History of Ambala
Ambala, a city in Ambala district in the state of Haryana in India, is located on the border of two states, Punjab and Haryana. Ambala has been divided into two parts, Ambala city and Ambala cantonment. And the distance between them is approximately around 3 km. Ambala district due to its geographical location, plays a significant role in the field of tourism. Tourists traveling to Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir will have to pass through this city.
Historians have many views about the origin of the name Ambala. Some of them are under the impression that the city got its name through the founder, Amb Rajput in 14th century while others believe that it was named after goddess Amba whose temple can be still found in the city. Some of them also believe that the city was originally known as Ambwala which meant city of mangoes.
Ambala is one of the historical cities of Haryana. During ancient times, when the British were ruling the city, A.C.Cunningham and C.Rodgers examined the city and after a while, B.B.Lal and few others started to do it as well. The residents were the people of primitive age using stone tools belonging to earlier Stone Age. There are evidences like grey ware pottery, which proves that Aryans had resided in Ambala at some point in time. This region was also a part of the kingdom of Pandava and their descendants.
In the history of Ambala city, it can be found that, Ambala district was associated with Mauryan empire as well as the Kushana empire. The region had played a vital part in all the royal empires of India. The district was also under the influence of Buddhism which is evident in some religious institutions located here. Yaso Verman of Kanuaj and Laladitya were ambitious about ruling the city. The Charuhaus brought Ambala region under their control after the invasion of Mohammad Ghaznavi. Eventually, Muslims took over the district after defeating Prithviraj Chauhan during the second battle of Terrain in the year 1192.
As per the history of Ambala city, the district gained its significance between 9th to 12th centuries as a center for pilgrimage. As far as the history of Ambala cantt goes, the village of Ambala was formed into a British cantonment during the British rule. In the year 1847, Ambala was formed into a district.
Thus the various evidences show the existence of the city since the ancient Stone Age period. The district has undergone turmoil in the hands of foreigners who tried to take over this region. Hence it has been said that, the people of Ambala city have been quite active politically from the very beginning. Ambala is truly a historic city of Haryana and one should visit this city in a lifetime.
Tags: history of Ambala cantt, history of Ambala city
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