The Delhi Territory was an administrative region of

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

which comprised Delhi plus

Gurgaon Gurgaon (), officially named Gurugram (), is a satellite city of Delhi and administrative headquarters of Gurgaon district, located in the northern Indian state of Haryana. It is situated near the Delhi–Haryana border, about southwest ...

, Hissar,

Sirsa Sirsa is a city and a municipal council in Sirsa district in the westernmost region of the Indian state of Haryana, bordering Punjab and Rajasthan. It is located near the Thar Desert, 250 kilometres north-west of New Delhi and 260 kilometers s ...

(then known as Bhattiana),

Karnal Karnal () is a city located in the state of Haryana, India and is the administrative headquarters of Karnal District. The city is well connected as it lies on National Highway 01, in the south of the city lies the cities of Panipat and Sonipa ...

and

Rohtak district Rohtak district is a district in the Indian state of Haryana. It is located in the southeast of the state and northwest of Delhi, bounded by Jind and Sonipat districts to the north, Jhajjar and Sonipat districts to the east, and Hissar, C ...

s lying primarily to mostly the west of the

Yamuna River The Yamuna (; ) is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in List of major rivers of India, India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a height of about on the southwestern slopes of B ...

—and later formed part of southern Punjab Province in 1858.See point 81(c) or Pdf reader page no. - 44
Land Administration Punjab
/ref>

History

Delhi was conquered by the British in 1803. On 30 December 1803, the

Daulat Scindia Daulat Rao Scindia (1779 – 21 March 1827) also conferred with the title "''The defender of Delhi"'' was the Maratha Maharaja of Gwalior state in central India from 1794 until his death in 1827. His reign coincided with struggles for supremac ...

signed the

Treaty of Surji-Anjangaon The Treaty of Surji-Anjangaon was signed on 30 December 1803 between the British and Daulat Rao Sindhia, chief of the Maratha Confederacy at Anjangaon town located in Maharashtra. On 30 December 1803, the Sindhia signed the Treaty of Surji-Anjan ...

with the British after the

Battle of Assaye The Battle of Assaye was a battle of the Second Anglo-Maratha War fought between the Maratha Confederacy and the British East India Company. It occurred on 23 September 1803 near Assaye in western India. An outnumbered Indian and British force ...

and Battle of Laswari and ceded to the British, Hisar, Panipat, Rohtak, Rewari, Gurgaon, Ganges-Jumna Doab, the Delhi-Agra region, parts of Bundelkhand, Broach, some districts of Gujarat and the fort of Ahmmadnagar. Until 1832, the Delhi Division was controlled by the Residency. Regulation V of that year, abolished the office of Resident and annexed the Delhi territory to the jurisdiction of the Sadr Board and Courts of Justice at

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

, which included the Commissioner of the Delhi territory and all officers acting under his control, ordinarily to "or form to the principles and spirit of the regulations" in their his control, ordinarily to administration. After the

Indian rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against Company rule in India, the rule of the East India Company, British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the The Crown, British ...

, the Delhi Division of the

North-Western Provinces The North-Western Provinces was an Presidencies and provinces of British India, administrative region in British Raj, British India. The North-Western Provinces were established in 1836, through merging the administrative divisions of the Cede ...

was transferred to the

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

in 1858, and formed into the Delhi and Hissar divisions, which embraced the six districts - * Delhi Division: Delhi, Gurgaon, and Panipat * Hisar Division: Hisar, Sirsa, Rohtak (and part of Jhajjar)Hisar District Culture & History article
/ref>

Administration

The Delhi Territory underwent significant administrative transformation between 1803 and 1947 under British colonial rule. Following The

(1803) resulted in the Maratha chief Daulat Rao Sindhia ceding large portions of

Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...

(then considered part of the Delhi Territory) to the British East India Company. These areas included Panipat, Sonipat, Samalkha, Ganaur, Haveli Palam (north), and Nuh, Hathin, Tizara, Bhora, Tapukara, Sohna, Rewari, Indri, and Palwal (south). Initially, the British directly governed select regions (termed "Assigned Territory"), while the rest remained under local chiefs' control subject to British suzerainty. In 1809, the Delhi Territory was administratively transferred to the Bengal Presidency and placed under the authority of the British Resident at Delhi. Land revenue systems were gradually implemented, beginning with William Fraser’s ten-year settlement in 1815, followed by a five-year settlement under Mr.

