Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh

At a Glance
Capital
Lucknow
Population
21,21,943
Area 1,414 sq.kms
Geo Location
North
Average Climate
23 °C - 32 °C
Best time to visit
Throughout the year

Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state in India (220 million) and the fourth largest in area (2,94,410 sq km), has to its north Nepal, to its north-west Uttarakhand, to its west Haryana, to its south-west Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, to its south Madhya Pradesh, and to its east Bihar. "Of all the provinces of the Empire there is none of greater interest than this. . . Within its borders or close to its western frontier was the earliest settlement of the Hindu race, and here its religion, laws, and social polity were organized. Here Buddhism supplanted Brahmanism, only in its turn to succumb to the older faith...., wrote Crooke, a British civilian in India, in 1847.

Uttar Pradesh, U.P. in short, has many sacred as well as historical places. Its history has been so eventful through the ages that it is not possible to give any reasonable account of it in brief. Many holy rivers of India Ganga, Yamuna, Saryu, Gomti, Rapti, Gandaki and Betravati (Betwa) run through U.P. Several sacred places, associated with India's heritage, are in this state, for example, Ayodhya (of Rama), Mathura and Vrindavan (of Krishna), Kashi and Prayag. The antiquity of the civilizations which had flourished in this soil is well established by excavations at places like Hastinapur, Kannauj, Kaushambi and Mathura.

Many great dynasties ruled the region in the mythical ages. The greatest among them were the Ikshvakus. Sri Ramachandra hailed from this dynasty, ruling from Ayodhya. Historically it was a part of the Maurya Empire. After Ashoka, the famous kings to rule the whole or parts of the modern U.P. were Pushyamitra, Kanishka, Samudragupta, Harsha Vardhana, Yashovarman, Mihirbhoia and Mahipala. Needless to say, they belonged to different dynasties.

In 1309, Alauddin conquered a part of the region. Muslim rules of several shades followed. In the 16th century, the Lodi kings made Agra their capital. Soon Babar arrived on the scene and through a number of wars the region became a part of t Mughal kingdom. The British, through the East India Company, took over the area, piecemeal, in the 18th century. In I857 AD, in India's first war of Independence against the British rule (so called Sepoy Mutiny), U.P. provided a wide field of action.

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