A Brief History of India

India: A Brief History

First Published: ADawnJournal.com March 10, 2010

One of the oldest civilizations in the world is the civilization of India. Like China, it is one of the founding civilizations in human history, and it has had a profound impact on our lives for thousands of years. While it is not easy to sum up the history of a country going back thousands of years, this article will go through a brief history of this amazing land.

Pre-History of India

The first settlements in India began to appear about 9,000 years ago, and throughout the early part of the history of the country, it has been a mysterious land, but also a very spiritual one. Throughout pre-history, the country has been a strong civilization as well, even being the only civilization to beat back both the Mongols and Alexander the Great during its history.

It was during the third century BC that the country united under Asoka the Great, during a time that was called India’s Golden Age. It was during this time that India made great advances in mathematics, art, language, astronomy and religion. In fact, both Hinduism and Buddhism came from India around this time.

Europe Arrives

The country was able to keep itself an independent nation for a long period of time, but by the 16th century, the countries of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France and Portugal began to establish themselves around India, greatly disrupting the country. By 1856, the entire country became part of the British East India Company, essentially making it part of the British Empire. From this point on, for almost 100 years, the country would be under the direct rule of the British Empire. The country tried to fight against Britain in India’s First War of Independence, but they were not successful.

Independence

The citizens of India would continually try and push Britain out of their land for the first part of the 20th century. However, it was not until the legendary figure of Mahatma Gandhi came along and led millions of India towards independence through non-violent civil disobedience. Through this action, India gained its independence on August 15, 1947, along with the region of Pakistan. In 1950, the country became a republic and created its own constitution.

The Growing Giant

While India gained its independence, it still had problems with its neighbours. It got into a dispute with China in 1962 that resulted in the Sino-India War, and the country has gone to war with Pakistan in 1947, 1965, 1971 and 1999. However, the country is also a member of the United Nations and it is also one of the few nuclear nations in the world. In addition, the country has transformed itself through economic reforms and is now becoming a superpower along with China. Currently, the country has one of the fastest growing economies on Earth and it is expected that India will be one of the major countries of the 21st century, along the lines of how Russia and the United States dominated the 20th century.

One thing is clear, this country, which has been around in one form or another for thousands of years, shows no signs of slowing down, or going away.

Baby Taj Mahal or Itimad ud Daulah Tomb | Agra, India | India Travel Blog

Baby Taj Tour Agra, India

Baby Taj (also known as Jewel Box) or The Tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah is the tomb of Mizra Ghiyas Beg. Mizra Ghiyas Beg was the chief minister of Emperor Jehangir, father of Jehangir’s wife Nur Jahan, and grandfather of Mumtaz Mahal (Emperor Shah Jahan’s wife and the inspiration for the Taj Mahal).

Nur Jahan built the Baby Taj between 1622 – 1628. The designs of the Taj Mahal were inspired by the Baby Taj, but taken to the next level on a much larger scale. You can still easily see the resemblances of the big Taj Mahal in the Baby Taj.

Some striking similarities between the Baby Taj and the Taj Mahal:

- Both have 4 towers

- Both are made of marble

- Both are perfectly symmetrical

- Various other design aspects

In this episode, I will take you to the Baby Taj and give you a tour. This is one of my India travel videos. You can watch my full India trip here:

India Travel Vlog | Destination New Delhi & Agra

Jama Masjid Tour, New Delhi | India Travel Blog

Historic Jama Masjid in New Delhi

The largest mosque in India, the Jama Masjid was built by the Mogul Emperor Shah Jahan between 1644 and 1656. Shah Jahan is the same Emperor who also built the Taj Mahal and the Red Fort.

It took more than 5000 workers to build the Jama Masjid, which is made of red sandstone and marble. The mosque is 80m in length and 27m in width, has three gates and four towers and two 40-meter-high minarets.

It is simply an awesome display of Mogul architectural splendour. With its magnificent façade, the Jama Masjid can hold 25,000 people at a time.

My 2017 Asia Business Class Trip

India – Bangladesh Trip

After travelling Asia for almost 3 weeks, I am finally home for Christmas and New Year. This trip was different from any other trips I have done in the past. In the past, I would travel to do leisure activities and sightseeing, but it’s no longer the reason I travel.

For the last couple of years, I have been vigorously active on my YouTube channel and travel videos are a big chunk of my content. This is the first time I have travelled to create more video content and with all my camera gear. I talk about credit cards and rewards points on my channel as well. Also, this trip was a full business-class trip that was funded by various rewards points and airline miles.

The strategies and tips I provide on my YouTube channel work and my trip was a testimony to that. As I will be posting various travel videos, including business class flight reviews, you will have insights on exotic tropical countries like India and Bangladesh and various business class flights and lounges.

Because I am publishing videos on YouTube, I will not be publishing detailed travel articles on Ahmed Dawn Dot Com.

You can visualize the full trip, day by day, on my YouTube and Instagram. Click on the link provided. As we are moving into another year, there will be more articles and video content on various topics providing value and insights. I hope 2018 brings everyone new perspectives and lots of success.

Why So Many Complaints about Indian Visa and BLS?

My Indian Visa Experienc

My Indian Tourist Visa Experience

Last week, I wrote about how to obtain an Indian visa from Canada. Today, I will talk about my overall experience going through the visa procedure.

Before starting to apply, I was researching the rules and requirements online for Canadians getting an Indian visa. I noticed enormous amounts of negative reviews and ratings on the Indian Consulate and BLS International, the 3rd party outsourcer that looks after Indian visa processing. This made me very nervous and I was almost certain that these guys would put me through lots of headaches and hassle issuing me an Indian tourist visa.

So the day I reached the BLS Toronto location, I didn’t know what to expect. I was ready to accept a lengthy wait time both at the BLS office and, after the submission, waiting for the visa to arrive. To my surprise, no such things happened. At the BLS centre, I was done with everything within one to two hours and the staff was friendly and accommodating. I didn’t find anything to complain about or see anyone else going through any hassle or difficulty.

Another big shock was waiting for me after two days when I received my passport with my Indian visa via FedEx. Yes, I got it in just two business days when I was told by many people it could take weeks or more than a month.

And for those days I was waiting for the visa, I was updated by BLS via texts and emails on the status of my application, such as, my visa app was received at the consulate, my passport was released by the consulate, my passport was dispatched to FedEx, and so on.

Before writing this article, I thought it going to be another negative review. However, throughout the whole process, I found nothing to complain about and would like to give these guys (BLS and Indian Consulate) the credit they deserve for a job well done. I don’t know why others had so many problems and I understand that everyone’s experience is different. But mine was fantastic and I thank you for everyone’s hard work and friendly service that I received at the BLS and Indian Consulate.