1840 Punjab side Indian contient by john archer

Graham in 1825, and a ten-year settlement led by Mr. Brown in 1839–40, considered the first regular land revenue settlement. A formal administrative structure was introduced in 1819 by C.T. Metcalfe, dividing the territory into three divisions: # Northern Division: Panipat, Sonipat, Rohtak, Hansi, and Hisar # Central Division: Delhi city and its environs # Southern Division: Palwal, Hodal, Mewat, Gurgaon, and Rewari The territory’s designation changed from "Assigned Territory" to "Delhi Territory." The assistants to the commissioner served as Collectors and presided over civil, criminal, and revenue courts. Over time, administrative titles evolved, with commissioners redesignated as Deputy Superintendents in 1820, overseeing independent jurisdictions such as the Hisar-Hansi-Sirsa region.In 1833, the Charter Act led to the formation of the North-Western Provinces (headquartered at Agra), which included Delhi, Hisar, Rohtak, Gurgaon, and Panipat districts. These districts were subdivided into tehsils, zails, and villages, forming a complex administrative hierarchy. In 1837, the parganas of Sirsa and Rania were separated from the Haryana (also known as Hisar) district. Along with the Guda and Malaut parganas, they were made into a new district called Bhattiana (also known as Sirsa). Later, the Darba pargana from Hisar was added to Bhattiana in 1838, and the small Rori pargana, which was taken from the former Princely state of Nabha, was added in 1847. In 1844, the Wattu pargana, which stretched up to the Sutlej River, was also included in Bhattiana district.Sirsa District History
/ref> In 1858, the entire Delhi territory, along with Bhattiana and Hisar districts, was transferred to

. After this, Bhattiana district was renamed

. and formed into the Delhi and Hissar divisions, which embraced the six districts - * Delhi Division: Delhi, Gurgaon, and Panipat * Hisar Division: Hisar, Sirsa, Rohtak (and part of Jhajjar) In 1861, 42 villages from the Tibi area of Rania pargana of Sirsa were given to the Bikaner state. In 1884, the Sirsa district, which included the three tahsils of Sirsa, Dabwali, and Fazilka, was abolished. After that, Sirsa tahsil (with 199 villages) and 126 villages from Dabwali tahsil were combined to form a new tahsil. This new tahsil was added to Hisar district. The remaining area was given to Firozpur district in Punjab. No further changes happened in Sirsa until India became independent. In 1884, the Hisar and Ambala Divisions were abolished, and their districts were reorganized. Most of their areas were merged into the Delhi Division, which then included the districts of "Delhi, Gurgaon, Karnal," "Hisar, Rohtak," "Ambala, and Simla," while Ludhiana district—previously part of the Ambala Division—was transferred to the Jullundur Division. Later, in 1911, Delhi district was separated from Punjab, and the headquarters of the Delhi Division were shifted to Ambala. Ambala Division had originally been part of the

Cis-Sutlej States The Cis-Sutlej states were a group of states in the contemporary Punjab and Haryana states of northern India during the 19th century, lying between the Sutlej River on the north, the Himalayas on the east, the Yamuna River and Delhi District on ...

under British control after the 1809 Treaty of Amritsar and joined Punjab Province in 1849. The Ambala and Thanesar districts were both created from territories that had lapsed to the British Government during the period 1809 to 1846 from

