Moat at the Aligarh Fort
Before the 18th century, Aligarh was known as Kol or Koil. The name Kol referred to the entire district, and its geographical limits would occasionally change. The origin of the name is obscure. In some ancient texts, Kol has been referred to in the sense of a tribe or caste, the name of a place or mountain and the name of a sage or demon. From the study of the place-name of the district, it appears that the district was once fairly well covered by forests and groves. The early history of the district, through the 12th century A.D is obscure.
According to Edwin T. Atkinson, the name Kol was given to the city by Balarama, who was there when he slew the great Asura (demon) Kol and, with the assistance of the Ahirs, subdued this part of the doab.In another account, Atkinson points out a "legend" that Kol was founded by the Dor tribe of Rajputs in 372 A.D. This could be further confirmed by an old fort, the ruined Dor fortress, which lies at the city centre.
Some time before the Muslim invasion, Kol was held by the Dor Rajputs. In the time of Mahmud of Ghazni, the chief of the Dors was Hardatta of Baran. There is reason to believe that Kol was once the seat of a Buddhist community: statues of Buddha and other Buddhist remains have been found in excavations where the citadel of Koil stood. It also had Hindu remains, which indicates that the citadel probably had a Hindu temple after the Buddhist temple.
In 1194 AD, Qutb-ud-din Aibak marched from Delhi to Kol, which was "one of the most celebrated fortresses of Hind". Qutb-ud-din Aibak appointed Hisam-ud-din Ulbak as the first Muslim governor of Koil.
Koil is also mentioned in Ibn Battuta's Rihla, when Ibn Battuta along with 15 ambassadors representing Ukhaantu Khan, the Mongol Emperor of the Yuan dynasty in China, travelled to Kol city en route to the coast at Cambay (in Gujarat) in 1341.According to Ibn Battuta, it would appear that the district was then in a very disturbed state since the escort of the Emperor's embassy had to assist in relieving Jalali from an attacking body of Hindus and lost one of their officers in the fight. Ibn Batuta calls Kol "a fine town surrounded by mango groves". From these same groves the environs of Kol would appear to have acquired the name of Sabzabad or "the green country".
In the reign of Akbar, Kol was made a Sirkar and included the dasturs of Marahra, Kol ba Haveli, Thana Farida and Akbarabad.
Both Akbar and Jahangir visited Kol on hunting expeditions. Jahangir clearly mentions the forest of Kol, where he killed wolves.
During the time of Ibrahim Lodhi, Muhammad, son of 'Umar, was the governor of Kol. He built a fort at Kol and named the city Muhammadgarh, after himself, in 1524–25. Sabit Khan, who was then the governor of this region, of Farrukh Siyar and Muhammad Shah, rebuilt the old Lodhi fort and named the town after his own name: Sabitgarh. The ruler of Koil was Bargujar Raja Rao Bahadur Singh whose ancestors ruled it from A.D 1184 after the marriage of the Raja of Koil, Ajit Singh's daughter to Raja Pratap Singh Bargujar.
In early 1753, the Bargujar Chief rose against the destruction of Hindu temples. The Jat ruler, Surajmal in 1753, with help from Jai Singh of Jaipur and the Muslim army, occupied the fort of Koil. The Bargujar Raja Bahadur Singh continued the battle from another fort under them and died fighting in the "Battle of Ghasera". All the women committed Jauhar. Koil was renamed Ramgarh and finally, when a Shia commander, Najaf Khan, captured it, he gave it its present name of Aligarh. Aligarh Fort (also called Aligarh Qila), as it stands today, was built by French engineers under the command of French officers Benoît de Boigne and Perron.
Battle of Aligarh (1803)
General Lord Gerard Lake who oversaw the Battle of Ally Ghur
The Battle of Aligarh was fought on 1 September 1803 during the Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803–1805) at Aligarh Fort. The British 76th Regiment, now known as the Duke of Wellington's Regiment laid siege of the fort, which was under the control of the French officer Perron, and established British rule after capturing the fort. In 1804, the Aligarh district was formed by the union of the second, third and fourth British divisions with the addition of Anupshahr from Muradabad and Sikandra Rao from Etawa. On 1 August 1804, Mr Claude Russell was appointed the first Collector of the new district.
