Maharani Saratsundari Devi (1849-1886) was a queen and Bengali landed aristocrat of the

Puthia Raj family The Puthia Raj family was created by the Mughals in the early seventeenth century and is one of the oldest feudal estates of Bengal. A lord named Nilambar received the title of Raja (''King'') from the Emperor Jahangir (reigned 1605-1627 CE). In ...

based in the

Rajshahi District Rajshahi District ( bn, রাজশাহী জেলা) is a district in mid-western Bangladesh. It is a part of the Rajshahi Division. The metropolitan city of Rajshahi is in Rajshahi District. Geography Rajshahi district is bounded by Naoga ...

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William and later Bengal Province, was a subdivision of the British Empire in India. At the height of its territorial jurisdiction, it covered large parts of what is now South Asia and ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

(which now a part 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 ...

Background

The

was established in Rajshahi by Mughal Emperor

Jahangir Nur-ud-Din Muhammad Salim (30 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was the fourth Mughal Emperor, who ruled from 1605 until he died in 1627. He was named after the Indian Sufi saint, Salim Chishti. Ear ...

in the early 17th century after the title was given to Nilambar. In 1744 the estate was partitioned among four brothers. The estate continued united it was abolished in 1950 in East Pakistan by the government of Pakistan.

Biography

She assumed control of the Panchani estate in 1865 and carried out the management of the estate with great skills. She gained some renown for her philanthropic activities and was popular among her subjects. In 1874 the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

awarded her the title Rani and two years later, in 1877 the British Raj awarded her the title of Maharani. In 1883, after the death of her adopted son, Jatindra Narayan Roy, her daughter-in-law, Hemanta Kumari Devi ( :bn:হেমন্ত কুমারী দেবী), was awarded the will and took over the estate. Hemanta Kumari was a notable philanthropist as well.

Death

Saratsundari Devi died in 1886 in

Kashi Kashi or Kaashi may refer to: Places * Varanasi (historically known as "Kashi"), a holy city in India **Kingdom of Kashi, an ancient kingdom in the same place, one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas **Kashi Vishwanath Temple, Varanasi * Kashgar, a cit ...

, when she was 37 years old.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Devi, Saratsundari 1849 births 1886 deaths Bengali Hindus People from the Bengal Presidency 19th-century Indian monarchs 19th-century Bengalis People from Rajshahi District People from Varanasi