not Delhi Territory.The Ambala district was established in 1847. It originally included five tahsils and large jagir areas previously held by independent chiefs, whose sovereign powers were taken over by the British in 1846–47. Thanesar district was similarly formed from lapsed and forfeited lands, including estates such as Thanesar (partially lapsed in 1832 and fully by 1850), Kaithal (lapsed in 1843), and Ladwa (confiscated in 1846). Until 1849, these estates were managed by the Political Agent of Ambala and his assistants. After incorporation into Punjab in 1849 under a Deputy Commissioner subordinate to the Commissioner of the Cis-Sutlej Division.Page no. 33
Ambala District Gazetteers 1923-24
/ref> In 1862, Thanesar district was abolished and its territory divided between Ambala and Karnal districts. Shahabad, Ladwa, and part of Thanesar parganahs were added to Ambala district and formed new Pipli Tahsil or merged into it, while Kaithal and the remaining areas went to Karnal. The tahsils were reorganized accordingly. Previously, they were: 1. Kaithal; 2. Gula (which included the Pehowa tract, in 1923 part of Karnal); 3. Thanesar; and 4. Ladwa. The latter two included villages now in the Indri parganah of Karnal tahsil. In 1866, the Pehowa parganah was transferred from Karnal to Ambala. However, in 1876, 14 villages, and later in 1889, the remaining 89 villages, were transferred back from Pipli to the Kaithal tahsil of Karnal district. According to the '' Ambala District Gazetteer of 1883'', the district was divided into six tahsils. The tahsils of Pipli and Ambala included all the south-eastern portion of the district, while the tahsils of Jagadhri, Naraingarh, Kharar, and Rupnagar (Ropar) lay under the hills, arranged from east to west. Each tahsil was further subdivided into parganas. Ambala Tahsil comprised the parganas of Ambala and Mulana; Jagadhri Tahsil included Jagadhri, Mustafabad, and Khizrabad; Ropar Tahsil consisted of Ropar and Morinda; Kharar Tahsil contained Kharar and Mubarikpur; Naraingarh Tahsil included Naraingarh, Sadhaura, and Kutaha; while Pipli Tahsil was made up of Thanesar, Shahabad, and Ladwa. Each tahsil also had its corresponding thanas (police stations) and outposts. Ambala Tahsil had the thanas of Ambala City and Mulana. Kharar Tahsil included the thanas of Kharar, Chandigarh, and Mubarikpur, along with an outpost at Mani Majra. Ropar Tahsil had the thanas of Ropar and Morinda. Naraingarh Tahsil included the thanas of Naraingarh, Sadhaura, and Garhi, with second-class outposts at Morni and Patwi. Jagadhri Tahsil comprised the thanas of Jagadhri, Bilaspur, and Chhachhrauli. Pipli Tahsil included the thanas of Pipli, Shahabad, Thanesar, Pihova, Radaur, Sanghaur, and Ladwa, as well as a Baloch guard post at Ismailabad. Significant lapses of jagir estates between the regular settlement and 1887 occurred due to failure of heirs: the Sialba estate lapsed in 1866, covering 63 villages, and the Manimajra estate lapsed in 1875, covering 69 villages. Since 1887, only the Parkhali jagir in tahsil Rupar has notably lapsed, with minor lapses occurring occasionally. Finally, as noted in official records, Pipli tahsil of Ambala district was transferred to Karnal district in 1897, and the areas of Kalka-cum-Kurari,

Kalka Kalka is a town in the Panchkula district of Haryana, India. It is near Panchkula city. The name of the town is derived from the Hindu goddess Kali. Kalka is situated in the foothills of the Himalayas and is a gateway to the neighbouring st ...

in 1899, and Sanawar in 1916 were added to Ambala district from Simla district. Later, in 1911, Delhi district was separated from Punjab, and the headquarters of the Delhi Division were shifted to Ambala. Following the decision to shift the Imperial Capital of British India from Calcutta to Delhi in 1911, the Delhi District was significantly reorganized. Prior to this, Delhi District comprised three tahsils: Sonepat, Ballabgarh, and Delhi. As a result of the reorganization: * Sonepat Tahsil was transferred to Rohtak District. * A portion of 280 square miles of Ballabgarh Tahsil was transferred to Gurgaon District. * The remaining 101 square miles of Ballabgarh Tahsil, along with Delhi Tahsil, covering a total area of 547 square miles, was constituted into a new administrative unit. This newly defined territory was designated as the Province of Delhi. Later, Between 1911 and 1921, an additional area of 43 square miles from the Meerut district (Ghaziabad Tahsil) of the United Provinces was also added to it.Source Page no. 2
Report, Part I, Vol-XV, Punjab and Delhi - Census 1921
/ref>

Gallery

File:1832 map of India by John Arrowsmith.jpg, 1832 Indian Side Including Delhi Territory File:General Karte von Vorderindien zur Übersicht der Hauptverhältnisse.jpg, 1836 Indian Continent with Delhi Territory File:1840 Punjab side Indian contient by john archer.jpg, 1840 Map of Punjab Side, Indian Continent by John Archer File:Map of the northwestern frontier of British India, exhibiting the country between the Sutlej and Yamuna rivers, 1844.jpg, 1844 Showing Delhi Territory and its Surroundings File:This Newly constructed and extended Map of India - from Latest Surveys of the best Authorities. Published principally for the use of the Officers of the Army in India is respectfully inscribed to Major... - btv1b53032868x (1 of 4).jpg, 1844 Maps of the Indian Subcontinent, within Delhi Territory File:Vorder Indien Platt 1848.pdf, 1848 Indian Continent with Delhi Territory File:British and native states in the Cis-Sutlej Division between 1847–51, by Abdos Sobhan, 1858 (F.4-27).jpg, Cis-Sutlej Division & Principalities of Punjab (1847–51)

