Ranpur State was one of many small

princely A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The fema ...

non-

salute state A salute is usually a formal hand gesture or other action used to display respect in military situations. Salutes are primarily associated with the military and law enforcement, but many civilian organizations, such as Girl Guides, Scouting ...

s of

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 period of 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 one of the four native states located in present-day

Nayagarh district Nayagarh district is one of the 30 districts of Odisha state in eastern India. It was created on 01-April-1993 when the erstwhile Puri District was split into three distinct districts, namely Khordha, Nayagarh and Puri. The district is border ...

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

. The state was bounded in the west by Nayagarh State and in all other directions by

Puri district Puri district is a coastal district of the Odisha state of India. It has one Administrative subdivision, sub-division, 11 Tehsils, tahasils and 11 Block (country subdivision), blocks and comprises 1722 revenue villages. Puri is the only Nagar ...

. It was very close to the seashore but had no coastline. Its southwestern part was thickly forested and was mostly uninhabited. The Ranpur ruling family claimed descent from the most ancient lineage of the princely rulers of the

Orissa Tributary States The Orissa Tributary States, also known as the Gadajats (ଗଡ଼ଜାତ) or the Orissa Feudatory States, were a group of princely states of British India now part of the present-day Indian state of Odisha. The Orissa Tributary States were ...

. The capital of the state was Ranpur, a small town near Kalupara Ghat railway station where the Raja resided.''Imperial Gazetteer of India'', v. 21, p. 240.
/ref>

History

According to legendary tradition, Ranpur State is of very ancient origin. The legendary date of its foundation is placed some time in the 18th century BC when the founder, a hunter named Basara Basuk, having defeated a giant demon named Ranasura, established his rule in the area. The name of the place is derived from the demon's name and was initially known as Ranasurapura, shortened to Ranpur in the course of time. The Ranpur state rulers claimed to be the most ancient of all the lineages of the

, with a list of generations of rulers covering a period of 3,600 years with the Raja declaring indigenous origin in an inquiry in 1814. According to the family history, the founder of the kingdom was Biswabasab, a Sabara who hailed from the

Nilagiri Nilagiri is a town and a Notified Area Council in Balasore district in the Indian state of Odisha. History Nilgiri is a very small town but replete with rich history and heritage. Its history can be traced back to the Palaeolithic age. I ...

hills region, established his rule in the region after subduing the Bhuiyas of the neighbouring villages. Later the chiefs received the title of ''Narendra'' from the Eastern Ganga monarch Ananga Bhimadeva owing to his prowess in battle. The state became a

British protectorate British protectorates were protectorates under the jurisdiction of the British government. Many territories which became British protectorates already had local rulers with whom the Crown negotiated through treaty, acknowledging their status wh ...

in 1803 after the British defeated the Marathas in the

Second Anglo-Maratha War Second Anglo-Maratha War (from 1803 –1805) was a large conflict within the Maratha Confederacy, Maratha Empire involving the British East India Company. It resulted in major loss of territory for the Marathas, including regions around Delhi a ...

and took over the region. The last Raja of Ranpur signed the

instrument of accession The Instrument of Accession was a legal document first introduced by the Government of India Act 1935 and used in 1947 to enable each of the rulers of the princely states under British paramountcy to join one of the new dominions of Dominion ...

to the Indian Union, on 1 January 1948, merging his state into

Rulers

The rulers of Ranpur State:Princely States of India
/ref> *Narayan Narendra (1683–1692) *Ramachandra Narendra (1692–1727) *Sarangadhar Bajradhar Narendra (1727–1754) *Narsingh Bajradhar Narendra (1754–1789) *Brujdaban Bajradhar Narendra (1789–1821) *Brajsundar Bajradhar Narendra (1821–1842) *Benudar Bajradhar Narendra Mahapatra (1842–12 July 1899) *Birbar Krishna Chandra Narendra Mahapatra (12 July 1899 – 21 June 1945) *Brajendra Chandra Singh Deo Bajradhar Narendra Mahapatra (21 June 1945 – 1 January 1948)

Titular

*Brajendra Chandra Singh Deo Bajradhar Narendra Mahapatra (1 January 1948 – 1980) *Pradeep Chandra Singh Deo Bajradhar Narendra Mahapatra (1980–1982) *Dileep Chandra Singh Deo Bajradhar Narendra Mahapatra (1980–current)

References

Princely states of Odisha History of Odisha Nayagarh district {{india-hist-stub

History

Rulers

Titular

See also

References