Radhanpur State was a princely state in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

during the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

. Its rulers belonged to a family of Babi House, the state was once a polity within the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

. The last ruling Nawab of Radhanpur, Nawab Murtaza Khan, signed the instrument of accession to the Indian Union on 10 June 1948. The town of

Radhanpur Radhanpur is a town and a municipality in Patan district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Origin of name According to the tradition, the city is named after Radhan Khan, a descendant of Fateh Khan Baloch. Fateh Khan Baloch received a freedom fro ...

in the Saurashtra region of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

was its capital. It was surrounded by a loopholed wall; the town was formerly known for its export trade in

rapeseed Rapeseed (''Brassica napus ''subsp.'' napus''), also known as rape, or oilseed rape, is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family), cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed, which naturally contains a ...

, grains and cotton.

History

In 1753 Jawan Mard Khan II, son of Jawan Mard Khan I who assisted

in the rule of

, became independent ruler of Radhanpur, among other territories. In 1706 Jafar Khan was appointed governor of Patan and in 1715 his son ''Khan Jahan'' (Jawan Mard Khan I) was appointed governor of Radhanpur and other territories. Khan jahan was killed by

Kolis The Koli is an Indian caste found in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir states in India. Koli is an agriculturist caste of Gujarat but in coastal areas the ...

of balor while he marched against kolis. The state was an independent polity within the

, its proximity to the territory of the

Peshwa The Peshwa (Pronunciation: e(ː)ʃʋaː was the appointed (later becoming hereditary) prime minister of the Maratha Empire of the Indian subcontinent. Originally, the Peshwas served as subordinates to the Chhatrapati (the Maratha king); later ...

of the

Maratha Confederacy The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern Indian confederation that came to dominate much of the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. Maratha rule formally began in 1674 with the coronation of Shi ...

endangered the ruling

Nawab Nawab ( Balochi: نواب; ar, نواب; bn, নবাব/নওয়াব; hi, नवाब; Punjabi : ਨਵਾਬ; Persian, Punjabi , Sindhi, Urdu: ), also spelled Nawaab, Navaab, Navab, Nowab, Nabob, Nawaabshah, Nawabshah or Nobab, ...

to possible conflicts. On 16 December 1813, Radhanpur became a British protectorate and in 1819 the British helped the Nawab to expel the

Khosa Khosa may refer to: People with the surname Khosa * Asif Saeed Khan Khosa, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan since 31 December 2016 * Baldev Khosa, Indian film actor and politician * Sardar Muhammad Muqeem Khan Khoso,former MNA in ...

raiders, a predatory tribe which used to make incursions from Sindh. The state was part of the

Palanpur Agency Palanpur Agency, also spelled Pahlunpore Agency, was a political agency or collection of princely states in British India, within the Gujarat Division of Bombay Presidency. In 1933, the native states of the Mahi Kantha Agency, except for Danta, we ...

of the Bombay Presidency, which in 1925 became the

Banas Kantha Agency Palanpur Agency, also spelled Pahlunpore Agency, was a political agency or collection of princely states in British India, within the Gujarat Division of Bombay Presidency. In 1933, the native states of the Mahi Kantha Agency, except for Danta, we ...

. British administrators took charge of the regency of the state on two occasions, when two separate Nawabs died leaving a minor son as successor. The Nawab of Radhanpur was empowered by the British to control the external relations, as well as to mint the own coins, of the state. The latter privilege lasted until 1900, when Radhanpur State had to adopt the

Indian currency The Indian rupee ( symbol: ₹; code: INR) is the official currency in the republic of India. The rupee is subdivided into 100 ''paise'' (singular: ''paisa''), though as of 2022, coins of denomination of 1 rupee are the lowest value in use w ...

. The state's progressive Nawab briefly introduced decimalization, with 100 fuls equaling one rupee, long before India began to use the

decimal currency Decimalisation or decimalization (see spelling differences) is the conversion of a system of currency or of weights and measures to units related by powers of 10. Most countries have decimalised their currencies, converting them from non-decimal ...

system in 1957. In 1943, with the implementation of the '

attachment scheme Baroda and Gujarat States Agency was a political agency of British India, managing the relations of the British government of the Bombay Presidency with a collection of princely states. The political agent, who was also Collector of the Britis ...

', Radhanpur State enlarged its territory by an additional 2,234 km² when some lesser princely states were merged. The population of the merged territories was about 33,000 inhabitants, which brought the total population of Radhanpur State to 100,644,

Rulers

Radhanpur State was ruled by Babi Pathans and had the right to an 11

gun salute A gun salute or cannon salute is the use of a piece of artillery to fire shots, often 21 in number (''21-gun salute''), with the aim of marking an honor or celebrating a joyful event. It is a tradition in many countries around the world. Histo ...

. The rulers of the state bore the title of ''

''. They were related to the ruling houses of

Junagadh Junagadh () is the headquarters of Junagadh district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Located at the foot of the Girnar hills, southwest of Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar (the state capital), it is the seventh largest city in the state. Literally ...

and

Balasinor Balasinor, also known as Vadasinor, is a city located in the Mahisagar district of Gujarat, India. The city was formerly part of Balasinor State, a princely state ruled by the Babi dynasty, from September 1758 until its accession to India in J ...

, two other Gujarat princely states.

Nawabs

*30 Mar 1753 – 1765 Jawan Mard Khan II (d. 1765) *1765 – 1787 Muhammad Najm ad-Din Khan (d. 1787) *1787 – 11 May 1813 Muhammad Ghazi ad-Din Khan (b. 17.. – d. 1813) *11 May 1813 – 1825 Muhammad Shir Khan I (b. 1794 – d. 1825) – jointly with the following monarch – *11 May 1813 – 1813 Muhammad Kamal ad-Din Khan II (b. 1805 – d. 1813) *1825 – 9 October 1874 Muhammad Jorawar Shir Khan (b. 1822 – d. 1874) *1825 – 1838 Sardar Bibi Sahiba (f) – Regent * 9 October 1874 – 20 December 1895 Mohammad Bismillah Khan (b. 1843 – d. 1895) *20 Dec 1895 – 25 February 1910 Mohammad Shir Khan II (b. 1886 – d. 1910) *20 Dec 1895 – Apr 1896 W. Beale -Regent *Apr 1896 – 1900 Malcolm Thomas Lyde — Regent *Jul 1900 – Dec 1901 George Broodric O'Donnell — Regent *Dec 1901 – Aug 1903 Frederick William Wodehouse — Regent (b. 1867 – d. 1961) *Oct 1903 – 13 April 1907 Norman Sinclair Coghill — Regent (b. 1869 – d. 19..) *25 Feb 1910 – 4 December 1936 Mohammad Jalal ad-Din Khan (b. 1889 – d. 1936) (from 1 January 1935, Sir Mohammad Jalal ad-Din Khan) * 4 December 1936 – 15 August 1947 Mortaza Khan (b. 1899 – d. 199.)

References

Bibliography

External links