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Poona History, India

The capital of the legendary Indian ruler Shibaji

The city of Pune was established by the great Marathi patriot Shivaji. The British called the city the Queen of Decan when they ruled India.

The name of the city was probably derived from the temple of Asura which is also known as the shrine of Puneyswar. The Hindu monarch harried the powerful Mughal emperor from this hilly terrain time and again. The bold escapades of Shivaji in the guerilla warfare against the mighty Mughals and his victories in most of them are recorded in letters of gold in Indian history.

The fall of the Maratha Empire

India witnessed the fall of Pune as the capital of the vast Maratha territory when Ahmed Sha Durani defeated Peshoa Bajirao at Panipath near Delhi in 1761. Although the lost glory was saved by Nana Saheb Peshoa at the end of the eighteenth century, it was not long lived.

The famed Nijam of Hyderabad overran a large part of Maharastra and stayed put for a short period but with the defeat of the then ruling Peshoa at Koregaon by the British in 1818, the city of the hills was occupied by the British and remained in their hands for good.

The summer capital of the British

Pune is located in a not so large plain surrounded by hills in the west of India. The pleasant weather earned the city the honor of being the administrative headquarter during the months of summer by the British who also set up a large army cantonment here. All this happened around 1820 and the city grew to be enlarged and decorated since then.

The famous sons of the soil

Pune was witness to the patriotic activities of some of the greatest sons of India such as Lokmanya Tilak, Ranade, Gokhle and Professor Karve who contributed a lot to the city’s present fame and prosperity.

A picturesque city

Pune nestles in a plateau at an altitude of 559m in the Sahyadri hills in India with the Mula River in the north and the Mutha trench to its west. History says it is about 2000 years old because of its strategic location en route to the ports of the Arabian Sea.

A great number of tourists come here to watch the religious festivals of Ganesha chaturthi and the palanquin parade.