Oudh State

Oudh State was a princely state in northern India ruled by the Nawabs of Awadh. The British East India Company annexed it in 1856, a year before the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

Awadh Subah: A Mughal province in northern India centered on Awadh. Oudh State emerged as Mughal authority over this province weakened.
Battle of Buxar: The 1764 battle in which the East India Company defeated the forces of Awadh, the Mughal emperor, and Mir Qasim. The defeat made Awadh vulnerable to Company-imposed terms.
Asaf-ud-Daula: The Nawab of Awadh from 1775 to 1797, associated with major building projects in Lucknow. His reign established Lucknow as the state’s political and cultural center.
Annexation of Oudh: The British East India Company’s takeover of Awadh in 1856, officially justified by alleged misgovernment. This act ended the state’s sovereignty and deposed its king.
Lucknow: A city in northern India that became the capital of Awadh and remains the capital of Uttar Pradesh. Its architecture and institutions preserve the most visible legacy of the state’s court.
Saadat Ali Khan I: The Persian-born founder of the Nawab dynasty of Awadh, appointed governor in 1722. His appointment began the hereditary rule that developed into Oudh State.
Subsidiary alliance: A system through which Indian rulers paid for Company troops and surrendered control over parts of their foreign policy. Company protection increasingly tied Awadh’s finances and diplomacy to British power.
Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar Shah: The ruler of Awadh who assumed the title of king in 1819 with British support. His coronation marked Oudh’s formal shift from nawabdom to kingship.
Indian Rebellion of 1857: A widespread uprising against East India Company rule that began in northern India in 1857. Annexation and the displacement of Awadh’s elites helped make the region a major center of rebellion.
Bara Imambara: An eighteenth-century complex in Lucknow commissioned by Asaf-ud-Daula, including a vast vaulted hall. The monument embodies the scale of public building under Awadh’s rulers.

Linked from 1 page

History of Uttar PradeshRelated: Its annexation and administration shaped the colonial province that preceded Uttar Pradesh.