History
The Rajas of Rewa were of the Baghela(vaghela) branch of the Solanki Rajput or Chalukya clan (Hindu Agnivanshi clan of Indian stock), and claimed descent from the founder of the Anhilwara (Patan) dynasty in Gujarat.They ruled from Bandhavgarh under the first ruler Raja Vyaghradev who was direct descendant of famous Gujarati King and Warrior Vir Dhawal . In the mid 1550s, Raja Ramachandra Singh Baghela maintained a musically talented court, including the legendary Tansen. In 1617, Maharaja Vikramaditya Singh moved his capital to Rewa. Maharaja Martand Singh was the last ruler of Rewa who acceded to the Union of India after the country became ind Birbal was born in Sidhi District of Rewa Kingdom. The Emperor Sher Shah Suri, died fighting with Ruler of Rewa Vir Singh at Fort of Kalinjar.
Maharaja Ramchandra Singh and Akbar stayed friends. Two of the Navratnas of Akbar, Tansen and Birbal(original name Mahesh Das.) were sent from Rewa by Maharaja Ramchandra Singh once Akbar became the Emperor of India.
Rewa is also famous for its white tigers, the first one, nicknamed Mohan, was caught in Rewa.
Sitar Virtuoso Pandit Ravi Shankar studied music from Alauddin Khan of Maihar, also in Rewa state.
Rewa is the first princely state in India to declare Hindi as a national language in times of Maharaja Gulab Singh. He is also credited for declaring the first responsible government in modern India, providing citizens of Rewa state a right to question monarch's decision. The state came under British paramountcy in 1812 and remained a princely state within the Raj until India's independence in 1947.
In 1901, the population of the state was 1,327,385, showing a decrease of 12% over a decade; the population of the town that year was 24,608. Many of the inhabitants of the hilly tracts were Gonds and Kols. The estimated revenue of the state was Rs.200,000/- p.a. The staple crops were rice, millets and wheat. More than one-third of the area was covered with forests, yielding timber and lac. The state suffered from famine in 1896-1897 and again (to a lesser extent) in 1899-1900.
During the long minority of Raja Venkat Raman Singh (b.1876, ruled 1880-1918), the administration of the state was reformed. In 1901 the town boasted a high school, a "model jail" and two hospitals: the Victoria hospital and the Zenana hospital. However, it was still adjudged among the most backward areas of the country by V.P. Menon, after he visited the state in 1947.
Post-independence: Upon India's independence in 1947, the maharaja of Rewa acceded unto the dominion of India. Rewa later merged with the Union of India and became part of Vindhya Pradesh, which was formed by the merger of the former princely states of the Bagelkhand and Bundelkhand agencies. Rewa served as the capital of the new state.
In 1956, Vindhya Pradesh was merged with other nearby political entities to form the Indian constitutive state of Madhya Pradesh. The Maharaja's Raj -era palace has now been converted into a museum.
In February 2007, the most extensive book on history of Rewa was published. Published by Oxford University Press, it is named "Baghelkhand, or the Tigers’ Lair" and is authored by Dr D.E.U Baker, ex H.O.D, History Department, St Stephen's College, New Delhi after 12 years of gruelling research in which the author consulted numerous sources of information for Rewa's history like the state and national archieves as well as old records of Rewa state.
Bagheli is local language of Rewa.
Read more about this topic: Rewa (princely State)
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