History of Bangladesh

Civilisational history of Bangladesh previously known as East Bengal, dates back over four millennia, to the Chalcolithic. The country's early documented history featured successions of Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms and empires, vying for regional dominance.

Islam arrived during the 6th-7th century AD and became dominant gradually since the early 13th century with the conquests led by Bakhtiyar Khalji as well as activities of Sunni missionaries such as Shah Jalal in the region. Later, Muslim rulers initiated the preaching of Islam by building mosques. From the 14th century onward, it was ruled by the Bengal Sultanate, founded by king Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah, beginning a period of the country's economic prosperity and military dominance over the regional empires, which was referred by the Europeans as the richest country to trade with.
Afterwards, the region came under the Mughal Empire, as its wealthiest province. Bengal Subah generated almost half of the empire's GDP and 12% of the world's GDP, larger than the entirety of western Europe. The population of the capital city, Dhaka, exceeded a million people.

Following the decline of the Mughal Empire in the early 1700s, Bengal became a semi-independent state under the Nawabs of Bengal, ultimately led by Siraj ud-Daulah. It was later conquered by the British East India Company at the Battle of Plassey in 1757. Bengal directly contributed to the Industrial Revolution in Britain but led to its deindustrialization.

The Bengal Presidency was later established.

The borders of modern Bangladesh were established with the separation of Bengal and India in August 1947, when the region became East Pakistan as a part of the newly formed State of Pakistan following the end of British rule in the region.
Proclamation of Bangladeshi Independence in March 1971 led to the nine-month long Bangladesh Liberation War, that culminated with East Pakistan emerging as the People's Republic of Bangladesh.

After independence, the newly-founded state endured famine, natural disasters, and widespread poverty, as well as political turmoil and military coups.

Etymology of ''Bengal''

The exact origin of the word ''Bangla'' or Bengal is unknown. According to Mahabharata, Purana, Harivamsha Vanga was one of the adopted sons of King Vali who founded the Vanga Kingdom.

The earliest reference to "Vangala" (''Bôngal'') has been traced in the Nesari plates (805 AD) of the south Indian ruler Rashtrakuta Govinda III, who invaded northern India in the 9th century, which speak of Dharmapala as the king of Vangala. The records of Rajendra Chola I of the Chola dynasty, who invaded Bengal in the 11th century, affirms Govinda Chandra as the ruler of Bengal. Shams-ud-din Ilyas Shah took the title "Shah-e-Bangalah" and united the whole region under one government for the first time.

The Vanga Kingdom (also known as Banga) was located in the eastern part of the Indian Subcontinent, comprising part of present-day modern Bangladesh and India's West Bengal. Vanga and Pundra were two dominant tribes in Bangladesh in ancient time.

Ancient period

Pre-historic Bengal

The Oxford History of India categorically claims that there is no definitive information about Bengal before the third century BCE. It is believed that there were movements of Indo-Aryans, Dravidians and Mongoloids, including a people called Vanga, into Bengal.

The Bengal delta was made up of thick jungles and wetlands for several millennia. A major part of this geography lasted till historical times. The loss of the jungle was due to human activity. Bengal had an early human presence, but there is no consensus for the time frame of the first human activity in Bengal nor are there plenty of remains. One view contends that humans entered Bengal from China 60,000 years ago. Another view claims that a distinct regional culture emerged 100,000 years ago. There is weak evidence for a prehistoric human presence in the region. There is scant evidence of a human presence during the Neolithic and Chalcolithic eras. This could be because of the shifts in the rivers' courses. The Bengali climate and geography is not suitable for tangible archaeological remains. Due to lack of stones the early humans in Bengal probably used materials such as wood and bamboo that could not survive in the environment. South Asian archaeologists have tended to focus on other parts of the subcontinent. Archaeologists interested in Bengal have focused on more recent history.

Archaeological discoveries are almost entirely from the hills around the Bengal delta. West Bengal and Bangladesh's eastern terrain offer the best source of information about the early peoples of Bengal. Industries of fossil-wood manufacturing blades, scrapers and axes have been discovered in Lalmai, Sitakund and Chaklapunji. These have been connected with similar findings in Burma and West Bengal. Large stones, thought to be prehistoric, were constructed in north eastern Bangladesh and are similar to those in India's nearby hills. Farming was practised before the first millennium BCE. West Bengal holds the earliest evidence of settled agrarian societies.

Agricultural success gave ground in the fifth century BCE for a stationary culture and the emergence of towns, cross-sea trade and the earliest polities. Archaeologists have uncovered a port at Wari-Bateshwar which traded with Ancient Rome and Southeast Asia. The archaeologists have discovered coinage, pottery, iron artefacts, bricked road and a fort in Wari-Bateshwar. The findings suggest that the area was an important administrative hub, which had industries such as iron smelting and valuable stone beads. The site shows widespread use of clay. The clay, and bricks, were used to build walls. The most famous terracotta plaques, made by clay, are from Chandraketurgah and depicts deities and scenes of nature and ordinary life. The early coinage discovered in War-Bateshwar and Chandraketugarh (West Bengal, India) depict boats.

Many of archaeological excavations in Bangladesh revealed evidences of the Northern Black Polished Ware (NBPW or NBP) culture of the Indian Subcontinent (c. 700–200 BC), which was an Iron Age culture developed beginning around 700 BC and peaked from c. 500–300 BC, coinciding with the emergence of 16 great states or mahajanapadas in Northern India, and the subsequent rise of the Mauryan Empire. The eastern part of ancient India, covering much of current days Bangladesh was part of one of such mahajanapadas, the ancient kingdom of Anga, which flourished in the 6th century BC.

Well developed towns had emerged by 300 BCE such as Tamralipti ( present-day Tamluk, West Bengal, India), Mahasthan and Mainamati. Instead of the seaside, main towns sprang up by the riversides. Mahasthan contains the earliest piece of writing in Bangladesh, a stone inscription. It indicates that the site was an important town in the Maurya empire. Mahasthan is believed to have then been a provincial centre. The inscription, in Prakrit, apparently contains a command to stock up supplies in case of an emergency. The inscription is called the Mahasthan Brahmi Inscription. Bengal was the eastern frontier of the Mauryan empire. Western Bengal with its port of Tamralipti achieved importance under the Mauryas.

A prominent view in scholarship is that the Mauryan and Gupta empires exercised authority over most parts of the Bengal delta. The incomplete evidence which exists suggests that Bengal's western rather than eastern regions were parts of larger empires. The ancient zones in Bengal were the Bhagirathi-Hooghly basin, Harikela, Samatata, Vanga and Varendra. Vanga is believed to be central Bengal, Harikela and Samitata were apparently Bengal's eastern zones and Varendra was northern Bengal. The names of sites indicate that Tibeto-Burman, Austro-Asiatic and Dravidian languages were spoken by the majority of people. Indo-European languages became prominent from 400 BCE.

