History Of Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

Azamgarh is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the headquarters of Azamgarh division, which consists of Balia, Mau and Azamgarh districts. Azamgarh is situated on the bank of Tamsa River.

History - 

Azamgarh, one of the easternmost districts of Uttar Pradesh, once formed a part of the ancient Kosala kingdom, except its north-eastern part. Azamgarh is also known as the land of the sage Durvasa whose ashram was located in Phulpur tehsil, near the confluence of Tamsa and Majhuee rivers, 6 kilometers (3.7 mi) north of the Phulpur tehsil headquarters.

The district is named after its headquarters town, Azamgarh, which was founded in 1665 by Azam, son of Vikramajit. Vikramajit was a descendant of Gautam Rajputs of Mehnagar in pargana Nizamabad who like some of his predecessors had embraced the faith of Islam. He had a Muslim wife who bore him two sons Azam and Azmat. While Azam gave his name to the town of Azamgarh, and the fort, Azmat constructed the fort and settled the bazaar of Azmatgarh in pargana Sagri.
 After the attack of Chabile Ram, Azmat Khan fled northwards followed by the interior forces. He attempted to cross the Ghaghra into Gorakhpur, but the people on the other side opposed his landing, and he was either shot in midstream or was drowned in attempting to escape by swimming.
In 1688 A.D. during Azmat's lifetime, his eldest son Ekram took part in the management of the state, and after Azam's death he was perhaps left in possession together with Mohhabat, another son. The remaining two sons were taken away and for a time detained as hostages for their brothers' 'good behavior'.
The successor of Ikram finally confirmed the title of his family to the Jamidari. Ikram left no heirs and was succeeded by Iradat, son of Mohhabat. But the real ruler all along had been Mohhabat, and after Ikram's death, he continued to rule in his son's name.

Notable people

• Shibli Nomani (Islamic scholar, historian, educationist and social reformer)

• Hamiduddin Farahi (Quranic scholar, educationist)

• Gauhar Jaan, One of the first performers to record music on 78 rpm records in India.

• Rahul Sankrityayan, known as the Father of Hindi Travelogue Travel literature

• Kaifi Azmi (Urdu poet); lived in Azamgarh

• Shabana Azmi (film actress)

• Iqbal Abdulla (Indian cricketer)

• Amar Singh (former Member of Parliament)

• Gajendra Singh (Director & Producer of Antakshari, Saregama, Voice of India)

• Vinod K. Singh (Director, IISER Bhopal, Professor, IIT Kanpur, Padma Shri)

• Prakash Singh (IPS, Padma Shri) is a retired Indian Police Service officer, who rose to the highest rank of Director General of Police (DGP).

• Iqbal Suhail (Urdu poet, Islamic scholar, lawyer, educationist, politician); lived in Azamgarh

• Mirza Aslam Beg, chief of army staff of Pakistan Army in 1987–1991.

• Shaikh Shamim Ahmed Ex. M.L.A. & Senior Leader Mumbai - Maharashtra.

• Ram Naresh Yadav Former Governor of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.

Souce - Wikipedia