Simraungadh, Simraongarh or Simroungarh (,

Devanagari Devanagari ( ; in script: , , ) is an Indic script used in the Indian subcontinent. It is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental Writing systems#Segmental systems: alphabets, writing system), based on the ancient ''Brāhmī script, Brā ...

: सिम्रौनगढ) is a municipality situated in

Bara district Bara District ( ) is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal, located in the western part of the Madhesh Province. The district is third richest district in Nepal after Kathmandu and Morang with 3.3% share of total GDP of Nepal and highest ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

. The municipality was created in 2014 by agglomerating the Village Development Committees of Amritganj, Golaganj, Hariharpur & Uchidih and later on expanded the municipality areas to include Bhagwanpur, Kachorwa, Dewapur-Teta, and Bishnupur,BadkaItwal. The municipality is also contains parts of an Simraungadh (medieval city), archaeological site which is split between Indian and Nepal and which finds mention in the travel accounts of a

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

and

pilgrim The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...

Dharmasvamin Dharmasvamin (''Chag Lo-tsa-ba Chos-rje-dpal''; 1197–1264) was a Tibetan monk and pilgrim who travelled to Nepal and Magadha between 1234 and 1236. The main source on his life is his biography which was composed by Upasaka Chos-dar and provide ...

(1236) when he was on his way back to Nepal And Tibet, an Italian

Missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

traveler, Cassiano Beligatti (1740),

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

James Kirkpatrick (1801) on his mission to Nepal and later used in 1835 by British

ethnologist Ethnology (from the , meaning 'nation') is an academic field and discipline that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology). Scien ...

Brian Houghton Hodgson Brian Houghton Hodgson (1 February 1801 – 23 May 1894) was a pioneer natural history, naturalist and ethnologist working in India and Nepal where he was a British Resident (title), Resident. He described numerous species of birds and mammals fr ...

. The city is located along the

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

between

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

. It lies south of Nepal's capital,

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

, and east of

Birgunj Birgunj () is a metropolitan city in Parsa District in Madhes Pradesh in southern Nepal. It lies south of the capital Kathmandu, attached in the north to Raxaul on the border of the Indian state of Bihar. As an entry point to Nepal from Patn ...

metro city.

Bhojpuri Bhojpuri may refer to: * Bhojpuri language, an Indo-Aryan language of India and Nepal * Bhojpuri grammar, grammatical rules of the language * Bhojpuri nouns, nouns of the language * Bhojpuri people, people who speak the language * Bhojpuri region ...

is the local language of Simraungadh.

Etymology

The name ''Simraon'' comes from the local language ''Simr'' which stands for Simal tree found in the area. Simraongarh's relationship with the Simal forest has been also revealed by

Gopal Raj Vamshavali The Gopal Raj Vamshavali (IAST: Gopālarājavaṃśāvalī, Devanagari: गोपालराजवंशावली) is a 14th-century hand-written manuscript of Nepal which is primarily a genealogical record of Nepalese monarchs. One of the m ...

, the oldest chronicles of Nepal. The Tibetan monk and traveler, Dharmasavamin states Simrāongarh as Pa-ta. The word ''Pata'' is an abbreviation of last affix of Pattana''', which means a capital in

Sanskrit language Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

History

Simraungadh was the capital of an independent Hindu kingdom of the

Mithila Mithila may refer to: Places * Mithilā, a synonym for the ancient Videha state ** Mithilā (ancient city), the ancient capital city of Videha * Mithila (region), a cultural region (historical and contemporary), now divided between India and Nepa ...

or Tirhut from the 11th century to early 14th century. The fortified city was built along the present-day

between

and

. The rule of the

Karnat dynasty The Karnats of Mithila or Karnata dynasty () was a dynasty established in 1097 CE by Nanyadeva. The dynasty controlled the areas we today know as Tirhut or Mithila in India and adjoining parts of South Eastern Nepal. The main power centre of the K ...

marks an important milestone and a

golden age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during wh ...

in the history of Tirhut. The rise of this empire saw the birth of efficient administration, social reforms, religious and the development of local folk music and literature.

Karnat dynasty

The Simraon, Karnat, or Dev Dynasty originated with the establishment of a kingdom in 1097 CE headquartered at present-day Simraungadh in Bara district. The kingdom controlled the areas we today know as

Tirhut Mithila (), also known as Tirhut, Tirabhukti and Mithilanchal, is a geographical and cultural region of the Indian subcontinent bounded by the Mahananda River in the east, the Ganges in the south, the Gandaki River in the west and by the foothi ...

or Mithila in

and

. This region is bounded by the

Mahananda River The Mahananda ( ) is a trans-boundary river that flows through the Indian states of Bihar and West Bengal before crossing into Bangladesh. It is an important tributary of the Ganges. Course The Mahananda river system consists of two streams- ...

in the east, the

Ganges The Ganges ( ; in India: Ganga, ; in Bangladesh: Padma, ). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary rive ...