Overseas Colonization

The Vanga Kingdom was a powerful seafaring nation of Ancient Bengal. They had overseas trade relations with Java, Sumatra and Siam (modern day Thailand). According to Mahavamsa, the Vanga prince Vijaya Singha conquered Lanka (modern day Sri Lanka) in 544 BC and gave the name " Sinhala" to the country. Bengali people migrated to the Maritime Southeast Asia and Siam (in modern Thailand), establishing their own settlement there.

Gangaridai Empire

Though north and west Bengal were part of the empire southern Bengal thrived and became powerful with her overseas trades. In 326 BCE, with the invasion of Alexander the Great the region again came to prominence. The Greek and Latin historians suggested that Alexander the Great withdrew from India anticipating the valiant counter-attack of the mighty Gangaridai empire that was located in the Bengal region. Alexander, after the meeting with his officer, Coenus, was convinced that it was better to return. Diodorus Siculus mentions Gangaridai to be the most powerful empire in India whose king possessed an army of 20,000 horses, 200,000 infantry, 2,000 chariots and 4,000 elephants trained and equipped for war. The allied forces of the Gangaridai Empire and Nanda Empire (Prasii) were preparing a massive counter-attack against the forces of Alexander on the banks of the Ganges. Gangaridai, according to the Greek accounts, kept on flourishing at least up to the 1st century CE.

Early Middle Ages

Bengal was left on its own after Mauryan power declined. Little is known of the period after that although parts of Bengal were probably under the Pataliputra-based Sunga dynasty. During this time Pundra was still a significant Buddhist location. Local rulers retained power while paying tribute to the Gupta Empire in the 300s and 400s. The Bengal delta became the kingdom of Samatata; its hub near the contemporary Chandpur. A Gupta inscription indicates that the Gupta empire possessed influence in Samatata without ruling it directly. Bengal remained a frontier despite its rare associations with the Indian heartland. Several dynasties changed during the next few centuries. While not much information is available about them, plates and other forms of evidence obtained from the Comilla district indicate that Gopachandra ruled the area in the early 500s. The Khargas became rulers in the next century. They were followed by the Deva dynasty, Harikela kingdom, Chandras and the Varmans. They were based in different sites of the Comilla district and Dhaka district's Vikrampur. Around that time, Bengalis first ruled in Varendra. Gaur was ruled by Sasanka in the early 600s. He was based in Karnasuvarna in modern-day Murshidabad district. Contemporary Chinese reports and coinage suggest that he was a firm Shaivite who was vehemently opposed to Buddhism. Opposition to Buddhism and a commitment to Brahminism apparently continued under the Sura dynasty, founded by Adisura around 700 CE. Around the middle of the eighth century a firm Buddhist, Gopala, assumed power in Bengal, possibly supported by Buddhist chiefs who were opposed to the effects of the Suras and Sasanka's faithful Brahmanism. During this time, the kingdoms of the Bay of Bengal were trading with the nations of nearby South Asia and Southeast Asia, thereby exporting Buddhism into Sri Lanka to the south and both Hinduism and Buddhism into Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines to the east.

Gauda Kingdom

By the 6th century, the Gupta Empire, which ruled over the northern Indian subcontinent had largely broken up. Eastern Bengal splintered into the kingdoms of Vanga, Samatata and Harikela while the Gauda kings rose in the west with their capital at Karnasuvarna (near modern Murshidabad). Shashanka, a vassal of the last Gupta Emperor proclaimed independence and unified the smaller principalities of Bengal (Gaur, Vanga, Samatata). He vied for regional power with Harshavardhana in northern India after treacherously murdering Harsha's elder brother Rajyavardhana. Harsha's continuous pressure led to the gradual weakening of the Gauda kingdom founded by Shashanka and finally ended with his death. This burst of Bengali power ended with the overthrow of Manava (his son), Bengal descended into a period marked by disunity and intrude once more.

Pala dynasty

The Pala dynasty ruled Bengal until the middle of the twelfth century and expanded Bengali power to its farthest extent and supported Buddhism. It was the first independent Buddhist dynasty of Bengal. The name ''Pala'' ( bn, পাল ''pal'') means ''protector'' and was used as an ending to the names of all Pala monarchs. The Palas were followers of the Mahayana and Tantric schools of Buddhism. Gopala was the first ruler from the dynasty. He came to power in 750 in Gaur, after being elected by a group of feudal chiefs.

He reigned from 750 to 770 and consolidated his position by extending his control over all of Bengal. He was succeeded by Dharmapala. The Palas promoted Buddhism and opposed Brahmanism. They provided support to Buddhist universities in Vikramashila and Nalanda. During the Pala dynasty the Vajrayana was developed in Bengal and introduced to Tibet. The Palas patronised the arts.

The empire reached its peak under Dharmapala and Devapala. Dharmapala extended the empire into the northern parts of the Indian Subcontinent. This triggered once more for the control of the subcontinent. Devapala, successor of Dharmapala, expanded the empire considerably. The Pala inscriptions credit him with extensive conquests in hyperbolic language. The Badal pillar inscription of his successor Narayana Pala states that he became the suzerain monarch or Chakravarti of the whole tract of Northern India bounded by the Vindhyas and the Himalayas. It also states that his empire extended up to the two oceans (presumably the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal). It also claims that Devpala defeated Utkala (present-day Orissa), the Hunas, the Dravidas, the Kamarupa (present-day Assam), the Kambojas and the Gurjaras.

Historian B. P. Sinha wrote that these claims about Devapala's victories are exaggerated, but cannot be dismissed entirely. Besides, the neighbouring kingdoms of Rashtrakutas and the Gurjara-Pratiharas were weak at the time, which might have helped him extend his empire. Devapala is also believed to have led an army up to the Indus river in Punjab. Devapala shifted the capital from Monghyr to Pataliputra. Although they were Bengali the dynasty considered the Ganges valley as the centre of its power.

The dynasty's power declined after Devapala's death. During the rule of Mahipala I the South Indian Chola dynasty challenged the Palas.

During the later part of Pala rule, Rajendra Chola I of the Chola Empire frequently invaded Bengal from 1021 to 1023 to get Ganges water and in the process, succeeded in humbling the rulers and acquiring considerable booty. The rulers of Bengal who were defeated by Rajendra Chola were Dharmapal, Ranasur and Govindachandra of the Candra Dynasty who might have been feudatories under Mahipala of the Pala Dynasty. The invasion by the south Indian ruler Vikramaditya VI of the Western Chalukya Empire brought his countrymen from Karnataka into Bengal which explains the southern origin of the Sena Dynasty. Around the 1150s the Palas lost power to the Senas.

Chandra Dynasty

The Chandra dynasty were a family who ruled over the kingdom of Harikela in eastern Bengal (comprising the ancient lands of Harikela, Vanga and Samatata) for roughly a century and a half from the beginning of the 10th century CE. Their empire also encompassed Vanga and Samatata, with Srichandra expanding his domain to include parts of Kamarupa. Their empire was ruled from their capital, Vikrampur (modern Munshiganj) and was powerful enough to militarily withstand the Pala Empire to the north-west. The last ruler of the Chandra Dynasty, Govindachandra, was defeated by the south Indian Emperor Rajendra Chola I of the Chola dynasty in the 11th century.

