Chutia kingdom: Difference between revisions
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== History == |
== History == |
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===Background=== |
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Assamese chronicles name ''Asambhinna'' (6th -7th century) as the first Chutia king, who dwelt on the banks of [[Brahmaputra]] with his seven brothers. In his reign came a Brahmin, who converted all the seven brothers into [[Hinduism]] and married Asambhina's daughter. On the King's death, his seven brothers failing to agree on a successor, put the Brahmin on the throne as a vassal, who in turn was followed by a descendent of Asambhinna, called Indra |
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Dev Raja and the latter ruled for 30 years. Thereafter, 31 kings followed Indra Dev Raja in regular succession, the last being Lekroy Raja who had four sons: Burora, Maisura, Kolaito and Kossi.<ref>Edward Gait, pp =253[http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/jspui/bitstream/10603/116186/4/04_chapter%204.pdf "Chutia kingdom of Kossi"]</ref> |
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On the death of Lekroy and before the succession issue could be decided, Sambhun pha the Mau king invaded the country and consequently:(1) Burora was killed in the battlefield;(2) Maisura fled with his followers to Maing Bing ( near present [[Biswanath Chariali|Biswanath]]);(3) Kolaito fled westward with a considerable force and formed a kingdom on the banks of Brahmaputra;(4) Kossi Raja was captured and placed as a vassal. Sambhung pha then appointed a Tamon (Governor) over the vassal kingdom and returned to Mogaung. Four months later, Tamon was poisoned to death and Kossi Raja became independent. |
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Thus, 31 rulers intervened between Indra Dev Raja and Kossi Raja over an aggregate of 554 years. So the accession of Asambhinna can roughly be placed in the middle of the 6th century.<ref>{{Harvcol|Col. Ved Prakash|pp=912}}</ref> |
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===Chutia Bhuyan Chieftains=== |
===Chutia Bhuyan Chieftains=== |
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Revision as of 09:10, 15 January 2018
Chutia Kingdom চুতীয়া ৰাজ্য | |||||||||
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| 1187–1673 | |||||||||
 Coat of arms
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 The Chutia Kingdom c. 13th century during the reign of King Gaurinarayan. | |||||||||
| Capital | |||||||||
| Common languages | Assamese,formerly Chutia language | ||||||||
| Religion | Hinduism, Shaktism[1] | ||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| Monarch | |||||||||
• 1187–1210 | Birpal (first) | ||||||||
• 1522–1524 | Nityapal (last) | ||||||||
| Historical era | Medieval Assam | ||||||||
• Founded by Birpal | 1187 | ||||||||
• Expansion under Gaurinarayan | 1210 -1250 | ||||||||
• Ahom-Chutia war | 1513 -17th century | ||||||||
• Siege of Sadiya | 17 April 1524 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 1673 | ||||||||
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| Today part of | India | ||||||||
| Rulers of Chutia kingdom | |
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| Part of History of Assam | |
| Known rulers of the Chutia kingdom | |
| Nandisvara | late 14th century |
| Satyanarayana | late 14th century |
| Lakshminarayana | early 15th century |
| Durlabhnarayana | early 15th century |
| Pratyakshanarayana | mid 15th century |
| Yasanarayana | mid 15th century |
| Purandarnarayana | late 15th century |
| Dhirnarayana | unknown - 1524 |
| Chutia monarchy data | |
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| Part of a series on the |
| Culture of Assam |
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The Chutia Kingdom, (pronounced as Sutia)[11] (1187-1673), also known as Chutia, Sutiya or Sadiya, was a state established by one of the Chutia chieftains named Birpal in 1187 CE in the areas comprising the present-day Indian states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. Birpal was one of the numerous Chutia chieftains/rajas (who ruled Upper Assam and Arunachal) and initially ruled parts of present-day Arunachal Pradesh. Over the years he and his successors united all the hill and plain Chutia kings of Assam as well as Arunachal Pradesh to form the greater Chutia kingdom after the fall of Pala dominance. It was the largest kingdom in Assam after the fall of Kamrupa and before the rise of Ahom kingdom. The kingdom absorbed the ancient Pala dynasty of Kamarupa and reigned for over 400 years in eastern Assam and Arunachal Pradesh with its capital at Sadiya and Ratnapur.[12] It became the dominant power in eastern Assam in the 12th century and remained so until the 16th century with its domain from Parshuram Kund in the east to Vishwanath[13] in the west and in the process of its expansion had absorbed many local communities and tribes.
