History
"Bhera" is a Sanskrit word which means: "a place where there is no fear".
According to the "Ancient Geography of India" by Alexander Cunningham, Bhera was once known as Jobnathnagar.
| “ | The modern town of Bhira or Bheda is situated on the left bank of the Jhelam; but on the opposite bank of the river, near Ahmedabad, there is a very extensive mound of ruins, called Old Bhera or Jobnathnagar, the city of Raja Jobnath or Chobnath. | ” |
| “ | At Bhera the Chinese pilgrim Faxian crossed the Jhelam in 400 AD. | ” |
The Imperial Gazetteer of India records the History of Bhera -
| “ | In the seventh and eighth centuries, the Salt Range chieftain was a tributary of Kashmīr. Bhera was sacked by Mahmūd of Ghazni, and again two centuries later by the generals of Chingiz Khān. In 1519 Bābar held it to ransom; and in 1540 Sher Shāh founded a new town, which under Akbar became the head-quarters of one of the subdivisions of the Sūbah of Lahore. In the reign of Muhammad Shāh, Rājā Salāmat Rai, a Rājput of the Anand tribe, administered Bhera and the surrounding country; while Khushāb was managed by Nawāb Ahmadyār Khān, and the south-eastern tract along the Chenāb formed part of the territories under the charge of Mahārājā Kaura Mal, governor of Multān | ” |
| “ | About the same time, by the death of Nawāb Ahmdyār Khan, Khushāb also passed into the hands of Rājā Salāmat Rai. Shortly afterwards Abbās Khān a Khattak who held Pind Dādan Khān, treacherously put the Rājā to death, and seized Bhera. But Abbās Khān was himself thrown into prison as a revenue defaulter and, and Fateh Singh, nephew of Salāmat Rai then recovered his uncle's dominions. | ” |
The palace of Sopeithes which the Greek historian Arrian mentions as the place on the Hydaspes is supposed to be at Bhera. The Greeks refer to the Jhelum river as the Hydaspes River where Alexander fought Porus in Battle of the Hydaspes River in 326BC. It was at this battle that Alexander's famous horse Bucephalus was killed.
The Kukhran Khatris are a group of eleven specific clans of Punjabi Khatris who originally hailed from the town of Bhera in Punjab. Till the time of the partition of India in 1947 Bhera had a mixed population consisting of Hindu, Sikh and Muslim communities.
The demographic composition of Bhera was significantly altered however at the time of partition as almost the entire Hindu and Sikh Bhirochis migrated to India, some chose to stay back and converted to Islam.
The refugees who came to India settled in Delhi, Punjab and other cities of Northern India . N.Delhi continues to have a colony called Bhera town where a section of these refugees were resettle.
Bhera was also home to the Mohyal tribe who also claim Porus.
It is also home to the Punjabi Muslim communities of Piracha and Elahis and the Hayats.
Bhera is a historical city. Mahmud of Ghazni In his attack on Waihind (Peshawar) in 1001-3, is reported to have captured the Hindu Shahi King Jayapala and fifteen of his principal chiefs and relations some of whom like Sukhpal, were made Musalmans. At Bhera a great many inhabitants, except those who embraced Islam, were put to the sword.
It is located on the Lahore-Islamabad motorway, and connects with Bhera interchange. Sub-tehsil Bhera is the historical city of District Sargodha near Khushab. Its population is 100,000 is mainly dominated by Punjabis. Old Bhera is like old Lahore or old Peshawar. Its markets and streets are narrow. There is a circular road around the city. Old Bhera was situated on the right bank of the River Jehlum, on the opposite side new Bhera is located. There are heaps of ruins of old Bhera and remains of its markets and streets can still be seen on the other bank of the River Jehlum.
Old Bhera was destroyed in 1545 because of the disputes among the Pathan forces, and was rebuilt at the present location, that is the left bank of the River Jhelum. Sher Shah Suri was the founder of the new city. When he visited the old city, he was distressed upon seeing the destroyed areas. He camped at the left bank of river Jehlum, near Qaimnath's hut, and constructed the first building there. He also constructed the Shahi Jamia Mosque in the new city, which rivals the Shahi Jamia Mosques of Delhi, Agra and Lahore in beauty. Sher Shah Suri made a road, along which he built an "Eidgah" and water tanks for the passengers.
