(or Ahi-Kshetra) was the ancient capital of Northern Panchala. The remains of this city have been discovered in Bareilly According to the epic
Mahābhārata, the Bareilly region (
Panchala) is said to be the birthplace of
Draupadi, who was also referred to as 'Panchali' (one from the kingdom of Panchāla) by Kṛṣṇā (
Lord Krishna). When
Yudhishthira becomes the king of
Hastinapur at the end of the
Mahābhārata, Draupadi becomes his queen. The folklore says that
Gautama Buddha had once visited the ancient fortress city of
Ahichchhatra in Bareilly. The
Jain Tirthankara Parshva is said to have attained Kaivalya at Ahichchhatra. In the 12th century, the kingdom was under the rule by different clans of
Kshatriya Rajputs. Later, the region became part of the
Muslim Turkic Delhi Sultanate for 325 years before getting absorbed in the emerging
Mughal Empire. The foundation of the modern City of Bareilly foundation was laid by
Mughal governor
Mukrand Rai in 1657 during the rule of
Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. Later the region became the capital of
Rohilkhand region before getting handed over to
Nawab Vazir of
Awadh and then to
East India Company (transferred to British India) and later becoming an integral part of
India. The region has also acted as a mint for a major part of its history. From an archaeological point of view, the district of Bareilly is very rich. The extensive remains of Ahichchhatra, the Capital town of Northern Panchala have been discovered near
Ramnagar village of Aonla Tehsil in the district. It was during the first excavations at Ahichchhatra (1940–44) that the painted grey ware, associated with the advent of the Aryans in the Ganges–Yamuna Valley, was recognised for the first time in the earliest levels of the site. Nearly five thousand coins belonging to periods earlier than that of the
Guptas have been yielded from Ahichchhatra. It has also been one of the richest sites in India from the point of view of the total yield of terracotta. Some of the masterpieces of Indian terracotta art are from Ahichchhatra. In fact the classification made of the terracotta human figurines from Ahichchhatra on grounds of style and to some extent stratigraphy became a model for determining the stratigraphy of subsequent excavations at other sites in the Ganges Valley. On the basis of the existing material, the archaeology of the region helps us to get an idea of the cultural sequence from the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC up to the 11th century AD. Some ancient mounds in the district have also been discovered by the Deptt. of Ancient History and culture,
Rohilkhand University, at Tihar-Khera (Fatehganj West), Pachaumi, Rahtuia, Kadarganj and
Sainthal.
Establishment at Bareilly, 1814-15 Bareilly was founded in 1537 by Jagat Singh Katehriya, a Rajput who named it
Bareilly after his two sons Bansaldev and Baraldev. The city was mentioned by the historian
Budayuni. The foundation of the modern city of Bareilly was laid by
Mughal governor
Mukrand Rai in 1657. In 1658, Bareilly became the headquarters of the province of Budaun. The
Mughals encouraged the settlements of loyal
Afghans (
Pathans) in the Bareilly region to control the native Katehriya Rajputs. After the death of
Emperor Aurangzeb, the Afghans began to settle in the villages and
assimilated with the local Muslims. These descendants of these assimilated Afghans are known as
Pathans. After the fall of the Mughal Empire, created anarchy and many
Pathans migrated from the
Rohilkhand region. Bareilly (like other cities in Uttar Pradesh) experienced economic stagnation and poverty due to the breakdown of trade and security, leading to the migration of Rohilla Muslim Pathans to
Suriname and
Guyana as
indentured labour.
British East India Company Under
Hafiz Rahmat Khan Barech at the 1761
Third Battle of Panipat,
Rohilkhand blocked the expansion of the
Maratha Empire into northern India. In 1772 it was invaded by the Marathas, repulsing the invasion with the aid of the
Nawab of Awadh. After the war, Nawab
Shuja-ud-Daula demanded payment for the nawabs' help from Barech. When his demand was refused, the nawab joined the East India Company (under
Governor Warren Hastings and his
Commander-in-Chief,
Alexander Champion) to invade Rohilkhand. The combined forces of Daula and the Company defeated Barech (who was killed in battle at
Miranpur Katra, ending Rohilla rule) in 1774. Rohilkhand was handed over to Daula, and from 1774 to 1800 the province was ruled by the Nawab of Awadh who surrendered Rohilkhand to the
East India Company in a treaty signed on 10 November 1801. During the reign of
Shah Alam II, Bareilly was the headquarters of Rohilla Sardar Hafiz Rehmat Khan and many coins were minted. The city was later in the possession of Awadh Nawab Asaf-ud-Daulah, and his coins had Bareilly, Bareilly Aasfabad and the Bareilly kite and fish as identification marks. Coins were then minted by the East India Company.
Modern period After the
Rohilla War, the change in the power structure increased discontent throughout the district. The most popular trades in and around Bareilly during the 1820s were manufacturing glass, jewellery, glass and
lac bangles and gold and silver thread, crimping, bean drying, wire drawing,
charpoy weaving, keeping a grocer's shop and selling kebabs. . The
Rohillas actively opposed the British, but were later disarmed.
Khan Bahadur Khan Rohilla, grandson of
Hafiz Rahmat Khan, formed his own government in Bareilly in 1857 and a widespread popular revolt in
Awadh,
Bundelkhand and
Rohilkhand took place. In 1857, Khan Bhadur Khan issued silver coins from Bareilly as an independent ruler. When the rebellion failed, Bareilly was subjugated. Khan Bahadur Khan was sentenced to death, and hanged in the police station on 24 February 1860.
Independence Bareilly Central Jail housed a number of
political prisoners who supported the
independence movement including
Yashpal (who married while imprisoned on 7 August 1936 was the first such ceremony in an Indian jail). The rules were changed, preventing future prison marriages. ==Geography==