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Madan Rai | |
---|---|
1250-1260 | |
Chief Minister of Gour | |
Monarch | Govardhan of Gour |
Succeeded by | Mona Rai |
Personal details | |
Born | 13th century |
Died | 14th century |
Madan Rai was the penultimate chief minister of medieval Sylhet's Gour Kingdom. He was described to have been very sharp and "shrewd". [1]
Appointed as Chief Minister of Gour,Madan Rai was stationed on a hillock (now known as Mona Rai's Tilla) near the port for ease in tax collection and civil duties. [1]
The long-lasted conflict between Gour Kingdom and Brahmachal,ruled by Raja Upananda,continued to trouble the land. Govardhan appointed Madan Rai to somehow find a way to lure Upananda's general,Amar Singh,in order to use him in infiltrating Brahmachal. Govardhan and Madan Rai then made an agreement with Govardhan's general Virabhadra to give his daughter,Chandra Kala,in marriage to Singh. Despite protests,the marriage was successful and Singh maintained a good relationship with General Virabhadra. Singh was able to persuade the Kuki Chiefs,the border guards for the Tripura Kingdom just south of Brahmachal into raiding Raja Upananda's palace in the dead of the night. The plan was successful;the Kukis massacred most of the palace's inmates. A battle emerged leading to the death of Raja Upananda. General Amar Singh took over Brahmachal for a short while before also being killed. Eventually,the Kuki Chiefs managed to annex Brahmachal (centred in modern-day Baramchal in Kulaura) to the King of Tripura and Govardhan sent Jaidev Rai,son of Upananda's minister,to be a feudal ruler under the Tripuras. [1]
His office ended in 1260 with the death of Raja Govardhan and ascension of Raja Gour Govinda to the throne. Govinda appointed Mona Rai as his minister,dismissing Madan Rai. [1]
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The Pratapgarh Kingdom was a medieval state in the north-east of the Indian subcontinent. Composed of the present-day Indian district of Karimganj,as well as parts of Tripura State and Sylhet,Bangladesh,the kingdom was ruled by a line of Muslim monarchs over a mixed population of Hindu and Islamic adherents. It was bordered by the larger kingdoms of Kachar,Tripura and Bengal.
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The Conquest of Sylhet predominantly refers to an Islamic conquest of Srihatta led by Sikandar Khan Ghazi,the military general of Sultan Shamsuddin Firoz Shah of the Lakhnauti Sultanate,against the Hindu king Gour Govinda. The conquest was aided by a Muslim saint known as Shah Jalal,who later ordered his disciples to scatter throughout eastern Bengal and propagate the religion of Islam. The Conquest of Sylhet may also include other minor incidents taking place after Govinda's defeat,such as the capture of nearby Taraf.
The Greater Sylhet region predominantly included the Sylhet Division in Bangladesh,and Karimganj district in Assam,India. The history of the Sylhet region begins with the existence of expanded commercial centres in the area that is now Sylhet City. Historically known as Srihatta and Shilhatta,it was ruled by the Buddhist and Hindu kingdoms of Harikela and Kamarupa before passing to the control of the Sena and Deva dynasties in the early medieval period. After the fall of these two Hindu principalities,the region became home to many more independent petty kingdoms such as Jaintia,Gour,Laur,and later Taraf,Pratapgarh,Jagannathpur,Chandrapur and Ita. After the Conquest of Sylhet in the 14th century,the region was absorbed into Shamsuddin Firoz Shah's independent principality based in Lakhnauti,Western Bengal. It was then successively ruled by the Muslim sultanates of Delhi and the Bengal Sultanate before collapsing into Muslim petty kingdoms,mostly ruled by Afghan chieftains,after the fall of the Karrani dynasty in 1576. Described as Bengal's Wild East,the Mughals struggled in defeating the chieftains of Sylhet. After the defeat of Khwaja Usman,their most formidable opponent,the area finally came under Mughal rule in 1612. Sylhet emerged as the Mughals' most significant imperial outpost in the east and its importance remained as such throughout the seventeenth century. After the Mughals,the British Empire ruled the region for over 180 years until the independence of Pakistan and India. There was a complete list of the different amils who governed Sylhet which was recorded in the office of the Qanungoh of Sylhet. However,most complete copies have been lost or destroyed. Dates from letters and seal traces show evidence that the amils were constantly changed. In 1947,when a referendum was held,Sylhet decided to join the Pakistani province of East Bengal. However,when the Radcliffe Line was drawn up,Karimganj district of Barak Valley was given to India by the commission after being pleaded by Abdul Matlib Mazumdar's delegation. Throughout the History of Sylhet,raids and invasions were also common from neighbouring kingdoms as well as tribes such as the Khasis and Kukis.
Govinda Fenchu,better known by his regnal title Gour Gobind and also known by the sobriquet Shomudro Tonoy,was the 21st and final king of medieval Sylhet's Gour Kingdom. He is described as a very conservative Hindu ruler whose reign started in 1260.
The Kingdom of Brahmachal,also known as Badapanchala,was one of the many petty kingdoms of the Sylhet region. It was established by Brahmajit by gradually off-shooting from the Gour Kingdom in 1170 AD due to familial tensions. It would reunite during the reign of Govardhan of Gour for a few years before being annexed to the Twipra Kingdom. Govardhan's successor,Gour Govinda,would again reunite Brahmachal with Gour in 1260.
Gangadhwaj Govardhan was the 20th king of medieval Sylhet's Gour Kingdom.
Prince Garuda,was a 14th-century Hindu prince and heir apparent of King Govardhan of Gour,he is known for his participation in the Conquest of Sylhet.
Manoranjan Rai,or more commonly known as Mona Rai was the final chief minister of medieval Sylhet's Gour Kingdom. He is most known for being named after the highest hill in Sylhet city.
Jaidev Rai was the Governor of Brahmachal under the Twipra Kingdom.
Amar Singh,was the military general for Raja Upananda of Brahmachal,and later its king.
The Kingdom of Gour was one of the greater of the many petty kingdoms of the medieval Sylhet region. According to legend,it was founded by Gurak,off-shooting from Kamarupa's Jaintia Kingdom in 630. Much of its early history is considered legendary or mythological up until Navagirvana who is mentioned in the Bhatera copper-plate inscriptions. The Kings of Gour are described as patrons of Hindu revivalism in what was previously a predominantly Buddhist and animist populated land.
Taraf,previously known as Tungachal,was a feudal territory of the Sylhet region in Bengal and was under many petty kingdoms in different periods of time. It was part of what is present-day Habiganj District in Bangladesh.
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