History of Lunar Race Yadava stock Jadeja Rajputs of Morvi State---
History of Lunar Race Yadava stock Jadeja Rajputs of Morbi State --
Morbi is situated on the west bank of the river Machhu, about thirty-five miles north of Rájkot and is the capital of the state of the same name. The chief is a Jádeja Rajput and claims to be of the senior branch of the entire Jádeja clan, including the houses of Kutch and Navánagar. He exercises jurisdiction of the second class. The talukah is divided into three maháls or revenue sub-divisions, viz . Morbi, Tankárs and Vavánia.
This is exclusive of Adhai which is situated in Kutch on the opposite shore of the Ran. Then are in all about 125 villages in the Morbi tálukah, and the annual revenue amounts to about seven lakhs of rupees (£70,000). Old Morbi, said to have been founded by Mor Jetliva, is situated on the eastern bank of the river, about one mile from the present town. It was called Mordvajpuri and afterwards Bhimmoer. The present town is said to derive its name from the Morbo hill where Sanghji Jethva defented a Vághela Rána and in commemoration of his conquest founded the present town on the opposite bank of the river to Mordvajpuri. Afterwards when Mordvajpuri becamo waste in the wars of the end of the fifteenth and beginning of the sixteenth centuries, Morbi gradually became populous, and most of the wealthy inhabitants removed their dwellings to the present city so as to have the river botween them and a foreign invader. During the rule of the Ahmadabad Sultáns Morbi was a jágir of Fateh Khán Baloch, but afterwards it fell under the Ghori jágirdárs of Junagad. After the conquest of Gujarát and the peninsula by the Moghals, Morbi was granted in jágir to the Ráo of Kutch as a reward for the surrender of the fugitive Sultán Muzafar. But it was afterwards resumed and during the reign of the Emperor Aurangzeb was a crown parganah. After the death of this Emperor early in the eighteenth century it fell into the hands of n cadet of Kutch called Rãoji. Ráoji is said to have usurped the chieftainship of Kutch from his elder brother Noghanji whom he compelled to resign the gádi and accept in leu of it the Abdása district in Vágad. Ravoji was however slain by his brethren, who then placed Pragji on the throne of Kutch, and compelled Ravoji's widow to fled to Morbi with her infant son Kanyoji .
Foundation of Morvi State--
Kutch line Rao Rayadhan II's (A.D.1662) grandson Kanyoji was placed by Rao Pragmalji in A.D.1697 at morvi and Kanyoji founded the Morvi State in 1697A.D.He died in A.D.1733.He has 8 sons . 1-Tejmalji d.s.p.A.D.1729 ,2-Alyaji A.D 1733-39 and 6 others.Alyaji has 3 sons namely Rawaji (A.D.1739-63),Jayaji and Kundhoji.Jayaji has 7 sons namely Punchanji (1763-1771 A.D.) , Waghji (1771-1783A.D ) and five others.Waghji had 4 sons , 1- Hamirji (d.s.p.before 1783 ), 2-Jayaji (A.D.1783-1828) ,3- Dewaji ,4-Meramanji .
Kányoji, when he attained years of discretion, crossed over to Kantari and subdued the Vagad country and before his death obtained by force or fraud the zamindári of Morbi. At his death he bestowed Morbi on his two sons Tejmálji and Aliáji. He granted his Vágad possessions to his other sons. Tejmálji died in A.D. 1729 before his father's death and accordingly Aliaji became the sole possessor of the Morbi chiefdom as well as of Adhoi and twenty-four villages subordinate to Adhoi and Kantária.
The other six sons of Kayájí (Kanyoji) received grás ns follows:
1. Bhimji received Gungan in Machhu Kántha and Náransari and other villages in Vágad.
2. Lákhoji received Nágrávás in Machu Kántha and Pátia and
other villages in Vágad.
3. Raisinghji received Kánjarda in Machhu Kantha and Kumbhária &c., in Vágad.
4. Morji received Málin, &c., in Machhu Kantha and Vándhin &c., in Vágad.
5. Ranmalji received Kumbhária in Machhu Kántha and Laliána, &c., in Vágad.
6. Rámsinghji received Jinghi in Vágad.
Kayoji, who died in A.D. 1734, had a feud with the chieftain of Halvad, and the bards have recorded the following verse regarding him, viz.:
The walls breached by Kaya
Have not been repaired by Halvad.
He was succeeded by his son Alyaji .
