The ruins in and around the present Bagerhat town represent the medieval township of Khalifatabad built by a saint general Khan-al-Azam Khan Jahan or Ulugh Khan Jahan in the inhospitable habitat close to the Sundarbans, the largest mangrove forest of the world. Today it is the headquarters of the district of the same name located in the southwest part of the country. A township was established here in the 15th century AD along the bank of the old Bhairab in an area of roughly 20 sq.km ( about 6.5km N-S and 3.5km E-W). A good number of surviving mosques, mousolea, roads, reservoirs, as well as cultural mounds testify to this medieval town. Due to the outstanding universal significance and historical and archaeological importance, both the sites have been inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1985.
Nomenclature
There are ambiguities about the origin of the present name of the place. Some scholars opine that the name carries the meaning the “Habitat of Tiger”(Bagh meaning tiger/garden and hat meaning market place) whereas other express that there was the site of Khan Jahan’s garden where the present town of Bagerhat is located. Subsequently near that garden, a hat (market place) was developed and thereby, the present name was derived. Equally uncertain is the origin of its earlier name Khalifatabad. There is a tradition that Khan Jahan named his newly established township Khalifatabad after the reigning Abbasaid Khalifa of Bagdad or his representative in Bengal Sultan Nasiruddin Mahamud Shah (1442-1459 AD). It was also called haveli Kashba. Some scholars suggested that the place had been designated as Sahr-i-Nao (a newly established town) during the Ilyas Shahi regime before it was named Khalifatabad. In fact, the name Khalifatabad appeared for the first time as a mint town in 1516 A.D. in sultan Nusrat Shah’s coinage.
Historical Background
The early history of Bagerhat is as obscure as the origin of its name. The area was an inhospitable tract in the remote past. Its location on the offshore of the Bay of Bengal, densely overgrown mangrove forest and the associated hazards, have always worked as negative factors for the development of human habitation.
In spite of the forbidding nature of the area we have some evidence to prove that people tried to settle here as early as 10th century AD. The black stone image of a Buddha recovered from Thakur Dighi, very close to Khan Jahan’s Tomb, commonly known as Sivbati image, now housed in Kamalapur Dharma Rajika Monastery in Dhaka, and a stone column depicting an eight handed Mahismardini Durga dated to about 12-13th century AD still embedded upright at a site in the abandoned bank of old Bharirab, known as Jahajghata, are examples of this early habitation. But these evidences are too scanty to reconstruct the history of the localty of that period. One can only surmise that before the foundation of a Muslim colony there was a settlement of Buddhists and Hindus during the period of 10- 13th century AD. Khan Jahan established here in the 15th century AD whose identity alson is still obscure. Some scholars express that a Wazir of Sultan Mahmud Taghlaq named Malik Sarwar holding the title of Khawaja Jahan established a semi-independent kingdom at Jainpur in 1309. In his old age he left the trone and proceeded towards east to preach Islam. Finally, he came to Bagerhat and established a township here. But this statement does not fit well as the opinion that Azam Khan, son of Shaikh Alaul Huq was a friend of Sultan Ghyasuddin Azam Shah of Sonargaon who made him wazir and honored him with the title of Khan Jahan. During the political instability in Gaur Azam Khan fled to Bagerhat founded a township there, and began to propagate Islam.
It is to be noted that ‘Khan Jahan or Ulugh Khan-al-Azam Khan-i-Zahan’ are the titiles only. So we do not know the actual name of this great man who held these titles. And these titles have been found in inscriptions engraved on his sarcophagus. Some scholars are inclined to identify one Khawaja jahan inscribed on an old mosque in the Chawkbazar area of Dhaka known as Churihatta Mosque with Khan Jahan of Bagerhat. Since the tomb inscriptions so far have been deciphered bears no original name, not even the name of his Sultan or someone else. In this regard we may point out the recommendation made in the Master Plan to reopen the crypt of the Khan Jahan’s tomb and decipher the inscriptions on the wall which may help to identify the name of the person founded the township as well as to reconstruct its authentic history.
Whoever may be Khan-i-Jahan or Ulugh Khan-al-Azam there are ample evidences that he adorned the city with mosques, roads, bridges, palaces and reservoirs in a short span of time. He introduced an architectural style, which was uncommon blending of the indigenous, and the imperial styles of Delhi, particularly of the Tughaq, which has been termed as Khan Jahani style. Based on this style some scholars express that Ulugh Khan Jahan was possibly of Turkish origin.
Most of the establishments of his township have disappeared with the passage of time. Only a few survive most of which are religious buildings like mosque and mausoleum. Not a single secular structure excepting road is visible now. Water tanks may be related to both type of establishments. So whatever evidences of Bagerhat>Kalifatabad still traceble can be distinctly divisible into two groups: surving monument and structural ruins buried in the earth. The former group comprises Shaitgumbad Mosque, Singar Mosque, Bibi Begni’s Mosque, Chuna Khola Mosque, Naygumbad Mosque, Ranavijaypur Mosque, rezakhoda Mosque, Zindapir Mosque, Sabekdanga Monument and Khan Jahan’s Tomb. In the latter group there are many structural ruins scattered in and around Bagerhat town. A few of them are in the form of low mounds while some others are almost leveled down to the surrounding land surface. Some of them are Khan Jahaner Vasarbati, Bara Azina Masjid, Jahajghata, Kotwali Chawtara etc.
Monuments
Shait Gumbad Mosque
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| Shait Gumbad Mosque, Bagerhat |
The most spectacular and magnificent monument of Khalifatabad, stands on the eastern bank of a large water tank, locally known as Ghora dighi. It is about 7 km west of Bagerhat town. Khulna-Bagerhat high way passes to the south of the mosque commonly known by its highly misleading name of Shaitgumbad Mosque or Mosque of Sixty Domes. Actually this is roofed over with 77 squat domes including 7 chauchala or four segmented hut shaped domes in the central row.
It is the largest mosque of medieval Bangladesh with its external dimension 49 m long × 33m wide. The large prayer chamber is provided with 11 arched doorways on the east and 7 each on the north and south. The interior of the mosque is divided into 7 longitudinal aisles and 11 deep bays by 60 stones columns excepting one.
There ate ten concave mihrabs on the western wall of which the central one is of stone while the flanking 9 mihrabs are decorated with terracotta motifs. There is a small arched doorway in the western wall close to the central mihrab. The corner turrets are raise above the slightly curved parapet capped by rounded cupolas. The eastern turrets are tall and have entrances from the interior of the mosque through staircases while the western turrets are dwarfish without staircases. The facade is relieved with usual curved cornice. Besides, over the central arched doorway existed a small triangular pediment. After repair this pediment is not seen.
Around the mosque, there is an open courtyard and is enclosed by brick wall. The middle part of each wall was providing with gateway of which the eastern one seems to be massive and elegant.
