Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh
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Jaunpur () is a city and a municipal board in Jaunpur district in the Indian
state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
of
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...
. It is located 228 km southeast of state capital
Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...
. Demographically, Jaunpur resembles the rest of the
Purvanchal Purvanchal () is the region of eastern Uttar Pradesh. Purvanchal is also a proposed state in India, encompassing 32 eastern districts of Uttar Pradesh.  The proposal, introduced in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly in 2011 by then Chief ...
area in which it is located.


History

Earliest Hindu rulers of Jaunpur were the Ahirs/Yadavs, Heerchand Yadav being the first ruler of Jaunpur. Ahirs/Yadavs built forts at Chandwak and Gopalpur villages of jaunpur It is believed that the famous temple of Chaukiya Devi was built in the glory of their clan-deity either by the Yadavs or the Bhars- but in view of the predilections of the Bhars, it seems more logical to conclude that this temple was built by the Bhars. The Bhars were non-Aryans. The worship of Shiv and Shakti was prevalent in the non-aryans. The Bhars also held some power in Jaunpur. In 1359, the city was invaded by the
Sultan of Delhi The Sultan of Delhi was the absolute monarch of the Delhi Sultanate which stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent during the period of medieval era, for 320 years (1206–1526).Feroz Shah Tughlaq Firuz Shah Tughlaq (1309 – 20 September 1388), also known as Firuz III, was Sultan of Delhi from 1351 until his death in 1388. He succeeded his cousin Muhammad bin Tughlaq following the latter's death at Thatta, Sindh. His father was Si ...
and named in memory of his cousin,
Muhammad bin Tughluq Muhammad bin Tughluq (; ; 1290 – 20 March 1351), or Muhammad II, also named Jauna Khan as Crown Prince, further known by his epithets, The Eccentric Prince, or The Mad Sultan, was the eighteenth Sultan of Delhi. He reigned from 4 February 1 ...
, whose given name was Jauna Khan. In 1388, Feroz Shah Tughlaq appointed
Malik Sarwar Sultan-ush-Sharq Atabak-i-Azam Malik Sarwar was the first sultan of the Jaunpur Sultanate and the founder of the Sharqi dynasty. Early life Malik Sarwar was an eunuch of common birth, possibly a slave of African descent, in the Delhi Sultanate. ...
(an
eunuch A eunuch ( , ) is a male who has been castration, castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2 ...
, who was notorious for having been the lover of Feroz Shah Tughlaq's daughter) as the governor of the region. The Sultanate was in disarray because of factional fighting for power, and in 1393 Malik Sarwar declared independence. He and his adopted son Mubarak Shah founded what came to be known as the
Sharqi dynasty The Jaunpur Sultanate () was a late medieval Indian Muslim state which ruled over much of what is now the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and southern Nepal between 1394 and 1494. It was founded in 1394 by Khwajah-i-Jahan Malik Sarwar ...
(dynasty of the East). During the Sharqi period (1394 and 1479) the Jaunpur Sultanate was a strong military power in Northern India, and on several occasions threatened the Delhi Sultanate. The Jaunpur Sultanate attained its greatest height under the younger brother of Mubarak Shah, who ruled as Shams-ud-din Ibrahim Shah (ruled 1402–1440). To the east, his kingdom extended to Bihar, and to the west, to Kanauj; he even marched on Delhi at one point. Under the aegis of a Muslim holy man named Qutb al-Alam, he threatened the
Sultanate of Bengal The Bengal Sultanate ( Middle Bengali: , Classical Persian: ) was a late medieval sultanate based in the Bengal region in the eastern South Asia between the 14th and 16th century. It was the dominant power of the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, ...