Sena dynasty

The Sena dynasty started around 1095 but only finally defeated the Palas around 1150. They apparently originated in Karnataka. Vijayasena took control of northern and western Bengal, removed the Palas from the former regions and based his rule in Nadia. The greatest ruler from the dynasty was Lakshmanasena. He established the dynasty's writ in Orissa and Benares. In 1202, Ikhtiyarrudin Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji took Nadia from the Senas, already having taken Bihar. Lakshmanasena left for Vikrampur in southeastern Bengal. His sons inherited the dynasty, which came to an end around 1245 because of feudal revolts and Muslim pressure.

The dynasty has been staunchly Brahminist and had attempted to restore Brahminism to Bengal. They also established the system of ''kulin''ism in Bengal; through which higher caste males could take lower caste brides and enhance the status of these women's children. Some postulate that the dynasty's suppression of Buddhism became a cause for the conversions to Islam, especially in eastern Bengal.

Deva Kingdom

The Deva Kingdom was a Hindu dynasty of medieval Bengal that ruled over eastern Bengal after the collapse Sena Empire. The capital of this dynasty was Bikrampur in present-day Munshiganj District of Bangladesh. The inscriptional evidences show that his kingdom was extended up to the present-day Comilla-Noakhali-Chittagong region. A later ruler of the dynasty ''Ariraja-Danuja-Madhava'' Dasharathadeva extended his kingdom to cover much of East Bengal.

Late Middle Ages – Advent of Islam and Bengal Sultanate period

Muslim rule in the region was inaugurated with the taking of Nadia in 1202. Initially, Bengal was administered by the Delhi Sultanate's governors, then by independent sultanates and then was under the rule of the Mughal empire. While Muslims had advanced into Sindh in the 700s, it was in Afghanistan that the ultimate Muslim conquest of South Asia originated from, starting with the raids by Mahmud of Ghazni in the early 11th century. The Afghanistan-based Ghurids replaced the Ghaznavids and they started expanded into the Ganges region. As part of this eastward expansion Ikhtiyaruddin Muhammad Bakhtiar Khan defeated the Palas in Bihar and in 1202 was victorious over the Senas in Nadia. In 1206, the Delhi Sultanate was created. It was not a true dynasty but the rulers was known as Mamluk. The Sultanate continued till 1290. The conquest of Nadia did not entail swift conversions to Islam. The authority of the Senas persisted in Vikrampur till 1245 and a large part of eastern Bangladesh had neither been conquered nor converted.

Four dynasties based in Delhi succeeded the Slave dynasty. The Khaljis ruled from 1290 to 1320. The Tughluq dynasty's rule lasted until 1413. Sayyid rule ran from 1414 to 1451. The Lodhi dynasty ruled in the 1451-1526 period. But the writ of the Delhi Sultanate had been weak in its outer regions and Bengal like other similar areas turned into an independent region. Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah became the ruler of independent Bengal in 1342 and his dynasty ruled until 1486, barring a short interlude. He had come to power after a Bengali revolt against the Tughluq dynasty's governor. Shamsuddin's state was based in Pandua, modern-day Malda district. Shamsuddin drove up the Ganges to contest Tughluq rule. The Tughluqs, in return drove Ilyas Shah out of Pandua into eastern Bengal. Shamsuddin reclaimed Pandua and continued ruling Bengal. Shamsuddin's heir repelled Tughluq incursions and like his predecessor expanded the dynasty's authority into Bihar.

The dynasty constructed grand buildings in Pandua. They built India's biggest mosque, the Adina mosque. Richard Eaton cites diplomatic accounts about the grandeur of Pandua's buildings. Eaton observes the influence of both Islamic and pre-Islamic Persian courts. Hindu landlords possessed a large quantity of land even under the Muslim rulers. The Hindu domination was opposed by the Muslim leadership, exemplified by the Faraizi campaign and leaders like Titu Mir in the 1800s.

When the dynasty's third ruler died in 1410 there was a conflict over the throne. Raja Ganesh, who was a Hindu feudal, had become the most powerful personality at the Ilyas Shahi court. In 1414, he used the successor-ship conflict to seize control of Bengal. He repelled an incursion on Bengal by the Jaunpur sultanate in north India. His son, who embraced Islam, and then his grandson ruled after him. In 1433, the latter was assassinated and the Ilyas Shahi dynasty was restored.

The dynasty began importing Abyssinian slaves. This population became more significant. They became so important that in 1486 an Abyssinian, Barbak Shahzada, seized power from Jalaluddin Fateh Shah. Barbak Shahzada's dynasty was short, lasting for the next seven years. The last Abyssinian ruler, Shamsuddin Muzaffar Shah, lost power to the Arab principal minister, Alauddin Husain.

The initiation in 1493 of the Hussain Shahi dynasty brought a period which has been considered Bengal's golden age. The government was genuinely Bengali and while land ownership remained concentrated in Hindu hands, both religious groups had pivotal roles in the government. The sultanate expanded to acquire Cooch Behar and Kamrup. The Sultanate also dominated Orissa, Tripura and the Arakan region.

Babar defeated the Lodhis at Panipat in 1526 and the Mughals established India's greatest state since the time of the Mauryas. But during Sheh Shah Suri's rebellion against the second Mughal ruler Humayan, he triumphed over the Hussain Shahi dynasty's Ghiyasuddin Mahmud Shah in 1538, thus bringing an end to the independent status of Bengal. For a short time Humayun ruled Gaur.

Bengal along with other parts of eastern India was ruled by Sheh Shah Suri. He implemented many reforms such as introducing parganas. These were land survey based local tax units. He is most famous for designing the Grand Trunk Road between Calcutta and Punjab. Humayun retook Delhi in 1556. But the Suris continued ruling Bengal until 1564 when they were replaced by the Karrani dynasty. Like the Suris, they were not native to Bengal. They had been raiders whom the Mughal armies had driven eastwards.

Turko Afghan rule

In 1204 CE, the first Muslim ruler, Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khilji, a Turko Afghan, captured Nadia and established Muslim rule. The political influence of Islam began to spread across Bengal with the conquest of Nadia, the capital city of the Sen ruler Lakshmana. Bakhtiyar captured Nadia in an interesting manner. Being made aware of the presence of a strong army of Lakshmana Sen on the main route to Nadia, Bakhtiyar proceeded instead through the jungle of Jharkhand. He divided his army into several groups, and he himself led a group of 17 horsemen and advanced towards Nadia in the guise of horse-traders. In this manner, Bakhtiyar had no problem in entering through the gates of the city. Shortly afterwards, Bakhityar's main army joined him and within a short while Nadia was captured.

