Satna Knowledge Guide

History

From antiquity to the mutiny of 1857

At nearby Bharhut are the remains of a 2nd-century BC Buddhist stupa, first discovered in 1873 by the archaeologist Alexander Cunningham; most of the finds from this site were sent to the Indian Museum.The Mahabharata associates this site with rulers of the Haihaya, Kalchuri or Chedi clans.The chiefs of Rewash, descended from Baghel Rajputs (who were in turn descended from the Solanki), ruled over Gujrat from the tenth to the thirteenth century. Vyaghra Deo, brother of the ruler of Gujrat, is said to have made his way into northern India about the middle of the thirteenth century and obtained the fort of Marpha, 18 miles north-east of Kalinjar. of Bandhavgarh (now in the tehsil of the same name in Umaria district), which, until its conquest in 1562 by Akbar the Great, was the Baghel capital. In 1298, general prince Ulugh Khan, acting under order of his brother Sultan Alauddin Khalji, drove the last Baghel ruler of Gujrat out of his country. This is believed to have caused a considerable migration of the Baghels to Bandhavgarh.From then until the 15th century, the Baghels of Bandhavgarh were engaged in extending their possessions and so they escaped the attention of the Delhi Sultans. In 1498–99, Sikandar Lodi failed in his attempt to take the fort of Bandhavgarh. The Baghel King Ramchandra (1555–92) was a contemporary of padshah (emperor) Akbar the Great. Tansen, the great musician, was in the court of Ramchandra and from there Akbar summoned him to his Mughal court. After the death of Birdhabra, Ramchandra's son Vikramaditya acceded to the Rajput throne of Bandhogarh as a minor Raja, giving rise to civic disturbances. Akbar's generals intervened, capturing and dismantling the Bandhogarh fort in 1562. From then, the town of Rewa, alongside with the Sultanate of Malwa were became a part of the Great Mughal Empire. Following the Treaty of Bassein (1802), the British made overtures of alliance to the ruler of Rewa, but the latter rejected them. In 1812, during the time of Raja Jaisingh (1809–35), a body of Pindaris raided Mirzapur from Rewa territory. As a result, Jaisingh was called upon to accede to a treaty, in which he acknowledged the protection of the British Government, and agreed to refer all disputes with neighboring chiefs to their arbitration and to allow British troops to march through, or be cantoned within, his territories. During the mutiny of 1857, Maharaja Raghuraj Singh helped the British in quelling the uprisings in the neighboring Mandla and Jabalpur district, and in Nagod which is now a part of Satna district. For his part the king was rewarded by restoration of the Sohagpur (Shahdol) and Amarkantak parganas, which had been seized by the Marathas in the beginning of the century. Rewa was entitled as a Maharaja"His Highness" and salute of 17 guns.

Princely states

Modern history

The Satna District is part of the region of Bagelkhand, a large part of which was ruled by the state of Rewa. A small part of Satna was ruled by feudatory chiefs, holding their states under the British Raj. Satna's name comes from the Satna River (or Sutna) which originates at Sarang Ashram (Sutikshna Ashram), situated near Sarangpur village in the Panna district. Previously, Sutna was the name of the railway station, the town being Raghurajnagar, but gradually the name of the station became associated with the city that is now Satna. During the Ramayana Era, Lord Rama stayed in the region of Chitrakoot, half of which is in the outskirts of Satna, the other in Uttar Pradesh.Once a British headquarters, the Baghelkhand Agency was established in Satna in 1872 (and abolished in 1931). Col. D.W.K. Barr prepared plans to develop Satna during the years 1882–88 and Sir Donald Robertson supervised construction of roads and other amenities according to those plans in 1888–94.

Culture

Satna district has some major religious tourism spots including Chitrakoot and Maihar. Satna district is close to an ancient city of Buddhist culture named Bharhut, whose archaeological remains are displayed in many museums in India and all over the world. Tulsi Museum at Ramvan, 16 km from the city, has many local artistic sculptures of ancient times. Gaibinath Lord Shiva temple at Birsinghpur is a famous and old temple in the region. Madhavgarh Fort, about 7 km from Satna Railway station (Rewa Road), is another place to visit around Satna. Gidhakoot (Gidhaila) Parvat, Laxminarayan Mandir, Bada Mandir (under construction) of New Deorajnagar are also tourist sites. Satna is famous for its scenic temples. One of those temples, Venktesh Mandir, is near Mukhtyarganj. It was constructed between 1876 and 1925 by the royal family of Deorajnagar. Shri Bihari Mandir, in the heart of Satna. It was built by a great devotee of God Krishna, Mahant Brindavan Das, in the 1880s. Bihari Mandir has been a cultural center of Satna for over one hundred years as it organizes a very famous Ramleela which is revered by the locals. The 116th celebration to place in 2013. Dali Baba is a very ancient place of worship in Satna. It is said to have been established in 1857 by Abdaldas Baba. A Jain temple was constructed in 1880 and another Jain temple of Lord Shantinath in Somchand-Dharsi Ghar-derasar near 1889 and Pranami Mandir in 1890. Satyanarayan Temple is more than 450 years old.