under Shihabuddin Bayazid Shah. During the reign of Husain Shah (1456–76), the Jaunpur army was perhaps the biggest in India, and Husain decided to attempt a conquest of Delhi. However, he was defeated on three successive attempts by Bahlul Khan Lodi. It is a dominant trend in modern historiography of the period that this defeat was a cause of a large number of eunuchs in the military ranks. Finally, under Sikandar Lodi, the Delhi Sultanate was able to reconquer Jaunpur in 1493, bringing that sultanate to an end. The Jaunpur Sultanate was a major center of
Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
and
Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
knowledge and culture. The Sharqi dynasty was known for its excellent communal relations between
Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
s and
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
s, perhaps stemming from the fact that the Sharqis themselves were originally indigenous converts to Islam, as opposed to descendants of
Persians Persians ( ), or the Persian people (), are an Iranian ethnic group from West Asia that came from an earlier group called the Proto-Iranians, which likely split from the Indo-Iranians in 1800 BCE from either Afghanistan or Central Asia. They ...
or
Afghans Afghans (; ) are the citizens and nationals of Afghanistan, as well as their descendants in the Afghan diaspora. The country is made up of various ethnic groups, of which Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, and Uzbeks are the largest. The three main lan ...
. Jaunpur's independence came to an end in 1480, when the city was conquered by Sikander Lodi, the Sultan of
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...
. The Sharqi kings attempted for several years to retake the city, but ultimately failed. Although many of the Sharqi monuments were destroyed when the Lodis took the city, several important
mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...
s remain, most notably the Atala Masjid,
Jama Masjid A congregational mosque or Friday mosque (, ''masjid jāmi‘'', or simply: , ''jāmi‘''; ), or sometimes great mosque or grand mosque (, ''jāmi‘ kabir''; ), is a mosque for hosting the Friday noon prayers known as ''jumu'ah''.See: * * * * ...
(now known as the Badi (big mosque) Masjid) and the Lal Darwaza Masjid. The Jaunpur mosques display a unique architectural style, combining traditional Hindu and Muslim motifs with purely original elements. The old bridge over the Gomti River in Jaunpur dates from 1564, the era of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. The bridge is still being used for transportation. The Jaunpur Qila, a fortress from the Tughlaq era, also remains in good form. Jaunpur district was annexed into
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
based on the Permanent settlement of 1779, and thus was subject to the
Zamindar A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian was the official language; ''zamindar'' is the ...
i system of land revenue collection. During the Revolt of 1857 the
Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...
troops in Jaunpur joined the Indian rebels. The district was eventually reconquered for the British by
Gurkha The Gurkhas or Gorkhas (), with the endonym Gorkhali ( Nepali: गोर्खाली ), are soldiers native to the Indian subcontinent, chiefly residing within Nepal and some parts of North India. The Gurkha units consist of Nepali and ...
troops from
Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
. Jaunpur then became a district administrative center. The major rebellion took place in Jaunpur when freedom fighters, led by Pandit Badrinath Tiwari, unfurled national flag at the railway station of Nibhapur. It was marked by a series of government-led suppressions of Pandit Badrinath Tiwari and his fellow freedom fighters throughout the district brave Pandit Ji refused to bow down in front of British atrocities.


