(A reminiscence from the lost capital of Bengal on the
banks of Bhagirathi)
Bhagirathi River is a distributary of
the Ganges (Ganga). It leaves Ganga just northeast of Jangipur, flows south,
and joins Jalangi at Nabadwip. The banks of Bhagirathi earned a very special
place in history for sheltering towns like Murshidabad and Palashi. During the
reign of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, the capital of undivided Bengal, Bihar and
Orissa were shifted from Dhaka to Murshidabad. The name was coined by the first
Nawab of Bengal Murshid Quli Khan. Being the capital of the entire eastern
segment of today’s India plus Bangladesh, this little-known town spurted into
the limelight in the early eighteenth century. People from all over the
subcontinent such as the Jains from Rajasthan, Debi Singh, and likes from
Punjab, the Britons, the Dutch, the Portuguese and the French poured into
Murshidabad and started settling there.
Though very close to Calcutta with
excellent rail connections available from Sealdah and Kolkata stations, it was
only in the year 2014 that I finally decided to make a short trip to
Murshidabad with my wife. Having read so much of the bustling activities and
cosmopolitan nature of Murshidabad during the Nawab era, the overall impression
of the town was quite appalling. The place seems to have frozen in time since
the mid-nineteenth century. The town’s importance, however, started waning
after Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of British India, transferred
the capital from Murshidabad to Calcutta in 1772. More appalling is the fact
that today it is even worse than any of the smaller rural towns of Bengal. The
picture of an abandoned town, and a ghost town in the night.
Horse-drawn Tongas and Toto are the most
popular means of transport in the town. We availed both for our sightseeing
journey in Murshidabad. The most talked-about and imposing edifice is
Hazarduari Palace (palace with thousand doors). The foundation stone of
Hazarduari Palace was laid in presence of Governor-General Lord William Bentinck
in 1829, and the construction was completed in 1837. The massive palace in
Greek architectural style has 900 real doors and 100 false doors. It has now
been converted into a museum. The palace was built by Duncan McLeod for Najim
Humayun Jah, a descendant of Mir Jafar. The only surviving structure built by
Siraj-ud-doula is Madina Mosque in the palace forecourt. It is an ornamental
replica of Hazrat Muhammad’s tomb at Madina. Another monument at the perimeter
of the palace is Nizamat Imambara. The Imambara, considered to be the largest
in India, was built by Nawab Nazim Mansoor Ali Khan after the Imambara built by
Siraj-ud-doula was destroyed by fire. A majestic clock tower sometimes referred
to as ‘Big Ben of Murshidabad’ stands in the forecourt of the palace. The only
drawback compared to the original Big Ben is that it does not work and chime
now.
The exhibits displayed in the palace
include Nawab Siraj-ud-Doula’s prized possessions, the swords used by him,
cannons and other weapons and armories used during the Battle of Plassey
(1757), oil paintings of the Dutch, French and Italian artists, rare marble,
porcelain and stucco statues, farmans, rare books and manuscripts, palanquins
owned by the Nawabs, and various other antiquities. The palace is located on the
bank of Bhagirathi. Unfortunately, in the year we visited, we had to find our
way to the bank of beautiful Bhagirathi. The stalls of vendors selling their wares
almost obliterated the river and its bank. On the opposite bank is Khosh Bagh
cemetery where lie the graves of Siraj-ud -Doula, his wife Lutfannasha, Nawab
Alivardi Khan, and some other members of Nawab's family. And a little further
towards Calcutta is Palashi (Plassey) on the bank of Bhagirathi. Some dense
mango fields are located on this bank, and the orchards are there since the era
of the Bengal Nawabs. Murshidabad is famous for some of the finest varieties of
mangoes in India. The Nawabs of Murshidabad and their Begums were great
connoisseurs of this adorable fruit and that is the reason that the variety
they savored most was named Begumpasand. The Battle of Plassey, or the first
fight for independence, was fought in the dense mango field in the year 1757.
On 23rd June 1757, Nawab Siraj-ud-Doula, who was already in the bad books of
the British East India Company, led a force of around 50000 soldiers to
encounter Robert Clive’s paltry 5000. But nothing went right with the young
Siraj on that fateful day. First, the outcome of the battle was decided much
before Siraj’s army moved into Plassey. The ugly fangs of one of the greatest
betrayals that changed the face of Indian History were at play. The cunning
traitor was Mir Jafar, uncle of Siraj. That is why the main gate of Jafarganj Palace of
Nawab Mir Jafar was named Nimak Haram Deori (the traitor's gate). Both the
palace where Siraj-ud doula was brutally killed and the gate lie in total ruins
today. Across the road and just opposite this palace lays the Jafarganj
cemetery built by Mir Jafar.
