Janjira State was a princely state in

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 ...

during the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

. It was governed by the

Siddi The Siddi (), also known as the Sheedi, Sidi, or Siddhi, are an ethno-religious group living mostly in Pakistan. Some Siddis also live in India. They are primarily descended from the Bantu peoples of the Zanj coast in Southeast Africa, most ...

Khan dynasty of Habesha descent and the state was under the suzerainty of the Bombay Presidency. Janjira State was located on the Konkan coast in the present-day

Raigad district Raigad district (), previously Colaba fort, Colaba district, is a district in the Konkan division of Maharashtra, India. The headquarters of the district is Alibag. Other major cities in the district are Panvel, Karjat, Navi Mumbai, Khopoli, Sh ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

. The state included the towns of Murud and Shrivardhan, as well as the fortified island of

Murud-Janjira Murud-Janjira () is the local name of a famous fort and tourist spot situated on an island just off the coastal town of Murud, Raigad, Murud, in the Raigad district of Maharashtra, India. Malik Ambar is credited with the construction of the Jan ...

, just off the coastal village of Murud, which was the capital and the residence of the rulers. The state had an area of 839 km², not counting Jafarabad, and a population of 110,389 inhabitants in 1931. Jafarabad State (also spelled Jafrabad) was a dependency of the

Nawab Nawab is a royal title indicating a ruler, often of a South Asian state, in many ways comparable to the Western title of Prince. The relationship of a Nawab to the Emperor of India has been compared to that of the Kingdom of Saxony, Kings of ...

of Janjira State, and located 320 km to its north-northwest.

History

Establishment

According to legend, Janjira Invaded in the year 1489 the Ahmadnagar Sultanate sent its

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Piram Khan (of Ethiopian descent) with orders to capture the

from Ram Patil. Owing to the castle's fortifications, Khan could not attack conventionally. He and his team disguised themselves as merchants and asked Ram Patil to safeguard their three hundred large boxes containing silks and wines from

Surat Surat (Gujarati Language, Gujarati: ) is a city in the western Indian States and territories of India, state of Gujarat. The word Surat directly translates to ''face'' in Urdu, Gujarati language, Gujarati and Hindi. Located on the banks of t ...

. As thanks, Piram Khan threw a party with wine. Once Ram Patil and his soldiers were intoxicated, Piram Khan opened the boxes, which contained his soldiers, and used the opportunity to capture the castle and the island on which it stands. In the century that followed the rulers put themselves under the overlordship of the Sultanate of Bijapur. During the seventeenth and eighteenth century Janjira successfully resisted the repeated attacks of the

Maratha Empire The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern India, early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent List of Maratha dynasties and states, Ma ...

Cooperation with the Ottomans

According to Ottoman records, a combined force from the Ottomans and Janjira mariners routed a Portuguese fleet in 1587 at

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

. From this moment onwards Janjira played an important role in resisting Portuguese influence in the region. There's further record of Cooperation with the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

when the Ottoman fleet first arrived in

Aceh Aceh ( , ; , Jawi script, Jawoë: ; Van Ophuijsen Spelling System, Old Spelling: ''Atjeh'') is the westernmost Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is located on the northern end of Sumatra island, with Banda Aceh being its capit ...

prior to

Ottoman expedition to Aceh The Ottoman expeditions to Aceh were dispatched in 1566 and the following years by the Ottoman Empire in support of the Aceh Sultanate in its fight against the Portuguese Empire in Malacca. The Ottomans primarily helped the Achehnese produce cannon ...

has included 200 Malabar sailors from Janjira State to aid the region

Batak Batak is a collective term used to identify a number of closely related Austronesian peoples, Austronesian ethnic groups predominantly found in North Sumatra, Indonesia, who speak Batak languages. The term is used to include the Karo people ( ...

and the

Maritime Southeast Asia Maritime Southeast Asia comprises the Southeast Asian countries of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and East Timor. The terms Island Southeast Asia and Insular Southeast Asia are sometimes given the same meaning as ...

in 1539.

Cooperation with the Mughals

According to one records at one time Mughal emperor

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 ...

supplied the Siddis of Janjira state with 2,000 men, provisions, ammunitions along with two

Frigates A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

and two large

Man-of-war In Royal Navy jargon, a man-of-war (also man-o'-war, or simply man) was a powerful warship or frigate of the 16th to the 19th century, that was frequently used in Europe. Although the term never acquired a specific meaning, it was usually rese ...

battleships. The ship arrived at Bombay harbor under the commands of Siddi Kasim and Siddi Sambal in 1677. The largest Mughal ship named Ganj-I-Sawai (Trading Ship) which was equipped with 800 guns and 400 musketeer type soldiers also stationed in the port of Surat. Another record from an

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 ...

factory written 1673 reported the Siddi fleet which wintered from Bombay had five Frigates, two Man-of-wars, and fifteen Grabs. It was because the formidable naval warfare skills of the Siddis in Janjira that Aurangzeb was granting an annual payment of 400.000 Rupees for the maintenance of their fleet.