Present state

Jaunpur is the district headquarters. The district has 2
Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...
and 9
Vidhan Sabha The State Legislative Assembly, also known as the Vidhan Sabha or the Saasana Sabha, is a legislative body in each of the states and certain union territories of India. Members of the legislative assembly are often directly elected to serve fiv ...
constituencies.


Geography


Rivers

Gomti, Sai,
Varuna Varuna (; , ) is a Hindu god. He is one of the earliest deities in pantheon, whose role underwent a significant transformation from the Vedic to the Puranic periods. In the early Vedic era, Varuna is seen as the god-sovereign, ruling the sky ...
, Pili Nadi ('yellow rivulet' or 'river'), Mayur and Basuhi are the five local rivers. Gujar tal in Jaunpur is the largest lake in Varanasi division. Efforts are being made to develop it as an eco-tourism site.


Demographics

As per 2011 Indian Census, Jaunpur NPP had population of 180,362 of which male and female were 93,718 and 86,644 respectively, that is a sex ratio of 1024 females per 1000 males. Child population in the age range of 0–6 years was 22,710. The total number of literates in Jaunpur was 128,050, which constituted 71% of the population with male literacy of 75.2% and female literacy of 66.5%. The effective literacy rate of 7+ population of Jaunpur was 81.2%, of which male literacy rate was 86.1% and female literacy rate was 75.9%. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes population was 12,703 and 195 respectively. There were 26216 households as of 2011.


Landmarks

Tourist attractions in Jaunpur include monuments and religious sites.


Monuments

* Shahi Bridge * Shahi Quila (Jaunpur Fort)


Religious sites

* Atala Masjid * Jhanjhari Masjid *
Jama Masjid A congregational mosque or Friday mosque (, ''masjid jāmi‘'', or simply: , ''jāmi‘''; ), or sometimes great mosque or grand mosque (, ''jāmi‘ kabir''; ), is a mosque for hosting the Friday noon prayers known as ''jumu'ah''.See: * * * * ...
* Lal Darwaza Masjid * Sheetala Chaukia Dham Mandir


Transportation


Rail

Jaunpur has four major railway stations: Jaunpur City Railway Station(JOP) and (JNU), Shahganj Junction (SHG), Janghai Junction, Kerakat railway station (KCT).


Air

The nearest airport is
Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport is an international airport serving Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located at Babatpur, northwest of Varanasi. Formerly known as Varanasi Airport, it was officially renamed after Lal Bahadur Shastri, the ...
in
Varanasi Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.* * * * The city has a syncretic tradition of I ...
, which is roughly from the city.


Education


University

* Veer Bahadur Singh Purvanchal University, formerly Purvanchal University, is in Jaunpur. * Umanath Singh Autonomous State Medical College (UNS ASMC), in Siddiqpur was inaugurated by Prime Minister under One District One medical college in late 2021.


Notable institutes

* Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya * Prasad Institute of Technology, affiliated to Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technical University * Tilak Dhari Singh Post Graduate Degree College,


Notable people

* Hasan Abidi *
Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay (30 March 1899 – 22 September 1970) was an Indian Bengali language, Bengali-language writer. He was actively involved with Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali cinema as well as Bollywood. The creator of the Bengali dete ...
* Munna Bajrangi *
Banarasidas Banarasidas (1586–1643) was a Shrimal Jain businessman and poet of Mughal India. He is known for his poetic autobiography – ''Ardhakathānaka'', (The Half Story), composed in Braj Bhasa, an early dialect of Hindi linked with the region a ...
* Ashok Bhushan * Yadavendra Dutt Dubey * Syed Wazir Hasan * Majid Ali Jaunpuri, Islamic scholar * Muhammad Jaunpuri * Ravi Kishan * Shailendra Yadav Lalai * Mohammad Akram Nadwi, Islamic scholar * Sushma Patel * Urvashi Rai, Indian film actress * Tribhuvan Ram * Dhananjay Singh * Harivansh Singh * Indu Prakash Singh * Kripashankar Singh * Lalji Singh * Shakeel Ahmed Samdani * Jagdish Sonkar * Rajesh Vivek * Rambhadracharya, spiritual leader * Gaurav Yadav, DGP of Punjab Police * Girish Chandra Yadav * Jagmohan Yadav, former DGP of Uttar Pradesh Police * Jawahar Yadav, politician * Lucky Yadav, politician * Parasnath Yadav, politician, founding member of
Samajwadi Party The Samajwadi Party ( SP; ) is a Socialism, socialist political party in India. It was founded on 4 October 1992 by former Janata Dal politician Mulayam Singh Yadav and is headquartered in New Delhi. It is the third-largest political party in ...
* Surendra Kumar Yadav, judge


References


Further reading

{{Authority control Cities and towns in Jaunpur district Cities in Uttar Pradesh