The woe of Nawab
Siraj-ud-Doula did not end with betrayal. He was pinned down by a severe monsoon storm over Bhagirathi which drenched
the troops and damped the unprotected gunpowder. Any hopes for pulling up
dimmed when his most trusted commander Mir Madan was critically injured from
the accidental break-up of a canon gifted by the Portuguese to the Nawab’s
armory (the canon is on display in Hazarduari). Finally Siraj’s valiant effort
to pursue and beg his soldiers to continue the fight went in vain. Though
unsavory it was a decisive victory for Robert Clive and the British. The battle
flung open the inroads for the British in the sub-continent. William Dalrymple
has mentioned the intrusion in his brilliant and captivating book “The Last
Mughal”- “ Since they ( the increasingly powerful British) had
finally succeeded in conquering and subduing the Sikhs in 1849, the British
suddenly found themselves the masters of South Asia: every single one of their
military rivals had now been conquered- Siraj-ud-Doula of Bengal in 1757, the
French in 1761, Tipu Sultan of Mysore in 1799, and the Marathas in 1803 and
again finally, in 1819."
Three days after the Battle of Plassey,
an important meeting had taken place between Robert Clive, William Watts, and
Walsh and Mir Jafar, Miran, and Rai Durlabh at Kathgola Garden House located in the Lalbagh area. This is one of the few surviving buildings from the era of the
eighteenth-century Bengal Nawabs. At this point, I admit that I had no inkling
about Siraj-ud Doula’s palace. In much of history I know of and have seen in my
lifetime, every famous ruler built a lavish palace to live in. But at
Murshidabad from where Siraj ruled there was no trace of his residence. Later I
learned that he did indulge in profligacy, which led him to build a vast palace
on the low-lying bank of Bhagirathi. Bhagirathi, in those days, had the notoriety
of changing its course very frequently. In absence of dams there used to be a
flood almost every year. Over the years frequent inundations of the palace, for
being located in a low-lying area, led finally to the disappearance of the
massive Mansurganj Palace – the house of Nawab Siraj-ud-Doula. Perhaps the last
mention of the Palace dates back to 24th June 1757, a day after the Battle of
Plassey. On that day Robert Clive placed Mir Jafar on the stone throne in
Mansurganj Palace. The stone throne used for the coronation of Nawabs is now
kept in Victoria Memorial in Calcutta.
The other surviving buildings which
buzzed with activities when Murshidabad was at its prime and worth visiting
are:
The House of Jagat
Seth. The house is now a museum, where some rare coins and emeralds are among the exhibits.
Jagat Seth means Banker
of the world and this title was
first bestowed upon Fateh Chand in the early 18th century by Emperor Muhammad
Shah gave his innovativeness and greatness in trading and banking achievements
those days. Thereafter it was handed down the dynasty for over a century for
this particular Marwari community who were Jains by religion.
Madahav Rai was Jagat Seth during Siraj-ud-Daula's tenure. It is said that he
was slapped and insulted by Siraj for denying a loan requisition of Rs 3
crores. Thereafter he played a key role in the politics of Bengal by helping
Mir Jafar to receive the Subahdari of Bengal from the Mughal Emperor at Delhi.
They also operated a mint from Murshidabad where they had settled and had made
Murshidabad the commercial and financial capital, not only of undivided Bengal,
Bihar, and Orissa but of India as well.
A miniature version
of Hazarduari was built by Kirti Chand, who was a descendant of Debi Singh of
Punjab. Debi Singh was a notorious tax collector and had settled here in the
early days of the East India Company. The palace known as Nasirpur Palace or the
house of Debi Singh has an imposing façade. Although abandoned and in ruins
today, the palace continues to house idols of Gods and Goddesses. It is because
the famous Jhulan Festival is still held on its premises.
Architecturally
similar to Katra mosque was a mosque built by Azimunnisa Begum. Azimunnisa
Begum was the daughter of the first Nawab of Bengal Murshid Quli Khan who named
the place Murshidabad. Like her father, she is also buried under the staircase.
The mosque today is in a state of ruins.
Except for the remains from about 150
years of history since the beginning of 1700 AD, nothing else was there. For
instance, the ruins of Mir Jafar’s Palace were unkempt with an overgrown jungle
inside. Even the gates were closed to the visitors. It appeared to me that the
town was not able to keep pace with time. With dusk, the town retires into a
quiescent state. Sleepy and neglected, it hardly boasts of once being the
capital of undivided Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa and the commercial capital of India.
Unlike its counterpart in Oudh (Awadh), the culture, lifestyle, and
culinary art associated with the Nawabs and Begums were strangely missing.
There were vibrant moments on Bhagirathi, like festivals on boats; illumination, and fireworks, hosted by the Nawabs on the river. The river now flows quietly
totally oblivion of its past.
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Comments
very well done. Wendy
Wesley
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16 March 2020 at 10:36