Dhalbhum was an estate in
early modern period
The early modern period is a Periodization, historical period that is defined either as part of or as immediately preceding the modern period, with divisions based primarily on the history of Europe and the broader concept of modernity. There i ...
and
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 ...
, spread across the
East Singhbhum district in present-day
Jharkhand
Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
,
[Ghosh, Binoy, ''Paschim Banger Sanskriti'', (in Bengali), part II, 1978 edition, p. 56, Prakash Bhaban] western part of
Bankura
Bankura () is a city and a municipality in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Bankura district.
Etymology
It comes from the old Austric word ráŕhá or ráŕho which means “land of red soil”.P.R. Sarkar Rarh - ...
,
and
Midnapore district of West Bengal.
History
Prehistory
Dhalbhum Raj
According to
Colonel Dalton and
H.H. Risley, the Dhal zamindar family of Dhalbhum was the members of the primitive
Bhumij race, who was selected by the other Bhumij chiefs as their feudal ruler. The zamindars later became Hinduised, and adopted the title 'Dhal' or 'Dhabal Deo'.
The family is related to the families of
Bishnupur,
Raipur, Shyamsundarpur and others.
They ruled for about 700 years. A branch of the same family ruled in Chikligarh or Jamboni.
is established as the family goddess of the Dhalbhum rulers. It is said that human sacrifice was offered to the goddess every year.
[
]
Colonial period
Dhalbhum was part of the Midnapore region of Bengal until 1760 when the East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
(EIC) acquired Midnapore and Burdwan. Following the cession, the EIC continued revenue surveys and settlements, expanding westward into tribal-concentrated areas where many local chiefs were either of tribal origin or had tribal support. This led to a series of civil and military conflicts, collectively known as the Chuar Rebellion (c. 1760–1833), aimed at resisting British authority. The Tamar Revolt (c. 1783–1793), Kol Uprising (c. 1831–1832), and Bhumij Rebellion or ''Ganga Narayan Hangama'' (c. 1832–1833) were part of this larger resistance. To control the unrest, the British created the Jungle Mahal administrative unit in 1805, which was bifurcated into smaller districts in 1833, with Dhalbhum becoming part of Manbhum district. It was merged into Singhbhum district
Singhbhum was a district of India during the British Raj, part of the Chota Nagpur Division of the Bengal Presidency. It was located in the present-day Indian state of Jharkhand. Chaibasa was the district headquarters. Located in the southern ...
in 1846, while the Khatra, Raipur, and Simlapal areas were transferred to Bankura district in 1879. By 1872, Dhalbhum had a population of across 1,201 square miles. It became part of the Bihar and Orissa Province in 1912 and remained in Bihar Province
Bihar Province was a province of British India, created in 1936 by the partition of the Bihar and Orissa Province.
History
In 1756, Bihar was part of Bengal. On 14 October 1803, Orissa was occupied by the British Raj. On 22 March 1912, both Bih ...
after 1932. Following India's independence in 1947, Dhalbhum was reorganized as East Singhbhum district in 1990 after being carved out from the extended Singhbhum district.
References
{{coord, 22.9460243, N, 86.7568016, E, source:yahoomaps_region:IN-WB , format=dms, display=title
Bankura district
Paschim Medinipur district
East Singhbhum district