘The Rebellion of Awadh, 1857-1858’: Wellesley had promised London a “Dinner at Oud”. ”
Many historians, with the benefit of hindsight and historical research, have observed that the 1857 Rebellion or Rebellion was doomed from the beginning. There was a lack of common goals, leadership, and military organization. Therefore, it descended into anarchy and Rana Beni Madh of Mankapur near Rai Bareilly, Rani Laxmibai of Jhansi, Tatya Tope, Kunwar Singh, Maulvi Ahmad Ullah Shah to name a few. , with the death and capture of key rebel leaders like Begum Hazrat Mahal, it was quickly crushed by British forces.
However, the role of various petty chieftains such as Man Singh of Mehdna (Ayodhya), who sided with the British and suppressed the rebels, is not fully appreciated by the common people of Awadh.
Man Singh was ordered by the British to bring in as many Talukdars as possible to the British side. An example of this can be seen in a letter written by Man Singh to the chiefs of Awadh. He used religion as a theme and labeled Muslims as anti-Hindu, which was very similar to the way the British portrayed the rule of Muslim kings. This revolt was eventually sparked by rumors of cartridges smeared with pig or cow fat, and led to ordinary Muslims and Hindus fighting side by side, foreshadowing a general revolt against the landowners.
With these very real fears in mind, Man Singh raised the bogey of a revival of Islamic rule to persuade the talukdars of Awadh to support the British. Addressing those talukdars who may still have thought of the revolt as a war for their respective religions, Man Singh wrote, “It is also surprising that the people should support and place in power the very Mussulmans who invaded India and destroyed all our Hindu religion. They built temples, forcibly converted the natives to Mahomedanism, massacred entire cities, captured Hindu women and made them concubines, prevented the Brahmins from praying, burned our religious books and imposed taxes on all Hindus. They are the very Mussulmans who took pride in calling us infidels and subjecting us to all kinds of humiliation.”
The defeat of the rebels in 1857 was due to a variety of factors. Although the rebels were large in numbers and resources, they lacked cohesion and, more importantly, suffered from severe internal sabotage by Man Singh of Ayodhya and the Nawab of Rampur. They stood by the British and ensured the prosperity and multiplication of their bloodline.
HistoriCity is a column by Valay Singh that tells the story of a city, looking back at its history, mythology and archaeological excavations that are featured in the news. The opinions expressed are personal.