Khwaja Alimullah
Encyclopedia
Khwaja Alimullah was the first Nawab of Dhaka
. He was the founder of the Dhaka Nawab Family
.
He was the nephew and heir of the merchant prince Khawaja Hafizullah, son of Khwaja Ahsanullah, and father of Khwaja Abdul Ghani
, the first Nawab of Dhaka to be recognized by the British Raj
.
Alimullah took major responsibilities in the business of Hafizullah, whom raised in childhood, since the early death of Ahsanulla (his brother and Alimullah's father) in 1795, and groomed as an estate manager. Alimullah, an enterprising man himself, acquired extensive profitable landed property in and around Dhaka city, as well as in Barisal District
, Khulna District
, Dhaka, Mymensingh and Tripura
, in his own name. He also had a moneylending business and was one of the major shareholders and directors of Dhaka Bank.
During this time, zamindari estates of the defaulting proprietors were on sale everywhere in Bengal under the operation of Permanent Settlement
. Hafizullah purchased some zamindari estates and indigo factories in Barisal. Those purchases included Atia pargana in the then Mymensingh district (now in the Tangail district) and Aila Phuljhuri in the Bakarganj Sundarbans
.
On Khwaja Hafizullah's death, his estate descended on Alimullah, who became the sole heir to his enormous wealth. His landed acquisitions were added to those of his uncle, and the merger effected due to an absence of any surviving male successor of Hafizullah, consequently made the united zamindari one of the biggest in the province.
(vestment) for a united status of the zamindari, turning all his property, landed and otherwise, into an indivisible family concern. The property was to be managed jointly by a mutwalli (Administrator), a responsibility which descended upon his second son Khwaja Abdul ghani Mia.
This measure saved the Khwaja Estate from sub-division and fragmentation like other landed estates through a series of successions and transfers. It empowered the Mutawalli to administer the zamindari and other concerns of the family as representative and sole spokesman of the family. He also was to distribute the family income in the form of individual allowances stipulated in the waqfnama (deed of the waqf).
Over and above these responsibilities, the mutawalli was to appoint his successor from amongst family members deemed to be most competent to manage the family affairs. This system laid the foundation of the Dhaka Nawab Family
, the last of roayls of Dhaka.
Since the death of Ghaziuddin Haider, the last of the Naib Nazim
s of Dhaka in 1843, Khwaja Alimullah, a Sunni Muslim himself, bore all the expenses of Muharram, the central festival of the Shi'ite Muslims, and was appointed by the government as the mutwalli of Husseini Dalan, the shrine of the Shi'ites in Dhaka.
Through a long association with Eurasian and European business partners, Khwaja Alimullah acquired their lifestyle and habits. He bought thoroughbred horses for racing and made a modest stable for them, and used to go hunting with horses and elephants. He earned considerable fame as an organiser of sports by setting up the Ramna Racecourse and the Gymkhana Club.
Besides sports and games, Alimullah also developed a fancy for jewels. He purchased the famous diamond Dariya-i-Noor at a government auction. He also bought many unique precious jewellery of the house of the Naib Nazim Ghaziuddin Haider when he became heavily indebted due to the English government stopping his allowance on charges of immoral activities.
Alimullah also introduced dance, music and mushairah (literary meet) into the Khwaja family.
(administrative office) of the Nawabs of Dhaka. It is now a national heritage museum of Bangladesh.
, was a hunting and pleasure park of the Nawabs of Dhaka. Khwaja Alimullah proclaimed the forest land of Sadullapur as a wildlife sanctuary, and the started setting the hunting park, which was completed by Khwaja Abdul Ghani. The hunting park, an area naturally conducive for breeding animals and birds for hunting, used to feature various species of indigenous and exotic deer, peacocks, wild-cocks, francoline partridges, hares etc. and set them free in the forest for breeding. There also were plenty of huntable hogs and various types of birds on the banks of the lakes of the forest. By 1895, the area set apart as an exclusive hunting ground for the Nawab of Dhaka and his guests, became an attraction for illegal hunters.
