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Kingdom of Rohilkhand Katehir | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1721–1774 | |||||||||||
 Flag of the Rohilla | |||||||||||
 Rohilkhand in India highlighted | |||||||||||
| Capital | Aonla | ||||||||||
| Common languages |
| ||||||||||
| Religion | Islam | ||||||||||
| Government | Absolute monarchy | ||||||||||
| Nawab | |||||||||||
• 1721–1748 | Ali Mohammed Khan | ||||||||||
• 1748–1754 | Abdullah Khan | ||||||||||
• 1754–1764 | Saadullah Khan | ||||||||||
• 1764–1774 | Faizullah Khan | ||||||||||
| Regent of Rohilkhand | |||||||||||
• 1748–1774 | Hafiz Rehmat Khan Barech | ||||||||||
| Legislature | Rohilla council | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
• Conquests of Aonla and Barha byAli Mohammed Khan | 1721 | ||||||||||
| 1774 | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
TheKingdom of Rohilkhand was apetty kingdom[1] under nominal Mughal suzerainty, that rose under the decliningMughal Empire in 1721 and continued to exist until 1774 when it was defeated by Oudh. The British transformed its significantly reduced borders into theprincely state ofRampur.Nawab Ali Mohammed Khan became the firstNawab ofRohilkhand, having been previously elected as overlord by various Afghan chiefs at the age of fourteen. He would carve out the future kingdom from the collapsingMughal Empire and go on to the found theRohilla dynasty. The crown would go on being held by the Rohillas until the kingdom came to an end in 1774, and thereafter the same dynasty would rule overRampur.
Most of Rohilkhand's borders were established byAli Mohammed Khan and largely came into existence as a check to the power ofOudh State and in that capacity, Nawab Ali Mohammed was supported by the Wazir al Mulk,Qamarudin Khan. Nonetheless, the state grew far more influential with its borders extending to the boundaries of Delhi and Agra. In 1757, the powerful Maratha Empiredefeated the Rohillas and Afghans near Delhi andNajib Khan was taken prisoner. In 1772, Rohillas were defeated by a larger Maratha force When they could not repay the debt, Nawab of Oudh invaded Rohilkhand in 1773. Most of the kingdom was annexed at the end of theFirst Rohilla War into Oudh, when the mismanagement ofHafiz Rehmat Khan along with the internal division of the Rohilla Confederation led to the weakening of central authority.[2]
Ali Mohammed Khan was an enterprising soldier who established the kingdom of Rohilkhand.Rohillas areAfghans who migrated to north India during the 17th and 18th centuries. However, theRohilla dynasty descended from Nawab Ali Muhammed Khan, who was aJat[3][4][5][6] boy of age eight when he was adopted by the chief of the Barech tribe, Sardar Daud Khan Rohilla.[4] Daud Khan was the son Shah Alam, who belonged to the Barech tribe. After his murder by the Raja of Kumaon, Ali Mohammed rose as the 14-year-old leader of his foster father's militia.[7] Due to the role he played in the establishment ofRohilkhand and in the general history of Rohillas, he gained recognition as a Rohilla chief, although he was not Afghan by birth.[6] In the 19th century, descendants of Ali Mohammed Khan, specifically theNawabs of Rampur, started claiming that he was aBarha Sayyid and began using the title of Sayyid. However, they could not present anypedigree or valid historical proof in the support of this claim.[5] The Nawabs even sought service of a prominent religious leader of Rampur, Najmul Ghani for establishing ancestry fromAli, which was widely rejected.[8]
With the death ofAurangzeb and subsequent collapse of administration under the emperorMuhammad Shah, Mughal Authority in the area collapsed, Rohilla immigration increased, although there were descendents of Pathans long domiciled in India. The Mughal authority was further weakened byNader Shah's invasion of India, allowing Ali Muhammad Khan to extend his power. The Rohillas began to emerge as a mixture of old domiciled IndianPathan families, Indian converts to Islam and new adventurers from the northwest, who were in the process of developing a real or fictive kinship based on newly forged marriage alliances.[9][10]
A man of ability and courage, Ali Mohammed Khan attracted many adventurers by his great reputation and arose as the most powerful man in Katehir. Ali Muhammad Khan distinguished himself by helping in suppressing the rebellion of the powerful Indian MuslimBarah Sayyids, who were formerly de-facto rulers of theMughal Empire,[11] and who had under their chief Saifudddin Barha put the Mughal governor Marhamat Khan and all of his followers to death.[12] As a reward Ali Muhammad Khan was given the title of Nawab by Muhammad Shah in 1737. He gained favour with the lower rungs of society and by the invasion of Nadir Shah in 1739 he further strengthened his position attractinga large swath of afghans who took employment with him. For the subsequent five years, his authority was left unchallenged.[citation needed]
In 1745 a quarrel arose between Ali Mohammed and Safdar Jang the Subedar of Oudh. Retainers of Ali Mohammed seized the property of servants belonging to Safdar Jang. Safdar Jang who was already jealous at the growing power of Ali Mohammad went to the Emperor Muhammad Shah, and through him ordered the return of the confiscated property as well as the arrest of the Rohillas in-charge of the confiscation. After the refusal of Ali Mohammed, Safdar Jang led an Imperial expedition together with the Emperor present in person and after being deserted by his men Ali Mohammed was captured and taken to Delhi.[citation needed]
He was treated honourably and respectfully by the Emperor, in large part due to his influence among his adherent who were still at large. The necessity to consulate Ali Mohammed led to his appointment as Governor of Sirhind (the area between Jummuna and Sutlej).[citation needed]