After capturing Nadia, Bakhtiyar advanced towards Gauda (Lakhnuti), another major city of the Sena kingdom, conquered it and made it his capital in 1205. In the following year, Bakhtiyar set out on an expedition to capture Tibet, but this attempt failed and he had to return to Bengal in poor health and with a reduced army. Shortly afterwards, he was killed by one of his commanders, Ali Mardan Khilji. In the meantime, Lakshman Sen and his two sons retreated to Vikramapur (in the present-day Munshiganj District in Bangladesh), where their diminished dominion lasted until the late 13th century.

Khiljis were Turko Afghan. The period after Bakhtiar Khilji's death in 1207 involved infighting among the Khiljis. This was typical of a pattern of succession struggles and intra-sultanate intrigues during later Turko Afghan regimes. In this case, Ghiyasuddin Iwaj Khilji prevailed and extended the Sultan's domain south to Jessore and made the eastern Bang province a tributary. The capital was established at Lakhnauti on the Ganges near the older Bengal capital of Gaur. He managed to make Kamarupa and Trihut pay tribute to him. But he was later defeated by Shams-ud-Din Iltutmish.

Sonargaon Sultanate

Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah ruled an independent kingdom in areas that lie within modern-day eastern and south-eastern Bangladesh from 1338 to 1349. He was the first Muslim ruler to conquer Chittagong, the principal port in the Bengal region, in 1340. Fakhruddin's capital was Sonargaon which emerged as the principal city of the region and as the capital of an independent sultanate during his reign. Ibn Batuta, after visiting his capital in 1346, described the Shah as "a distinguished sovereign who loved strangers, particularly the fakirs and Sufis."

Bengal Sultanate

Ilyas Shahi dynasty

Shamsuddin Iliyas Shah founded an independent dynasty that lasted from 1342 to 1487. The dynasty successfully repulsed attempts by Delhi to conquer them. They continued to extend their territory across what is modern-day Bengal, reaching to Khulna in the south and Sylhet in the east. The sultans developed civic institutions and became more responsive and "native" in their outlook and became increasingly independent from Delhi influence and control. Considerable architectural projects were completed including the massive Adina Mosque and the Darasbari Mosque which still stands in Bangladesh near the border with India. The Sultans of Bengal were patrons of Bengali literature and began a process in which Bengali culture and identity would flourish. During the rule of this dynasty, Bengal, for the first time, achieved a separate identity. Indeed, Ilyas Shah named this province as 'Bangalah' and united different parts into a single, unified territory. The Ilyas Shahi Dynasty was interrupted by an uprising by the Hindus under Raja Ganesha. However, the Ilyas Shahi dynasty was restored by Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah. The Moroccan traveller and scholar, Ibn Battuta, arrived in Bengal during Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah's reign. In his account of Bengal in his Rihla, he depicts a land full of abundance. Bengal was a progressive state with commercial links to China, Java and Ceylon. Merchant ships arrived and departed from various destinations.

Ganesha dynasty

The Ganesha dynasty began with Raja Ganesha in 1414. After Raja Ganesha seized control over Bengal, he faced an imminent threat of invasion. Ganesha appealed to a powerful Muslim holy man named Qutb al Alam to stop the threat. The saint agreed on the condition that Raja Ganesha's son, Jadu, would convert to Islam and rule in his place. Raja Ganesha agreed and Jadu started ruling Bengal as Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah in 1415. Qutb al Alam died in 1416 and Raja Ganesha was emboldened to depose his son and return to the throne as Danujamarddana Deva. Jalaluddin was reconverted to Hinduism by the ''Golden Cow'' ritual. After the death of his father Jalaluddin once again converted to Islam and started ruling again. Jalaluddin's son, Shamsuddin Ahmad Shah ruled for only 3 years due to chaos and anarchy. The dynasty is known for its liberal policies as well as its focus on justice and charity.

Hussain Shahi dynasty

The Habshi rule gave way to the Hussain Shahi dynasty which ruled from 1494 to 1538. Alauddin Hussain Shah, is considered one of the greatest sultans of Bengal, for his encouragement of a cultural renaissance during his reign. He extended the sultanate all the way to the port of Chittagong, which witnessed the arrival of the first Portuguese merchants. Nasiruddin Nasrat Shah gave refuge to the Afghan lords during the invasion of Babur though he remained neutral. Later, Nasrat Shah made a treaty with Babur which saved Bengal from a Mughal invasion. The last sultan of the dynasty, who continued to rule from Gaur, had to contend with rising Afghan activity on his north-western border. Eventually, the Afghans broke through and sacked the capital in 1538 where they remained for several decades until the arrival of the Mughals.

Mughal period

A major Mughal victory in 1576, in which Akbar took Bengal, was followed by four decades of efforts dedicated to vanquishing rebels in the Bhati region. The initial victory was accompanied by destruction and severe violence. The Mughals were opposed by the Bengalis. Akbar appointed a Hindu servant Raja Man Singh as Bengal's governor. Singh based his rule at Rajmahal, Bihar, thinking that he could administer the region beyond.

The Bara Bhuiyan, or twelve landlords, resisted the Mughal attempts to annex Bengal. The landlords were mainly Afghan and Hindu aristocrats. Pratapaditya was one of the Hindu landlords among these leaders. They were led by the landlord Isa Khan, who was based in Sonargaon. Isa Khan is known for his resistance to outside rule, particularly from Delhi and Urdu-speaking soldiers. His actions were to serve as an inspiration in 1971.

The landlords spearheaded an extensive revolt. Both the Mughals and rebels committed atrocities such as massacre, rape and looting. They defeated the Mughal navy in 1584. After this battles continued on land. In 1597, they again defeated the Mughal navy, however, Isa Khan died in the following year. The struggle against Mughal rule weakened. Man Singh, realising the strategic value of controlling Dhaka to administer eastern Bengal, created a military base there. He also realised its utility in controlling Aranakese and Portuguese influence.

This base became more important in the late 1500s when the Ganges started to change its course. The change in the river's course allowed the clearing and harvesting of more land. The waterways of Dhaka allowed easy movement of soldiers to various parts of Bengal. In 1610, Dhaka became a provincial capital. By then several of the internationally known muslin looms had shifted to Dhaka from Sonargaon. Dhaka flourished both as an administrative and handloom center.

The Bengal region was historically an international hub of various activities. Merchants, pilgrims and voyagers traversed Bengal to travel to Nepal and Tibet. Bengal's waterways were a place where various peoples interacted. In 1346, the Moroccan voyager Ibn Battuta followed the trade route through Sri Lanka when he traveled to Bengal from the Maldives in 1346. In the 1300s Bengal traded its paddy for cowries from the Maldives. Evidence from the 1500s demonstrates that rice grown in Bengal was eaten as far as eastern Indonesia and Goa. Bengal also exported other materials and food products at the same time. Bengali traders dominated trade with southeast Asia. Chinese merchants in the 1400s and 1500s introduced gold, satin, silks, silver and porcelain. A European traveler in 1586 reported that the quality of the cotton textiles produced in Sonargaon was better than in other parts of the subcontinent. These fabrics were sent to international markets.