1300 years ago, many Muslim saints passed by Bhera which became famous in the whole of Asia. Businessmen and scholars arrived first and then many Afghan and Central Asian conquerors such as Mahmud Ghazni, Shahab ud Din Ghori, Mughal Babur and Ahmed Shah Abdali attacked or passed through the city in their campaigns.
Along with other things, peacocks were also presented to Hazrat Suleman. The people of this area were well educated. The people of other cities and countries had been learning Tib, etc. from here. Alexander the great after conquering Iran and passing through the Hindu Kush, reached the Punjab and came to the River Biyas and then turned back from there. Bhera earned a great status during the Mughal rule. Mughal emperor Zaheer-ud-din Babur mentioned this town in his famous book, Tuzk-e-Babri. The town had to face destruction when Sher Shah Suri (1540–1545) defeated Humayun and the Pathan forces took their revenge on the then pro-Mughal town of Bhera.
In the recent past centuries, Bhera was an important trading outpost on the road to Kabul, and boasted of a taksal (mint) during the rule of Ranjit Singh. The city was known for its knife and cutlery craftsmen, who made fighting daggers (Pesh-kabz) as well as hunting knives and table cutlery, often fitted with handles of serpentine (false jade) or horn. Sir Robert Baden-Powell described the process by which craftsmen manufactured gem-quality serpentine aka false jade from ores obtained from Afghanistan: "The sang-i-yesham (ore) is cut by means of an iron saw, and water mixed with red sand and pounded (with) kurand (corundum). It is polished by application to the san (polishing wheel), wetted with water only, then by being kept wet with water, and rubbed with a piece of wati (smooth pottery fragment), and lastly by rubbing very finely pounded burnt sang-i-yesham on it. This last process must be done very thoroughly."
Bhera declined in importance due to the gradual shifting of the course of the Jhelum river, due to which the town lost its access to trade as the result of its location on the banks of the river.
Captain Devas came to Bhera and with the help of the local architect Dhanchand Kohli rebuilt eight Gates of the city facing different directions. These were named Multani Gate, Lahori Gate, Kashmiri Gate, Kabuli Gate, Peeranwala Gate, Chinioti Gate, Loharanwala Gate and Hajji Gulab Gate. Only four gates have survived to date, Peeranwala Gate, Hajji Gulab Gate, Loharanwala Gate and Kabuli Gate which too are in a state of disrepair now. During the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar, Bhera regained its former glory and was one of the 40 cities of Mughal India having a royal mint for minting gold and silver coins.
Ghaznavi, Ghauri and Ahmad Shah Abdali also passed through Bhera while attacking the subcontinent. After the Sikh Raj (1790 to 1849), the British occupied Bhera till independence in 1947. The town of Bhera used to have a boundary wall and eight gates. Unfortunately, there is no official or public awareness about this great city of the past.
Bhera was also called Wheat center and market of Mehndi. Camels were used as a means of transportation before the train and bus. There were many inns where businessmen and travellers stayed. Bhera was a great centre of industries. Knives and swords were made craft-fully. Wood work from here was famous all over the Indian sub continent. One of the carved door from Bhera city exists even today in the Museum of Lahore. In the city there are many beautiful buildings in Mohala Khawajgan, Ansari and Sheesh Mehol. Aurangzeb Alamgeer constructed a mosque near Chinioti Gate Markzi Mosque Mohala Sheikhanwal's Mosque and Chinese tomb near Kabuli gate. At first, Bhera was situated on a circular road, but as the population n 1004 CE
- Changiz Khan
- Babar holds it to ransom in 1519
- Ahmad Shah Durani attacks in 1757
New City Bhera is now in progress to settle at the junction of Bhera-Bhalwal Rd and Bhera Jhawarian Rd.
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