It controlled the present Assam districts of Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Tinsukia, parts of Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Sonitpur and East Siang, Subansiri, Lower Dibang, Lohit districts of Arunachal Pradesh.[14] The Chutia are an ethnic group originally from present day Tibet and the Sichuan province of China.
The most illustrious of the Chutia kings was Gaurinarayan (Ratnadhwajpal)[15] son of Birpal. He brought many other Chutia groups into his kingdom. In 1224, Ratnadhwajpal defeated another Chutia king named Bhadrasena, the king of Swetagiri, and conquered the area between Subansiri and Sissi rivers, i.e. present-day Dhemaji district. In 1228, he went on another campaign to further expand his kingdom and subjugate the Chutia king Nyayapal (ruling the areas between Biswanath and Subansiri,i.e. present-day Biswanath and Lakhimpur districts) and marched toward Kamatapur, where he formed an alliance with the Kamata ruler by marrying a princess. Then he marched to Dhaka, and made friends with the Gauda ruler. The hostilities with the Ahoms began when the Chutia Kingdom expanded to the south during which the Ahom king, Sutuphaa, was killed by the Chutia king during a friendly negotiation. This conflict triggered a number of battles between the two sides which saw great loss of men and money. The simmering dispute often flared till 1524 when the Ahoms struck the Chutia Kingdom at its weakest state, took Sadiya and killed the then king, Nityapal. The Ahoms established their rule by instituting the position of Sadiyakhowa Gohain, a newly constituted position of frontier-governor in charge of Sadiya. But the Chutia had dispersed to frontier regions, and continued raids against the Ahoms. It finally ended in 1673 when they fell under the domination of the Ahoms.
Etymology
There are many views to the etymology of the word "Chutia". According to Major S.F. Hanney, "Chutiya" is a corrupted version of the word "Kshatriya", which would verify the early influence of Hinduism among the group as well as the Pal lineage.[16] Dr. S.L.Barua in her book Chutia Jaatir Buranji metions that the region around Upper Assam was once known as Swat/Swati from where Swatiya/Sutiya was derived meaning "people of Swati".[17] Some historians believe that the term is derived from chat or "mountain top", their original place of habitation (after arriving from Sinchuan), before settling down in the plains of Upper Assam, but this is highly debatable as there is no such word in Chutia-Deuri or Prakrit language.[18].
History
Chutia Bhuyan Chieftains
Bhuyans were chiefs of North Indian settlers who migrated to Assam in two separate groups once during the Mleccha rule of 9th century and again during the Kamatapur rule in the 14th century. They were given land in central Assam by the Indigenous Mleccha and Kamatapur kings in order to promote sanskritisation in Assam. The first group were called the Bor Bhuyans. The Borbhuyans settled in the region west of the Chutia kingdom i.e. parts of the present day districts of Darrang and Sonitpur. The Bhuyan status at that time was open to royals of any ethnicity and the rule was a confederation type, due to which many Chutia chieftains of Sonitpur and Lakhimpur districts also adopted the title. These were known as the Chutia Bhuyans who ruled as sovereign states until Gaurinarayan brought them under the greater Chutia kingdom in the early 13th century.
