Assam's History for the Assam Police Constable Exam
History carries a dependable share of marks in the General Knowledge portion of the SLPRB Assam Police Constable (AB & UB) paper, and it rewards the candidate who arranges events in the right order far more than the one who merely memorises isolated dates. The questions are usually direct: the founder of a dynasty, the year of a battle, the name of a treaty, the title of a king, or the author of a chronicle. Because the same kings and battles return year after year, a single well-made timeline can answer many different questions at once. This chapter builds that timeline from the earliest names of the region down to the modern State of Assam, and it marks the facts that the examiners repeat most often. The facts are checked against the standard reference material used for the Assam recruitment examinations and against publicly available official sources.
The Earliest Names of the Land
The region was known in ancient times as Pragjyotisha, a name that appears in the epic tradition, and later as Kamarupa, the name by which it was known throughout the classical period. The old capital of Pragjyotisha is associated with the legendary king Narakasura and his son Bhagadatta, who is said to have taken part in the Mahabharata war. Written history begins with the Varman line of Kamarupa, founded by Pushyavarman in the fourth century, when the region emerged as a well-organised kingdom with inscriptions, coins and a settled administration.
The Classical Age: Varman, Mlechchha and Pala
The most famous of the Varman kings was Bhaskaravarman, in whose reign the Chinese traveller Xuanzang visited Kamarupa in the seventh century. Bhaskaravarman was a friend and ally of the north Indian emperor Harshavardhana, and his court was described as rich and learned. After the Varmans came the Mlechchha line and then the Pala line, and it was during these later centuries that the kingdom slowly broke into smaller units. From one of these fragments rose the kingdom of Kamata in the west, ruled by the Khen or Khadga dynasty, which in turn gave way to the Koch kingdom in the sixteenth century.
The Ahom Kingdom and Its Founders
The Ahoms crossed the Patkai hills and founded their kingdom in 1228 under Sukapha, a prince from the Tai homeland of Mong Mao. Their first capital was at Charaideo. Over the next six centuries the Ahoms absorbed or subdued the neighbouring Chutiya and Kachari powers and built one of the longest-lasting dynasties in Indian history, ruling for almost six hundred years. Among the great kings, Suklenmung, Pratap Singha and Rudra Singha are remembered for consolidation and for the building of temples, tanks and palaces, while Gadadhar Singha and his son Rudra Singha are remembered for driving the Mughals out of the valley for good.
The Ahoms and the Mughals
The Mughal empire made repeated attempts to extend its authority over the Brahmaputra valley. The turning point was the Battle of Saraighat in 1671, a naval engagement on the Brahmaputra near Guwahati in which the Ahom general Lachit Borphukan defeated a Mughal force led by Ram Singh and sent by the emperor Aurangzeb. The final expulsion of the Mughals was completed at the Battle of Itakhuli in 1682. Saraighat is the single most-quoted event of Assam's military history, and Lachit Borphukan, who died in 1672, is honoured every year on Lachit Divas, observed on the twenty-fourth of November.
How the Ahom State Was Governed
Ahom administration rested on the Paik system, in which every able-bodied man owed a fixed period of labour service to the state. The king was assisted by the three great ministers called the Gohains, and by the two high officers, the Borphukan and the Borbarua. This structure is a favourite of the examiners because it can be tested in a single line. Internal troubles such as the Moamoria rebellion weakened the kingdom in the late eighteenth century and opened the door to outside interference.
The Burmese Invasion and the Treaty of Yandabo
At the invitation of feuding Ahom factions, the Burmese entered Assam in the early nineteenth century and occupied it for a number of years. Their presence brought them into conflict with the British, and the First Anglo-Burmese War ended with the Treaty of Yandabo, signed on 24 February 1826. By this treaty the Burmese gave up their claim to Assam and the region passed to the British East India Company. Yandabo is the most important single date of the chapter, because it marks the end of Ahom rule and the beginning of British rule in Assam.
Assam under British Rule
After 1826 Assam was administered by British officers, the first of whom was David Scott. For a time the province was moved between Bengal and the other administrative arrangements of the day, and in 1874 it became a separate Chief Commissioner's province. The partition of Bengal in 1905 joined Assam with East Bengal, but the arrangement was undone in 1912, when Assam was reunited as a chief commissioner's province. In 1921 it became a governor's province with its own legislative council. Along with these political changes came the tea plantations, the railways, the growth of an Assamese middle class and, above all, a new political awareness.