Under the Mughal Empire, which had 25% of the world's GDP, Bengal Subah generated 50% of the empire's GDP and 12% of the world's GDP.

Bengal, the empire's wealthiest province, was an affluent region with a Bengali Muslim majority and Bengali Hindu minority. According to economic historian Indrajit Ray, it was globally prominent in industries such as textile manufacturing and shipbuilding.

Dhaka was renamed to Jahangirnagar by the governor for Jahangir, the emperor. The governor managed to defeat and make the chieftains accept Mughal authority. During Mughal rule, Dhaka's architecture was enriched. In 1678, Aurangzeb's son started the construction of the Lalbagh fort, which encloses the tomb of Nur Jahan's grand niece. Surviving Mughal buildings are the Bara Katra, Chhota Katra and the Husaini Dalan (a Shi'a mosque).

During the Mughal rule many civilian and military administrators entered Bengal. A lot of these officials received land grants and became domiciled. Despite the Hindu domination of the landed class, Muslims formed a crucial section and maintained possession of significant land grants until the land reforms after 1947.

The form of Bengal's government had been less rigid than the ones in other parts of the Mughal empire. The Mughals asserted a centralised form of rule on top of the differing local administrative structures. Consequently, local rulers administered control in the rural areas. These "zamindars" were autonomous and were a secular elite, differentiated from the general populace by their authority. Surnames in modern Bangladesh such as Chowdhury, Khan, Sarkar and Talukdar originate from the names of ranks in the Mughal elite. This elite functioned alongside the Mughal officials. The latter's duty was to keep charge over tax collection. The diwan was the most important tax officer and was directly selected by the Mughal ruler. Each Mughal conquest in Bengal was accompanied with the establishment of a thana (garrison) for the purpose of maintaining peace. After that the territory would be merged into the empire's administrative system. In the empire's system each province would comprise several regions, called "sarkar", which in turn would be made up of subdivisions called parganas. The lowest tier in the system was the mouza (revenue village).

The agricultural borderland during Mughal rule in the 1500s started moving towards the eastern portion of Bengal. The region's agricultural productivity increased. To increase their revenues the Mughal administration promoted forest clearing and wet-rice farming. The officials gave land grants to entrepreneurs who were willing to give taxes in exchange for rights over the lands. The colonists required labour and this was advantageous for the religious elite. Most communities in the region were boatmen and fishermen on the margins of society who were nominally Hindu but in reality had very weak ties to Hinduism. These were the labourers who cultivated the rice and would make up the bulk of peasantry in eastern Bengal. Land grants would require the construction of a shrine and the colonists would gather settlers around these shrines. Society was ordered around the shrine. New communities would engage in forest clearing and cultivation. Locals either merged with these communities or moved away while keeping trading contacts with the rice cultivators.

The Mughal government had no attitude of encouraging Islam in the region and Hindus made up many of these pioneers who had government backing. But most of the pioneers were Muslim. A large number of them were pirs. Richard Eaton asserts that Islam was understood to be linked with the government-accepted acquisition of land in eastern Bengal which had only weak connections with Hindu civilization. The traditions and rituals of eastern Bengal, mosques and shrines blended together. Islam spread in Bengal because of its localisation. Islamic agencies were inserted into the contemporary cosmology, were then associated with local divinities and eventually the Islamic agencies took over the local culture. Local Hindus, in response to the conversion, closed ranks and became more conservative, expelling those who were 'polluted' by contact with Muslims. This increased the number of Muslims.

Two great Mughal Subahdars

Islam Khan

Islam Khan was appointed the Subahdar of Bengal in 1608 by Mughal emperor Jahangir. He ruled Bengal from his capital Dhaka which he renamed as Jahangir Nagar. His major task was to subdue the rebellious Rajas, Bara-Bhuiyans, Zamindars and Afghan chiefs. He fought with Musa Khan, the leader of Bara-Bhuiyans, and by the end of 1611 Musa Khan was subdued. Islam Khan also defeated Pratapaditya of Jessore, Ram Chandra of Bakla and Ananta Manikya of Bhulua. He annexed the kingdom of Kamrup and subdued Koch Bihar and Kachhar, thus taking total control over entire Bengal other than Chittagong.

Shaista Khan

Shaista Khan was appointed the Subahdar (Governor) of Bengal upon the death of Mir Jumla II in 1663. He was the longest-serving governor of Bengal. He ruled the province from his administrative headquarters in Dhaka for almost 24 years from 1664 to 1688.

Shaista Khan's great fame in Bengal chiefly rests on his re-conquest of Chittagong. Though Chittagong came under the control of Bengal during Sultan Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah's reign in the mid-14th century, it subsequently fell into the hands of Arakanese rulers. Shaista Khan gave priority to recapturing Chittagong, and was able to do so in January 1666. The conquest brought a relief and peace to the people of Chittagong as pirates had caused a great distress to the local population.

Nawabs of Bengal

Mughal appointments of agents in Bengal ceased by 1713 because the empire was weakening. In 1715, the capital was shifted to Murshidabad. This resulted in Dhaka's decline. This transfer happened when the province's main tax officer, Murshid Quli Khan, who had transferred his office to Maksudabad (renamed Murshidabad after him) became governor. Murshidabad was located at a more central position in Bengal, whose administrative limits at the time also included Bihar and Orissa. In addition to changing the capital, Murshid Quli Khan modified the tax collection system.

Murshid Quli Khan wanted to create a line of governing nawabs like the contemporary governors of Oudh. He was succeeded by family members. However, Alivardi Khan established another nawab family. He collaborated with Jagat Seth to defeat the governor and secured the post of governor from the Mughal ruler through bribery. He also became diwan of Orissa. However, he faced problems from Maratha raiders present in Orissa.

Nawab Alivardi Khan repulsed the first three Maratha invasions of Bengal. But they invaded again, and in 1751, Alivardi Khan signed a peace treaty with the Marathas. He ceded the province of Orissa to the Maratha Empire and agreed to pay twelve lakhs of rupees annually as ''chauth'' (tribute). He crushed an uprising of the Afghans in Bihar and made the British pay 150,000 Tk for blocking Mughal and Armenian trade ships.

His maternal grandson Sirajuddaulah succeeded him when he died in 1756. Sirajuddaulah tried to stop uncertified trade in Bengal. Because of this he clashed with British merchants and was eventually defeated by 1757 in Polashi. The British governed Bengal and large areas to its west by 1764.

Colonial era

Europeans in Bengal

In 1517, the Portuguese installed an outpost at Chittagong. A Portuguese settlement was also created at Satgaon. In 1579, with a land grant from Akbar, the Portuguese created another station at Hooghly. The Portuguese traded and proselytised until 1632 when they were expelled by Shah Jahan, who allowed them to re-enter in the next year. The hostility towards them was a consequence of piracy by the Portuguese and Maghs. By 1651 the British obtained control of Hooghly. The Portuguese presence came to an end.