Foundation
The founder of the medieval greater Chutia kingdom was Birpal who claimed descent from the legendary Bhishmak and reigned in 1187. He ruled over 60 clans with his capital on a hill called Swarnagiri and assumed the title of Gayapal. He was succeeded by his son Sonagiri assuming the title of Gaurinarayan. [19]
Gaurinarayan alias Ratnadhwajpal was one of the most powerful Sutiya kings. He brought under his sway the tribes of neighbouring mountains; the Rangalgiri, the Kalgiri, the Nilgiri, the Chandragiri, and the Dhavalgiri. He conquered the whole northeastern region of Assam which included the areas of present-day Arunachal Pradesh and assumed the title "Lord of Hills". In the year 1224, with a large army, he descended on the valley of Brahmaputra, attackeing and deporting another Chutia king, Bhadrasena, ruler of the Swetagiri. In the expedition he gained rich booty and many prisoners of war belonging to the Brahmin, Tanti, Sonari, Sutar and Kumar classes and settled them in various parts of the kingdom. He built his capital at Ratnapur (Majuli), hence also called Ratnadhwajpal and used certain techniques to advance the agricultural system in the kingdom. The neighbouring Chutia king, Nyaya Pal surrendered with costly gifts even before he was attacked. To cement the alliance, he married the daughter of Nyayapal. He built a line of forts along the foot of the bills against inroads by the hill tribes and built large tanks and temples for his people. In Kamatapur, when Kamateswar refused his daughter for one of Gaurinarayan sons, the king marched against him, constructing a road with forts at certain intervals. Alarmed at the energy displayed by his troops, Kamateswar agreed to give one of the princesses in marriage to the Sutiya prince.[20]
These expeditions by Gaurinarayan took Chutia Kingdom to supremacy to such an extent that after a few years the impact of his power was felt even by the Gauda ruler. The Gauda ruler, possibly Khesav Sen, made friends with Gaurinarayan who sent one of his sons to that country to be educated. Unfortunately, the Sutiya Prince died there and the corpse was sent to Gaurinarayan, who was then engaged in building a new city. He named the city as Sadiya (Sa-Corpse, Diya-Given) which later on became the capital of the Chutia Kingdom. Extensive remains of buildings and fortifications built during the rule of the Sutiyas near about Sadiya still point to the importance of the region in the past.
During the reign of Ahom king Sutuphaa, there were frequent skirmishes between Ahoms and Sutiyas. In 1376, Sutuphaa was killed by the Sutiya King Jayadhwajpal during a friendly encounter. During following years, both sides were involved in numerous battles.
Ahom-Sutiya conflicts (1513-1522)
Dhirnarayan alias Dharmadhwajpal, engaged in many battles with the Ahoms. In 1513, in a battle with the Ahoms, king Dhirnarayan attacked the Ahom Kingdom both by land and water. The Ahom were victorious in the battle fought at Dikhoumukh. Later in 1520, the Sutiyas invaded Ahom territory twice; in the second invasion the Sutiyas killed the Ahom commander and were successful in defeating the Ahoms in the battle fought at Dihing.[21]
Downfall of Chutia Kingdom
The kingdom saw its weakest state under Nityapal, the husband of Dhirnarayan daughter Sadhani. In 1522, Dhirnarayan due to his growing age passed down his throne to Nityapal. The Sutiya nobilities and ministers resisted the decision of giving away the throne to Nityapal. In 1524, due to Nityapal incapable rulership, the Ahoms taking advantage of this chance, attacked a much weaker Chutia Kingdom. As a partial culmination of the inter-kingdom feud, the Ahoms took Sadiya and killed Nityapal. Further to strengthen their position, the Ahoms set up colonies in the Sutiya country and a number of Brahmins, blacksmiths and artisans were deported from Sadiya to Charaideo.[22] However the Sutiyas went to the countryside where they were still in power and continued their fight against the Ahoms to reclaim their lost territories. The conflict went on for next 150 years until it finally ended in 1673 when the Sutiyas fell under the domination of the Ahoms and were absorbed into their state.[23]