: دريا (Daria, meaning Sea), Persian
: نور (Noor, meaning Light)] for Tk 75 thousand when it was auctioned on behalf of the British government by Hamilton and Company of Calcutta in November 1852. It was auctioned after it was exhibited, along with another famous Indian diamond Koh-i-Noor
or the "mountain of light", in 1850 at the Great Exhibition at Hyde Park organised in honour of Queen Victoria. As it did not get the expected price at the exhibitions, Daria-i-Noor was sent back to India to be sold in an auction.
The 26-carat (5.2 g) oblong table-shaped diamond is largest and most precious jewel stone in Bangladesh. It is believed to be quarried in a south Indian mine, like the Koh-i-Noor. It is set in the centre of a gold armlet, with ten 5-carat (1 g) oval shaped smaller diamonds around it, used by the Nawabs of Dhaka, who also used as it an ornament on the turban. It is now preserved in a vault of Sonali Bank
.
times as Bag-e-Badshahi (also Garden of Kings). He also bought much of vast medow, known as Ramna, between the garden houses and the Sujatpur Palace flanked by Nurkhan Bazaar (set up by Nuruddin Hossain).
Nawab of Dhaka
The Nawab of Dhaka was the title of the head of the Dhaka Nawab Estate, the largest and richest Muslim zamindari in Bengal. The first Nawab of Dhaka was Khwaja Alimullah who had been installed by the British Raj as head of the estate, which covered modern day Dhaka city and several of its...
. He was the founder of the Dhaka Nawab Family
Dhaka Nawab family
Dhaka Nawab Family reigned in Dhaka from mid 19th century to mid 20th century, after the fall of the Naib Nazims. The hereditary title of Nawab, similar to the British peerage, was conferred upon the head of the Family by the British Raj as a recognition of their loyalty in the time of the Sepoy...
.
He was the nephew and heir of the merchant prince Khawaja Hafizullah, son of Khwaja Ahsanullah, and father of Khwaja Abdul Ghani
Khwaja Abdul Ghani
Nawab Bahadur Sir Khwaja Abdul Ghani Mian KCSI was the first Nawab of Dhaka recognized by the British Raj.He introduced the panchayat system, gaslights, water works, newspaper, and the zoological garden to Dhaka...
, the first Nawab of Dhaka to be recognized by the British Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
.
Legacy of Khwaja Hafizullah
The ancestors of the Khwajas are said to have been traders of gold dust and skins in Kashmir. The earliest founding man of the Dhaka Nawab Estate is Maulvi Hafizullah, who upheld the family tradition and made his fortune in trade and commerce. Leather and salt were the major items of his business together with Greek trading partners. In collaboration with the Greek and Armenian merchants in Dhaka, he developed a flourishing business in hides and skins, salt and spices.Alimullah took major responsibilities in the business of Hafizullah, whom raised in childhood, since the early death of Ahsanulla (his brother and Alimullah's father) in 1795, and groomed as an estate manager. Alimullah, an enterprising man himself, acquired extensive profitable landed property in and around Dhaka city, as well as in Barisal District
Barisal District
Barisal is a district in southern Bangladesh. It is also the headquarters of Barisal Division.-Geography and climate:Latitude: 22.75, Longitude: 90.36, Altitude: 4....
, Khulna District
Khulna District
The district of Khulna consists 10859 mosques, 680 temples, 81 churches, 15 Buddhist temples and 9 tombs.-Places of interest:*The Sundarbans is the largest mangrove forest in the world. The royal Bengal tiger inhabits the area; it is said that seeing the tiger enables a person to understand what a...
, Dhaka, Mymensingh and Tripura
Tripura
Tripura is a state in North-East India, with an area of . It is the third smallest state of India, according to area. Tripura is surrounded by Bangladesh on the north, south, and west. The Indian states of Assam and Mizoram lie to the east. The capital is Agartala and the main languages spoken are...
, in his own name. He also had a moneylending business and was one of the major shareholders and directors of Dhaka Bank.
