Hyderābād state (, ) was the largest
princely state in the erstwhile
British Indian Empire. It was located in the south-central region of the
Indian subcontinent, and was ruled, from 1724 until 1948, by a hereditary
Nizam. The
Berar region of the state was merged with the Central Provinces of
British India in 1903, to form the
Central Provinces and Berar.
In 1947, at the time of the
partition of India and the formation of the
Union of India and the
Dominion of Pakistan, the then Nizam,
Osman Ali Khan, decided not to join either new nation. However, the following year, the Government of India incorporated Hyderabad into the Indian Union, using military force, in what was known as
Operation Polo, led by
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
History
Hyderabad and Berar,
1903Hyderabad was founded by the
Qutb Shahi dynasty of
Golkonda. In 1686 the
Mughal emperor
Aurangzeb campaigned in the
Deccan to overcome the
Marathas and conquer the independent Deccan states. Before the campaign, the Mughals had controlled the northwestern Deccan, including
Khandesh and
Berar, but Mughal control ended at the
Godavari River. Aurangzeb conquered Golconda and
Bijapur in 1687, extending Mughal control south of the
Krishna River.
The Mughal Empire began to weaken during the reign of Aurangzeb's grandson,
Muhammad Shah. A Mughal official,
Asif Jah, treacherously defeated a rival Mughal governor to seize control of the empire's southern provinces, declaring himself Nizam-al-Mulk of Hyderabad in 1724. The Mughal emperor, under renewed attack from the Marathas, was unable to prevent it.
The Nizams patronized
Islamic art,
culture and
literature and developed railway network in Hyderabad. Islamic
Sharia law was the guiding principle of the Nizams' official machinery.
During the British Raj
The seniormost (21-gun)
salute state during the period of
British India, Hyderabad was an 82,000 square mile (212,000 km²) region in the
Deccan ruled by the Asif Jahi dynasty, who had the title of
Nizam and was bestowed the title of His Exalted Highness by the
British. The Nizam set up numerous institutions in the name of the dynasty. He set up schools, colleges, madrasas and a university that imparted education in
Urdu. Inspired by the elite and prestigious
Indian Civil Service he founded the
Hyderabad Civil Service. The pace with which he amassed wealth made him to be the world's richest men in the 1930s, (
Time cover story Feb. 22, 1937). Carrying a gift, called Nazrana, in accordance with one's net worth while meeting Nizam was a
de facto necessity. The last
Nizam ruler was
Mir Usman Ali Khan, who was very notorious for strengthening
Feudalism in the
Hyderabad state. Poor peasants of the
Telangana region rebelled with arms against his cruel rule under the leadership of the
Communist Party of India and its subsidiary people's organisations like the
Andhra Mahasabha. This armed struggle waged by the
Telangana people is historically called the
Telangana Rebellion and forms the practical ideological base for the Indian Communist movement. It started in 1942 and lasted up to 1951.
Industries in pre-Independence Hyderabad
Various industries emerged in pre-independence Hyderabad, the major industries that were established in various parts of Hyderabad/
Telengana are .
After the British Raj (1947-48)
When India gained independence in 1947, the British left the choice of independence or unification up to the local rulers of the princely states. Razakars(some Muslim nobles under Nizam ), wished to remain independent or consider joining Pakistan. In the case of Hyderabad however, this could not be applied as it was right in the middle of the new state of India. Being Muslim-governed state, the Nizam wanted to join Pakistan but he was overruled by the viceroy Lord Mountbatten. As a result, the Indian Government carried out the so called “Hyderabad Police Action” against the Nizam. Code-named “
Operation Polo” by the Indian military, this action by the Indian armed forces ended the rule of the Nizams of Hyderabad by the forceful incorporation of the princely state of Hyderabad into the Indian Union.
Hyderabad today
In 1956 during the
Reorganisation of the Indian States, the state of Hyderabad was split up between
Andhra Pradesh,
Maharashtra and
Karnataka. The last Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan, died in 1967.
Administratively, Hyderabad State was made up of sixteen
districts, grouped into four divisions.
Aurangabad division included Aurangabad,
Beed,
Nanded, and
Parbhani districts;
Gulbargah (Gulbargah) division included
Bidar District, Gulbarga, Osmanabad District, and
Raichur District; Gulshanabad District or Medak division included Atraf-i-Baldah,
Mahbubnagar,
Medak,
Nalgonda (Nalgundah), and
Nizamabad districts, and
Warangal division included
Adilabad,
Karimnagar, and Warangal districts
Urdu (in particular, the unique Dakhani dialect),
Telugu, English, Marathi and Kannada are among the important languages spoken in Hyderabad and Andhra Pradesh today.
The political party
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, founded by
Bahadur Yar Jung, enjoys prominent support amongst Muslims.
See also
- Nizam for a list of Nizams and other information.
- Operation Polo the military operation that resulted in the unification of Hyderabad state into India.
