Jhelum - History

History

The Janjuas, Rajputs, Jats and Ahirs, who now hold the Salt Range and its northern plateau respectively, appear to have been the earliest inhabitants of Jhelum. The history of Jhelum dates back to the semi-mythical period of the Mahabharata. Hindu tradition represents the nearby Salt Range as the refuge of the five Pandava brothers during the period of their exile. The next major point in the history of the district was the Battle of the Hydaspes between Alexander the Great and the local ruler, Porus. Abisares (or Abhisara; in Greek Αβισαρης), called Embisarus (Eμ Oβισαρoς) by Diodorus, was an Indian king of abhira descent beyond the river Hydaspes, whose territory lay in the mountains, sent embassies to Alexander the Great both before and after the conquest of Porus in 326 BC, although inclined to espouse the side of the latter. Alexander not only allowed him to retain his kingdom, but increased it, and on his death appointed his son as his successor.

The Gakhars appear to represent an early wave of conquerors from the west, and who still inhabit a large tract in the mountain north to tilla range. Gakhars were the dominant race during the early Muslim era and they long continued to retain their independence, both in Jhelum itself and in the neighbouring district of Rawalpindi.

During the flourishing period of the Mughal dynasty, the Gakhar chieftains were among the most prosperous and loyal vassals of the house of Babar, but after the collapse of the Mughal empire, Jhelum came under the rule of the Sikhs.

In 1765 Gujar Singh defeated the last independent Gakhar chief, Muqarrrab Khan, and subjugated the wild mountaineers of the Salt Range and the Murree Hills. His son succeeded to his dominions until 1810, when it fell to Ranjit Singh. Under the rule of Ranjit Singh, the dominant classes of Jhelum suffered much from fiscal actions.

In 1849 Jhelum passed with the rest of the Sikh territories to the British. Ranjit Singh, however, had so thoroughly subjugated the wild mountain tribes of the district that little difficulty was experienced in reducing it to working order. In 1857 the 14th Native Infantry stationed at Jhelum town mutinied, and made a vigorous defence against a force sent from Rawalpindi to disarm them, but decamped on the night following the action, with the main body being subsequently arrested by the Kashmiri authorities, into whose territory they had escaped.

During British rule, Jhelum was a district of Rawalpindi Division, and was larger than the current district of Jhelum. On April 1, 1914, the tehsil of Talagang was detached from the district and incorporated with the new district of Attock. The old Jhelum district (minus Talagang) covered an area of 7,285 km2 (2,813 sq mi) and included Chakwal tehsil – it was bounded by Shahpur and Attock to the west, and by Rawalpindi to the north – the Jhelum River separated it from Kashmir to the north-east and from Gujrat and Shahpur to the south-east and south.

During British rule, Jhelum was connected by the North-Western Railway to other cities in the Indian Empire, 1,367 miles from Calcutta, 1,413 from Bombay, and 849 from Karachi. The population according to the 1901 census of India was 14,951.

According to the Imperial Gazetteer of India:

"The present town is of modern origin, the old town, which may have been the Bucephala of Alexander having been, on the left or opposite bank of the river. Under Sikh rule the place was quite unimportant, being mainly occupied by a settlement of boatmen, and at the time of annexation contained about 500 houses. It was then chosen as the site of a cantonment and as the head-quarters of the civil administration. For some years it was the seat of the Commissioner of the Division, but in 1859 his head-quarters were transferred to Rawalpindi. Under British rule Jhelum has steadily advanced in prosperity; and is the entrepôt for most of the trade of the District, though, since the completion of the Sind-Sāgar branch of the North-Western Railway; the salt trade no longer passes through it. It is an important timber dépôt, the timber from the Kashmir forests which is floated down the river being collected here. A good deal of boat-building is carried on. The cantonment, which is 3 miles from the civil station, contains the church and post office. The normal strength of the garrison is one Native cavalry and four Native infantry regiments. The municipality was founded 1867. During the ten years ending 1902–3 the receipts averaged Rs. 32,100, and the expenditure Rs, 31,900. Receipts and expenditure from cantonment funds in the same period averaged Rs. 31,900 and Rs. 6,100 respectively. The chief income of the municipality in 1903-4 was Rs.34,200 chiefly from octroi; and the expenditure was Rs. 41,000. The town has two Anglo vernacular schools, a municipal high school, and a middle school maintained by the American Presbyterian Mission. Besides the civil hospital, the mission also maintains a hospital."

During the Indian Rebellion of 1857 35 British soldiers of HM XXIV regiment were killed by the local resistance. A lectern inside St. John's Church Jhelum the church shows the names of the soldiers. St. John's Church is located in Jhelum Cantonment beside the river Jhelum. It was built in 1860 and is a landmark of the city. It is a Protestant church and was in use during the British period. For forty years it remained closed. Now it has been renovated and re-opened.