Bikrampur ("City of Courage") was a

pargana Pargana ( bn, পরগনা, , hi, परगना, ur, پرگنہ) or parganah, also spelt pergunnah during the time of the Sultanate period, Mughal times and British Raj, is a former administrative unit of the Indian subcontinent and each ...

situated south of

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

, the modern capital city of

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. In the present day, it is known as

Munshiganj District Munshiganj ( bn, মুন্সীগঞ্জ), also historically known as Bikrampur, is a district in central Bangladesh. It is a part of the Dhaka Division and borders Dhaka District. Geography Total land area is 235974 acres (954 km2), ...

of Bangladesh. It is a historic region in

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

and was a part of the

Bhawal Estate Bhawal Estate was the second largest zamindari in Bengal (in modern-day Bangladesh) until it was abolished according to ''East Bengal State Acquisition and Tenancy Act of 1950''. History In the late 17th century, Daulat Ghazi was the zamind ...

History

Early history

Ashoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, ...

, the emperor of the

Maurya Dynasty The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until 1 ...

, ruled all of major parts of Bengal from ca. 269 BC to 232 BC. Being a devotee of

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...

, he propagated

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

across his kingdom which included Bikrampur to the east. Following the high ideals of this religion,

Pala Kings Pala may refer to: Places Chad *Pala, Chad, the capital of the region of Mayo-Kebbi Ouest Estonia * Pala, Kose Parish, village in Kose Parish, Harju County *Pala, Kuusalu Parish, village in Kuusalu Parish, Harju County *Pala, Järva County, vil ...

came to Bikrampur to rule the region.

Pala Era

The second ruler of

Pala Empire The Pāla Empire (r. 750-1161 CE) was an imperial power during the post-classical period in the Indian subcontinent, which originated in the region of Bengal. It is named after its ruling dynasty, whose rulers bore names ending with the suffi ...

, Dharmapal, built a

Buddhist monastery Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

in Bikrampur during his reign in 770–810. After his death, his son, Devapala ruled this area until 850 CE. Then the region is successively ruled by

Vigrahapala I Vigrahapala was a 9th-century ruler of the Pala dynasty, in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. He was the sixth Pala emperor. He reigned for a brief period before becoming an ascetic. Vigrahapala was a grandson of Dharmapala's younger ...

Narayanapala Narayanapala (9th-10th century CE) was the seventh emperor of the Pala dynasty of the Eastern regions of the Indian subcontinent, mainly the Bengal and Bihar regions. He was the son of Vigrahapala I by his wife, the Kalachuri princess Lajjad ...

Rajyapala Rajyapala was the eighth emperor of the Pala dynasty. He succeeded his father Narayanapala. He reigned for 32 years. The Bharat Kala Bhaban is dated in his 2nd regnal year, while the Bargaon inscription is dated in his 24th regnal year. He was s ...

Gopala II Gopala II (reigned after 872 CE) was the successor to the Pala king Shurapala I in the Bengal-Bihar region of the Indian subcontinent, and the sixth ruler of the Pala line reigning for at least four years. The existence of this king came to ligh ...

Vigrahapala II Vigrahapala II (ruled est. 966 – 978 CE) was the successor to the Pala king Gopala III in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, and tenth ruler of the Pala line reigning for at least 12 years. He was succeeded by the famed Mahipala. ...

Mahipala Mahipala (or Mahipala I; ) was a notable king of the Pala dynasty, which ruled over much of the eastern regions of the Indian subcontinent between the 8th and 12th centuries. He was the son and successor of Vigrahapala II. Mahipala's reign mark ...

Naya Pala Nayapala (ruled 1038–1055) is the name of twelfth ruler of the Pala dynasty of eastern Indian Subcontinent, mainly the Bengal and Bihar regions. Nayapala, the son of Mahipala I, defeated the Kalachuri king Karna after a long struggle. The ...

Vigrahapala III Vigrahapala III (1055 – 1070 CE) was the successor to the Pala king Nayapala in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, and twelfth ruler of the Pala line reigning for 15 years. He was succeeded by Mahipala II. During the reign of Vigra ...

Mahipala II Mahipala II was the successor to the Pala king Vigrahapala III in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, and thirteenth ruler of the Pala line reigning for 6 years. He was succeeded by Shurapala II. Mahipala II was locked in a bitter c ...

