Rajshahi Raj was the largest ''

zamindari A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous Indian feudalism, feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian language, Persian was the offi ...

'' (feudatory kingdom) which occupied a vast position of

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 ...

(present-day

Rajshahi Division Rajshahi Division () is one of the eight first-level administrative divisions of Bangladesh. It has an area of and a population at the 2022 Census of 20,353,119. Rajshahi Division consists of 8 districts, 70 upazilas (the next lower administrat ...

, Bangladesh and

West Bengal, India West Bengal (; Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of as of 2011. The population estimate as of ...

). The Royal Family of Rajshahi used the title Ray/Rai. The family ruled their dominions and estates from the

Natore Palace Natore Rajbari (also known as Pagla Raja's Palace, Natore Palace) was a royal palace in Natore, Bangladesh. It was the residence and seat of the Rajshahi Raj family of zamindars. The famous queen Rani Bhabani lived here and after the death of h ...

in present-day Bangladesh. They belonged to the varendra Brahmins of Moitra clan, as they were bestowed the title of Rai-Raiyan, they used this title while ruling half of undivided Bengal. A member of this Raj family, Maharaja Jagadindra Nath Ray (Moitra), was a patron of cricket, and wanted to defeat the British in their own game of

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

. His rival was the

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

Koch Bihar Cooch Behar, also known as Koch Bihar, was a princely state in India during the British Raj. The state was placed under the Bengal States Agency, part of the Eastern States Agency of the Bengal Presidency. It was located south of the ...

References

Further reading