Aliyaji (A.D.1733-39)--
Aliyaji who chiefly resided at Adhoi in Vágad. He opened the port of Vavánin in the Gulf of Kutch. In A.D. 1720, when returning from a pilgrimage to Dwárka, he was treacherously murdered at Pardhari by the Grásia of that town whose name was Háloji but is generally known by the name of Kákábhái. He was succeeded by his son Ravoji. Ravoji on succeeding to the gádi attacked Pardhari and laid it waste in revenge of his father's murder, and claimed compensation from the Navánagar Darbár for this unprovoked outrage, and finally received seven villages as blood-money. Of these Navánagar has at different times retaken six and at the present day but the one village of Ghunáda remains in the possession of Morbi. Ravoji much enlarged and beautified Morbi and surrounded it by a wall. He was at feud with Malin and spent large sums in warfare with the chieftain of that state, but obtained no decided advantage. In his time, viz. in A.D. 1758, Kunvar Lakhpatji of Kutch on account of a difference with his father came to Morbi for three months and was hospitably entertained by Ravoji. On his death in 1764 he was succeeded by his son Pachánji.
Panchanji (punchanji 1763-1771)---
Pachánji, who was famous for his beauty, prosecuted the war with Málin and subsidized Junagad troops to assist him therein. But he was not more successful than his father, and died in 1772, and was succeeded by his son Vághji.
Vaghji (Waghji A.D.1771-1783 )--
Vághji in addition to the warfare with Málin had a feud with Kunvar Bápáji of Dhrángadra and subsidized Bábi Sher Zamián Khia of Bantva to fight on his behalf against this chieftain; nothing however was effected of importance. He next subsidized the army of Fatehising Ráo Gáekwär to fight against Malia , and after spending large sums this army laid waste the Malin town of Khakhreda .When in 1777 the army of Nawab Hamid Khán of Junagad entered Vágad, Adhoi alone was exempted fromed tribute.Vaghji died in A.D. 1785 and was succeeded by his son Hamirji. Hamirji followed his father's policy of subsidizing foreign troops to figh his battles, and on account of a feud with tho Jhálás because a merchant of Morbi had been plundered near Thán, he subsidized the Junagad army and marched against them and awarded compensation to his merchant from the plunder of the Wadhwas villages of Vastadi, Korda, and Samadhiala. He died in A.D. 1700 and was succeeded by his brother Jiaji.
Thakor Jayaji (Jiaji )---
Thakor Jiáji succeeded his brother in A.D. 1700 and like his predecessors ceased not to endeavour to reduce Mália. Early in his reign Jamádár Fateh Muhammad, the powerful minister of Kutch, crossed the Ran and laid siege to Navánngar. Jádeja Junoji ef Nágrávás surrounded his village with a wall and commenced plundering the surrounding villages, and actually levied contributions on one occasion from the bazár of Dhrol. Jiajii subsidized tha Peshwa's army and marched against him in 1795 and demolished the wall he had built. Junoji then fled into Vágad but the Thakor kept a gurrison at Nagrárás till 1808. In 1800 Mehta Bhánji Rámji came from Kutch with an army and seized on the port of Vavánia, but the Thakor retook it in 1801 and expelled the Kutch troops and placed a garrison of his own men therein. Then he subsidized the Junagad forces and made an expedition into Vágad which was so successful that the Cutchees and others in the Nawab's army were obliged to persuade that chieftain to withdraw his forces, as they feared he might subdue the entire country. The army returned vid Mália, and though they failed to take the place, the Malia chieftain Dosáji fell into their hands, and was brought a prisoner to Morbi. But the Miánás in revenge laid waste the Morbi territory and to such straits was Jiáji reduced that when Bábáji Apáji entered the provinco to collect the Gáekwar's tribute, Jiáji agreed to give him the village of Hadála if he would agree to conquer Málin. He agreed and marched against Mália, but failed to take the place, although he compelled Morbi to hand Hadála over to him, and his descendants enjoy that village to this day.
The Miánás, emboldened by the unsuccessful attempts to take their stronghold, made daily more daring incursiens into Morbi territory, and amply avenged the futile attempts made by Morbi to coerce them to submission. Finally Morbi, in despair of reducing them by any other means, implored Colonel Walker to march against them with the British forces. He did so, and soon levelled the fort to the ground and reduced the Miánás to submission. The Morbi Darbár built the fort of Naháni Barál with the stones of the Málin town defences, and the city gate was carried away to Morbi and built there into the inner gatewny of the Morbi fort.
