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Chandradwip
Medieval principality in Barisal From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Chandradwip (Bengali: চন্দ্রদ্বীপ), later known as the Madhabpasha Zamindari (Bengali: মাধবপাশা জমিদারী),[1] was a historical principality and later a feudal estate located in South Bengal, largely corresponding to the present-day Barisal Division in Bangladesh.
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The principality rose to prominence after the rule of Raja Danujamarddana of the Deva dynasty. He was "the last known Hindu king of eastern Bengal",[2] and had controlled this region, including Chandradwip, in the 13th century. Chandradwip was known for maintaining a degree of autonomy whilst navigating relationships with larger entities such as the Sultanate of Bengal. Following the Mughal conquest of Bakla in 1611, the authority of Chandradwip’s rulers gradually diminished, and they were progressively reduced to the status of zamindars. Their privileges and territorial control further declined with the establishment of British colonial rule in Bengal Presidency, with the zamindari being officially auctioned in 1799 due to unpaid revenue. A few years after the independence of Pakistan, the final nominal Raja of Chandradwip, Satindra Narayan, relocated to Calcutta.
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History
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The history of Chandradwip goes back to the era of Chandra Period.[citation needed]
Chandradwip was successively ruled by the Mauryas, Guptas and the Palas. Towards the end of the 10th century A.D., the Chandra Dynasty gave this region a "distinct political identity".[This quote needs a citation] Many Chinese and European travellers left accounts about this principality. The earliest Chinese accounts describe this region as "a famous place for the worship of the Hindu-Buddha-Tantric deity Tara".[This quote needs a citation] The Temple of Tara was situated near the seashore. It was visible from the sea.[citation needed] According to Banglapedia, Chandragomin, the sixth-century grammarian, is assumed to have written his hymns on Tara here. In a manuscript of 1015 A.D., the Tara-Temple was mentioned.[3]
Deva dynasty
The Chandras were succeeded by the Deva Dynasty of Bikrampur. Danauja Rai was an independent Kayastha king who ruled in eastern Bengal, with his capital initially at Vikramapura and later at Suvarnagrama. He is widely identified as the progenitor of the Deva dynasty, which issued coins and ruled over eastern parts of the former Sena Empire, including Chandradwip. In 1282, he entered into an agreement with Sultan Balban of Delhi to cooperate in his campaign against Tughral Tughan Khan.[2] After a brief period of confusion, the Deva Dynasty occupied this region and established their capital at Kachua.[citation needed] They were followed by the Basu and Mitra Majumdar families. The kingdom was a vassal state of the Sultanate of Bengal up until the fall of the Hussain Shahi dynasty in 1538.[4][5]
Chandradwip emerged as a center of the elite Kayastha and Brahmin communities during the reign of Raja Ramaballav. Under his grandson, Raja Hariballav, the kingdom witnessed a notable social reform when he abolished the traditional practice of dowry among the Kayasthas, permitting only a nominal gift based on the social status and dignity of the bride and groom. During the reigns of Krishnaballav and Hariballav, the region saw the arrival of Muslim merchants and traders, who began introducing Islam to the local population.[6]
Raja Jaideva who ruled afterwards established diplomatic relations with the Sultanate of Bengal, officially marking Chandradwip’s status as a vassal state. As he had no sons, his daughter Kamala succeeded him. Queen Kamala and her sister Vidyasundari undertook significant public works, including the excavation of lakes and ponds to address the shortage of potable water in the Bakla region. One of the most notable projects was the creation of a large pond, later associated with a legendary account of her self-sacrifice, which became a part of local Barisailla oral tradition. The pond, known as Kamala Ranir Dighi, symbolises both her dedication to her subjects and the Bengali folklore surrounding her tragic death.[6]
Basu dynasty