Rulers (550-1100) and (1187 - 1524)
| # | Years | Reign | Name | Other names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 550 - 570 | 20 y | Asambhina | |
| 2 | 570 - 600 | 30 y | Indradev | |
| 3 | 600 - 1075 | 23 y | 31 kings | |
| 4 | 1057 - 1075 | 18 y | Lekroy | |
| 5 | 1075 - 1100 | 25 y | Kossi | |
| 1100-1187 | 87 y | Pal Gauda rule | ||
| 1 | 1187 - 1210 | 23 y | Birpal | Gayapal |
| 2 | 1210 - 1250 | 40 y | Ratnadhwajpal | Gaurinarayan |
| 3 | 1250 - 1270 | 20 y | Vijayadhwajpal | Shivanarayan |
| 4 | 1270- 1285 | 15 y | Vikramadhwajpal | Jagatnarayan |
| 5 | 1285 - 1305 | 20 y | Gauradhwajpal | Pramonarayan |
| 6 | 1305 - 1325 | 20 y | Sankhadhwajpal | Harinarayan |
| 7 | 1325 - 1343 | 18 y | Mayuradhwajpal | Goluknarayan |
| 8 | 1343 - 1360 | 17 y | Jayadhwajpal | Bijonarayan |
| 9 | 1360 - 1380 | 20 y | Karmadhwajpal | Nandeshwar |
| 10 | 1380 - 1400 | 20 y | Satyanarayan | |
| 11 | 1400 - 1420 | 20 y | Laxminarayan | |
| 12 | 1420 - 1440 | 20 y | Dharmanarayan | |
| 13 | 1440- 1465 | 25 y | Pratyashnarayan | |
| 14 | 1465 - 1480 | 15 y | Yasnarayan | |
| 15 | 1480 - 1500 | 20 y | Purnadhabnarayan | |
| 16 | 1500- 1522 | 22 y | Dharmadhwajpal | Dhirnarayan |
| 17 | 1522 - 1524 | 2 y | Nityapal | Chandranarayan/Nitai |
Geography
The Sutiyas held the areas to the north of Brahmaputra from Parshuram Kund in the east to Vishwanath in the west which represents the areas of Dhemaji district, Lakhimpur district and Sonitpur district of present Assam. To the north, it controlled the present Miri Hills, Abor Hills and the Mishmi Hills (Rangalgiri, Kalgiri, Nilgiri, Chandragiri, Dhavalgiri)[24] in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. To the south of the Brahmaputra, it had parts of Dibrugarh district and almost the entire Tinsukia district under its rule.[25]
Gunpowder and Cannons theory
Many historians believe that it was in Assam where gunpowder was invented.There had been trade between China and Assam in 1st Millennium AD and Assam had certain degree of civilization.
British traveler and historian J.B. Traveneer states: “It is believed that it is the same people who in ancient times first discovered gun and gunpowder, which passed from Assam to Pegu and Pegu to China. This is the reason why the discovery is generally ascribed to the Chinese”.
Another British researcher, J.P. Wade says: “The firearms were first made in Assam. When the Ahoms came to Assam they fought with the Sutiyas. The Sutiyas battled the Ahoms with cannons and other varieties of firearms. Therefore, it can be proved that firearms and gunpowder were traditionally made in early Assam."[26]
That the Sutiyas were using firearms can be ascertained by the fact that when the Chutia Kingdom was annexed by Ahoms, the Ahoms acquired a lot of things from the Sutiyas. One of those was the big gun, Mithaholong, which was the one of the largest classes of big guns which were produced in this part of the country. As per History of Assam by Edward Gait, the first usage of gunpowder by Ahoms date back to their war against Turbak in 1532. Up to this time the Ahoms weapons consisted of swords, spears and bows and arrows. The Sutiyas were defeated in 1527 which indicated that the Sutiyas were the first to use gunpowder in Assam.[27]
Monuments
The Chutia rulers were involved in building forts, temples and palaces during their rule. However most of these monuments have disappeared in the heart of the river Brahmaputra during the 1950 Assam–Tibet earthquake and the remaining are now in dilapidated state as no initiative has taken place to conserve them. One of the known monuments built by the Chutias was the Tamreswari temple in Sadiya.[28] It was built during the 12th century by Ratnadhwajpal and was later repaired in the 15th century. The temple popularly known as Sakta Goddess Khesaikhati fell down during the earthquake of 1950 and the Brahmaputra eroded the site completely. Colonel Hanny and Dalton visited the site in the middle of the 19th century and Bloch reported it along with the photograph of the ruined temple.
