Tuesday, May 3, 2016

The History For Baro-Bhuiyans Of Bengal


At the end of the Karrani Dynasty, the nobles of Bengal became fiercely independent. Sulaiman Khan Karrani carved out an independent principality in the Bhati region comprising a part of greater Dhaka district and parts of Mymensingh district. During that period Taj Khan Karrani and another Afghan chieftain who helped Isa Khan to obtain an estate in Sonargaon and Mymensingh in 1564. By winning the grace of the Afghan, chieftain, Isa Khan gradually increased his strength and status and by 1571 Mughal Court designated him as the ruler of Bhati.
Bhati region
Mughal histories, mainly the Akbarnama, the Ain-i-Akbari and the Baharistan-i-Ghaibi refers to the low-lying regions of Bengal as Bhati.
This region includes the Bhagirathi to the Meghna River is Bhati, while others include Hijli, Jessore, Chandradwip and Barisal Division in Bhati. Keeping in view the theatre of warfare between the Bara-Bhuiyans and the Mughals, the Baharistan-i-Ghaibi mentions the limits of the area bounded by the Ichamati River in the west, the Ganges in the south, the Tripura to the east; Alapsingh pargana (in present Mymensingh District) and Baniachang (in greater Sylhet) in the north. The Bara-Bhuiyans rose to power in this region and put up resistance to the Mughals, until Islam Khan Chisti made them submit in the reign of Jahangir.
Isa Khan
Isa Khan was the leader of the Baro Bhuiyans (twelve landlords) and a Zamindar of the Bhati region in medieval Bengal. Throughout his reign he put resistance against Mughal invasion. It was only after his death, when the region went totally under Mughals.
The Jesuit mission who sent to Bengal managed to identify that 3 of the chieftains were Hindus, they were Bakla of Bakarganj, Sripur of southeastern Dhaka (another source record the chief was Kedar Rai of Vikrampur), and Chandechan of Jessore while the rest were Muslims during Isa Khan's rule which in following decades N.K Bhattasali managed to identify some of them, which consisting:
  • Uthman of Bokainagar.
  • Ma'sum Khan Kabuli of Chatmogar in Pabna.
  • Madhu Ray of Khalsi.
  • Raja Ray of Shahzadpur in eastern Pabna.
  • the Ghazi Family in Bhowal on Dhaka which consisted Fazl Ghazi with his son and inheritor, Bahadhur Ghazi(who possessed large Naval fleets which was the main factor of Isa Khan's resistance against Mughal forces) along with Sona Ghazi and Anwar Ghazi.
  • Pahlawan of Matang in southwestern Sylhet
  • Nabud/Madan of Chandrapratap
  • Ram Chandra of Bakhla

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