Location of Awadh

Awadh (Devanagari अवध) (also known in various British historical texts as Oudh, Oundh or Oude) is a region in the center of the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which was before Independence known as the United Provinces of Oudh and Agra. The traditional capital of Awadh has been Lucknow, still the capital of the modern State. The modern definition of Awadh geographically includes the districts of Ambedkar Nagar, Bahraich, Balrampur, Barabanki, Faizabad, Gonda, Hardoi, Lakhimpur Kheri, Lucknow, Allahabad, Kaushambi, Pratapgarh, Rai Bareilly, Shravasti, Sitapur, Sultanpur, and Unnao.The region is home to a distinct dialect, Awadhi. Image File history File links India_Awadh_locator_map. ... Image File history File links India_Awadh_locator_map. ... India is subdivided into twenty-eight states and seven union territories; the states and territories are themselves further subdivided. ... Uttar Pradesh (Hindi: , Urdu: ‎, translation: Northern Province, IPA: ,  ), also popularly known by its abbreviation U.P. It is the most populous and fifth largest state in the Union of India. ... Lucknow   (Hindi: लखनऊ; Urdu: لكهنو;) is the capital city of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. ... Ambedkar Nagar is a city in Uttar Pradesh state of India. ... Bahraich - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins/monobook/IE50Fixes. ... Balrampur, a town situated on the bank of river Rapti, is the district headquarters of Balarampur District of Uttar Pradesh state of India. ... Barabanki district is one of the districts of Uttar Pradesh state of India. ... This article or section needs to be wikified. ... Gonda is a town in Uttar Pradesh, India. ... Hardoi is a city in Lucknow division, Uttar Pradesh state, India. ... Lakhimpur Kheri is a district of Uttar Pradesh in the Lucknow division. ... Surroundings of Allahabad, India. ... Kaushambi district is one of the districts of Uttar Pradesh state of India. ... This article is about the city and district in Uttar Pradesh. ... Raebareli (also Rae Bareli or Rai Bareli) is a city and a municipal board in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. ... Shravasti is a newly created district of Uttar Pradesh (India) carved out from districts of Gonda and Bahraich . ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Sultanpur is a district in the state of Uttar Pradesh in northern India. ... Unnao is a district in Uttar Pradesh, India between Kanpur and Lucknow. ... A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος, dialektos) is a variety of a language used by people from a particular geographic area. ... Awadhi is a dialect of Hindi, spoken in the Awadh (Oudh) region of Uttar Pradesh. ...

Awadh's political unity can be traced back to the ancient Aryan kingdom of Kosala, with Ayodhya as its capital. Modern Awadh finds historical mention only in the time of Akbar, in the late fifteenth century. Aryan () is an English language word derived from the Sanskrit and Iranian terms ārya-, the extended form aryāna-, ari- and/or arya- (Sanskrit: आर्य, Persian: آریا). Beyond its use as the ethnic self-designation of the Proto-Indo-Iranians, the meaning noble/spiritual has been attached to it in Sanskrit and... Kosala was an ancient Indian Aryan kingdom, corresponding roughly in area with the region of Oudh. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Under the Mughals

Till 1819, Awadh was a province of the Mughal Empire administered by a Nawab. Saadat Khan was appointed Nawab in 1722 and established his court in Faizabad [1] near Lucknow. He took advantage of a weakening Mughal Empire in Delhi to declare himself the founder of the Awadh dynasty. The Mughal Empire at its greatest extent. ... Nawab (Urdu: نواب ) was originally the subadar (provincial governor) or viceroy of a subah (province) or region of the Mughal empire. ... Wakil-i-Mutlaq, Burhan ul-Mulk, Itimad ud-Daula, Nawab Saadat Khan Bahadur, Shaukat Jang, better known as Saadat Khan or Burhan-ul-mulk, the founder of Awadh dynasty hailed from a noble Saiyid family of Nishapur in Khurasan. ... Delhi   (Hindi: , Urdu: ‎, Punjabi: ) is a metropolis in northern India. ...