The Portuguese had traded through the government but other European powers traded through companies instead. A Dutch station was established at Chinsura but the Dutch directed their interests to Ceylon and Southeast Asia. In 1825, they exchanged Chinsura with the British for posts in Southeast Asia. In 1755, a Danish station was established at Serampore. In 1845, the British bought it. The French Company lasted longer. Their position was second to the British. The latter overtook the French. The first British factory was established in 1608 in western India. Soon afterwards the British entered Bengal.

The British founded factories in Balasore, Cossimbazar, Dhaka, Hooghly and Patna. In 1681, a "presidency" was established. In 1690, Job Charnock established Calcutta. During this time the British came into conflict with Bengal's Mughal governors. In 1652, the British had been exempted from customs payments in exchange for giving yearly sums to the nawab. But the nawab foisted fees upon them, which the British opposed. The British met the nawab Shaista Khan in Dhaka in 1652 and secured the exemption again.

British trading activities expanded during Shaista Khan's administration. Alivardi Khan disliked the British and French plans to secure their possessions. Alivardi Khan disputed the British application of Emperor Fakukhsiyar's order which had allowed the British unfettered trading privileges in the Mughal empire. Alivardi Khan was perturbed by the stipulation in the order which provided the British with tax exemptions on the transportation of goods. This meant lower revenues for Alivardi Khan.

Alivardi's successor Sirajuddaulah set about eliminating the foreign presence. In 1756, he seized Calcutta and incarcerated the resident British population. Robert Clive and his troops took Calcutta back in January 1757. Clive compelled Sirajuddaulah to assent to a treaty which would restore Emperor Fakukhsiyar's order allowing the British to trade unrestricted. Clive then conspired with Sirajuddaulah's relative, Mir Jafar, and obtained the support of a major banker, Jagat Seth. Robert Clive and Sirajuddaulah's troops battled each other at Plassey in June 1757. Mir Jafar abandoned the nawab during the battle, who suffered defeat and was killed. Many historians see this battle as the start of British colonialism in the subcontinent which would last until 1947.

After their triumph at Plassey the British transformed Bengal into the center of their growing Indian colony. The British could fully obtain financial authority in Bengal if the diwani was given to the East India Company in place of the Nawab. When Mir Jafar died in 1765 the Emperor Shah Alam implemented that transfer. This guaranteed British authority in the province. while a semi-feudal association was maintained with the Mughal empire. The diwani was used with the approval of the Mughal ruler. While the British East India Company was nominally a diwan, it was practically independent of the Mughals.

Indian nationalist historiography pinpoints the battle in Plassey as the start of a foreign and exploitative colonialism which ended in 1947. But the Bangladeshi perspective is that the people of Bengal had been used to fleecing administrations run by foreigners before the rise of the British authority. Bangladeshi historians also contend that colonialism persisted during the post-colonial period when the region was included in Pakistan. The Battle of Plassey did not mark an end to native rule in Bengal. It marked an end to the Mughal system.

British rule

The British goal was to increase the productivity of the Bengali economy. They experimented on Bengal's administration and economy. The results of some of the experiments were not always successful. The increased taxation in Bengal's unstable climate was a calamity. The taxation was not eased even during the drought and floods of 1769–1770. Along with unmonitored exploitation this caused a severe famine, in which it is believed ten million residents of Bengal died.

The Mughal State was disintegrated, causing the principal governor of Bengal to become the ''de facto'' ruler. After a replacement was sought by the British East India Company, in the mid-eighteenth century, the border of Cooch Behar was marked the northernmost limit of British Territory. Cooch Behar survived as a princely state till the end of the colonial rule, this was due to the indirect ruling of the British expedition in 1772, when it invaded and conquered the territory: the Maharaja and his administration were thence retained under the control of a British political agent.

Capital amassed from Bengal by the East India Company was invested in various industries such as textile manufacturing in Great Britain during the initial stages of the Industrial Revolution.

Company policies in Bengal also led to the deindustrialization of the Bengali textile industry during Company rule.

The famine disaster made British officials look for viable methods of tapping into the colony's resources. In 1790, the British introduced "permanent settlement" and made it law three years later. It was a framework for taxation on land. The system was the core of the colonial form of government. It was an agreement between the British and the zamindars who were effectively given landholdings in exchange for timely payment of taxes.

The aim of the permanent settlement was that the zamindars would eventually invest in the development of agriculture and improve the economy of Bengal. The aim did not materialise because the zamindars did not have state backing for agrarian growth and because of newfound ways of generating wealth. A common method was fleecing the peasants. The increasingly rich zamindars moved away from agrarian and taxation activities. They appointed intermediaries. A multilayered form of landholdings developed, which benefited from the land's revenue. This structure was most pronounced in the southern areas of modern Bangladesh. The permanent settlement scheme deprived peasants of any proprietary rights over the land.

While Muslims had comprised most of the landlord class during Mughal rule, Hindus became prominent during the colonial rule. While Muslim landlords and Hindu occupants did exist, eastern Bengal witnessed an amalgamation of religion with class, with Hindu landlords presiding over mainly Muslim peasants. Hindu landlords were also prominent in western Bengal, but most peasants there were Hindus. This factor would become politically important by the end of the colonial rule.

Another change during British rule was the system of cash cropping. During colonial rule cash cropping was organised and produced for international markets. It was significant because of the links it created between the Bengali countryside's economy with markets in Asia and Europe. Because of cash cropping the eastern region of modern Bangladesh emerged as the centre for jute cultivation. The western portion of modern Bangladesh produced silk and sugar. The northern areas produced tobacco. Crops were associated with specific types of land organisation. Peasantry in the eastern areas were compelled by financial needs towards market production. The countryside's elite in the western and northern areas were protected from the immediate impact of market factors because they provided agrarian credit.

The British abandoned the former official language, Persian, in the 1830s and English medum educational institutions prepared a small part of the Bengali elite for jobs in the lower and middle tiers of government. Muslims took up the British improvements more slowly and lagged behind the Hindus educationally and commercially. Hindus comprised most of the college students. There were changes in health. The population growth during colonial rule was because people had more knowledge of hygiene and increased access to hospitals and medication. Transport became less reliant on the rivers with the construction of bridges and railways. Improvements in technology aided communications. Despite the government's authoritarian form, the British tried out limited democratic systems in the later part of their rule due to political constraints.

A vital development under British rule was the rise of Calcutta to political and cultural prominence. It became colonial India's capital. From 1757 to 1931 the Government of India was located in the city. Aspiring Bengalis migrated to Calcutta and obtained education and government employment. They are known to historians as the "bhodrolok" and high caste Hindus comprised most of them. Old centers such as Dhaka and Murshidabad declined while the trading class became concentrated in Calcutta.

