Prehistory and legendary founding

According to tradition, Ghazipur was founded in 1330, but the place is probably older. The local tradition that the city was once called "Gadhipura" after a legendary king named Gadhi is probably spurious, but old building fragments found along the riverbank point to the existence of a settlement here, and a mound may represent the site of an old fort.^{[13]: 158, 196}

The legend behind Ghazipur's foundation in 1330 is that Raja Mandhata, a descendant of the Chauhan Maharaj Prithviraj Chauhan III, had founded a fort at nearby Kathot and ruled a small kingdom from there. His nephew, who was the heir to the throne, abducted a local Muslim young woman, and her mother pleaded for help to the Muslim sultan of Delhi. As a result, 40 ghazis led by one Sayyid Masud set out to attack Kathot. They took the place by surprise and ended up killing Raja Mandhata. The nephew mustered an army and fought two battles against the ghazis, but was defeated in both. The first battle took place on the bank of the Besu and the other was at the site of Ghazipur. Sayyid Masud, who was now given the title Malik us-Sadat Ghazi, founded a city on the site of the second battle and called it Ghazipur.^{[13]: 157–8}

Early recorded history: 1400s and 1500s

Legends aside, Ghazipur's first mention in contemporary sources is c. 1494, when Sikandar Lodi appointed Nasir Khan Lohani as the city's governor. Ghazipur flourished during Nasir Khan's long tenure. A new fort is said to have been built under his rule, replacing an older one at Hamzapur. A wave of immigration from Muslim settlers also began at this point and lasted until the late 1500s. New muhallas were built to house them.^{[13]: 159–60}

After Sikandar Lodi died, there was a rival claimant named Muhammad Shah (son of Darya Khan Lodi, the former governor of Bihar). At first, Nasir Khan stayed loyal to Sikandar's son Ibrahim Lodi, but he was defeated by an army led by one Mian Mustafa, which then looted Ghazipur. At this point, Nasir Khan sided with Muhammad Shah, who restored him as governor. In 1527, Humayun led a force to Ghazipur while the main Mughal army under Babur was at Jaunpur; Nasir Khan fled, and Humayun occupied Ghazipur without resistance. He was recalled to assist Babur soon after, though, and Nasir Khan resumed control over Ghazipur. Nasir Khan submitted to Babur in person in 1528, after Babur took Gwalior, but Babur did not keep him as governor of Ghazipur. Instead, he gave the city to Muhammad Khan Lohani Ghazipuri, a relative of Nasir Khan who had joined Babur's side earlier.^{[13]: 160–1}

During Akbar's early rule, Ghazipur was held by Ali Quli Khan Zaman, who also founded the nearby town of Zamania. Ghazipur does not seem to have been affected by Khan Zaman's first rebellion against Akbar in 1565. During his second revolt, Mughal forces under Jafar Khan Turkman attacked Ghazipur, but Khan Zaman fled. After Khan Zaman's death in battle in 1567, Akbar put Ghazipur under Munim Khan's control.^{[13]: 162–3}

In the Ain-i Akbari, Ghazipur was the capital of a sarkar in Allahabad Subah.^[13]: 164

Later Mughals

After the Mughals solidified their control over Bengal, Ghazipur lost most of its political importance, and later sources mention it less. Under Shah Jahan, as well as during Aurangzeb's early reign, Nawab Sufi Bahadur was governor of Ghazipur. He was succeeded by Nawab Atiqullah Khan, a native of Ghazipur who remained governor until Aurangzeb's death. Ghazipur does not seem to have been affected by the war between Aurangzeb and Shah Shuja in 1567, or by the civil wars following Aurangzeb's death. At some point after Farrukhsiyar's death in 1719, sarkar Ghazipur was part of a large territory granted to one Murtaza Khan as a jagir. In 1727, Murtaza Khan in turn leased this territory to Saadat Ali Khan I, the first Nawab of Awadh.^{[13]: 166–7}

Nawabs of Awadh

At first, Saadaat Ali Khan sub-leased these territories (Ghazipur, Jaunpur, Banaras, and Chunar) to his friend Rustam Ali Khan. Rustam Ali Khan had no interest in managing the territories himself, and someone named Mansa Ram ended up becoming the actual administrator. In 1738, Rustam Ali Khan was removed from office. Ghazipur was given to one Sheikh Abdullah, son of Muhammad Qasim, while the remainder was given to Mansa Ram.^[13]: 167

