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GORAKHPUR

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Originally appearing in Volume V12, Page 246 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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GORAKHPUR , a See also:

city, See also:district and See also:division of the See also:United Provinces of See also:British See also:India. The city is situated on the See also:left See also:bank of the See also:river Rapti. Pop. (1901) 64,148. It is believed to have been founded about 1400 A.D. It is the See also:civil headquarters of the district and was formerly a military See also:cantonment. It consists of a number of adjacent See also:village sites, sometimes separated by cultivated See also:land, and most of the inhabitants are agriculturists. The DISTRICT OF GORAKHPUR has an See also:area of 4535 sq. m. It lies immediately See also:south of the See also:lower Himalayan slopes, but itself forms a portion of the See also:great alluvial See also:plain. Only a few sandhills break the monotony of its level See also:surface, which is, however, intersected by numerous See also:rivers studded with lakes and marshes. In the See also:north and centre dense forests abound, and the whole See also:country has a verdant See also:appearance. The See also:principal rivers are the Rapti, the See also:Gogra, the See also:Gandak and Little Gandak, the Kuana, the Rohin, the Ami and the Gunghi.

Tigers are found in the north, and many other See also:

wild animals abound throughout the district. The lakes are well stocked with See also:fish. The district is not subject to very intense See also:heat, from which it is secured by its vicinity to the hills and the moisture of its See also:soil. Dust-storms are rare, and cool breezes from the north, rushing down the See also:gorges of the Himalayas, succeed each See also:short See also:interval of warm See also:weather. The See also:climate is, however, relaxing. The See also:southern and eastern portions are as healthy as most parts of the See also:province, but the See also:tarai and See also:forest-tracts are still subject to See also:malaria. Gautama See also:Buddha, the founder of the See also:religion bearing his name, was See also:born, and died near the boundaries of the district. From the beginning of the 6th See also:century the country was the See also:scene of a continuous struggle between the Bhars and their See also:Aryan antagonists, the Rathors. About 900 the Domhatars or military Brahmans appeared, and expelled the Rathors from the See also:town of Gorakhpur, but they also were soon driven back by other invaders. During the 15th and 16th centuries, after the district had been desolated by incessant See also:war, the descendants of the various conquerors held parts of the territory, and each seems to have lived quite isolated, as no See also:bridges or roads attest any intercourse with each other. Towards the end of the 16th century Mussulmans occupied Gorakhpur town, but they interfered very little with the district, and allowed it to be controlled by the native rajas. In the See also:middle of the 18th century a formidable foe, the Banjaras from the See also:west, so weakened the See also:power of the rajas that they could not resist the fiscal exactions of the Oudh officials, who plundered the country to a great extent.

The district formed See also:

part of the territory ceded by Oudh to the British under the treaty of 18o1. During the See also:Mutiny it was lost for a short See also:time, but under the friendly Gurkhas the rebels were driven out. The See also:population in Igor was 2,957,074, showing a decrease of 3% in the See also:decade. The district is traversed by the See also:main See also:line and several branches of the See also:Bengal & North-Western railway, and the Gandak, the Gogra and the Rapti are navigable. See also:GORAL-See also:GORCHAKOV under his relative See also:Suvarov in the See also:Turkish See also:Wars, and took part as a See also:general officer in the See also:Italian and Swiss operations of 1799, and in the war against See also:Napoleon in See also:Poland in 1806—1807 (See also:battle of See also:Heilsberg). PETR DMITRIEVICH (1790-1868) served under Kamenski and See also:Kutusov in the See also:campaign against See also:Turkey, and afterwards against See also:France in 1813—1814. In 182o he suppressed an insurrection in the See also:Caucasus, for which service he was raised to the See also:rank of See also:major-general. In 1828—1829 he fought under See also:Wittgenstein against the See also:Turks, won an See also:action at Aidos, and ,signed the treaty of See also:peace at See also:Adrianople. In 1839 he was made See also:governor of Eastern See also:Siberia, and in 1851 retired into private See also:life. When the See also:Crimean War See also:broke out he offered his services to the See also:emperor See also:Nicholas, by whom he was appointed general of the VI. See also:army See also:corps in the See also:Crimea. He commanded the corps in the battles of See also:Alma and See also:Inkerman. He retired in 1855 and died at See also:Moscow, on the 18th of See also:March 1868.

End of Article: GORAKHPUR

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