Shurapala II Shurapala II (reigned ca. 1075–1077) was a ruler of the Pala Empire in the Eastern regions of the Indian subcontinent. He was the successor to the Pala king Mahipala II and fourteenth ruler of the Pala line, reigning for at least two years. ...

Ramapala Ramapala (reigned 1077–1130 AD) was the successor to the Pala king Shurapala II in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, and fifteenth ruler of the Pala line. Early life Ramapala was the youngest son of Vigrahapala III. His mothe ...

, Kumarapala,

Gopala III Gopala III, previously known as Gopala II, (reigned 940–960 CE) was the successor to the Pala king Rajyapala in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, and ninth ruler of the Pala line reigning for 20 years. He was succeeded by Vigr ...

and Madanapala.

Pala empire The Pāla Empire (r. 750-1161 CE) was an imperial power during the post-classical period in the Indian subcontinent, which originated in the region of Bengal. It is named after its ruling dynasty, whose rulers bore names ending with the suffi ...

disintegrated in 1174 weakened by attacks of the

Sena dynasty The Sena dynasty was a Hindu dynasty during the early medieval period on the Indian subcontinent, that ruled from Bengal through the 11th and 12th centuries. The empire at its peak covered much of the north-eastern region of the Indian subcont ...

Chandra Era

During the rule of

Srichandra Srichandra (reigned c. 930–975) was the second and most influential ruler of the Chandra Dynasty in eastern Bengal. Life After Traillokyachandra, Srichandra ascended the throne, taking the titles "Paramsaugata", "Parameshwar", "Parambhattārak ...

(reigned 930 – 975 AD), the administrative centre of the Chandra kingdom was established at Bikrampur. The Varman Dynasty (1035-1150 CE) replaced Chandras and established their independent kingdom.

Varman Era

After the fall of Chandras, The Varmans Dynasty became powerful in East Bengal. The Varmans claimed that they descended from a branch of Yadava Dynasty of Simhapur. Jat Varman, Hari Varman Samala Varman were the powerful rulers, who ruled in Bikrampur. Bhoja Varman was the last independent ruler of Varman Dynasty who was defeated by Vijaysena of

Sena Dynasty The Sena dynasty was a Hindu dynasty during the early medieval period on the Indian subcontinent, that ruled from Bengal through the 11th and 12th centuries. The empire at its peak covered much of the north-eastern region of the Indian subcont ...

Sen Era

A copper-plate inscription from the time of the ruler Vijay Sen (ruled 1097–1160), founder of Sen dynasty, was found in

Barrackpore Barrackpore (also known as Barrackpur) is a city and a municipality of urban Kolkata of North 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is also a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA ...

, in 1911. In this inscription, Bikrampur was mentioned as the capital of that region.Proof of Bikrampur as the ancient capital of Bengal
, Golam Ashraf Khan Uzzal It continued to be the capital throughout the,

. In 1205, Turkic invader

Bakhtiyar Khalji Ikhtiyār al-Dīn Muḥammad Bakhtiyār Khaljī, (Pashto :اختيار الدين محمد بختيار غلزۍ, fa, اختیارالدین محمد بختیار خلجی, bn, ইখতিয়ারউদ্দীন মুহম্মদ � ...

defeated the then-ruler

Lakshman Sen Lakshmana Sena (reign: 1178–1206), also called Lakshman Sen in modern indian languages, was the ruler from the Sena dynasty of the Bengal region on the Indian subcontinent. His rule lasted for 28 years; and extended to much of the eastern regi ...

Nadia Nadia is a female name. Variations include Nadja, Nadya, Nadine, Nadiya, and Nadiia. Most variations of the name are derived from Arabic, Slavic languages, or both. In Slavic, names similar to ''Nadia'' mean "hope" in many Slavic languages: Uk ...

. Lakshman fled to Bikrampur. His two sons

Vishwarup Sen Vishvarupa Sena, also known as Biswaroop Sen in vernacular literature, was the fifth ruler from the Sena dynasty of the Bengal region on the Indian subcontinent. See also *List of rulers of Bengal *History of Bengal The history of Bengal ...

and Keshab Sen kept ruling from here until 1230. But the copper-plate inscriptions during their reign do not mention Bikrampur as the capital. Another Hindu ruler, Danuj Rai, defeated a successor of Keshab Sen and started ruling from here. In early 1280 he moved the capital to Suvarnagrama (later named Sonargaon).