Paramananda Basu, educated in Sanskrit and Bengali and trained in governance from a young age, ascended to the throne around 1520 as the first Raja from the Basu dynasty of Chandradwip. During his reign, he hosted the prominent Gaudiya Vaishnavite preacher Chaitanya Mahaprabhu of Sylhet in 1527. Paramananda’s rule also coincided with the first arrival of Portuguese merchants in the region. In 1559, after their defeat in Chittagong, the Portuguese sought Paramananda’s support, offering trade privileges and military assistance in exchange for access to the port of Bakla. A formal treaty of friendship and trade was concluded on 30 April 1559, establishing Chandradwip as an important commercial hub.[6]
Under Raja Ramchandra Basu, it became a part of the Baro-Bhuiyan confederacy of independent chieftains until its formal defeat to the Mughal Empire during the Conquest of Bakla in 1611. From then, it began functioning as a zamindari and the region continued to be known as Bakla-Chandradwip until the time of Agha Baqer Khan.[3][7] In 1799, the Chandradwip zamindari was auctioned off a few years after the Permanent Settlement had come into force.[3]
In c. 1570, Raja Jagadananda Basu ascended the throne. His reign coincided with the rise of the Baro-Bhuiyan confederacy, an alliance of independent Bengali and Afghan chieftains resisting the Mughal conquest of Bengal. Chandradwip likely joined this confederacy under Jagadananda’s leadership. He was succeeded in 1584 by his son Raja Kandarpa Narayan, under whom the prosperity of Chandradwip reached its zenith. Kandarpanarayan forged a treaty of friendship with Raja Pratapaditya of Jessore, aimed at expelling the Magh pirates from the southern coastal regions. Pratapaditya assisted him with soldiers and weapons, and in 1590, he visited Chandradwip to formalize the marriage between Kandarpa’s son, Ramchandra Basu, and his daughter, Bimala who was 4 years old.[6] However, Kandarpa Narayan later signed a treaty with Mughal Subahdar Man Singh I, effectively recognizing Mughal suzerainty and withdrawing himself from the alliance. This decision brought him into conflict with the Afghans who had fled east after their defeat by the Mughals and settled in Barisailla villages such as Mukkarkathi, Lakhutia, Rahmatpur, and Qasbah. When Kandarpa imposed additional taxes on them, they demanded ordinary taxation and urged him to rejoin the resistance. Kandarpa’s refusal and his enforcement of the Mughal treaty led to their expulsion and the establishment of an Afghan rebel base at Hossainpur. The ensuing Battle of Hossainpur saw Kandarpa Narayan launch a campaign against the Afghan settlers. After fierce fighting across the villages of Daharpara and Ghazipara, many were killed, and the remaining Afghans fled the Bakla region altogether. Kandarpa himself was seriously wounded in battle and later died of his injuries in 1598 at the royal palace in Mukkarkathi. The English traveller Ralph Fitch visited Baklanagar that same year and recorded detailed observations of Chandradwip and its ruler Kandarpanarayan, attesting to its wealth and renown.[6]
Kandarpa Narayan was succeeded in 1598 by his son, Raja Ramchandra Basu, who was then eight years old. Fulfilling his father’s wishes, he began constructing a new capital at Hossainpur, where he excavated a large reservoir, built a temple dedicated to the Goddess of Death Kali, and fortified the site with moats and earthworks. As part of his Kulinist policy, he sought to purify the social order of the capital by expelling Muslims and Namasudras while settling elite Brahmins, Kayasthas, and Baidyas, renaming the city Ramchandrapur in his honor.[6] After several years, Ramchandra relocated the capital to Srinagar Madhabpasha by combining nearby settlements including Badla, Baraikhali, Madhabpasha, Pangsha, and Pratappur. He undertook extensive public works, constructing a canal and building wooden forts. In 1599, the Mughal qanungoh Jumman Khan visited Chandradwip to assess revenue on behalf of the empire. He was cordially received by Ramchandra, whom he praised for his generosity and administrative ability. The same year, Ramchandra welcomed Christian missionaries such as Melchior Fonseca, permitting them to establish a church in Bakla and providing financial support for their travels. Not long after, Ramchandra rejoined the resistance against the Mughals and recruited a mercenary army composed of Bihari and Odia soldiers, known as the Baksaris.[6] In 1602, his marriage to Princess Bimala of Jessore was consummated.