History of Hyderabad in Chronological Order

 Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, the fifth ruler of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, selected the present site of the city in 1589 and established the city of Hyderabad at the banks of the Musi river to overcome water shortages experienced at Golconda

The Purana Pul (old bridge) enabled quick travel between Golconda and Hyderabad.

There are various theories about the naming of the city. One popular theory suggests that the sultan had named the city "Bhaganagar" or "Bhāgyanagar" after Bhāgmathi, a local nautch (dancing) girl with whom he had fallen in love.

She converted to Islam and adopted the title Hyder Mahal. The city was renamed Hyderabad in her honour.

According to another source, the city was named after Haidar, the son of Quli Qutb Shah

Historians dismiss the theory of dancing girl as a "figment of the imagination" that lacks a "shred of evidence".

According to the Hyderabad-based historian Capt. Panduranga Reddy (retd) who studied the city's origin, "It is all fiction that Hyderabad was ever named Bhagyanagar or that it was named after the lover of Mohammad Quli Qutb Shah. Hyderabad was actually built much later around a small village called Chichulam."

The architectural historian Pushkar Sohoni theorised the foundation of several cities in the Deccan in this period. According to him, Hyderabad was founded in 1591 to decongest Golconda, which was growing rapidly.

In addition, the changing nature of economic organisation and warfare technology required mercantile and civilian settlements to be disaggregated from the fortified military and political centres

Andrew Petersen, a scholar of Islamic architecture, says the city was originally called Baghnagar (city of gardens).

He ordered the construction of the Charminar in 1591. The construction of the nearby Makkah Masjid was also started during his reign, but would not be completed for a hundred years.

Mir Momin Astarabadi, the prime minister in the Qutub Shahi period, developed the plan of the city of Hyderabad, including the location of the Charminar and Char Kaman.

Growth of the new city, Hyderabad

The early history of Hyderabad is inextricably intertwined and fortune rose during the 16th and early 17th centuries, Hyderabad became a center of a vibrant diamond trade.

All eight Qutb Shahi sultans were patrons of learning and were great builders. 

They contributed to the growth and development of Indo-Persian and Indo-Islamic literature and culture in Hyderabad. 

Some of the sultans were known as patrons of local Telugu culture as well.

During the Qutb Shahi reign Golconda became one of the leading markets in the world for diamonds, pearls, steel, arms, and also printed fabric.

In the 16th century, the city grew to accommodate the surplus population of Golconda and eventually became the capital of the Qutb Shahi rulers.

In the 16th century, the city grew to accommodate the surplus population of Golconda and eventually became the capital of the Qutb Shahi rulers.

Hyderabad became known for its baghs (gardens) and its comfortable weather.

By the mid-17th century, politics in the Deccan were ready for yet another tectonic shift. Mughal prince Aurangzeb spent most of his time in the Deccan fighting local Hindu and Muslim kingdoms to establish and enforce Mughal sovereignty.

After the death of Shah Jahan in 1666, Aurangzeb consolidated his power in Delhi as Emperor and returned to the south. 

He spent most of his imperial reign in military camps in the Deccan, in an almost desperate campaign to expand the empire beyond the greatest extent it had reached under Akbar. 

The biggest prize in his eyes was the rich city of Hyderabad, protected by the reportedly impregnable fort of Golconda.

Aurangzeb with his commanders Khwaja Abid Siddiqi (Qulich Khan) and the latter's son Ghazi-ud-Din Feroze Jung laid siege to Golconda in 1686

Golconda held fast under months of siege, and Aurangzeb had to retreat in frustration.

Aurangzeb returned in 1687 and laid siege for 9 months camping in the Fateh Maidan ("victory field", now the Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium).

Khwaja Abid Siddiqi died in these war and was buried at Kismatpur near Attapur, Hyderabad.

Local legend has it that the fortress held on, but the gates were opened at night by a saboteur Abdullah Khan Pani who was bribed by Aurangzeb. 

Hyderabad's independence was eclipsed.

On 21 September 1687, the Golkonda Sultanate came under the rule of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb after a year-long siege of the Golkonda fort.

The annexed city "Hyderabad" was renamed Darul Jihad (House of War), and the main territories of the Golconda Sultanate were made into the province Hyderabad Subah.

Hyderabad State, (its capital and largest city Hyderabad) under the Nizams of Hyderabad, was the largest princely state in India, with an area larger than England, Scotland and Wales combined.

It was considered the "senior-most" princely-state, and within the elaborate protocols of the Raj, its ruler the Nizam was accorded a 21-gun salute. 

 Development of modern facilities and industrialization in Hyderabad city started in the late 19th century.

The State had its own currency, mint, railways, and postal system. The Nizam amassed a lot of wealth, as a result of the diamond trade.

Mir Qamar-ud-din Khan, the first Nizam of Hyderabad Asaf Jah I

With the emaciation of the Mughal Empire after Aurangzeb's death in 1707, the Mughal-appointed governors of Hyderabad gained more autonomy from Delhi

 In 1714, the Mughal Emperor Farrukhsiyar appointed Mir Qamar-ud-din Siddiqi as the viceroy to the Deccan and gave him the title of Nizam-ul-Mulk (governor of the country).

 He was well suited for the position as he had fought alongside his father and grandfather who were commanders during the siege of Golconda.

n 1724, he defeated Mubariz Khan to establish control over Hyderabad. He received the title of Asaf Jah from Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah in the following year. 

