Mughal conquest of Chittagong

Mughal conquest of Chittagong refers to the conquest of Chittagong in 1666. On 27 January 1666 AD, the Arakan Kingdom of Mrauk U was defeated by the Mughal forces under the command of Buzurg Ummed Khan, the son of Mughal Subedar Shaista Khan.

Background


The Kingdom of Mrauk U was established in Chittagong for about a hundred years in the medieval period after overthrowing the Sultans of Bengal. Since this victory, Chittagong has never been outside the administrative and political sphere of Bengal. Chittagong has always been associated with Bengal, as the entry point to Bengal, regardless of who ruled this land: Mughals, British, Pakistan, independent Bangladesh.

The Portuguese helped Arakanese or Mogs in various anarchy situations. The Mogs also had business relations with the Dutch, which was known as the Dutch East India Company (VOC). Historians have described the atrocities of the Portuguese and the Mogs as "Both the Mogs of Arakanese and the Portuguese pirates constantly plundered Bengal (Dhaka to Chittagong region). They pierced the palms of the hands of all the Hindus and Muslims they could capture, inserted thin cane ribbons through the holes, and tied them up. Hung together below the ship's deck. Every morning they threw some uncooked rice to the prisoners from above, as food is thrown to birds. They were sold to Dutch, English and French merchants in the Deccan ports. Sometimes they brought their captives to Tamluk and Balasore to sell them at high prices. Only the Portuguese sold their captives, but the Mogs employed the captives in Arakan in agriculture and other occupations or as domestic servants and concubines". Historians, however, call this Arakanese reign a golden age of commercial prosperity. With the help of the Portuguese and their strong navy, the Arakanese were formidable enough to resist any attempts to overthrow them.

Poet Alaol describes the Arakan (Kingdom of Mrauk U) king's power-symbol fleet in his epic Sikandarnama (published in full in 1673):

In 1657, Aurangzeb defeated his other brothers in a fratricidal war between the four sons of Shah Jahan for the Mughal throne. One of the rival brothers of Aurangzeb (Alamgir) was Shah Shuja. Shah Shuja was Subahdar of Bengal for about 20 years from 1640 to 1660. After the defeat in the fratricidal war, Shah Shuja hoped to sail from Noakhali to Mecca or Istanbul by sea. However, as the rainy season came, it did not happen any more. Meanwhile, Emperor Aurangzeb's forces are constantly looking for Shah Shuja. To escape from Aurangzeb, Shah Shuja sought political asylum in the neighboring state of Arakan with a large amount of treasures (approx 23 tons). In August 1660, the once mighty Bengal Subahdar Shah Shuja settled in Arakan State. But after six months, Shah Shuja was killed by the Arakan King. The daughters of Shah Shuja’s family were abused, and the sons were imprisoned. This sad news of the Mughal Prince soon reached the Emperor of Delhi, who was Suja’s brother Aurangzeb. The Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb sent two emissaries in succession to the Arakan royal court asking for the return of his brother Shah Shuja’s children and treasures. The Arakanese captured and enslaved the first messenger. The second emissary was received by the royal court of Arakan, but all the children had already been killed, and their wealth confiscated, so there was no reply.

The conquest
To avenge the murder of his brother at the hands of the Arakan King, Aurangzeb sent his uncle and long-time political companion Shaista Khan as Subahdar (governor) of Bengal. Fearing an inevitable conflict with the Mughals the Arakanese started preparing for war. In 1664, they attacked Dhaka, the capital of Bengal, with the help of the Portuguese pirates and destroyed about 160 ships. At the behest of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, governor of Bengal Shaista Khan embarked on a war plan to crush the Arakanese.

In the winter of 1665, Subahdar Shaista Khan formed a well-equipped army to fight against the Arakanese. His son, Buzurg Ummed Khan joined this mission of Chittagong recovery as the chief commander. In November 1665, the Mughals captured Sandwip with the assurance of Dutch diplomatic support and military aid. The naval battle took on another dimension when 40 ships under the command of Portuguese Captain Moore, experienced in Bengal’s waterways, joined the Mughal fleet. Meanwhile, 6500 Mughal army led by Shaista Khan's son Buzurg Ummed Khan started advancing towards Chittagong across Feni river. Before the Mughal conquest, Chittagong was called a forest of hills and trees. Historians wrote analogies that the forest was so dense that ants had no way to move. A large number of axes were supplied from Dhaka for the Mughal army, with which they cleared the forest and arrived at the outskirts of Chittagong. Historians call this road built by the Mughals the origin of the present Dhaka-Chittagong Trunk Road.

On January 27, 1666, Chatgochar Killa or Anderkilla, the Arakanese centre of the region, fell after a three-day siege in a two-pronged attack. According to the information recorded in the Alamgirnama, the son of the former Mrauk U King Sirisudhammaraja is believed to have accompanied the Mughal force, and the Mughals intended to place him as king after conquering Arakan. But due to insufficient logistics and the monsoon, they limited their progress to the banks of the Naf river.

Aftermath
Bujurg Umid Khan renamed Chittagong as Islamabad after capturing Anderkilla and built a mosque on top of the fort the following year, which is now known as Anderkilla Jame Masjid. Above the entrance of the mosque, there are two stone blocks inscribed in Persian. The second one translates as ‘O Wise! You tell the people of the world that the second Kaaba has been established in this world today. The date of its establishment is 1078 Hijri.’

The Mughals and the Portuguese held sway in the following naval battle. The conquered territory to the western bank of Kashyapnadi (Kaladan river) was placed under direct imperial administration. The name of Chittagong was changed to Islamabad and it became the headquarters of a Mughal faujdar. Khan also re-asserted Mughal control over Cooch Behar and Kamarupa.

The Arakanese tried hard to recapture this region of Bengal, but they were not successful. Later, the Mughals built buildings, mosques, and temples in Chittagong.