Fascinating History. Interesting Medieval Incidents from Indian and Middle Eastern past.

Following the horrific murder of Floyd George at the hands of police in Minneapolis US, a mini revolution is taking place across the globe. Every past military and civil hero is being re-evaluated in light of their role or support for slavery and racial injustice. Statues of Thomas Jefferson, one of the leading fathers of US independence and democracy, and Mahatma Gandhi, the prophet of non-violence and peaceful resistance, are being vandalized and toppled for their racial past. Story books, national medals, and even religious concepts are being badlisted (an alternate, politically correct word being offered here for ‘blacklisted’). In Rawalpindi-Islamabad, on the western side of GT Road, as it crosses the Margalla Pass close to Taxila, there stands a 40-feet tall obelisk, called Nicholson's memorial. It was erected in 1868 to honour Brigadier General John Nicholson of the British East India Company, one of the most demonical beasts produced by the English race. While the British

Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, US has many acclaimed laurels to its credit. This Ivy League university is amongst the three oldest institutions of higher learning in US and one of the only nine colleges chartered before the American revolution. It awarded the first PhD degree on American soil in 1861. It is a reputed to be a liberal educational institution, located in one of the original thirteen colonies that gave the US its national status and its constitution. Yale has continuously been rated as the 3rd ranking university in US for the last 15 years, trailing behind Princeton and Harvard only. Its library is the third largest university library in the US holding 15 million volumes. Its endowment is valued at $27.2 billion, the second largest of U.S. educational institutions. 60 Noble laureates, 5 Fields medallists for excellence in mathematics and 3 Turing awardees for distinction in computer sciences have been associated with it. Its alumni include 5 US presidents, 19

On the eve of 71st anniversary of our independence, let's pay homage to a forgotten hero of First war of Independence in 1857. This leader of that great crisis is Azimullah Khan Yusufzai. He is also sometimes called 'Krantidoot' - Hindi for 'ambassador of revolution'. Great struggles elevate ordinary souls to heroic deeds. The War of Independence of 1857 was a clash of epic proportions. First the sepoys and then other Indians in the northern belt, from Bengal in the east through Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh to Punjab, rose up in revolt against British occupation. The revolt did not occur throughout the sub-continent and remained restricted in varying degree to certain areas and sections of society. Some influential local rulers were prudent or constrained to side with the British. These included such honourable names as Hayat of Wah, Nizam of Hyderabad, Abbasi of Bahawalpur, Nawab of Bhopal, Maharaja of Patiala and the Rajputs of Rajputana states. Of the three

Two-hundred years long anti-colonial struggle produced many brave noble souls. They stood against the foreign occupiers at the peril of losing their wealth, comfort and even life. It is our obligation to recall the sacrifices and tribulations of those who willingly suffered in this long endeavour for freedom. They include names of some very noble ladies too. One of these honourable freedom fighters is Begum Hazrat Mahal of Oudh, who stood up against the British during the 1st War of Independence in1857-58, commanded her troops in battles, refused to surrender and, spurring offers of clemency, eluded capture by the pursuing British forces to escape to Nepal, and lived a life of hardship in exile in Kathmandu. She now lies buried there in a non-descript grave . Hazrat Mahal was the one of major leaders who didn't surrender to the British, and she maintained her opposition through twenty years of exile in Nepal until her death in 1879. Before narrating the story of Hazrat Mahal, a b

Many empires at their zenith have ravaged other nations in anger, revenge or pride but there is only one instance in history where a great power crippled another great nation through forcible sale of drugs. In the heydays of their global empire, Britain enforced systematic export of opium on the people of China employing her dominating navy, extensive administrative skills and immense imperial reach. When the Chinese promulgated laws and took punitive actions to restrict this trade, Britain conducted two wars against them, called Opium Wars, forcing them to legalize import of the drug. I will narrate here specifics of this trade that caused tragic consequences to people who were forced to accept its import. The profits from the trade enriched the government of UK, colonial officials, shareholders of British East India Company (BEIC) and Indian traders who facilitated the growth, transportation and sale of the drug. In the 18th century, the BEIC traded British woolens and Indian c