The Freedom Struggle in Assam
Assam took part in the national movement from its earliest days. The rising of 1857 had its echo here, and Maniram Dewan, a tea planter and a former officer of the Ahom court, was executed in 1858 for his part in the revolt. The peasant uprisings at Phulaguri and Rangiya expressed the anger of the countryside against the new revenue system. With the arrival of the Non-Cooperation Movement in 1921 the Congress took deep root in the province under leaders such as Tarun Ram Phukan, Nabin Chandra Bardoloi and Gopinath Bordoloi. Assam responded strongly to the Quit India Movement of 1942. In the troubled years that followed, the leadership of Gopinath Bordoloi kept Assam within India during the grouping controversy of 1946.
Assam after Independence
After 1947 Assam remained a part of the Indian Union, and its boundaries were reshaped several times as new States were carved out of it, namely Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh. The Assamese language movement of 1960 and the Assam Official Language Act of 1961, the movement of people across the border, and the agitation that ended with the Assam Accord of 1985 are all part of the modern story that a well-prepared candidate should know in outline. Together with the earlier centuries, they complete a continuous narrative from the ancient kingdom of Kamarupa to the Assam of today.
Personalities and Dates to Remember
- Sukapha, founder of the Ahom kingdom in 1228.
- Bhaskaravarman, the Kamarupa king of the seventh century.
- Lachit Borphukan, the victor of Saraighat in 1671.
- Maniram Dewan, executed after the rising of 1857.
- Gopinath Bordoloi, the first Chief Minister of Assam and the leader who kept Assam in India.
- 1826, the Treaty of Yandabo; 1874, Assam as a Chief Commissioner's province; 1921, the Non-Cooperation Movement; 1985, the Assam Accord.
Common Traps in History Questions
- Mixing up the Battle of Saraighat of 1671 with the earlier Mughal campaigns, and forgetting that Ram Singh was the Mughal commander there.
- Confusing the founder Sukapha with a later king of the same court.
- Forgetting that it was the Burmese, and not the Mughals, who were expelled at Yandabo.
- Placing the creation of the separate province in the wrong year, and mixing up 1874 with 1912 and 1921.
- Attributing the preservation of Assam within India to the wrong leader.
A Revision Plan for This Chapter
- Make one timeline from Pragjyotisha to the Assam Accord and keep it on a single page.
- Group the dynasties in order: Varman, Mlechchha, Pala, Kamata, Koch and Ahom.
- Learn the three or four battles that are asked, each with its year and its commanders.
- Learn the administrative terms of the Ahom state as a small table.
- Finish with the modern period, from 1826 to 1985, as a story of events in sequence.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who founded the Ahom kingdom and in which year?
Sukapha, a Tai prince who crossed the Patkai hills from Mong Mao, founded the Ahom kingdom in 1228 and made Charaideo the first capital. His dynasty ruled Assam for almost six hundred years, until the Treaty of Yandabo in 1826.
Why is the Battle of Saraighat so important?
It was fought in 1671 on the Brahmaputra near Guwahati. The Ahom general Lachit Borphukan defeated the Mughal force under Ram Singh, sent by Aurangzeb, and the victory checked Mughal expansion into Assam. It is remembered as one of the greatest river battles in Indian history.
What was the Treaty of Yandabo and what did it do?
It was signed on 24 February 1826 and ended the First Anglo-Burmese War. By it the Burmese abandoned their claim to Assam, and the region passed to the British East India Company. It marks the end of Ahom rule and the beginning of British rule in Assam.
What was the Paik system in the Ahom kingdom?
The Paik system was the labour service on which the Ahom state was built. Every able-bodied man owed a fixed period of service to the king, and this provided both soldiers for the army and workers for building roads, tanks and embankments. The king was assisted by the three Gohains and the officers called the Borphukan and the Borbarua.
How should I remember the modern events from 1826 to 1985?
Read them as a chain: Yandabo in 1826, the separate Chief Commissioner's province in 1874, reunion in 1912, the governor's province in 1921, the Non-Cooperation Movement in 1921, Quit India in 1942, the language movement of 1960, and the Assam Accord of 1985. A chain of causes and effects is easier to recall than a list of dates.