Mughal Era

Emperor

Akbar Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...

established Bikrampur as one of the 52

s of Sonargaon sarkar in Bengal

subah A Subah was the term for a province (State) in the Mughal Empire. The word is derived from Arabic and Persian. The governor/ruler of a ''Subah'' was known as a '' subahdar'' (sometimes also referred to as a "''Subeh''"), which later became ''subed ...

during his administrative reforms in 1572–1580. During his time, Chand Rai and Kedar Rai were the

Zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as a ...

s of Bikramapur. In the expeditions against Bara-Bhuiyans, Mughal Subahdar

Man Singh Man Singh I, popularly known as Mirza Raja Man Singh (21 December 1550 – 6 July 1614) was the 29th Kachwaha Rajput Raja of Amer, later known as Jaipur state, in Rajputana. He was the most powerful and trusted general of the Mughal e ...

killed Kedar Rai in early 1600s. In post-

Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

era, during the time of Nawab Murshid Quli Khan, Bikrampur was divided into eight

taluk A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

s – ''Bhagyakul'', '' Sreenagar'', ''Maijpara'', ''Sinhapara'', ''Taltala'', ''

Sirajdikhan Sirajdikhan ( bn, সিরাজদিখান) is an upazila of Munshiganj District in the Division of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Villages in Sirajdikhan include Gopal Pur. Its total area is 180.19 km2. A large quantity of vegetables for the capita ...

'', ''Louhajong'' and ''Baligaon''. Each taluk was represented by one Zamindar. Muhammad Azim Khan became the Zamindar of Louhajong who held the title of "Khan Bahadur". Gobinda Prasad Roy became the Zamindar of Maijpara.

Notable people

Fakhruddin Ahmed Fakhruddin Ahmed (born 1 May 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, civil servant, and a former governor of the Bangladesh Bank, the country's central bank. On 12 January 2007, he was appointed Chief Adviser (Head of the Government) of the non-p ...

(born 1940) *

Iajuddin Ahmed Iajuddin Ahmed (1 February 193110 December 2012) was the President of Bangladesh, serving from 6 September 2002 until 12 February 2009. From late October 2006 to January 2007, he also served as Chief Advisor of the caretaker government. From Oc ...

(1931–2012) * Atiśa Dīpankara Śrījñāna ( CE) * Asit Sen (1922–2001) *

Humayun Azad Humayun Azad (born Humayun Kabir; 28 April 1947 – 12 August 2004) was a Bangladeshi poet, novelist, short-story writer, critic, linguist, columnist and professor of Dhaka University. He wrote more than sixty titles. He was awarded the Bangl ...

(1947–2004) *

Bhanu Bandopadhyay Bhanu Bandyopadhyay, also known as Bhanu Banerjee (born as Samyamoy Bandyopadhyay; 26 August 1920 – 4 March 1983), was an Indian actor, known for his work in Bengali cinema. He acted in over 300 movies, in numerous plays and performed freque ...

(1920–1983) *

Manik Bandopadhyay Manik Bandyopadhyay lias Banerjee(; 19 May 1908 – 3 December 1956) is an Indian Litterateur regarded as one of the major figures of 20th century Bengali literature. During a lifespan of 48 years and 28 years of literary career, battling with ...

(19 May 1908 – 3 December 1956) *

Pratima Bandopadhyay Pratima Bandopadhyay ( bn, প্রতিমা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়) (21 December 1934 – 29 July 2004) (born as Pratima Chatterjee aka Pratima Chattopadhyay) was a Bengali language, Bengali playback singer from Kolka ...

(1934–2004) *

Atin Bandyopadhyay Atin Bandyopadhyay or Atin Banerjee (1934–2019) was an Indian writer of Bengali literature. Early life He was born in 1934 in a Rarhi Kulin Brahmin family from Sammandi, Bikrampur, Dhaka. He spent his childhood in a joint family set-up in th ...

(1934–2019) * Kedareswar Banerjee (1900–1975) * Rameshwar Banerjee (8 February 1925 – 21 November 1945) *

Benoy Basu Benoy Krishna Basu ( bn, বিনয় কৃষ্ণ বসু ''Binôe Boshu'') or Benoy Basu or Benoy Bose (11 September 1908 – 13 December 1930) was an Indian revolutionary against British rule in India, who launched an attack on th ...

