District
has two towns.
1.Narnaul
2.Mahendragarh
Narnaul seems to
be an ancient town but its origin
and ancient name are still shrouded
in mystery. According to legend Narnaul
town belongs to Mahabharta period,
then known as Nar Rashtra. It is narrated
in the Mahabharta that enroute to
the Chambal Valley from Hastinapur,
the youngest Pandava brother, Sahdev,
gained control over this town. According
to another tale the town was founded
after clearing dense forests abounding
with lions. Hence it came to be known
as Nahar-naul (the fear of lions)
or Nahar-haul (abode of lions) and
gradually came to be known as Narnaul.
Some people say that while digging
the foundation of this town a nag
(serpent) and a naol (mongoose) came
out fighting. The people named the
town as Nagnaol after this incident
and later on it came to be known as
Narnaul. According to yet another
legend, Raja Laun of Bikaner who got
this town built named it after the
name of his wife, Narlaun.
Old
History of the Town
In the beginning,
the town was controlled by Jogis who
performed many miracles. Till the
advent of Islam, Rathor Rajputs ruled
the town and the adjoining areas.
A Muslim saint Hazarat Turkman came
and settled here in the third decade
of twelfth century. The Rathors had
many skirmishes with the companions
of Turkman, who himself was killed
in 1137. Turkman is worshipped, as
a martyr by the Muslims. His tomb,
in the heart of the town, had been
visited by thousands of Muslim pilgrims
in the past. From the time of Iltutmish
Narnaul came again under the control
of Muslims. But it had also been a
scene of plunder many times at the
hands of neighbouring Muslim Jagirdars.
Narnaul was also
closely associated with the Sur-Afghans.
Sher Shah’s grand father, Ibrahim
Khan, came here first. He got the
town of Narnaul and surrounding villages
from the then administrator of Firoze-i-Hisar
to meet the expenses of his forty
horse men. After his death Hasan Khan,
father of Sher Shah Suri, the supplanter
of Humayun, became the Jagirdar of
Narnaul. After the Second Battle of
Panipat, Akbar gifted this Jagir to
Shah Quli Khan Mahram who arrested
Hemu, the famous warrior general of
Rewari.
At Akbar's time Narnaul
had a mint (Taksal). To effect reforms
in mint, Akbar visited Narnaul along
with Raja Todar Mal and Khawaja Shah
Mansur. The Jalali coin was issued
by Akbar from Narnaul Birbal also
used to visit this town. Birbal's
Chatta stands tiU this day reminding
the visits of Birbal, one of the nine
jewels (Nav Rattan) of the great Mughal,
Akbar. During the time of Aurangzeb,
the Satnami Sadhus revolted against
the suppression caused by the Muslim
Jagirdar. The revolt took the form
of a serious communal riot. Satnamis
after killing the Muslim Faujdar occupied
the town. The imperial forces stationed
here took to their heels. To quell
this riot Aurangzeb himself had to
come with a large contingent.
With the disintegration
of Mughal empire after the death of
Aurangzeb, 4 Thakur of Jaipur annexed
Narnaul but soon he lost it to the
French General, De-Boigne. Later Murtza
Khan Bharaich got the Jagirdari of
Narnaul. In his lineage Abdur Rahman,
Nawab of Jhajjar raised a banner of
revolt against the British in 1857.
After the First War of Indian Independence,
1857, he along with some co-patriots
was hanged. Narnaul was there after
gifted to the ruler of Patiala, Narender
Singh, for rendering loyal services
to the Britishers.
Narnaul according
to Latif's Safarnama was a blessed
place from which the world (aalme),
i.e. the whole country benefited.
It was an unparalleled place on earth,
(chashm afrida chuneen gai na deeda).
It was the cleanest place and its
cleanliness was preserved with jealousy
by keeping exceptional care and watch
thereabout. Latif compares the city
with heaven itself. Latif, a noted
scholar stayed here during l7th century
for three days and nights and felt
extremely happy on having a chance
to do so. Quli Khan built a beautiful
garden also near the palace. Latif
compares this garden with Bagh-e-Aram
(garden of paradise).
Narnaul is replete
with historical monuments like Ibrahim
Khan Suri's tomb, tomb of Shah Wilayat,
Sarai Mukand Das, Pobianwali mosque,
Dargah Sheikh Miran, Takhat Wati Baoli,
Shah Quli Khans tomb, Hargopal tatab,
Shah Quli Khan's Jal Mahal, Paltian-Ki-Masjid
and Chhatta Rai Mukand or Chhatta
Birbal and some temples. |
