The Berar Subah () was one of the Subahs (provinces) of the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...

, in Central India from 1596 to 1724. It bordered

Golconda Golconda is a fortified citadel and ruined city located on the western outskirts of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. The fort was originally built by Kakatiya ruler Pratāparudra in the 11th century out of mud walls. It was ceded to the Bahmani ...

, Ahmandagar (both conquered in 1601), Kandesh and

Malwa Malwa () is a historical region, historical list of regions in India, region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic plateau, volcanic upland north of the ...

provinces as well as the independent and tributary kingdoms to the east.

Origin of name

According to the ''Ain-i-Akbari'', the original name of Berar was ''Waradatat'' (the banks of Varada River).

History

Before the Mughal occupation, Berar was part of the Nizam Shahi sultanate of Ahmadnagar. It was ceded to the emperor

Akbar Akbar (Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, – ), popularly known as Akbar the Great, was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Humayun, under a regent, Bairam Khan, who helped the young emperor expa ...

by Chand Bibi in 1596, unable to stand against the imperial forces led by prince Murad. After this initial victory Prince Murad settled in Berar with Balapur as his headquarters. Near Balapur he founded a new city named Shahpur and constructed a beautiful palace for himself. As his relationship was deteriorating with Abdul Rahim Khan-i-Khanan, the commander of the army, Akbar recalled Khan-i-Khanan and sent his trusted friend Abul Fazl to help him. Murad died in 1598. After his death, Prince Daniel was given the charge as governor of Berar, Ahmadnagar and Khandesh, Khan-i- Khanan was sent along with Daniel. Akbar died in 1605. In 1611, the southern provinces of Ahmadnagar, Berar and Khandesh defied Mughal sovereignty under Malik Ambar. Jahangir sent Man Singh and others to crush the revolt. Man Singh died a natural death on 6 July 1614 at Ellichpur. During

Jahangir Nur-ud-din Muhammad Salim (31 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was List of emperors of the Mughal Empire, Emperor of Hindustan from 1605 until his death in 1627, and the fourth Mughal emperors, Mughal ...

’s rule, Malik Ambar till his death in 1626 recovered a substantial part of the Deccan from the Mughals including Berar. In 1628, the first year of reign of

Shah Jahan Shah Jahan I, (Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram; 5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), also called Shah Jahan the Magnificent, was the Emperor of Hindustan from 1628 until his deposition in 1658. As the fifth Mughal emperor, his reign marked the ...

, Berar again came under the Mughal sway. In 1636, the Mughal possessions in ''Dakhin'' (Deccan) were divided into 4 Subahs. Berar was one of them with

Ellichpur Achalpur (), formerly known as Ellichpur and Illychpur, is a city and a municipal council in Amravati District in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the second most populous city in Amravati District after Amravati and seventh most populous ...

as its capital and Gavilgad as its main fort.

Aurangzeb Alamgir I (Muhi al-Din Muhammad; 3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, also called Aurangzeb the Conqueror, was the sixth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707, becomi ...

was appointed viceroy of four Deccan Subahs for the first time and he occupied the post for eight years (till 1644). He was again appointed viceroy for the second time in 1653 and he remained in that post till 1657. During Aurangzeb's reign, Berar was successively overrun by the Maratha rulers Shambhaji in 1680 and Rajaram in 1698. In 1720, Maratha Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath obtained the grant of the right to collect ''

chauth Chauth (from ) was a regular tax or tribute imposed from the early 18th century by the Maratha Empire in the Indian subcontinent. It was an annual tax nominally levied at 25% on revenue or produce, hence the name, on lands that were under nominal M ...

'' and '' sardeshmukhi'' from Berar from the Mughal emperor. In 1724, when Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah declared independence, the existence of Berar as a Mughal Subah came to an end. It became (though nominally) a part of Nizam's state.

Administrative divisions

Berar came under Mughal administration in 1596.

Todar Mal Raja Todar Mal (1523-24 – 8 November 1589) was an Indian minister, economist, and military commander who served as the Finance minister, Finance Minister (Diwan-i-Ashraff) of the Mughal empire during the reign of Akbar, Akbar I. He was also ...

's famous system known as '' bandobast'' was made applicable to the Berar Subah. The area of the Berar Subah during Akbar's reign was 72,000 sq. miles. According to ''Ain-i-Akbari'', its northern limit was Handia, the eastern limit was the fort of Vairagad near Bastar, the southern limit was Telangana and the western limit was Mahkarabad.

was the capital of the Subah. The important forts of the Subah were Gawilgad,

Narnala Narnala Fort or Narnala Qila Sarkar, also known as Shahnoor Fort, is a hill fortress in the Satpura Range of Vidarbh, Maharashtra, India, named after the Rajput Solanki (clan), Solanki Chaulukya Ruler, Raja Narnal Singh, also known as Narnal S ...

, Pavanar, Khedala, Manikdurg and Mahur. It was divided into 13 '' sarkars'' consisting of 242 ''

pargana Pargana or parganah, also spelt pergunnah, equivalent to Mohallah as a subunit of Subah (Suba), was a type of former administrative division in the Indian subcontinent during the time of the Delhi Sultanate, Mughal and British Colonial empire ...

s''. The sarkars and parganas of the Berar Subah (province) were:

Economy

The ''jama'' (revenue assessed) from Berar in 1596 was 64,26,03,270

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

s (Delhi). Land revenue formed the major part of the total income from the Subah. Other sources of income were

zakat Zakat (or Zakāh زكاة) is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. Zakat is the Arabic word for "Giving to Charity" or "Giving to the Needy". Zakat is a form of almsgiving, often collected by the Muslim Ummah. It is considered in Islam a relig ...

, customs, salt tax,

khums In Islam, khums ( ) is a tax on Muslims which obligates them to pay one-fifth (20%) of their acquired wealth from the spoils of war and, according to most Muslim jurists, other specified types of income, towards various designated beneficiarie ...

, mint, currency,

jizya Jizya (), or jizyah, is a type of taxation levied on non-Muslim subjects of a state governed by Sharia, Islamic law. The Quran and hadiths mention jizya without specifying its rate or amount,Sabet, Amr (2006), ''The American Journal of Islamic Soc ...

escheat Escheat () is a common law doctrine that transfers the real property of a person who has died without heirs to the crown or state. It serves to ensure that property is not left in "limbo" without recognized ownership. It originally applied t ...

s, presents,

octroi Octroi (; , to grant, authorize; Lat. ''auctor'') is a local tax collected on various articles brought into a district for consumption. Antiquity The word itself is of French origin. Octroi taxes have a respectable antiquity, being known in R ...

, tolls and tributes. The coins current were tanka-i-Barari, dam and Rupee. One tanka-i-Barari was equal to 16 Delhi damsAbul Fazl-i-Allami (1949, reprint 1993). ''Ain-i-Akbari'' Vol. II (tr. H.S. Jarrett, rev. J.N. Sarkar), Calcutta: The Asiatic Society, p.239n (but later raised to 24 dams) or eight Delhi tankas.

Notes

References