History of Chittagong
The city of Chattogram is traditionally centred around its seaport which has existed since the 4th century BCE. One of the world's oldest ports with a functional natural harbor for centuries, Chittagong appeared on ancient Greek and Roman maps, including on Ptolemy's world map. Chittagong port is the oldest and largest natural seaport and the busiest port of Bay of Bengal. It was located on the southern branch of the Silk Road. The city was home to the ancient independent Buddhist kingdoms of Bengal like Samatata and Harikela. It later fell under of the rule of the Gupta Empire, the Gauda Kingdom, the Pala Empire, the Chandra Dynasty, the Sena Dynasty and the Deva Dynasty of eastern Bengal. Arab Muslims traded with the port from as early as the 9th century. Historian Lama Taranath is of the view that the Buddhist king Gopichandra had his capital at Chittagong in the 10th century. According to Tibetan tradition, this century marked the birth of Tantric Buddhism in the region. The region has been explored by numerous historic travellers, most notably Ibn Battuta of Morocco who visited in the 14th century. During this time, the region was conquered and incorporated into the independent Sonargaon Sultanate by Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah in 1340 AD. Sultan Ghiyasuddin Azam Shah constructed a highway from Chittagong to Chandpur and ordered the construction of many lavish mosques and tombs. After the defeat of the Sultan of Bengal Ghiyasuddin Mahmud Shah in the hands of Sher Shah Suri in 1538, the Arakanese Kingdom of Mrauk U managed to regain Chittagong. From this time onward, until its conquest by the Mughal Empire, the region was under the control of the Portuguese and the Magh pirates for 128 years.
The Mughal commander Shaista Khan, his son Buzurg Umed Khan, and Farhad Khan, expelled the Arakanese from the area during the Conquest of Chittagong in 1666 and established Mughal rule there. After the Arakanese expulsion, Islamabad, as the area came to be known, made great strides in economic progress. This can mainly be attributed to an efficient system of land-grants to selected diwans or faujdars to clear massive areas of hinterland and start cultivation. The Mughals, similar to the Afghans who came earlier, also built mosques having a rich contribution to the architecture in the area. What is called Chittagong today also began to have improved connections with the rest of Mughal Bengal. The city was occupied by Burmese troops shortly in First Anglo-Burmese War in 1824 and the British increasingly grew active in the region and it fell under the British Empire. The people of Chittagong made several attempts to gain independence from the British, notably on 18 November 1857 when the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th companies of the 34th Bengal Infantry Regiment stationed at Chittagong rose in rebellion and released all the prisoners from jail but were suppressed by the Kuki scouts and the Sylhet Light Infantry.
Chittagong grew at the beginning of the twentieth century after the partition of Bengal and the creation of the province of Eastern Bengal and Assam. The construction of the Assam Bengal Railway to Chittagong facilitated further development of economic growth in the city. However, revolutionaries and opposition movements grew during this time. Many people in Chittagong supported Khilafat and Non-Cooperation movements.
Etymology
There are multiple competing hypotheses about how the name 'Chittagong' evolved. One of these claims that the original form of the name was 'Chattagram' or 'Chatigrama'. Here, 'chati' means ' lamp', while 'grama' is a common term for 'village'. By local linguistic variation it became 'chita-gnao'. Here 'gnao' with nasal 'g' means 'gram' or village. According to local sayings, early historic settlements in the region used to manufacture and supply earthen lamps, e.g. to courts and universities.Other possible historical sources of the name include Tsit-Ta-Gung, Shwet Gang and Chaityagrama.
Ancient period
fossils and tools unearthed in the region indicate that Chittagong has been inhabited since Neolithic times. It is an ancient port city, with a recorded history dating back to the 4th century BC. Its harbour was mentioned in Ptolemy's world map in the 2nd century as one of the most impressive ports in the East. The region was part of the ancient Bengali Samatata and Harikela kingdoms. The Chandra Dynasty once dominated the area, and was followed by the Varman Dynasty, Gauda Kingdom, Pala Empire, Sena Dynasty and Deva Dynasty of ancient Bengal.Chinese traveler Xuanzang described the area as "a sleeping beauty rising from mist and water" in the 7th century.