Thus began the Asaf Jahi dynasty that would rule Hyderabad until a year after India's independence from Britain.

The death of Asaf Jah I in 1748 resulted in a period of political unrest as his sons, backed by opportunistic neighboring states and colonial foreign forces, contended for the throne. 

The accession of Asif Jah II, who reigned from 1762 to 1803, ended the instability. In 1768 he signed the Treaty of Machilipatnam, surrendering the coastal region to the East India Company in return for a fixed annual rent.

In 1769 Hyderabad city became the formal capital of the Nizams. In response to regular threats from Hyder Ali (Dalwai of Mysore), Baji Rao I (Peshwa of the Maratha Empire), and Basalath Jung (Asaf Jah II's elder brother, who was supported by the Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau), the Nizam signed a subsidiary alliance with the East India Company in 1798, allowing the British Indian Army to occupy Bolarum (modern Secunderabad) to protect the state's capital, for which the Nizams paid an annual maintenance to the British.

Throne of the Nizam of Hyderabad at Chowmahalla Palace

When the British and the French spread their hold over the country, successive Nizams won their friendship without bequeathing their power.

The Nizams allied themselves with each side at different times, playing a significant role in the Anglo-Mysore Wars. 

During the reign of the third Nizam, Sikandar Jah, the city of Secunderabad was founded to station French troops and subsequently, British troops.

The British stationed a Resident at Hyderabad and their own troops at Secunderabad, but the state continued to be ruled by the Nizam. 

Maintenance of British forces, which was part of subsidiary alliance with British, put heavy burden on Hyderabad state and bankrupted it in the early 19th century.

Asaf Jah V

Asaf Jah V's reign was marked by reforms by his Prime Minister Salar Jung I, included the establishment of a governmental central treasury in 1855.

He reformed the Hyderabad revenue and judicial systems, instituted a postal service and constructed the first rail and telegraph networks. 

The first higher educational institution of Hyderabad known as Dar-ul-Uloom was established during his reign.

As news of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 reached Hyderabad, Turrebaz Khan and Maulvi Allauddin led rebellions of about 5,000 people and attacked the British Residency.

However, this was no match for the superior British troops and the rebellion was quickly crushed.

Asaf Jah VI Mir Mahbub Ali Khan was the sixth Nizam of Hyderabad. 

He ruled the state from 1866 till his death in 1911

He inherited the throne at the age of three, and the state was ruled by his regents Salar Jung I and Shams-ul-Umra III

The Nizam assumed full rule at the age of eighteen

The Nizam's Guaranteed State Railway was established in 1879, a railway company fully owned by the Nizam.

 It was formed to connect Hyderabad with the rest of the British India, and was headquartered at Secunderabad Railway Station.

After independence, it was integrated into the Indian Railways.

The introduction of railways also marked the beginning of industry in Hyderabad, and four factories were built to the south and east of the Hussain Sagar lake.

The population of Hyderabad city reached 448,000 in 1901, making it the fourth most populous in British India. 

The surrounding Hyderabad State had a population of 11 million

The Great Musi Flood of 1908 ravaged the city during his reign, killing an estimated 15,000 people and affecting at least 200,000.

All the bridges over the River Musi were destroyed, except for the Purana Pul. 

 The Nizam threw open his palace Purani Haveli for the flood victims.

To my horror, I found that three leaks had started and were rapidly extending. The breach of this dam would precipitate an enormous volume of water into the still greater Hosain Sagar Lake, probably cause the dam to burst and thus complete the destruction of Hyderabad city, — Michael O'Dwyer, British Resident

The flood necessitated planned development of the city. The Nizam invited Sir M. Visvesvaraya to design the flood prevention system of modern Hyderabad.

The Nizam -VI died in 1911 at the age of 45.

The seventh and last Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan ascended the throne in 1911

He founded numerous institutions and public buildings in the city, including the Begumpet Airport, Hyderabad State Bank, Osmania University, Nizamia Observatory, Moazzam Jahi Market, Nizamia Hospital, Assembly Hall (formerly known as the Town Hall) State Central Library (formerly known as the Asafiya Library), Hyderabad High Court.[69] and the Osmania General Hospital. 

The Nizam also invited British architect Vincent Esch for designing some of these. 

The Nizam also owned an airline, called the Deccan Airways.

Two large reservoirs, namely the Osman Sagar and the Himayat Sagar were constructed a few kilometers west of Hyderabad to prevent another flood in the city, on the advice of Sir M. Visvesvaraya.

He was known for his immense wealth, and large jewel collection, composed of 173 jewels, including the Jacob Diamond.

He was proclaimed the richest man in the world in 1937, and appeared on the cover of Time magazine owing majorly to the Golconda mines, which were the primary source of his wealth.

Various industries emerged in pre-independence Hyderabad during the rule of Asaf Jah VII.

The major industries that were established in various parts of Hyderabad, and surrounding areas are:

Karkhana Zinda Tilismat - 1920

Singareni Collieries- 1921

Vazir Sultan Tobacco Company, Charminar cigarette factory- 1930

Azam Jahi Mills Warangal -1934

Nizam Sugar Factory - 1937

Allwyn Metal Works -1942

Praga Tools - 1943

Deccan Airways Limited -1945

Hyderabad Asbestos -1946

Sirsilk -1946