During this time, zamindari estates of the defaulting proprietors were on sale everywhere in Bengal under the operation of Permanent Settlement
Permanent Settlement
The Permanent Settlement — also known as the Permanent Settlement of Bengal — was an agreement between the East India Company and Bengali landlords to fix revenues to be raised from land, with far-reaching consequences for both agricultural methods and productivity in the entire Empire and the...
. Hafizullah purchased some zamindari estates and indigo factories in Barisal. Those purchases included Atia pargana in the then Mymensingh district (now in the Tangail district) and Aila Phuljhuri in the Bakarganj Sundarbans
Sundarbans
The Sundarbans [Sundarban Tour Booking-9051115228] is the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest in the world.The name Sundarban can be literally translated as "beautiful jungle" or "beautiful forest" in the Bengali language...
.
On Khwaja Hafizullah's death, his estate descended on Alimullah, who became the sole heir to his enormous wealth. His landed acquisitions were added to those of his uncle, and the merger effected due to an absence of any surviving male successor of Hafizullah, consequently made the united zamindari one of the biggest in the province.
Foundation of the Estate
Before his death (1854), Alimullah made an waqfWaqf
A waqf also spelled wakf formally known as wakf-alal-aulad is an inalienable religious endowment in Islamic law, typically denoting a building or plot of land for Muslim religious or charitable purposes. The donated assets are held by a charitable trust...
(vestment) for a united status of the zamindari, turning all his property, landed and otherwise, into an indivisible family concern. The property was to be managed jointly by a mutwalli (Administrator), a responsibility which descended upon his second son Khwaja Abdul ghani Mia.
This measure saved the Khwaja Estate from sub-division and fragmentation like other landed estates through a series of successions and transfers. It empowered the Mutawalli to administer the zamindari and other concerns of the family as representative and sole spokesman of the family. He also was to distribute the family income in the form of individual allowances stipulated in the waqfnama (deed of the waqf).
Over and above these responsibilities, the mutawalli was to appoint his successor from amongst family members deemed to be most competent to manage the family affairs. This system laid the foundation of the Dhaka Nawab Family
Dhaka Nawab family
Dhaka Nawab Family reigned in Dhaka from mid 19th century to mid 20th century, after the fall of the Naib Nazims. The hereditary title of Nawab, similar to the British peerage, was conferred upon the head of the Family by the British Raj as a recognition of their loyalty in the time of the Sepoy...
, the last of roayls of Dhaka.
Life and work
A member of the Dhaka Municipal Committee, Khwaja Alimullah took part very actively in the corporate activities of the city, including playing an important role in the preservation of the Lalbagh Fort. He made a wakq of the income of his estate at Atiya Pargana in Tangail for the welfare of the destitute.Since the death of Ghaziuddin Haider, the last of the Naib Nazim
Naib Nazim
-Etymology:The word Naib means assistant or deputy whilst Nazim is similar to a mayor, hence Naib Nazim is similar in function to a deputy mayor.He is also custodian of the house....
s of Dhaka in 1843, Khwaja Alimullah, a Sunni Muslim himself, bore all the expenses of Muharram, the central festival of the Shi'ite Muslims, and was appointed by the government as the mutwalli of Husseini Dalan, the shrine of the Shi'ites in Dhaka.
Through a long association with Eurasian and European business partners, Khwaja Alimullah acquired their lifestyle and habits. He bought thoroughbred horses for racing and made a modest stable for them, and used to go hunting with horses and elephants. He earned considerable fame as an organiser of sports by setting up the Ramna Racecourse and the Gymkhana Club.
Besides sports and games, Alimullah also developed a fancy for jewels. He purchased the famous diamond Dariya-i-Noor at a government auction. He also bought many unique precious jewellery of the house of the Naib Nazim Ghaziuddin Haider when he became heavily indebted due to the English government stopping his allowance on charges of immoral activities.
Alimullah also introduced dance, music and mushairah (literary meet) into the Khwaja family.