Internal Maps of delhi territory

File:Map of the northwest frontier showing the route from Bahawalpur to Sirsa (F12-07).jpg, Map of the northwest frontier showing the route from Bahawalpur to Sirsa File:Map_of_Haryana_District,_surveyed_by_I._H._Simmonds_and_William_Brown,_1832–33,_1837–38,_recompiled_in_1848_(F.5-35).jpg, Map of Haryana District surveyed 1832–33 and 1837–38, recompiled 1848 File:Map_of_Rohtak_District,_surveyed_by_T._Oliver_and_J._H._Simmonds,_1823–32,_recompiled_in_1848_(F05-30).jpg, Map of Rohtak District surveyed 1823–32, recompiled 1848 File:Map_of_Panipat_District,_surveyed_by_T._Oliver_and_I._H._Simmonds,_1822–28_and_1832–38,_recompiled_in_1848_(F05-27).jpg, Map of Panipat District surveyed 1822–28 and 1832–38, recompiled 1848 File:Map_of_Gurgaon_District_showing_the_boundaries_after_transfer,_1841_(F05-13).jpg, Map of Gurgaon District showing the boundaries after transfer, 1841 File:Map_of_Haryana_District_or_the_Western_Division_of_Delhi,_surveyed_by_William_Brown_in_1837–38,_compiled_in_1859_(F05-16-1).jpg, Map of Haryana District or the Western Division of Delhi, surveyed by William Brown in 1837–38, compiled in 1859 File:Map_of_Haryana_District_or_the_Western_Division_of_Delhi,_surveyed_by_William_Brown_in_1837–38,_compiled_in_1859_(F05-16-2).jpg, Map of Haryana District or the Western Division of Delhi, surveyed by William Brown in 1837–38, compiled in 1859 (part 2) File:Map_of_Delhi_District,_surveyed_by_T._Oliver,_I._H._Simmonds,_and_William_Brown,_1824–26,_1830–32,_and_1840,_recompiled_in_1848_(F05-02-A).jpg, Map of Delhi District surveyed 1824–26, 1830–32, and 1840, recompiled in 1848 File:Map_of_Delhi_District,_surveyed_by_T._Oliver,_I._H._Simmonds,_and_William_Brown,_1824–26,_1830–32,_and_1840,_recompiled_in_1848_(F05-02).jpg, Map of Delhi District surveyed 1824–26, 1830–32, and 1840, recompiled in 1848 (part 2) File:General_map_of_villages_in_Delhi_Territory,_surveyed_by_T._Oliver_and_drawn_by_H._Wilson,_1828–29_(F02-51).jpg, General map of villages in Delhi Territory, surveyed by T. Oliver and drawn by H. Wilson, 1828–29 File:Skeleton map showing the boundaries of British territories and the Native states (Punjab), drawn by A. C. Wyatt, 1861 (F08-18).jpg, Skeleton map showing the boundaries of British territories and Native States in Punjab, drawn by A. C. Wyatt, 1861 File:General Map of the Revenue Surveys in the Doab, Rohilkhand and the Province of Delhi. Scale 1 inch = 4 miles. Compiled by E. Winston. Copied by Joynarain Hirwas in 1836. MSS.jpg, Showing N.W. Province Including Delhi Territory Map 1836 File:Map_showing_portions_to_the_West_and_South-West_of_Delhi_(F07-07).jpg, Map showing portions to the west and south-west of Delhi

Map of the 1909 & 1916 — Including Delhi Territory

File:Punjab 1909.jpg, Map of British Punjab (1909) File:Map of Delhi Enclave of Punjab Province, British India, published in 'The Panjab, North-West Frontier Province and Kashmir' (1916).jpg, Map of Delhi Enclave, Punjab Province, British India (1916)

Notes

{{Divisions of British India Divisions of British India Historical Indian regions History of Delhi History of Haryana 19th century in Delhi 1803 establishments in the British Empire