Down the southern banks of the Ganges, Munger, a town of historical significance is located. It is believed that Rishi Dirghtma had made-up some of the fraction of Trigveda in this city. God Ram had taken a break in his period of exile, and Mata Sita also gave her trial by fire here. On the rich land of Munger, exact and mind gripping tales of freedom fighters are spread all over the area.Munger City is located in the Bihar on the southern bank of the Ganges is extended over a region of 1419.7 sq km. It is fourth largest among cities in Bihar whereas second largest in Eastern Bihar. It is one of the old cities in Bihar located 60 km in west of Bhagalpur.
Ancient History of Munger
This city of Bihar has a marvelling connection with Mahabharata, when it formed a part of the Madhyadesha as the centre of the first Aryan colonizers.The Mahabharata epic has a mention of this place as Mod-Giri
that was once the regional kingdom’s capital in India’s eastern side
nearby Vanga and Tamrilapta region. There is one more belief that during
the early times this region had also served as monarchical state. Other
historic facts describe that this place was also famous as Maudal after
Maudgalya – Gautam Buddha disciple. Munger therefore remained a popular
region during the ancient era. It was one of the renowned civilizations
in Bihar state on the southern banks of Ganges River.The area of the current day Munger was a fraction of Anga Mahajanapada
after the ruler of Anga fought a battle at Munger which was then called
Mada-Giri and defeated its leader.
Medieval History of Munger
Munger also served as the capital of Pala kingdom and the Nawab Mir Kasim fought one of his battles here, before the capture of eastern India by the East India Company. When Munger got captured by the British, it was called Monghyr and constituted a part of Bhagalpur. Munger was transformed into an individual district only in 1832. The historical town, besides its pious and past importance, is also well-known for its important industrial set up. It has been converted into an imperative commercial and business centre of Bihar.
Modern History of Munger
By
the time modern era came, Munger remained part and parcel of many
regional kingdoms. The area was part of Karnataka dynasty of Mithila
until Turkish invaders overpowered the regional kingdoms. Bakhtiyar
Khilji took control of this area in 1225 but sooner it became under
Khilji ruler Gyasuddin until the Sultan of Bengal controlled it in 1301
and ruled till 1322. Some of its famous rulers included Nasrat Shah,
Hussain Shah, Makhdun Alam, General Kutub Khan and many more. It was in
1534 that this area came under the control of Ibrahim Khan but Sher Shah
Suri captured it thereafter. For decades Munger was also under Afghan
ruler Dilawar Khan’s control until it finally came under the control of
great Mughal Kingdom. The famous book Ain-i-Akbari by Abul Fazal has a
mention of the region Munger during King Akbar’s control.
British Rule in Munger
The
sooner British took control of almost all parts of India after
defeating the Mughals and many regional kingdoms, Munger came under the
British rulers. It was expanded during that period and developed into
one of the few trade and business hubs in the region. A notable
event in the modern history of Munger is that it attained popularity in
1762 while Mir Kasim preferred Munger instead of Murshidabad to develop
his capital of his kingdom. Once he lost the battle of Buxar to the
hands of British Empire, Munger was finally annexed into British Empire.
The British ruled this region until India attained independence in
1947.
Post-Independence Munger
Once India attained freedom and
states were re-organized on various grounds, Munger became the 38th
district of eastern India’s Bihar state. The city of Munger was chosen
the administrative headquarters of this district that also serves as
Munger Division. It is famous in the region for trade and business
solutions as a twin city. It is one of the fast developing places in the
state.