[8][9] This was a celebrated event that later inspired the Nobel Prize Laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s novella Bou Thakuranir Haat. Ramchandra's reign was marked by prosperity through the export of cloth and salt, though his kingdom frequently faced raids by Magh and Portuguese pirates, whom he repeatedly repelled. A long-standing rivalry with Raja Lakshman Manikya of Bhulua Kingdom (Noakhali) led to a notable military campaign supported by Portuguese troops. In 1611, the Mughal Subahdar Islam Khan Chishti launched the Conquest of Bakla. Ramchandra’s forces were eventually defeated, and he was captured and taken to Jahangir Nagar.[6] His kingdom was annexed and divided among Mughal supporters like Ulfat Ghazi, though Ramchandra was kindly permitted to retain much of Chandradwip as a zamindar under imperial authority, marking the end of Chandradwip’s autonomy.[10]
Raja Kirtinarayan Basu succeeded his father Ramchandra and was immediately met by a rebellion led by Chandradwip's Portuguese military commander, João Geri and his 10,000 soldiers.[11][12] He quelled the rebellion at Ballabhpur with the remnants of the army within three days and Geri fled from the Bakla region.[13][14] Following the conflict, Kirtinarayan began a programme of reorganising the army and establishing several forts and moats in Bakla, and also established over eight schools in the Bakla region.[15] He also began to focus on improving relations with the Mughal Empire, and so he expressed his support to the Mughal governor Shaista Khan in his campaign to subdue Portuguese and Magh pirates in the Bay of Bengal.[16] On one occasion, Raja Kirtinarayan Basu was invited by Subahdar Shaista Khan to his court in Jahangir Nagar to discuss military tactics against the piracy problem where he converted to Islam.[17] His conversion led to social alienation and the Chandradwip zamindari was thereafter passed on to his younger brother Raja Basudev Narayan Basu,[18] with Kirtinarayan remaining a Mughal commander and local taluqdar.[19]
In 1688, Basudev's son Raja Pratap Narayan Basu became zamindar of Chandradwip. His reign was marked by instability, as the region was repeatedly looted and plundered by pirates, and the Raja mounted little resistance. Following his death, his son Prem Narayan Basu succeeded him, ruling only briefly before his untimely death, which brought the Basu dynasty to an end.[6]
Mitra dynasty
This began with Uday Narayan Mitra in 1723, whose father had married Bimala, daughter of Raja Pratap Narayan Basu. He was briefly deposed by the Majumdar brothers of Shayestabad, Mehdi Majumdar and Sharafuddin Majumdar, due to withholding revenue. Mitra was eventually reinstated by Agha Baqer Khan and his tenure became notable for extensive temple construction and the promotion of local industries. Skilled Barisailla weavers from Madhabpasha and Wazirpur produced fine textiles, including muslin, which were exported widely, and paper production also flourished in the villages of Madhabpasha and Pangsha.[6] His son, Raja Shivnarayan Mitra (1768–1777), suffered from insanity, promiscuity and indulgent behavior, which led to violent and destructive acts. In 1770, his wife, Durgabati, assumed administrative control to maintain order. Shivnarayan’s prolonged illness and eventual death in 1777 left Durgabati as regent for their son, Joy Narayan Mitra. She faced a treasury deficit of 7 lakh taka and widespread corruption, particularly by Dewan Shivshankar, who embezzled funds and further destabilized the administration. In September of 1779, Durgabati and her son lodged a formal complaint with the East India Company, accusing the Faujdar of Bakla (Barisal) Bakhsh Ali of impeding the smooth administration of the Madhabpasha estate. However, this very grievance, far from bringing any alleviation, only served to exacerbate Jayanarayana's predicament, culminating in the catastrophic consequence of his estate being seized and auctioned off by the Company, leaving the family with much less.[6]
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In popular culture
Rabindranath Tagore wrote Bou Thakuranir Haath, a book about the Basu Maharani of Chandradwip which was later filmed as Bou Thakuranir Haat.[citation needed]
List of Rajas
Rulers
Zamindars
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See also
- Hayat Mahmud, military commander for the Raja of Chandradwip
References
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