HISTORY OF SINDH

HISTORY OF SINDH

Alexander came this way after 10 months of voyaging down the rivers. Although he decided to take the overland route back to Babylon, along the Makran Coast, he sent some of his men by ship, passing Manora and anchoring in Karachi Harbour on the way. The fleet commander Nearchus described the harbour as "large, circular, deep and sheltered from the waves, and the entrance into it was narrow."

Others came Alexander's way and settled on the Indus, like the two Scythian tribes, the Jats and the Meds who invaded from the north. The Jats still retain their name, identity and tribes, in spite of their being of greatly mixed blood. The Meds have disappeared excepting the Mohana fishing folk of Sind who still call themselves Meds.

The Indus Valley of Sind has played host to many dynasties. Buddhism and Brahminism once flourished. Islam arrived when Sind was brought under the rule of Ommayid Caliphate in A.D. 711 by Muhammad Bin Qasim and it remained on the borders of the Caliphate under the Abbasids. The effect of Arab rule is considered to have been beneficial in spreading education and improving agriculture and commerce. Arab domination of the area was thrown off by the Somra Dynasty (1058-1249) who were indigenous, Sindi Muslims. There are many tales about the Somra rulers, and there are known to have been 21 of them during a 300-year period. In the 14th century, they were replaced by the Samma Rulers in Lower Sind (1351-1517). The Sammas were fiercely independant and rebelled against Delhi Sultanate. They reached the height of their power during the reign of Nizamuddin, the Jam Nindo (1461-1509) who is still recalled as a hero, and his rule as a golden age. The Capital of all the early dynasties was the city of Thatta.

Persian replaced Arabic as the official language and as it did so, the flood-gates opened to Sufi mysticism and poetry of a very high order was produced. It was during the Samma rule that Humayun came to Sind. The Sammas were replaced by the Arghuns (1519-54) and Turkhans (1554-1625), both dynasties from the North. In 1555 a Portuguese fleet of 28 ships arrived at Thatta, sacked the city and carried off much wealth. In 1592 the Turkhan ruler was defeated and Sind was annexed by the Emperor Akbar. The Moghuls added their distinctive stamp to the area and many beautiful mosques and monuments remain. 

In 1739, the Moghul Empire effectively collapsed when Nadir Shah plundered Delhi. Thereafter, it only waited for the death of Nadir Shah in 1747 for new Sindi dynasties to rise - the Kalhoras with their capital at Khudabad and later Hyderabad, and finally the Talpur Mirs. Talpur Mirs from Baluchistan had been employed by Kalhoras in their army. Wonderfully decorated mosques and mausoleums, forts and many other structures in Sind owe their existence to these local dynasties.

At the end of the 18th century, Sind had a strong neighbour in the Panjab, when that area came under the control of Ranjit Singh. He had ambitions to expand his empire but respected the Mirs and moved in other directions. When the Afghan war broke out in 1838, the British were concerned about Sind and in spite of opposition, took it under their protection in 1839 (the year Ranjit Singh died). The Mirs of Sind resented the high handed British action in totally disregarding their wishes and resorted to arms. But after initial success, they were beaten on the battlefield at Miani and Sind was annexed by Sir Charles Napier in February 1843. Napier commented: 'The brave Baluchis, first discharging their matchlocks and pistols, dashed over the bank with desperate resolution; but down went these bold and skillful swordsmen under the superior power of the musket and bayonet." It was a battle between medieval tribal feudalism and the burgeoning British industrialised power. 

The British set about organising the area with their customary gusto - barrages and irrigation canals were commenced, in order to control the treacherous flooding river and to irrigate the desert, to provide more farmland. And of course, the roads, and railways...and all that went with it. Under the British, Sind was attached to Bombay Presidency until 1937 when it was made an autonomous province. In 1947, many of the educated elite and middle class of Sind, being Hindus and Sikhs, left the area. A large number of Muslim immigrants arrived from India.