In A.D. 1807 Jádeja Sheshmálji of Jinghi was in charge of Adhoi , He rebelled and took possession of the town, but his rebellion was speedily put down by the Morbi officials on that side of the Ran. Afterwards in 1816 the Navánagar Darbár contrived to dispossess the Khaváses of Jodia and Balambha , and these persons were entirely without protection. Thakor Jiaji gave them the villagae of Kanpur where they resided unmolested until they were reinstated in the Ambran district, and although the Jam at one time compelled the Khaváses to quit Ambran, they were reinstated through the influence and assistance of Thakor Jiaji. About this time the northern districts of Káthiáwár were much harassed by predatory incursions from Kutch and Vágad, and finally in 1810 the Britishi Government were obliged to conquer Bhuj and compel tho Ráo to give compensation to the Káthidwar chiefs whose territories had been ravaged. On this occasion Rs. 10,700 were awarded to Morbi as compensation, and the village of Ambardi which had been usurped by Jamádár Fateh Muhammad, was restored to the state. At the same time the tribute of all the Vágadi villages was fixed, excepting Adhoi which was considered as Gáekwadi territory, as were also the Bháyádi villages of Báláshar and Mánáli.
Thakor Jiáji died in A.D. 1829 after an eventful rule. He contrived to humble Málin through his alliance with the British, and by entering into the permanent settlement of 1807-8 secured himself from all reprisal . He was succeeded by his son Prathiraj.
Thakor Prathiraj (A.D.1828)---
Thakor Prathiraj passed an uneventfulreign; he was principally occupied in freeing his talukah from debt. He granted the villages of Sávdi, &c., to his brother Mokáji in kapal grás. Dying in 1846 he was succeeded by his son Ravoji.
Thakor Ravoji ---
Ravoji succeeded his father in 1846. In his time the management of the Adhoi parganah was placed under the Kutch Agency.This Thakor was an accomplished and able chief and was the first to establish courts of justice. He fostered trade and commerce and took considerable interest in agriculture and replenished his treasury.
Sir Waghji G.C.I.E.Of Morvi A.D.1870--
On his death in 1870, as his eldest son Vaghji was yet a minor, the British Government assumed the management of the estate, and appointed Ráo Bahadur Shambhuparsád Lakshmilal and Jhunjha Sakhidás joint administrators of the estate on behalf of the minor. This administration was carried on for nine yours, during which period the young chief was educated at the Rajkumar College at Rájkot and afterwards in 1877-78 he made a tour in India under the charge of Captain Humfrey. After his return he was associated for a year as Joint Administrator with Rao Bahadur Shambhuparsád, and on the 1st January 1879 he was placed in sole charge of the talukah. Morbi possesses a fine jail and there is a dispensary, school-house, and the usual public buildings. A inade rond connects Morbi with the port of Vavánia and the town. of Tankára. Two ports belong to this state, namely, Vavánia und Jinghi, but owing to certain rights of and disputes with Cutch at Vavánia, but little trade flows to this port.
Morbi is the premier of the second class states in the peninsula . It's area is 2 ,129 square Km having 11 gun salute status.There is a good dharmashala at Morbi.
References--
1-History of Gujarat by J.W.Watson .
2-History of Gujarat by Edalji Dosabhai.
3-The History of Sindh by K.R.Malkani.
4-Bombay Gazetteers, Kathiawar III.p ,554.
5-The Golden book of India ,a Genealogical and Biographical Dictionary of the ruling Princes , Chiefs by Roper Lethoridge.
6-Imperial Gazetteer of India ,v, 11.p78.
7-The Rajputs of Saurashtra by Virbhadra Singh.
8-Yaduvamsh prakash .,pp.,263-287.
9-History of Kathiyawar from Earliest Times .,p177, by Harold Wilberforce -Bell.
10-Bombay Gazetteer , 8,p-489-90, 565-66, p124-126.
11-Glimpses of Bhartiya History by Rajendra Singh Kushwaha.
12-A History of the Indian State forces by HH Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II of Jaipur.
13-Gujarat State Gazetteers :Rajkot.
Village-Larhota near Sasni
District-Hatharas ,Uttar Pradesh
Associate Prof in Agriculture
Shahid Captain Ripudaman Singh Govt.College ,Sawai madhopur 'Rajasthan ,322001.
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