Awadh was known as the granary of India and was important strategically for the control of the Doaba, the fertile plain between the Ganga and the Yamuna rivers. It was a wealthy kingdom, able to maintain its independence against threats from the Marathas, the British and the Afghans. The third Nawab, Shuja-ud-Daula fell out with the British after aiding Mir Qasim the fugitive Nawab of Bengal. He was comprehensively defeated in the Battle of Buxar by the British East India Company, after which he was forced to pay heavy penalties and cede parts of his territory. The British appointed a resident in 1773, and over time gained control of more territory and authority in the state. They were disinclined to capture Awadh outright, because that would bring them face to face with the Marathas and the remnants of the Mughal Empire. Early morning on the Ganges The River Ganges (Ganga in Indian languages) (Devanagiri गंगा) is a major river in northern India. ... The Triveni Sangam, or the intersection of Yamuna River and Ganges River. ... The Marāthās (Marathi: मराठा)is a collective term referring to an Indo Aryan group of Hindu warriors and peasants hailing mostly from the present-day state of Maharashtra, who created a substantial empire, covering a major part of India, in the late 17th and 18th centuries AD. The Marathas... Shuja-ud-Daula (also known as Shuja) The ruler of the region that lies between the river Ganga and Yamuna (also called Jamuna) around 1761. ... Mir Qasim (d. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... The BEIC, sometimes referred to as John Company, was a joint-stock company which was granted an English Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, with the intention of favouring trade privileges in India. ...

In 1798, the fifth Nawab Wazir Ali Shah alienated both his people and the British, and was forced to abdicate. The British then helped Saadat Ali Khan to the throne. Saadat Ali Khan was a puppet king, who in the treaty of 1801 ceded half of Awadh to the British East India Company and also agreed to disband his troops in favor of a hugely expensive, British-run army. This treaty effectively made the state of Awadh a vassal to the British East India Company, though they continued to be part of the Mughal Empire in name till 1819.

The British Influence

The treaty of 1801 formed an arrangement that was very beneficial to the Company. They were able to use Awadh's vast treasuries, repeatedly digging into them for loans at reduced rates. In addition, the revenues from running Awadh's armed forces brought them useful revenues while it acted as a buffer state. The Nawabs were ceremonial kings, busy with pomp and show but with little influence over matters of state. By the mid-nineteenth century, however, the British had grown impatient with the arrangement and wanted direct control. They started looking about for an excuse, which the decadent Nawabs readily provided.

In 1856 the East India Company first moved its troops to the border, then annexed the state, which was placed under a chief commissioner - Sir Henry Lawrence. Wajid Ali Shah, the then Nawab, was imprisoned, and then exiled by the Company to Calcutta. In the subsequent Revolt of 1857 his 14 year old son Birjis Qadr was crowned ruler, and Sir Henry Lawrence killed in the hostilities. Following the rebellion's defeat, he and other rebel leaders obtained asylum in Nepal. 1856 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Sir Henry Montgomery Lawrence (June 28, 1806 - July 4, 1857) was a British soldier and statesman in India, who died defending Lucknow during the Indian Mutiny. ... Wajid Ali Shah (نواب واجد على شاه) (official name ) (1822-1887) was the tenth and last nawab of the princely kingdom of Awadh (Oudh) in present day Uttar Pradesh in India. ... This article is on Calcutta/Kolkata, the city. ... An engraving titled Sepoy Indian troops dividing the spoils after their mutiny against British rule gives a contemporary view of events from the British perspective. ...

Those company troops who were recruited from the state, along with some of the nobility of the state, were major players in the events of 1857. The rebels took control of Awadh, and it took the British 18 months to reconquer the region, months which included the famous Siege of Lucknow and the massacre at Kanpur or 'Cawnpore'. Oudh was placed back under a chief commissioner, and was governed as a British province. In 1877 the offices of lieutenant-governor of the North-Western Provinces and chief commissioner of Oudh were combined in the same person; and in 1902, when the new name of United Provinces of Agra and Oudh was introduced, the title of chief commissioner was dropped, though Oudh still retained some marks of its former independence. Combatants Great Britain Indian rebels Commanders Sir Henry Lawrence Henry Havelock Sir James Outram Sir Colin Campbell Strength rising to approx. ... The Seige of Cawnpore was a symbolic event in the Indian Rebellion of 1857. ... 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... United Provinces, 1903 The United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, mainly referred to simply as the United Provinces, was a former province of British India, which existed from 1902 to 1947. ...