in the south, the

Gandaki River The Gandaki River, also known as the Narayani and Gandak, is one of the major rivers in Nepal and a left-bank tributary of the Ganges in India. Its total catchment area is , most of it in Nepal. In the Nepal Himalayas, the Gandaki is notable f ...

in the west, and by the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

in the north. The boundary line was made between the two countries after the

Treaty of Sugauli The Treaty of Sugauli (also spelled Sugowlee, Sagauli and Segqulee), the treaty that established the boundary line of Nepal, was signed on 4 March 1816 between the East India Company and Guru Gajraj Mishra following the Anglo-Nepalese War of ...

in 1816 CE. According to French orientalist and

indologist Indology, also known as South Asian studies, is the academic study of the history and cultures, languages, and literature of the Indian subcontinent, and as such is a subset of Asian studies. The term ''Indology'' (in German, ''Indologie'') is ...

Sylvain Lévi Sylvain Lévi (; March 28, 1863 – October 30, 1935) was an influential French intellectual and author whose specialities were oriental studies and India. He taught Sanskrit and Indian religions at the École pratique des hautes études in ...

Nanyadeva Nanyadeva (IAST: ') was the founder of the Karnat dynasty of Mithila. He established his capital in Simraungadh and ruled the greater Mithila region for 50 years. He is known for his patronage of scholars. He began to rule Mithila from the cita ...

established his supremacy over Simraungadh probably with the help of

Chalukya The Chalukya dynasty () was a Classical Indian dynasty that ruled large parts of southern and central India between the 6th and the 12th centuries. During this period, they ruled as three related yet individual dynasties. The earliest dynas ...

king

Vikramaditya VI Vikramaditya VI (r. 1076 – 1126 CE) became the Western Chalukya King after deposing his elder brother Someshvara II, a political move he made by gaining the support of Chalukya vassals during the Chola invasion of Chalukya territory.Sen ...

. After the reign of Vikramaditya VI in 1076 CE, he led the successful military campaign over modern

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

and

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

. The rulers of Simraongarh are as follows:

Geography and climate

Simraungadh is located at . It has an average elevation of 83 meters. The Simraungdah town lies on the flat and fertile plain of

Terai The Terai or Tarai is a lowland region in parts of southern Nepal and northern India that lies to the south of the outer foothills of the Himalayas, the Sivalik Hills and north of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. This lowland belt is characterised by ...

. In the south, the city borders Bijwani in the border of the Indian state of

, while Adarsh Kotwal in the north.

Tourist attractions

Ranivas Temple and Palace

Ranivas Complex comprises 'Ranivas Temple' which is also known as 'Ram Mandir', 'Ram Janaki Mandir', 'Ranivas Palace' and 'Mahal Sarai' is located 1 Kilometer north of Simraungadh market area and 2 Kilometer north of the Indian border. The complex is spread in 600

bigha The bigha or beegah (, , Assamese: বিঘা) is a traditional unit of measurement of area of a land, commonly used in northern & eastern India, Bangladesh and Nepal. There is no "standard" size of bigha and it varies considerably from place ...

s. It is one of the most visited sites of Simraungadh by local and foreign tourists. The present Ram Janaki temple is built in 1878 AD by Jagat Jung Rana, son of

Jung Bahadur Rana Jung Bahadur Rana, , was born Bir Narsingh Kunwar (1817-1877). His mother, Ganesh Kumari, was the daughter of Kaji Nain Singh Thapa, the brother of Mukhtiyar Bhimsen Thapa from the prominent Thapa dynasty. During his lifetime, Jung Bahadur eli ...

. In 1877 AD, then

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

died at a place called Patharghat,

Rautahat Rautahat is a VDC located in Saptari district of Nepal. At the time of the 2011 Nepal Census it had a population of 3612 people living in 660 individual households. Jung Bahadur Rana Jung Bahadur Rana, , was born Bir Narsingh Kunwar (1817-18 ...

while returning from a

hunting Hunting is the Human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products (fur/hide (sk ...

camp from Simraungadh. According to the wish expressed by his queen Hiranya Garbha Devi while going to Sati, his son built this temple in 1878 AD. It is said and believed that this temple and present structure of Ranivas Palace is built upon the ancient palace of the

. After the fall of Karntas, Oiniwar dynasty comes into the power who ruled Mithila region from 1325 to 1527 AD. It is also believed that the Maharaja of Oinwar dynasty, Siva Singh (r. 1412 - 1416), built this palace for his daughter Isri Devi during his ruling time.

