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Hyderabad

Indian Princely State (21 guns)

by Blas Delgado Ortiz

Source: Ziggiotto (1998).

See also:

Some facts

21 guns
1931 area 82,698 square miles
1931 population 14,436,000

Ed Haynes, 3 April 1996

Hyderabad, formerly often called Nizam's Dominions. A former Indian states, its territory now divided among the states Andhra Pradesh, Mysore, and Maharashtra, South-central India; bounded on N and NE by Berar, on S and SE by Tamil Nadu, and on W by Maharashtra; Mountainous in some parts, has many fertile plains; chief rivers Godavari, Wardha, Penganga, Krishna, and Tungabhadra.

History: In ancient kingdom of Golconda; on overthrow of Golconda by Aurangzeb 1687, became part of Mogul Empire; ruled since 1713 by nizams, beginning with Asaf Jah, governor of the Deccan, who founded independent kingdom in 1724; after 1748 scene of rivalry over succession in which British and French supported different candidates; ceded to British Northern Circars 1766 and, in 1853, the 'Assigned Districts' which later became Berar. Refused to become part of India 1947 but yielded under threat of force 1948; reorganized and divided among Andhra Pradesh, Mysore, and Maharashtra 1956.
Jarig Bakker, 11 November 1998

It is a bit of misconception to characterise 1947 as a bid for independence. Nor did Hyderabad "yield under the threat of force": it was a war, albeit brief. 1947 was a mixed bag on the subcontinent: British India gained its independence but the princely states lost theirs.