Early medieval period
frequented Chittagong for trade beginning in the 9th century. In 1154, Muhammad al-Idrisi mentioned a busy shipping route between Basra and Chittagong, connecting it with the Abbasid capital of Baghdad. Many Sufi missionaries settled in Chittagong and played an instrumental role in the spread of Islam. The first Persian settlers also arrived for trade and religious purposes. Persians and other Iranic peoples deeply affected the history of the Bengal Sultanate, with Persian being one of the main languages of the Muslim state, as well as also influencing the Chittagonian dialect and writing scripts. It has been affirmed that much of the Muslim population in Chittagong are descendants of the Arab and Persian settlers.The Sultan of Bengal, Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah, invaded parts of the Tripura Kingdom and conquered Chittagong in 1340. A number of sufi saints under Badruddin Allama accompanied him. The Sultan annexed the region to the Bengal Sultanate as a mulk. A sufi saint named Shayda was appointed to rule over Chittagong. The area became the principal maritime gateway to the Sultanate, which was reputed as one of the wealthiest states in the subcontinent. Medieval Chittagong was a hub for maritime trade with China, Sumatra, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Southwest Asia and East Africa. It was notable for its medieval trades in pearls, silk, muslin, rice, bullion, horses and gunpowder. The port was also a major shipbuilding hub.
Ibn Battuta visited the port city in 1345. Niccolò de' Conti, from Venice, also visited around the same time as Battuta. Chinese admiral Zheng He's treasure fleet anchored in Chittagong during imperial missions to the Sultanate of Bengal.
Dhanya Manikya expanded the Twipra Kingdom's territorial domain well into eastern Bengal which included parts of modern-day Chittagong, Dhaka and Sylhet. Chittagong featured prominently in the military history of the Bengal Sultanate, including during the Reconquest of Arakan and the Bengal Sultanate–Kingdom of Mrauk U War of 1512–1516.
During the reign of Sultan Alauddin Husain Shah, Paragal Khan was appointed as the Lashkar of Chittagong. Following the Bengal Sultanate–Kingdom of Mrauk U War of 1512–1516, Paragal was made the Governor of Chittagong too. He was then succeeded by his son, Chhuti Khan.
Sultan Ghiyasuddin Mahmud Shah gave permission for the Portuguese settlement in Chittagong to be established in 1528. Chittagong became the first European colonial enclave in Bengal. The Bengal Sultanate lost control of Chittagong in 1531 after Arakan declared independence and established the Kingdom of Mrauk U. This altered geopolitical landscape allowed the Portuguese unhindered control of Chittagong for over a century.
Portuguese era
Portuguese ships from Goa and Malacca began frequenting the port city in the 16th century. The cartaz system was introduced and required all ships in the area to purchase naval trading licenses from the Portuguese settlement. The Slave trade and piracy flourished. The nearby island of Sandwip was conquered in 1602. In 1615, the Portuguese Navy defeated a joint Dutch East India Company and Arakanese fleet near the coast of Chittagong.In 1666, the Mughal government of Bengal led by viceroy Shaista Khan moved to retake Chittagong from Portuguese and Arakanese control. They launched the Mughal conquest of Chittagong. The Mughals attacked the Arakanese from the jungle with a 6,500-strong army, which was further supported by 288 Mughal naval ships blockading the Chittagong harbour. After three days of battle, the Arakanese surrendered. The Mughals expelled the Portuguese from Chittagong. Mughal rule ushered a new era in the history of Chittagong territory to the western bank of Kashyapnadi. The port city was renamed as Islamabad. The Grand Trunk Road connected it with North India and Central Asia. Economic growth increased due to an efficient system of land grants for clearing hinterlands for cultivation. The Mughals also contributed to the architecture of the area, including the building of Fort Ander and many mosques. Chittagong was integrated into the prosperous greater Bengali economy, which also included Orissa and Bihar. Shipbuilding swelled under Mughal rule and the Sultan of Turkey had many Ottoman warships built in Chittagong during this period.
Portuguese settlements
, the 3rd governor of Portuguese India, sent a fleet of four ships commanded by João da Silveira, who after plundering ships from Bengal, anchored at Chittagong on 9 May 1518. Silveira left for Ceylon afterwards.In October 1521, two separate Portuguese missions went to the court of Sultan Nasiruddin Nasrat Shah to establish diplomatic relations with Bengal. One was led by explorer Rafael Perestrello and another one by captain Lopo de Brito. Brito's representative, Goncalo Tavares, obtained a duty-free arrangement for trade in Bengal for the Portuguese merchants. The two Portuguese embassies, both claiming official status, created confusion and led to a fight between them at Chittagong.
The Portuguese settlement became a major bone of contention between the Mughal Empire, the Kingdom of Mrauk U, the Burmese Empire, the Chakma kingdom and the Kingdom of Tripura.
According to a 1567 note of Caesar Federeci, every year thirty or thirty five ships anchored in Chittagong port.
The Mughal conquest of Chittagong in 1666 brought an end to the Portuguese dominance of more than 130 years in city.
By the early 18th century, the Portuguese settlements were located at Dianga, Feringhee Bazar in Chittagong district and in the municipal ward of Jamal Khan in Chittagong.