The authoritarian regime functioning in alliance with the rural elite was susceptible to resistance and revolts happened frequently during the British rule. However, British rule in Bengal faced no threat by the second half of the 1800s. Bengal did not participate in the 1857 revolt which nearly ended British administration over large swathes of India. While there was a revolt by troops in Chittagong it dwindled because the landlords and peasants did not support the rebellion. Instead political grievances nor revolved around peasant rights and the commercialization of agriculture. The struggle was usually characterised by peasants and the middle class in opposition to the landlords, Western businessmen and the British administration. Many campaigns eventually ended the indigo industry. These were led by Wahhabi influenced Islamic missionaries.

There had been prominent Hindu reformist movements in the early 1800s but no equivalent Muslim movement. A departure from this rule was the Faraizi movement which Haji Shariatullah started in 1828. It was a conservative Islamic movement grounded in Wahhabi ideology. It opposed the exaltation of saints and the repression by landlords and indigo traders. Shariatullah regarded India as a dar al-harb and thus believed that festivals and Friday prayers should cease. His heir, Dudu Mia, expanded the movement and claimed that the landlords did not possess permanent land rights. The Faraizi movement eventually ended after his demise.

Titu Mir led another Wahhabi campaign at the same time as the Faraizi movement. This movement was violent and opposed to the British presence. He died in 1831 during a confrontation with the British. Two years later his followers supported indigo farmers in a clash against the European planters and Hindu landlords. The protest was ultimately muted by 1860 when the peasants were granted more security. But not all rural rebellions were inspired by religion.

By the late 1800s parts of the elite and peasants became politically connected. This link was to become a crucial prototype of later campaigns in Bengal. The movement for self determination joined communist and nationalist movements, several of which were associated with all-India organisations.

Bengal renaissance

The Bengal renaissance refers to a social reform movement during the 19th and early 20th centuries in Bengal. Historian Nitish Sengupta describes it as taking place from Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1775–1833) through Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941). This flowering in Bengal of religious and social reformers, scholars, and writers is described by historian David Kopf as "one of the most creative periods in Indian history". Bangladeshi people are also very proud of their national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam. He is greatly remembered for his active voice against the oppression of the British rulers in the 20th century. He was imprisoned for writing his most famous poem of "Bidrohee".

Partition of Bengal, 1905

The decision to effect the Partition of Bengal was announced in July 1905 by the Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon. The partition took place on 16 October 1905 and separated the largely Muslim eastern areas from the largely Hindu western areas. The former province of Bengal was divided into two new provinces "Bengal" (comprising western Bengal as well as the province of Bihar and Orissa) and Eastern Bengal and Assam with Dacca as the capital of the latter. Partition was promoted for administrative reasons: Bengal was geographically as large as France and had a significantly larger population. Curzon stated the eastern region was neglected and under-governed. By splitting the province, an improved administration could be established in the east, where subsequently, the population would benefit from new schools and employment opportunities. The Hindus of West Bengal who dominated Bengal's business and rural life complained that the division would make them a minority in a province that would incorporate the province of Bihar and Orissa.

Indians were outraged at what they recognised as a "divide and rule" policy.

The British regarded politically active Muslims as their supporters and the partition created a Muslim-dominated province. The Muslims universally reacted to the division with approval. Hindus denounced it. The partition highlighted the flaw in the political unity of the members of different religions in Bengal. Hindus and Muslims became distinct political groups. This was due to several reasons. Muslims comprised the majority in the new eastern province. Muslims anticipated careers in the province's administration. The second reason was that the initial enthusiasm of some Bengali Muslims for the protest against the partition diminished because of the protest's culture. The predominantly Hindu bhodrolok led the anti-partition campaign and connected it with Hindu revivalism. They identified their homeland with Kali and selected Bande Mataram as anthem, which Muslims opposed. The third reason was that Bengal's Muslims identified themselves as members of a community. The British had promoted religion as a grounds for political identification. This had been difficult because the Muslims of Bengal had not perceived themselves as a separate community. Muslim unity had been hindered by significant internal differences. Most Bengali Muslims had been more a member of a religiously diverse Bengali community than a Muslim one, until the end of the 1800s.

The Islam they practised had a significant foundation in the culture of the Bengali countryside. The elite Muslims identified themselves as ashraf (of foreign descent) and sought to copy North Indian Islamic culture and they saw themselves as the protectors of the true Islam in Bengal. To them, the Islam practised by the local peasants and craftsmen was contaminated by un-Islamic associations. While a large number of well-taught Muslims remained hesitant to accept the peasants who practised Bengali culture, the idea of a single Muslim community had come to exist just before partition. Economic issues increased Hindu-Muslim conflict in Bengal. The Muslim occupants began to demand their rights against the mainly Hindu landed and moneylending class. Middle class Muslims were unable to achieve their political goals because of the Hindu elite's contemptuous attitude. Hindus and Muslims clashed in Comilla and Mymensingh in 1906 and 1907. The violence boosted religious identities and supported stereotyping. The Hindu elite regarded the countryside Muslims as British agents and inferior. To Muslims, the Hindus were cunning exploiters. The British reversed the partition in 1911 and declared they would move India's capital to Delhi. New Delhi was inaugurated after two decades of construction in 1931.

Pakistan Movement

Dhaka was the scene of a meeting of Muslim leaders in late 1906. They created a party for Muslims and declared its loyalty to the British, believing that the British could best protect the interests of Muslims. The late 1800s had seen the introduction of a system of elections based on limited franchise. The franchise was broadened later to increase the number of voters. However, universal franchise never materialized but the Muslim leadership did secure a separate voting system for Muslims in 1909. In the Lucknow Pact of 1916 the Muslim League and Indian National Congress accepted both separate electorates and provincial weightage for minorities. This reduced Bengali Muslim seats to forty percent in a Muslim majority province. The Muslim League regretted this decision.

Until 1920, the elections happened on a non-party basis. When party candidature was introduced the independent candidates maintained their importance. They won a third of seats in Bengal in the 1937 elections. Congress had been the main contestant for the general seats while the Muslim League vied with Fazlul Huq's Krishak Praja Party (KPP) for the Muslim seats. The 1937 elections showed that no party could establish a ministry on its own. The Krishak Praja Party established a ministry with the Muslim League. The League could not win the three other Muslim provinces. Muslim prime ministers who were not members of the Congress agreed to support the League nationally even as they would keep control of their provincial matters. Fazlul Huq was a member of both the KPP and the Muslim League.

Congress ministries resigned to protest the declaration of war against Germany by viceroy, Lord Linlithgow, which he had done so without seeking the opinion of the provincial governments. The Muslim governments in Punjab, Bengal and Sindh did not resign. But a rift emerged between Fazlul Huq and the League when the viceroy created an advisory council, thus Huq's ministry fell. According to Fazlul Huq, who resigned from the party, the Muslim League represented the interests of Muslim minority provinces more than the Muslim provinces. Fazlul Huq had advanced the Lahore Resolution in 1940, before resigning. The resolution had used the word "states" which indicated that a united Pakistan was not intended by this resolution.

