History Of Surat

 

Surat is located on the mouth of the River Tapti along the Arabian Sea and has a glorious past starting from the 7th century AD. It has a coastal belt of six kilometers and so ship building was the main industry that flourished here in the ancient times. There were many stories about this place but there was no strong evidence for them. Huwan Tsang the Chinese traveler of 7th century had mentioned a place in India called Sowrata in the western coast. But the historians think that that place must be Sorath or Kathiawar and not Surat of today.

 

Surat was also called Suriyapur, the name given by the Brahman Gopi Mallik who was like a governor of the place from 1496 to 1521. The places in Surat like Gopipura and Ranichakla were named after him. He attracted the traders from other parts of the world to the place. There is another opinion that Parsi people who settled down at that place since 12th century should have named it as Bunder-e-Khubsurat meaning beautiful port in Persian language. The name Surat should have been derived from that word.

 

The Persians overpowered Jains and they used Surat port to embark on their voyage to Mecca for Hajj. The buildings Makkai Pul and Mughal Sarai were constructed for the pilgrims to stay before they start their journey.

 

Portuguese burnt down Surat in 1512. To overcome any future destruction, a castle was built in 1546 according to the orders of the King of Ahmedabad. In 1572, Mirza captured Surat and in 1573, it again went under the control of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. Portuguese used Surat for their maritime trade. A beautiful fortress was built by them on the banks of the River Tapti in 1540.

 

British entered the scene in the earlier part of 17th century when the British Captain Best and Captain Downton placed their feet on the soil. The Battle of Swally asserted the power of British. When Shivaji the King of Marathas attacked the place in 1664, the Mughal powers plotted against him and tried to kill him. But Shivaji escaped this conspiracy and he looted the trading centers of both the Mughals and Portuguese.

 

The Portuguese dominance came to an end and the era of British started in Surat when it was handed over to the English crown as a part of the dowry for the wedding of the Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza with Charles II in 1662. The frequent attacks by Shivaji made the East India Company to shift their center to Bombay. After that Surat lost its glory a little though it came under the complete control of the English in 1800.

 

Many important monuments and architectural structures of historic importance were destroyed in the fire and flood of 1837. There was also a worst event in the history of Surat in 1992, the violent riots between the Hindu population and the Muslims. Another worst natural calamity was the plague epidemic of 1994. Surat photos and Surat videos of this worst plague epidemic were seen all over the country.

 

Time Line of Event Related to Surat

 

1612 – A center for trade and commerce was established by English.

1614 – Sir Thomas Roe visited the court of Jahangir to get permission for trading.

1664 – Shivaji attacked Surat.

1825 – Dutch settlers entered the region.

1842 – Establishment of the first English School in Surat.

1847 – Portuguese trade centers were completely closed.

1850 – First printing press was started.

1852 – Surat Municipality came into existence.

1857 – Telegraph communication was started.

1860 – Surat railway station was established.

1898 – Municipal water works started its water supply.

1920 – Introduction of free and compulsory education.

1946 – Reestablishment of municipality.

1952 – Construction of new railway station.

1966 – Municipality was converted into Municipal Corporation.

1992 – Hindu Muslim riots.

1994 – Flood and plague epidemic.

2003 – Sarthana Nature Park and zoo were opened.

Article Posted By : SumazlalView All Articles

I am Suhaina Mazhar, a freelance content writer and blogger and have written thousands of original articles. Writing is my passion, writing is my hobby and writing is my career. I want to write till the last moment of my life.

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Surat , Surat photos , Surat videos , Surat history , about Surat

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