Simraungadh, (also referred to as Simramapura, Simraongarh or Simroungarh) () was a fortified city and the main capital of the Karnats of Mithila, founded by its first ruler, Nanyadeva in 1097. At the present time, the excavations show that the city is located on the India-Nepal border. There is also a municipality by the same name in Nepal. The archaeological site is currently split between Bara district in Nepal in the north and East Champaran in Bihar, India in the south, both falling within the Mithila region. The site of the ruins of the Simraungadh fort was the capital of the independent mediaeval period Kingdom of Mithila or Tirhut during the Karnat Dynasty.

Etymology According to archeologists, the name of Simraungadh is derived from the two Indic terms Simar and Gadh. In the early period, plenty of Simal or cotton trees were found in this area. Due to having plenty of Simal or simar trees, it was known as Simar Ban. The term Gadh signifies to the fort of the Karnat Dynasty.

History

Harisingh Dev (r. 1295 to 1324 CE), the sixth descendant of Nanyadeva, ruled the Tirhut Kingdom. At the same time, the Tughlaq dynasty came to power and ruled the Delhi sultanate and the whole of Northern India, from 1320 to 1413 CE. In 1324 CE, the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty and Delhi Sultan, Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq turned his attention towards Bengal. The Tughlaq army invaded Bengal and on his way back to Delhi, The sultan heard about the Simraungarh which was flourishing inside the jungle. The last king of the Karnata dynasty, Harisingh Dev didn't show his strength and left the fort as he heard the news of approaching army of the Tughlaq Sultan towards the Simraungarh. The Sultan and his troop stayed there for 3 days and cleared the dense forest. Finally on day 3, the army attacked and entered the huge fort whose walls was tall and surrounded by 7 big ditches.

The remains are still scattered all over the Simroungarh region. King Harisingh Deva fled northwards into then-Nepal. The son of Harisingh Dev, Jagatsingh Dev, married Nayak Devi, the widowed princess of Bhaktapur.

Medieval city plan and fortification

The medieval city of Simraungadh was enclosed within an impressive system of earthen ramparts and infilled ditches. The fortification of the medieval city has a rectangular shape and ground plan. The fortifications of Simraungadh are called Baahi locally and remembered as a Labyrinth. The fort is spread in 6 Kos and the main enclosure is about 7.5 km north–south and 4.5 km east–west. The eastern and western sides of the fort were built over two natural embankments. The western side of the fort was dry in comparison to the eastern side. The Labyrinth and the powerful defence system of the city were well planned to protect from the river floods, and enemies and regulate agriculture from controlled flow of water from the ditches showing the ability of the Kingdom.

During the reign of Rama Singh Deva (r. 1227 - 1285 CE) over Simraungadh, the Tibetan monk Dharmasvamin visited the fortified city in 1236 AD on his way back to Nepal and Tibet from Nalanda. He made the following remarks regarding the palace and fortification system of Pa-ta (Simraungadh),

After the fall and decline of the Karnat dynasty from Simraungadh, the region was either controlled by Oiniwar rulers or Makwanpur rulers until the Unification of Nepal in 1768 AD. During the period, an Italian Missionary traveller Cassiano Beligatti, with seven other missionaries reached this place on their way to Kathmandu Valley from Patna on 29 February 1740. He describes his journey on his travelling manuscript about this place is as follows, The Simraon stone inscription of Nanyadeva found at Simraungadh records the construction of some buildings being made by him.

Monuments The city of Simraungadh holds several monuments, archaeological remains and historical palaces related to the Karnat Dynasty in the Mithila or Tirhut Kingdom. Some of the monuments are Kankali Ishra Mata Shrine, Ishra Pond, Samadhi of Mansha Baba, Ranibas and Ram-Janaki Mandir, etc. From these historical sites many statues and other artefacts are extracted frequently in the region. Several statues and artefacts from these sites are being stolen.

Ranibas was the residence of the queen in the kingdom. It was built by a Karnat King Shiva Singh for his daughter Queen Isri Devi. In the early period, there were 208 wells in the campus of the Ranibas. But later most of the wells were either buried or dried up. Presently, only few of them are survived. In 1850, the Nepalese Army General Jit Jung Rana, built a temple called Ram-Janaki Mandir at the campus, in the memory of his father.

Similarly, the Samadhi of Mansha Baba is 700 years old domed building. It is a tomb of a revered saint Mansha Baba.

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References