Ruins of an ancient town are found between the river Dhal and Ghagar to 8 km east of present town of North Lakhimpur. A Sutiya king built the town during the 14th and 15th century which was deserted or destroyed by natural calamity like earthquake or flood.[29] Other momuments which flourished during the Sutiya reign is Bhismaknagar located 25 km from Roing.
Malinithan temple near Likabali in North Lakhimpur, Ita Fort in Arunachal Pradesh and Garakhiathan located at Selajan Sonowal Kachari village are other prominent monuments build during the Sutiya rule.[30]
Existing and known monuments:
- Bhismaknagar
- Gomsi
- Ita Fort
- Tamresari Temple
- Malinithan Temple
- Garakhiathan Temple
- Maghnowa Temple
See also
Notes
- ^ (Col. Ved Prakash:911–916)
- ^ Barua, Sarbeswar,Purvottar Prabandha, p. 212
- ^ Kalita, Bharat Chandra, Military activities in Medieval Assam,p.23
- ^ Saikia, Yasmin,In the Meadows of Gold, p. 190.
- ^ Dutta 1985, p. 30.
- ^ Saikia, Yasmin, In the Meadows of Gold, p. 190.
- ^ Barua, Swarnalata, Chutia Jatir Buranji, p.139.
- ^ "639 Identifier Documentation: aho – ISO 639-3". SIL International (formerly known as the Summer Institute of Linguistics). SIL International. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
Ahom [aho]
- ^ "Population by Religious Communities". Census India – 2001. Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
Census Data Finder/C Series/Population by Religious Communities
- ^ "Population by religion community – 2011". Census of India, 2011. The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Archived from the original on 25 August 2015.
2011census/C-01/DDW00C-01 MDDS.XLS
- ^ (Gait 1906:38–40)
- ^ Sadiya is an Assamese name for king of the Chutias. It was the name of the kingdom as well its capital
- ^ (Col Ved. Prakash:913)
- ^ (Jabnabi Gogoi:20–21)
- ^ (Om Gupta:543)
- ^ "-and it is notorious that both Burmese and Shans substitute the Y for the R, and we would then have it written more like Xshattrya or Chuttryah" (Hanney 1848, p. 469)
- ^ (Barua 2004:25)
- ^ Momin, Mignonette; Mawlong, Cecile A.; Qādrī, Fuz̤ail Aḥmad (2004). Society and Economy in North-East India. Regency Publications. p. 47. ISBN 9788189233402.
two main views on the origin of the Chutias: (a) that the Chutias were so called because they had originally occupied the chut or mountaintop ...
- ^ (Prakash 2007:267)
- ^ (Prakash 2007:267)
- ^ Guptajit Patnak
- ^ Guptajit Pathak
- ^ (Prakash 2007:267)
- ^ (Col Ved. Prakash:911–916)
- ^ (Jabnabi Gogoi:20–21)
- ^ Gunpowder was invented In Assam
- ^ Gunpowder was invented In Assam
- ^ (Prakash 2007:267)
- ^ The Srimanta.org
- ^ The Srimanta.org
References
- Gait, Edward (1906). A History of Assam. Calcutta: Thacker, Spink & Co.
- Prakash, Col. Ved (2007). Encyclopedia of North East India.Vol.2. Atlantic Publishers & Dist.
- Pathak, Guptajit (2008). Assam's history and its graphics. Mittal Publications.
- Bhusan, Chandra (2005). Assam : Its Heritage and Culture. Gyan Publishing House.
- Gogoi, Punyadhar. War Weapons in Medieval Assam.
| Ancient Assam |  | |
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| Medieval Assam | ||
| Colonial Assam | ||
| Contemporary Assam | ||
History of Chutia people of Assam | |
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