Kankali Temple

Kankali Temple is a

Hindu temple A Hindu temple, also known as Mandir, Devasthanam, Pura, or Kovil, is a sacred place where Hindus worship and show their devotion to Hindu deities, deities through worship, sacrifice, and prayers. It is considered the house of the god to who ...

located in the southeastern part of the Simraungadh market area. This temple is built in the

shikhara ''Shikhara'' (IAST: '), a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak", refers to the rising tower in the Hindu temple architecture of North India, and also often used in Jain temples. A ''shikhara'' over the ''garbhagriha'' chamber ...

style of architecture. The idol of Kankali Mai is placed in the temple, which is made of black stone and believed to be mangled by Tughlaq armies. The date L.S. 119 (which must be in

Vikram Samvat Vikram Samvat (ISO: ''Vikrama Saṁvata''; abbreviated VS), also known as the Vikrami calendar is a Hindu calendar historically used in the Indian subcontinent and still also used in several Indian states and Nepal. It is a lunisolar calendar ...

: 1340 and

Common era Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the ...

: 1283) is engraved on the

Ghanta Ghanta (Sanskrit: घण्टा, IAST: ghaṇṭā; Tibetan: drilbu) is the Sanskrit term for a ritual bell used in Hindu religious practices. The ringing of the bell produces what is regarded as an auspicious sound. Hindu temples generally h ...

, which is placed in front of this temple. Before the renovation of this temple, the ruin of this temple was known as "Kankali Mai Sthaan". The temple was restored in a small size by Mansaram Baba before 1816 AD and the present structure was made by his disciple, Ram Sewak Das in 1967 AD. During the festivals of

Rama Navami Rama Navami () is a Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Rama, one of the most popularly revered deities in Hinduism, also known as the seventh avatar of Vishnu. He is often held as an emblem within Hinduism for being an ideal king and h ...

Chaitra Chaitra () is a month of the Hindu calendar. In the standard Hindu calendar and India's national civil calendar, Chaitra is the first month of the year. It is the last month in the Bengali calendar, where it is called Choitro. Chaitra or Cha ...

, there is the presence of thousands of worshipers from Nepal and India. *Simraungadh Kankali Mandir Ghanta (BELL)Abhilekh "Simraungadh-Atit Se Vartman Tak"-By D.K.Singh. 5

Jharokhar Pokhari

Jharokhar Pokhari, 'Deutaal Pokhari' or 'Kachorwa Pokhari' is an artificial pond spread in 52 bighas (87

acres The acre ( ) is a unit of land area used in the British imperial and the United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, ...

). As of 2020 AD, the pond is shrunk to 22 bighas (36 acres) due to a lack of maintenance and human encroachment. The Jharokhar pond, which is connected to the Nepal-India border by Dasgaja, is believed to be about 800 years old and is located in Baswariya, Simraungadh. There is an Indian village, Jharokhar which is about two hundred meters south of the pond. This is one of the largest man-made spring pond of Nepal.

Medieval city plan and fortification

The medieval city of Simraungadh is enclosed within an impressive system of earthen ramparts and infilled ditches. The fortification of the medieval city has a rectangular shape and ground plan. The fortifications of Simraungadh are called Baahi locally and remembered as a

Labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth () is an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the h ...

. The fort is spread in 6

Kos Kos or Cos (; ) is a Greek island, which is part of the Dodecanese island chain in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Kos is the third largest island of the Dodecanese, after Rhodes and Karpathos; it has a population of 37,089 (2021 census), making ...

and the main enclosure is about 7.5 km north–south and 4.5 km east–west. The eastern and western side of the fort were built over two natural embankments. The western side of the fort was dry in comparison to eastern side. The Labyrinth and the powerful defense system of the city was well planned to protect from the river floods, enemies and regulate agriculture from controlled flow of water from the ditches shows the ability of the Kingdom. During the reign of Rama Singh Deva ( r. 1227 - 1285 CE) over Simraungadh, the Tibetan monk

visited the fortified city in 1236 AD on his way back to

and

from

Nalanda Nalanda (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: , ) was a renowned Buddhism, Buddhist ''mahavihara'' (great monastery) in medieval Magadha (Mahajanapada), Magadha (modern-day Bihar), eastern India. Widely considered to be am ...

. He made the following remarks regarding the palace and fortification system of Pa-ta (Simraungadh), After the fall and decline of the Karnat dynasty from Simraungadh, the region was either controlled by Oiniwar rulers or Makwanpur rulers until the

Unification of Nepal The unification of Nepal () was the process of building the modern Nepalese state, by invading fractured Malla kingdoms including the Baise Rajya's 22 kingdoms and the Chaubisi Rajya's 24 kingdoms. It began in 1743 CE (1799 BS), by Prithvi N ...

in 1768 AD. During the period of time an Italian Missionary traveller Cassiano Beligatti, with seven other missionaries reached this place on their way to

Kathmandu valley The Kathmandu Valley (), also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley (, Newar language, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः), National Capital Area, is a bowl-shaped valley located in the Himalayas, Hima ...

from

Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...

on 29 February 1740. He describes his journey on his travelling manuscript about this place is as follows,

References

External links

{{Bara District Populated places in Bara District Municipalities in Madhesh Province