History
The illustrious history of Dehradun includes various Puranic stories and cultures. It is mentioned in the Ramayana that Lord Rama, along with brother Lakshmana, came to the area after defeating Ravana, the Rakshasa king of Lanka. The area is also linked to Dronacharya, the guru of the Kauravas and Pandavas in the Mahabharata. The area of Rishikesh is mentioned in the Skanda Purana as having been given to rishis(sages) by Lord Vishnu after killing the asuras Madhu-Kaitabh and their companions who tormented the rishis. Ancient temples, statues and archaeological remains have been found at the sites in and around the area that are mentioned in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. These remains have been dated to be approximately 2000 years old.
The location of the area, the ancient traditions and customs still followed here, folk songs coming down from generations, and their contemporaneous literature point to the fact that the area witnessed various events during the periods of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. The Pandavas held influence over the region after the battle of the Mahabharata and the area was ruled by the descendants of Subahu as administrators under the Kuru Kingdom at Hastinapur. The discovery of Ashokan edicts at Kalsi near Dehradun show that the area was quite prosperous. Huen Tsang also observed Kalsi as Sudhnagar in the 7th century AD. Archaeological remains from the time of Raja Rasaal have been found at Haripur near Kalsi.
The area was attacked by Mahmud Ghaznavi, Timur in 1368. Guru Ram Rai, the errant eldest son of the seventh Guru of the Sikhs- Guru Har Rai, established his ‘DERA' in the Dun Valley around 1676 and the town that grew around this 'DERA' has come to be known as ‘DEHRADUN'. He founded his own Udasi Panth and received support from Auragnzeb.Rohilla chieftain Najeebuchhaula in 1757 and Ghulam Qadir in 1785. This kept the area in disarray till 1801. The British captured the area in 1816 and found the cities of Landour and Mussourie in 1827-28. The district was added to the Garhwal division in the 1970s. It was established as the capital of Uttarkhand after the establishment of the state as Uttaranchal in the year 2000.
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