Uttar Pradesh: History and Culture

1. Ancient and Medieval Uttar Pradesh

The land of Uttar Pradesh has been at the centre of Indian history for over 2,500 years. Many mahajanapadas, the Buddha's major sites, Harsha's capital Kannauj, and the great Mughal cities of Agra and Fatehpur Sikri all lie in today's UP. This lesson covers the key places and rulers.

Mahajanapadas in present-day UP (6th century BCE)

• Kashi: capital Varanasi. It was later absorbed by Kosala and then by Magadha.
• Kosala: capital Shravasti; Ayodhya (Saketa) was also an important city. King Prasenajit was a contemporary of the Buddha.
• Vatsa: capital Kaushambi, near today's Prayagraj. King Udayana is famous in stories.
• Panchala: two parts, with capitals at Ahichchhatra (north) and Kampilya (south).
• Shurasena had its capital at Mathura. The Malla republic had centres at Kushinagar and Pava.

Buddhist and Jain sites

• Sarnath, near Varanasi: the Buddha gave his first sermon here (Dharmachakra Pravartana). Ashoka's Lion Capital from Sarnath is India's national emblem.
• Kushinagar: the Buddha attained Mahaparinirvana (passed away) here. It has an international airport opened in 2021.
• Shravasti: the Buddha spent many rainy seasons here at the Jetavana monastery.
• Kaushambi and Sankisa (Farrukhabad district) are also linked with the Buddha.
• Of the four main Buddhist holy places, two (Sarnath and Kushinagar) are in UP; the other two, Lumbini and Bodh Gaya, are in Nepal and Bihar.
• Ayodhya is also important in Jain tradition as the birthplace of several Tirthankaras.

Kannauj, the Sultanate and Jaunpur

• Harshavardhana (606 to 647 CE) moved his capital from Thanesar to Kannauj. The Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang) visited his court.
• Harsha held a great assembly at Kannauj and a grand gift-giving assembly at Prayag every five years.
• After Harsha, the Gurjara-Pratiharas, Palas and Rashtrakutas fought for control of Kannauj. This is called the Tripartite Struggle.
• In 1194, Muhammad Ghori defeated the Gahadavala king Jaichand at the Battle of Chandawar, near the Yamuna.
• Jaunpur was founded by Firoz Shah Tughlaq. Malik Sarwar set up the independent Sharqi dynasty there in 1394. The Atala Masjid (1408) is its famous mosque.
• Jaunpur was called the 'Shiraz-e-Hind' for its learning and buildings.

Mughals and the Nawabs of Awadh

• Sikandar Lodi founded Agra in the early 1500s and made it his capital. The Mughals later ruled from Agra for long periods.
• Akbar built Fatehpur Sikri, near Agra, from 1571. Its Buland Darwaza marks his victory in Gujarat. Fatehpur Sikri is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1986).
• Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal in Agra in memory of Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj Mahal and Agra Fort became UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1983.
• Saadat Khan Burhan-ul-Mulk founded the Awadh Nawab dynasty in 1722. Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula moved the capital from Faizabad to Lucknow in 1775 and built the Bara Imambara.
• The British annexed Awadh in 1856, removing Nawab Wajid Ali Shah. This was one of the causes of anger in 1857.

💡 Link each mahajanapada to its capital and today's district: Kashi-Varanasi, Kosala-Shravasti, Vatsa-Kaushambi. Questions often ask the pair.

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.

2. 1857, the Freedom Movement and the Making of Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh was a major centre of the Revolt of 1857 and of the later freedom movement. It also has a long story of name and border changes, from the North-Western Provinces to the United Provinces and finally Uttar Pradesh. This lesson covers the key people, places and dates.

The Revolt of 1857 in UP

• The revolt began at Meerut on 10 May 1857, when sepoys rebelled and marched to Delhi.
• Lucknow: Begum Hazrat Mahal led the revolt and declared her young son Birjis Qadr the ruler. The British Residency in Lucknow was besieged for months.
• Kanpur: Nana Sahib, the adopted son of the last Peshwa, led the revolt, helped by Tatya Tope and Azimullah Khan.
• Jhansi: Rani Lakshmibai fought the British. She died fighting near Gwalior in June 1858.
• Bareilly: Khan Bahadur Khan. Faizabad: Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah. Mangal Pandey, the hero of the Barrackpore incident, was from Ballia district.