Establishment of Aligarh Muslim University (1875)
Main article: Aligarh Muslim University
In 1875, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan founded the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College in Aligarh and patterned the college after both Oxford and Cambridge: universities that he had visited on a trip to England. This later became the Aligarh Muslim University in 1920.
Geography
Aligarh is located at the coordinates 27.88°N 78.08°E. It has an elevation of approximately 178 metres (587 feet). The city is situated in the middle portion of the doab, the land between the Ganges and the Yamuna rivers. The Grand Trunk Road passes through this city.
Neighborhoods
Aligarh's neighborhoods include Pilakhana, Tajpur Rasulpur, Somna, Gabhana, Bhankari Khas, Noorpur, Mangarhi, Gorai, Sidarmain, Kasimpur Powerhouse colony, Mainath, Nagliya, Khair, Atrauli, Vijaygarh, Gonda, Bhartari, Kanhoi, Iglas, Hathras and Chamed. Dhaurra Mafi, Quarsi, Jamalpur
Climate
Aligarh
Climate chart (explanation)
Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm
Source: IMD
Imperial conversion
Aligarh has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate, typical of north-central India. Summers start in April and are hot with temperatures peaking in May. Average temperatures range between 28–33 °C (82–91 °F). The monsoon season starts in late June, continuing till early October, with high humidity levels. Aligarh gets most of its annual rainfall of 800 millimetres (31 in) during these months. Temperatures then decrease, and winter sets in December, and continues till early February. Temperatures range between 12–16 °C Winters in Aligarh are generally mild, but fog and cold snaps sometimes occur.
Demographics
As of the census of 2001,Aligarh had a population of 669,087 . Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Aligarh has an average literacy rate of 71%, higher than the national average of 65.4%, with 71% of males and 43% of females literate. 16% of the population is under 6 years of age. At present Aligarh District has a population of around 3,800,000
Economy
The city is an agricultural trade centre. The processing of agricultural products and manufacturing are also important.
Aligarh has always been an important business centre of Uttar Pradesh and is most famous for its locks industry. The locks that are produced in Aligarh are exported to different parts of the world. In 1870, Johnson & Co. was the first English locks firm to be set up in Aligarh. In 1890, the company initiated the manual production of locks on a small scale here.
Being at railroad junction, Aligarh has developed into a commercial centre of an agricultural region which produces wheat, sugarcane, cotton, corn, barley, potato, guava and millet. In addition to the lock industry, other industries of Aligarh include flour milling, processing of raw cotton and the manufacture of butter, thermometers and glass. Aligarh is also famous for its brass hardware and sculptures. Today, the city holds thousands of manufacturers, exporters and suppliers involved in the brass, bronze, iron and aluminium industries.
There is a thermal power station 15 km away from the city. It is called Harduaganj Thermal Power Station (also referred as Kasimpur Power House). A nuclear power station, Narora Atomic Power Station is located 50 km away from Aligarh. Despite its proximity to two large power stations, frequent power cuts are normal in Aligarh. They are not just frequent but more than enough to create havoc. The situation is bad enough that people are trying to generate their own power using generators and invertors. It is not uncommon in the summers to have 10 hours or more of power cuts every day.
Aligarh boasts a Heinz-sauce manufacturing unit in Manzurgarhi (around 15 km from Aligarh). Aligarh is also popular for its sugar factory; Satha sugar factory is just 12 km far from the centre of city. Satha sugar factory is located on the Aligarh-Kasimpur route. On this route a cement factory is also present.
Aligarh city is also famous for its Gajaks,sohn-papdi,biscuits (shamshad papy is famous for its rusks) and Kachauries.