Fazlul Huq recreated his government, this time without the Muslim League, in late 1941. Muslim League members led by Khawaja Nazimuddin and Suhrawardy campaigned against Fazlul Huq. Huq resigned in 1943 under pressure from the governor. On 24 April 1943 Nazimuddin inaugurated his own ministry at the governor's invitation. Nazimuddin's ministry was seen unfavourably by both the viceroy, Lord Wavell, and the governor. In particular, the Viceroy was disturbed by Nazimuddin's response to the famine. Bengal experienced a great famine during the second world war. Approximately 3 and a half million died, mainly in the countryside of east Bengal.

The 1945-1946 elections restored a responsible provincial government. In the 1946 elections the politics was dominated by two organisations. They were the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League. The Congress was never able to win Bengal. The 1946 election was mainly contended over the question of creating a Muslim homeland: Pakistan. To many it represented a plebiscite. Bengal's Muslim League ignored local matters in its campaign over partition. The KPP of Fazlul Huq was defeated. The Muslim League captured 110 out of the 117 seats for Muslims. Out of all Muslim provinces, Bengal was the biggest supporter of the Muslim League. The majority of East Bengal's peasantry saw Pakistan as a good way of eliminating the feudal system. More than religious reasons, it had been because of economic factors they supported the Muslim League and Pakistan.

In 1946, the British government sent a mission, which ultimately advanced a scheme for a united India. The scheme encapsulated a loose union. A key point for Bengal was the maintenance of its unity under the scheme. The plan was agreed to by Jinnah but Nehru negated it. The Muslim League declared Direct Action Day on 16 August. Rioting followed in Calcutta and many died. The Bhodrolok decided that dividing Bengal would be better than accepting the rule of Muslims. The Muslim League did not want Bengal to be divided, and wanted it fully included in Pakistan. However, the Congress demanded the partition of the province. A few leaders of the Muslim League and Congress started advocating an independent United Bengal. While some politicians like Jinnah and Gandhi supported this idea, the national Congress rejected it in favour of partition. Eastern Bengal was to join Pakistan while Western Bengal would join India. Most of Assam's mainly Muslim Sylhet district opted for Bengal in a plebiscite. The rest joined India with Assam.

Pakistan period

Bengal became part of a unique state experiment. Pakistan was based on religious nationalism, did not inherit British India's institutions and its territories were disconnected from each other physically. While the western wing was larger, 55 percent of Pakistanis lived in Bengal. A rift developed over the question of the national language.

Bengali Language Movement

The Bengali Language Movement was a political effort in Bangladesh (then known as East Pakistan), advocating the recognition of the Bengali language as an official language of Pakistan. Such recognition would allow Bengali to be used in government affairs. It was led by Mufti Nadimul Quamar Ahmed.

When the state of Pakistan was formed in 1947, its two regions, East Pakistan (also called East Bengal) and West Pakistan, were split along cultural, geographical, and linguistic lines. On 23 February 1948, the Government of Pakistan ordained Urdu outlawed public meetings and rallies. The students of the University of Dhaka and other political activists defied the law and organised a protest on 21 February 1952. The movement reached its climax when police opened fire on the students that day. The deaths provoked widespread civil unrest led by the Awami Muslim League, later renamed the Awami League. After years of conflict, the central government relented and granted official status to the Bengali language in 1956. On 17 November 1999, UNESCO declared 21 February International Mother Language Day for the whole world to celebrate, in tribute to the Language Movement and the ethno-linguistic rights of people around the world.

Politics: 1954–1971

The 1952 events caused the people of East Pakistan to abandon the Muslim League. In East Pakistan's 1954 provincial elections, the League captured only 7 out of the 390 seats. The United Front won the elections. Until 1956, when the state declared that both Bengali and Urdu would be state languages, the language movement continued.

Great differences began developing between the two wings of Pakistan. While the west had a minority share of Pakistan's total population, it had the largest share of revenue allocation, industrial development, agricultural reforms and civil development projects. Pakistan's military and civil services were dominated by the Punjabis. Bengalis had been designated as a "non-martial" race by the British. Bengali participation in the military was very low. The British preferred to recruit Punjabi Muslims. The Punjabis dominated the army Pakistan inherited from British India's military. Because Bengalis did not have a tradition of military service in their families, it was hard to recruit Bengali officers.

By the middle of the 1960s the East Pakistani elite concluded that the protection of their interests lay in autonomy. Abdul Momen Khan, who was governor in the 1962-1968 period, persecuted opposition and censored media. The regime became more unpopular during 1965, in the year of a war between India and Pakistan. Patriotism was high in East Pakistan during the war against India, but this was one of the last cases of national solidarity. East Pakistanis felt they had not been protected by the army from a possible Indian invasion.

In 1966, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the leader of the Awami League, proclaimed a 6-point plan titled ''Our Charter of Survival'' at a national conference of opposition political parties at Lahore, in which he demanded self-government and considerable political, economic and defence autonomy for East Pakistan in a Pakistani federation with a weak central government. This led to the historic Six point movement. The six points for a confederation were more extreme than previous calls for autonomy.

In early 1968, the Agartala Conspiracy Case was filed against Mujib with the allegation that the accused was conspiring for the secession of East Pakistan with Indian aid. The government expected this to harm Mujib's popularity. But popular demonstrations made the government drop the case.

A West Pakistani movement aimed at removing Ayub Khan spread to East Pakistan where it adopted Bengali nationalist connotations. Ayub Khan resigned in March 1969 and his position was taken by General Yahya Khan. Yahya tried to reconcile the politicians. He announced that elections would be held in 1970 and political organisation would be permitted. He declared that his own position was temporary and that his job was to run elections for an assembly who would be tasked with creating a new constitution. He ended the One Unit Scheme
and permitted popular representation, thereby allowing East Pakistan 162 of the 300 seats. Yahya created a legal framework order (LFO) as a guideline for the assembly. It stipulated principles such as the federalism of the state, paramountcy of Islam, provincial autonomy with sufficient provisions for the federal government to carry out its duties and defend the country's integrity. The latter point clashed with Mujib's points. Yahya highlighted that a constitution would not be accepted if it did not adhere to the LFO. Mujib's party had drafted its own constitution based on six points.

Independence movement

The Awami League captured 160 of East Pakistan's 162 seats in the 1970 Pakistani general election. Nurul Amin won one of the remaining seats. The Pakistan Peoples Party, led by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, won a majority of seats in West Pakistan. Yahya organised talks between Bhutto and Mujib to arrive at a consensus on the form of the future constitution. Mujib asserted his majority and intent to base the constitution on his six points. Bhutto's argument was that there were two majorities. The talks failed. Mujib rejected Bhutto's demands for a share in power. Bhutto boycotted the National Assembly session of 3 March and intimidated other West Pakistani politicians from participating. Bhutto requested that Yahya delay the National Assembly session. On 1 March protests and confrontations broke out when Yahya did this.

Leftists in East Pakistan pressured Mujib to immediately declare independence. The West Pakistani government deployed soldiers to deter such a possibility. Mujib chose a middle-ground option by starting a non-cooperation movement

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