(1908–1930) *

Samaresh Basu Samaresh Basu (11 December 1924 – 12 March 1988) was a writer in modern Bengali literature, known for his versatility and vast range of themes. He wrote under the pen name ''Kalkut''. Basu was awarded the 1980 Sahitya Akademi Award in Bengal ...

(1924–1988) *

Jagadish Chandra Bose Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose (;, ; 30 November 1858 – 23 November 1937) was a biologist, physicist, Botany, botanist and an early writer of science fiction. He was a pioneer in the investigation of radio microwave optics, made significant contr ...

(1858–1937) *

Nripen Chakraborty Nripen Chakraborty (4 April 1905 – 25 December 2004) was an Indian Communist politician who served as the Chief minister of Tripura state from 1978 to 1988. Nripen Chakraborty was involved in the Communist movement in India for six decades. ...

(1905–2004) *

Moushumi Chatterjee Moushumi Chatterjee (born Indira Chattopadhyay) is an Indian actress who is recognised for her work in Hindi as well as Bengali cinema. She was one of the highest paid actresses in Hindi films during the 1970s. She joined the Bharatiya Janata ...

(born 26 April 1948) *

Sabitri Chatterjee Sabitri Chatterjee (born 22 February 1937) is an Indian actress who is known for her work in Bengali theatre and cinema. Her career spans more than 60 years. She is the recipient of BFJA Awards for two times. In 1999, she was conferred with San ...

(born 22 February 1937) *

Aghorenath Chattopadhyay Aghorenath (also spelt Aghornath) Chattopadhyay (1851–1915) was an Indian educationist and social reformer. First Indian to secure a D.Sc. (Doctor of Science) degree, he later became the first principal of Nizam College, Hyderabad. The reno ...

* Nishikanta Chattopadhyay *

Soorjo Coomar Goodeve Chuckerbutty Soorjo Coomar Goodeve Chuckerbutty, also spelled Surjo Kumar Chakraborty ( – 29 September 1874) was the first Indian to pass the examination of the Indian Medical Service (IMS) in 1855 and subsequently became the Professor of Materia Medica ...

(1826–1874) *

Brojen Das Brojen Das (Bengali: ব্রজেন দাস; 9 December 1927 – 1 June 1998) was a Bangladeshi swimmer, who was the first Asian to swim across the English Channel, and the first person to cross it six times. Early life and education ...

(1927–1998) *

Chittaranjan Das Chittaranjan Das (5 November 1870 – 16 June 1925), popularly called ''Deshbandhu'' (Friend of the Nation), was an Indian freedom fighter, political activist and lawyer during the Indian independence movement and founder-leader of the Swar ...

(1870–1925) *

Durga Mohan Das Durga Mohan Das ( bn, দুর্গামোহন দাশ ''Durga Mohon Das''; 1841–1897) was a Brahmo Samaj leader and a social reformer. Early life Durga Mohan was born in a well-known Baidya family at Telirbagh, Bikrampur, Dhaka in ...

(1841–1897) *

Jibanananda Das Jibanananda Das () (17 February 1899 – 22 October 1954) was an Indian poet, writer, novelist and essayist in the Bengali language. Popularly called "Rupashi Banglar Kabi'' ('Poet of Beautiful Bengal'), Das is the most read poet after Rabindr ...

* Narayan Debnath (born 1925) * Dwarkanath Ganguly (1844–1898) *

Suhasini Ganguly Suhasini Ganguly (3 February 1909 – 23 March 1965) was an Indian woman freedom fighter who participated in the Indian independence movement. Early life Ganguly was born on 3 February 1909 in Khulna, Bengal, British India to Abinashchandra Gan ...

(1909–1965) *

Kaliprosanna Ghosh Rai Bahadur Dewan Kaliprosanna Ghosh, CIE Vidyasagar was a Bengali journalist, writer and scholar. Early life Ghosh was born on 23 July 1843 in the village of Bharakar in Bikrampur, Bengal Presidency, British India to a Bengali Hindu father kno ...

(1843–1910) *

Prafulla Chandra Ghosh Prafulla Chandra Ghosh (24 December 1891 – 18 December 1983) was the first Premier of West Bengal, India from 15 August 1947 to 14 August 1948. He also served as the Chief Minister of West Bengal in the "Progressive Democratic Alliance Fro ...