Freedom movement in UP

• Congress sessions in UP included Allahabad (1888 and 1892) and Lucknow (1916), where the Lucknow Pact between the Congress and the Muslim League was signed.
• Chauri Chaura (Gorakhpur district), 4 February 1922: a crowd set fire to a police station and more than 20 policemen died. Gandhi then called off the Non-Cooperation Movement.
• Kakori, near Lucknow, 9 August 1925: revolutionaries of the Hindustan Republican Association took government money from a train. Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan, Rajendra Lahiri and Roshan Singh were later hanged.
• Chandra Shekhar Azad died fighting the police at Alfred Park, Allahabad, on 27 February 1931. The park is now named after him.
• Anand Bhawan in Prayagraj was the Nehru family home. The older family house, Swaraj Bhawan, was given to the Congress by Motilal Nehru.
• During the Quit India Movement in 1942, Ballia briefly set up its own government under Chittu Pandey.

From United Provinces to Uttar Pradesh

• The North-Western Provinces were formed in 1836. Awadh (Oudh) was joined with them in 1877.
• In 1902 the area was named the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. In 1937 it became simply the United Provinces.
• The name Uttar Pradesh was adopted on 24 January 1950. UP Diwas (UP Day) is celebrated on 24 January.
• Sarojini Naidu became Governor of the United Provinces in 1947, the first woman governor in India. Govind Ballabh Pant was the first Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.
• Sucheta Kripalani became UP Chief Minister in 1963, the first woman Chief Minister of any Indian state.
• On 9 November 2000 the hill districts were separated to form Uttaranchal, now called Uttarakhand.

💡 Make a single timeline from 1836 to 2000: NWP 1836, Awadh joined 1877, United Provinces 1902/1937, UP 1950, Uttarakhand 2000. Many questions test only these dates.

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.

3. UP Culture: Arts, Festivals, Kumbh, Crafts and GI Tags

Uttar Pradesh has a rich living culture. It gave India the Lucknow style of Kathak, the Ramlila tradition, the Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj and famous crafts like the Banarasi saree and Lucknow chikankari. This lesson covers the facts exams ask most often.

Music, dance and theatre

• Kathak is the classical dance of UP. The Lucknow gharana grew under the Awadh court, especially Nawab Wajid Ali Shah. Pandit Birju Maharaj belonged to this gharana.
• Kathak also has a Banaras (Varanasi) gharana. Varanasi is known for Hindustani music and is a UNESCO Creative City of Music (2015).
• Thumri, a light classical vocal form, grew in Lucknow and Banaras.
• Folk theatre: Nautanki is a popular folk drama form of UP. Raslila is performed in the Braj region (Mathura and Vrindavan).
• Ramlila, the stage telling of the Ramayana, is on UNESCO's list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (2008). The Ramnagar Ramlila of Varanasi is famous.
• Charkula is a folk dance of Braj in which women balance a tall wheel of lamps on the head.

Festivals and the Kumbh

• Lathmar Holi is played at Barsana and Nandgaon in the Braj region.
• Dev Deepawali is celebrated on the ghats of Varanasi on Kartik Purnima. Ayodhya holds a large Deepotsav at Diwali.
• The Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj is held at the Sangam of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati. A Magh Mela is held there every year.
• The Kumbh Mela was added to UNESCO's list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017.
• Maha Kumbh 2025 was held at Prayagraj from 13 January to 26 February 2025. The UP government said over 66 crore people took a holy dip.
• The Kumbh rotates among four places: Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik.

Crafts, ODOP and GI tags

• One District One Product (ODOP) was launched by the UP government on 24 January 2018 (UP Diwas). Each district promotes one special product.
• Examples: Varanasi silk saree, Lucknow chikankari, Moradabad metal craft, Firozabad glassware, Kannauj perfume (itr), Bhadohi carpets, Meerut sports goods, Aligarh locks.
• A Geographical Indication (GI) tag shows that a product comes from a particular place and has qualities linked to it.
• UP has one of the largest numbers of GI tags among Indian states. Examples: Banarasi saree and brocade, Lucknow chikankari, Malihabadi Dussehri mango, Kalanamak rice, Firozabad glass and Kannauj perfume.
• Lucknow was named a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy in October 2025 for its Awadhi food culture.

💡 Learn ODOP products as district-product pairs, for example Firozabad-glass, Moradabad-brass and metal, Bhadohi-carpet. One question on this is very common.

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.