In 1748 the invasion by Ahmed Shah Abidali allowed Ali Mohammed the opportunity to return to Katehir and re-establish his rule. Upon his return, he was rejoined by most of his former men and soon he was virtually independent in his control of Rohilkhand. To ensure loyalty almost all positions of power were given to Afghan and several likeNajib-ud-Daula received land grants.[13]
On his death-bed Nawab Ali Mohammad Khan made the previously humble and lowly Rohilla,Hafiz Rehmat Khan as Guardian of Rohilkhand until his sons reached majority. Ali Mohammad's cousin Dunde Khan was made Commander-in-chief, Niamut Khan and Silabat Khan were entrusted with the General Administration. Futte Khan who was Ali's favourite retainer was made Khanfaman, while Sirdar Khan was made Bakshi or Paymaster. All of these men were granted districts to rule over as a trust until the majority of his Ali Muhammad children but these trusts were quickly usurped by most of these men upon the death of the Nawab.[14]
Ali Mohammad's capital was Aolna, in the district of Bareilly. After his death in 1749, Rehmat Khan became the 'Hafiz' or chief guardian of his sons during their minority. Ali Mohammad left six sons, Faizullah Khan and Abdullah Khan being elder sons. Before his death, he made arrangements to divide the Kingdom among them and asked Rehmat Khan to make solemn assurance and swore upon Koran to observe the promise.[15] However in 1754, Hafiz Rehmat resolved no longer to regard the pledges and appropriated to themselves most valuable portions of Rohilkhand. The larger share was taken by Hafiz Rehmat and he virtually became the ruler. Smaller districts were assigned to Faizullah Khan and Abdullah Khan, elder sons of Ali Mohammad, and to several influential chiefs.[16] This led to a confederation-like structure of government with the Nawab of Rohilkhand at its head and the Rohilla Chiefs in charge of their own Rohilla States answering to him especially in regards to military engagements.
Although the council carried out to an extent its purpose, especially in the form ofNajib-ad-Daula who often went to great lengths in securing Rohilkhand's safety and Futtee Khan who remained loyal to the royal family. Ultimately Rehmat Khan and Dundi Khan's machinations won out and Ali Mohammed Khan's children were in large part sidelined in the new government.[14] Hafiz Rehmat died in 1774 Rohilla War and Faizullah Khan, eldest surviving son in the war became the newly acknowledged head. He signed a treaty where he retained his former territory in Rampur. Thus, The Rohilla State of Rampur was established byNawab Faizullah Khan on 7 October 1774 in the presence of British Commander Colonel Champion, and remained a pliant state under British protection thereafter.
The weakening of the central government led to the formation of around a dozen Rohilla states. Four of these states were created during the division of Rohilkhand at the request of theAfghan emperor,Ahmed Shah Abidali, for the sons ofNawab Ali Muhammad Khan:
Many Rohilla chiefs also became independent after 1748. Notable Rohilla chieftancies included:
Rohillas had sought assistance from theNawab of OudhShuja-ud-Daula in 1772 to expel outMarathas fromRohilkhand. However, they couldn't pay their debt back and in 1773, the Nawab decided to annexe their country. He appealed toWarren Hastings for assistance, which was given in return for a sum of fortylakhs of rupees.[citation needed] The Rohillas underHafiz Rahmat Ali Khan[17] were defeated by ColonelAlexander Champion on 23 April 1774 at theBattle of Miranpur Katra. The decisive battle, in which Hafiz Rahmat Khan died, caused the Rohillas to flee to the mountains near Loll Dong. Rohilkhand fell to Awadh, was plundered and occupied. The majority of the Rohillas left. A Rohilla state under British protection was set up inRampur, andFaizullah Khan managed to become its Nawab. The kingdom of Rohilkhand was abolished, and afterwards became part ofOudh State.
| Nawab | Relation with previous Nawab | Rule | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation of Kingdom of Rohilkhand | |||
| Nawab Ali Mohammed Khan | Founder | 1721–1748 | |
| Nawab Abdullah Khan | Son | 1748–1754 | |
| Nawab Saadullah Khan | Brother | 1754–1764 | |
| Nawab Faizullah Khan | Brother | 1764–1774 | |
| Conquest by Oudh. Green row signifies the regency ofHafiz Rahmat Ali Khan. | |||
There was an unusually large proportion of Muslim converts who represented a quarter of the population while the majority of the inhabitants were Hindu.[18]
Once Daud was sent against the village of Bankauli, in pargana Chaumahla, with which his employer was at feud. Along with the plunder taken on this occasion Daud obtained possession of a Jat boy seven or eight years of age, whom he caused to be circumcised and then adopted under the name of Ali Muhammad Khan.
Amongst other prisoners he obtained a young Jat boy of eight years . Daud took a fancy to him and adopted him as his son and named him ' Ali Muhammad Khan.
Most of the contemporary sources, however, call him a Jat or an Ahir.
...this remarkable chief was not an Afghan by birth, but a Hindu, a Jat by caste.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)Contemporary Persian authorities say that Ali Muhammad Khan was of Jat parents . See Gulistan . 7; Abdulka . " rim, 88b, Ashob, 424; Siyar . II 480. A partisan attempt has, however, been made in morden times to prove that he was a Sayyid. Najmul Ghani of Rampur has invented a false pedigree of the Khan, tracing it to Muhammad. The Maulvi's discussion is altogether unconvincing and thoroughly ridiculous. His object is to prove that the present ruler of Rampur is a Sayyid.