(1891–1983) *

Badal Gupta Badal Gupta ( bn, বাদল গুপ্ত ''Badol Gupto''), real name Sudhir Gupta (1912 – 8 December 1930), was an Indian revolutionary against British rule in India, who is noted for launching an attack on the Secretariat Building - t ...

(1912–1930) *

Dinesh Gupta Dinesh Chandra Gupta ( bn, দিনেশ চন্দ্র গুপ্ত ''Dinesh Chôndro Gupto'') or Dinesh Gupta (6 December 1911 – 7 July 1931) was an Indian revolutionary against British rule in India, who is noted for launching an ...

(1911–1931) * Jogendranath Gupta (1883–1965) *

Chashi Nazrul Islam Chashi Nazrul Islam (11 October 1941 – 11 January 2015) was a Bangladeshi film director and producer. He won Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Director twice for the films Shuvoda (1986) and Hangor Nodi Grenade (1997). He was awarded Eku ...

(1941–2015) *

Radhu Karmakar Radhu Karmakar ( bn, রাধু কর্মকার; 1919 - 5 October 1993) was a noted Indian cinematographer and director in Hindi cinema from the 1940s to 1990s. He worked extensively with director-actor Raj Kapoor's film and his R. K. Stu ...

(1919–1993) *

Muhammad Hamidullah Khan Muhammad Hamidullah Khan, TJ, Sitara-e-Harb, BP ( bn, এম হামিদুল্লাহ খান; 11 September 1938 – 30 December 2011) was a military leader in two wars fought in South Asia: the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and t ...

(1938–2011) *

Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis OBE, FNA, FASc, FRS (29 June 1893– 28 June 1972) was an Indian scientist and statistician. He is best remembered for the Mahalanobis distance, a statistical measure, and for being one of the members of the fi ...

(1893–1972) *

Imdadul Haq Milan Imdadul Haq Milan (born 8 September 1955) is a Bangladeshi novelist and Journalist. He was editor of the daily newspaper ''Kaler Kantho''. He is the recipient of Bangla Academy Literary Award in 1992 and Ekushey Padak in 2019. Early life and ed ...

(born 1955) *

Ashutosh Mukhopadhyay Ashutosh Mukhopadhyay (anglicised spelling of surname: Mukherjee) was one of the most prominent writers of modern Bengali literature. Life and works Mukhopadhyay was born on 7 September 1920, in Bajrajogini,Bikrampur, Dacca (now Dhaka) as the ...

(1920–1989) *

Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay ( bn, শীর্ষেন্দু মুখোপাধ্যায়; born 2 November 1935) is a Bengali author from India. He has written stories for both adults and children. He is known for creating the relativel ...

(born 1935) *

Sarojini Naidu Sarojini Naidu (''née'' Chattopadhyay; 13 February 1879 – 2 March 1949) was an Indian political activist, feminist and poet. A proponent of civil rights, women's emancipation, and anti-imperialistic ideas, she was an important person in Indi ...

(1879–1949) * A. K. A. Firoze Noon (1946–2006) * Kedar Ray *

Siddhartha Shankar Ray Siddhartha Shankar Ray (20 October 1920 – 6 November 2010) was an Indian lawyer, diplomat and Indian National Congress politician from West Bengal. In his political career he held a number of offices, including Union Minister of Education (1 ...

(1920–2010) * Mokshadacharan Samadhyayi *

Laboni Sarkar Laboni Sarkar is an Indian actress who is known for her work in Bengali cinema. She is the recipient of three BFJA Awards. She initiated her acting career as a child artist with roles in Bengali films. Filmography * '' Aporajeyo'' (2022) * ...

Soham Swami Soham Swami (also known as "Tiger Swami," Sohong Swami, Parmahangsa Soham Swami or Sohom Swami, Bengali: শ্রীমৎ পরমহংস সোহংস্বামী ) was a Hindu guru and yogi from India. Originally named as Shyama Kan ...

(1858–1918) * Sarada Ukil (1888–1940)

References

External links

Historical Bikrampur
{{coord, 23, 33, N, 90, 33, E, region:BD_source:kolossus-cawiki, display=title Munshiganj District Buddhist sites in Bangladesh Historical regions in Bangladesh