Relations with the Marathas

Rivalry with the Marathas

The main competitor of the Sidis was the Angrias, a Maratha family with sea forts and ships, based in southern Konkan.

Treaty with Marathas

In 1733, Peshwa Bajirao of the

launched a campaign against the Siddis of Janjira. Bajirao's forces, however, did not take Janjira fort, though they captured much of the surrounding area; a favorable treaty gave the Marathas some indirect control over virtually all of the Siddi's lands. According to the treaty, the Peshwa acknowledged Abdul Rehman as the 'legitimate ruler' of Janjira, bringing an end to all opposition to his succession by his rivals. The territorial holdings of the Siddi were restricted to Anjanwel and Gowalkot, along with the island of Janjira. All other territories on the mainland, previously liberated by the Marathas from Siddi control, including Raigarh, Rewas, Thal, Chaul, etc., were recognized by Abdul Rehman as integral parts of the Maratha state and off-limits to the Siddis.

Post Maratha-rule

When the British came to the Konkan area, the repeated attacks of the Marathas against Janjira ceased. Janjira State was administered as part of the Deccan States Agency of the Bombay Presidency, founded in 1799. In the nineteenth century the rulers maintained a military force of 123 men. Following the

independence of India The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic ...

in 1947, the state was merged with India.

Rulers

The royal family of Janjira were

s, also known as 'Habshi', assumed to be from

Abyssinia Abyssinia (; also known as Abyssinie, Abissinia, Habessinien, or Al-Habash) was an ancient region in the Horn of Africa situated in the northern highlands of modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea.Sven Rubenson, The survival of Ethiopian independence, ...

. Initially the rulers of the state held the title of ' ''wazir''', but after 1803 the title of '

nawab Nawab is a royal title indicating a ruler, often of a South Asian state, in many ways comparable to the Western title of Prince. The relationship of a Nawab to the Emperor of India has been compared to that of the Kingdom of Saxony, Kings of ...

' was officially recognized by the British Raj. They were entitled 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 ...

by the British authorities after the 1903 Coronation Durbar.

List of rulers

Wazirs of Janjira

* Siddi Fattekhan *1676 - 1703 Kasim Yakut Khan II (d. 1703) *1703 - 1707 Amabat Yaqut Khan II *1707 - 1732 Surur Yakut Khan II (d. 1732) *1732 - 1734 Hasan Khan (1st time) (d. 1746) *1734 - 1737 Sumbul Khan *1737 - 1740 `Abd al-Rahman Khan *1740 - 1745 Hasan Khan (2nd time) (s.a.) *1745 - 1757 Ibrahim Khan I (1st time) (d. 1761) *1757 Mohammad Khan I (d. 1757) *1757 - 1759 Ibrahim Khan I (2nd time) (s.a.)

Thanadars of Jafarabad and Wazirs of Janjira

*1759 - 1761 Ibrahim Khan I (s.a.) *1761 - 1772 Yaqut Khan (usurper to 6 Jun 1772) (d. 1772) *1772 - 1784 `Abd al-Rahim Khan (d. 1784) *1784 - 1789 Jauhar Khan (d. 1789) ** - in dispute with - ***1784 - 1789 `Abd al-Karim Yaqut Khan *1789 - 1794 Ibrahim Khan II (d. 1826) *1794 - 1803 Jumrud Khan (d. 1803)

Nawabs

*1803 - 1826 Ibrahim Khan II (s.a.) *1826 - 31 Aug 1848 Mohammad Khan I (d. 1848) *31 Aug 1848 – 28 Jan 1879 Ibrahim Khan III (b. 1825 - d. 1879) *28 Jan 1879 - 2 May 1922 Ahmad Khan (b. 1862 - d. 1922) (from 1 Jan 1895, Sir Ahmad Khan) *28 Jun 1879 – 11 Oct 1883 .... -Regent * 2 May 1922 – 15 Aug 1947 Mohammad Khan II (b. 1914 - d. 1972) * 2 May 1922 - 9 Nov 1933 Kulsum Begum (f) -Regent (b. 1897 - d. 1959)Princely States of India
/ref>

References

External links

*
Janjira State coat of armsA Trip to Murud Janjira Fort
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