Ahsan Manzil
In 1830, Alimullah purchased the French Trading House at Kumartuli on the bank of the Buriganga as part of his land acquisitions in and around Dhaka. The French bought it from Matiullah, whose father, Sheikh Enayetullah, a zamindar of Jamalpur pargana in Barisal during Mughals reign, built it as his Rang Mahal (pleasure house). Alimullah converted it into his residence, effecting necessary reconstruction and renovations, which was carried further by his son and successor Khwaja Abdul Ghani. This mini palace subsequently became the nucleus of the Ahsan Manzil, the residential palace and the kachariKachari
Kachari or Cachari may refer to:*Kachari people*Kachari Kingdom*Kachari language*The Kachari Ruins in Dimapur...
(administrative office) of the Nawabs of Dhaka. It is now a national heritage museum of Bangladesh.
Baigunbari Hunting Park
The Hunting Park at Baigunbari, Sadullahpur mauja, Biralia Union, SavarSävar
Sävar is a locality situated in Umeå Municipality, Västerbotten County, Sweden with 2,672 inhabitants in 2005.It is located by E4 about 15 km north of Umeå, Sweden. Sävar is mostly known for being the last battlefield of the Finnish War....
, was a hunting and pleasure park of the Nawabs of Dhaka. Khwaja Alimullah proclaimed the forest land of Sadullapur as a wildlife sanctuary, and the started setting the hunting park, which was completed by Khwaja Abdul Ghani. The hunting park, an area naturally conducive for breeding animals and birds for hunting, used to feature various species of indigenous and exotic deer, peacocks, wild-cocks, francoline partridges, hares etc. and set them free in the forest for breeding. There also were plenty of huntable hogs and various types of birds on the banks of the lakes of the forest. By 1895, the area set apart as an exclusive hunting ground for the Nawab of Dhaka and his guests, became an attraction for illegal hunters.
Daria-i-Noor
Khwaja alimullah purchased the famous diamond Daria-i-Noor [Sea of Light; PersianPersian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
: دريا (Daria, meaning Sea), Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
: نور (Noor, meaning Light)] for Tk 75 thousand when it was auctioned on behalf of the British government by Hamilton and Company of Calcutta in November 1852. It was auctioned after it was exhibited, along with another famous Indian diamond Koh-i-Noor
Koh-i-Noor
The Kōh-i Nūr which means "Mountain of Light" in Persian, also spelled Koh-i-noor, Koh-e Noor or Koh-i-Nur, is a 105 carat diamond that was once the largest known diamond in the world. The Kōh-i Nūr originated in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India along with its double, the Darya-ye Noor...
or the "mountain of light", in 1850 at the Great Exhibition at Hyde Park organised in honour of Queen Victoria. As it did not get the expected price at the exhibitions, Daria-i-Noor was sent back to India to be sold in an auction.
The 26-carat (5.2 g) oblong table-shaped diamond is largest and most precious jewel stone in Bangladesh. It is believed to be quarried in a south Indian mine, like the Koh-i-Noor. It is set in the centre of a gold armlet, with ten 5-carat (1 g) oval shaped smaller diamonds around it, used by the Nawabs of Dhaka, who also used as it an ornament on the turban. It is now preserved in a vault of Sonali Bank
Sonali Bank
Sonali Bank Limited is a state-owned leading commercial bank in Bangladesh.It is the largest bank of the country.-History:...
.
Shahbag
In 1840 khwaja alimullah bought the two garden-houses set up by Aratun, the Armenian businessman, and Griffith Cook, the British Justice, in the Sujatpur area. He renamed the area as Shahbag (Garden of Kings) and started a project to bring back the splendour to the area known in the MughalMughal era
The Mughal era is a historic period of the Mughal Empire in South Asia . It ran from the early 15th century to a point in the early 18th century when the Mughal Emperors' power had dwindled...
times as Bag-e-Badshahi (also Garden of Kings). He also bought much of vast medow, known as Ramna, between the garden houses and the Sujatpur Palace flanked by Nurkhan Bazaar (set up by Nuruddin Hossain).