History of Uttar Pradesh
History of Uttar Pradesh
The history of Uttar Pradesh can be divided into five parts.
- Prehistoric and pre-Vedic period (up to 600 BC)
- Buddhist period (from 600 BC to 1200 CE)
- Medieval Period (from 1200 to 1857)
- British period (1857 to 1947)
- Post-independence period (1947 till now)
Prehistoric and Pre-Vedic period (up to 600 BC)
Uttar Pradesh was a major part of Aryavrat in ancient times. The history of Uttar Pradesh is about 4000 years old. Many places of Ramayana and Mahabharata period are located in Uttar Pradesh.
Buddhist period (from 600 BC to 1200 CE)
Lord Buddha gave his sermon at Sarnath near Varanasi (Benaras) in Uttar Pradesh and Lord Buddha’s Parinirvan (death) took place in Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh.
Of the 16 Mahajanapadas, 8 Mahajanapadas (Kuru, Panchal, Kashi, Kosala, Shursen, Chedi, Vatsa and Malla) were presently located in Uttar Pradesh.
Medieval Period (from 1200 to 1857)
Muslim rule was established in Uttar Pradesh towards the end of 12th century, Muhammad Ghori defeated the kings of Gahadwal dynasty and laid the foundation of Muslim rule in Uttar Pradesh.
Akbar established Fatehpur Sikri city in Uttar Pradesh and Shah Jahan built Taj Mahal in Agra.
British period (1857 to 1947)
Uttar Pradesh was part of the Bengal Presidency in the early British period, but in 1833 it was separated from the Bengal Presidency to form the Northwestern Province (initially called Agra Presidency).
Against British rule, the first movement started from Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh.
In 1902 Northwestern Province was renamed United Province
Initially the capital of the United Provinces was Allahabad which was shifted to Lucknow in 1920.
Post-independence period (1947 till now)
After independence in 1947, the United Provinces became the administrative unit of the Republic of India and within two years Tehri Garhwal and Rampur were also included in the United Provinces.
On 12 January 1950, the name of the United Provinces was changed to Uttar Pradesh.
On 9 November 2000, Uttaranchal was formed after separating 13 districts of Uttar Pradesh, which was renamed Uttarakhand in 2007.
Also read…
Uttar Pradesh : An Introduction