Drawing of a mosque in Ghazipur, 1781

Sheikh Abdullah left several monuments in Ghazipur: the Chihal Satun palace, a mosque and imambara, a masonry tank, and a large garden known as the Nawab's Bagh. Abdullah died in 1744 and was buried in a tomb by the garden. His oldest son, Fazl Ali, was away, so a younger brother named Karamullah was installed as governor instead. Fazl Ali appealed to Nawab Safdar Jang and, in return for a payment of one lakh rupees, was allowed to replace Karamullah as governor. Fazl Ali was removed from office in 1747 following complaints of "oppression and misgovernment", and Karamullah was restored, but he died a year later and Fazl Ali became governor again. Fazl Ali was again removed from office in 1754, but after his replacement proved ineffective he was restored for a third term. He was removed for the third and final time in 1757, and Balwant Singh, son of Mansa Ram, was given control of Ghazipur instead.^{[13]: 168–9}

Ghazipur remained under Balwant Singh's son and successor Chait Singh, but the British deposed him in 1781. His successor, Mahip Narayan Singh, was essentially stripped of all administrative powers by the British, who established Ghazipur district in 1818.^{[13]: 170–1}

There were also quite a lot of Qazis in the area as well as Zamindars.^[14] Specifically in Yusufpur, a notable family would be the Ansari sheiks who had held such offices from the 1500s all the way till the late 20th century.^[14] Some notables would be Faridul Haq Ansari, Mushir Haider Ansari, Qazi Nizamul Haq Ansari, Khalid Mustafa Ansari and world famous crime master Mukhtar Ansari also is a well known part of this family.^[14]

Scientific Society of Ghazipur

In 1862, Syed Ahmed Khan established the Scientific Society of Ghazipur (which was later transferred to Aligarh), the first of its kind in India, to propagate modern Western knowledge of science, technology and industry. It was a departure from the past in the sense that education made a paradigm shift from traditional humanities and related disciplines to the new field of science and agriculture.^[15] Some current institution like Technical Education and Research Institute (TERI),^[16] part of post-graduate college PG College Ghazipur, in the city, takes their inspiration from that first Society.

Ghazipur at the turn of the 20th century

At the turn of the 20th century, Ghazipur was described as forming "a narrow belt" along the bank of the Ganges. Ghazipur proper extended for about 5.5 km along the river, from Khudaipura in the east to Pirnagar in the west; and about 1.5 km on the other axis, away from the river. West of Pirnagar was the large former cantonment area, which extended for another 4 km along the river. The main business quarter was along the riverfront, while most houses were away from the river. The town was described as generally rather poor, and its streets were winding and narrow. The riverfront, on the other hand, was described as "picturesque", with a number of masonry ghats. On the west was Amghat, where the opium factory was located; other ghats further downstream included Collector Ghat, Pakka Ghat, Mahaul Ghat, Gola Ghat, Chitnath Ghat, Natkha Ghat, Khirki Ghat, and Pushta Ghat.^{[13]: 196–200}

The main road was the one coming in from Varanasi to the west. It went due east for about 1 km after entering the city, and this stretch was flanked by houses and shops on both sides. Near the entrance, it passed the tank and tomb of Pahar Khan; then the Bishesharganj marketplace; then the Qila Kohna, or old fort; and then the dispensary, which was built in 1881 atop an old mound that may represent an even earlier fort. Beyond this, the road passed through the Lal Darwaza neighbourhood, past the town's sarai, and past the town hall (built in 1878) and adjoining mosque. Past this was the police station, and after that was Martinganj, a marketplace named after a former British official. After this point, the road bent sharply to the left, away from the river, for about 200 m. It then bent to the east to run parallel with the river.^{[13]: 196–200}

In this area was a major triple junction at Ghazi Mian, where the Varanasi road met with two others: one coming from Korantadih and Ballia to the east and another coming from Gorakhpur and Azamgarh in the north. From Ghazi Mian, a wide highway went south to the riverbank at Pushta Ghat, where a ferry crossed over to Tari Ghat on the other side. The Ghazipur City railway station was also near Ghazi Mian.^{[13]: 195, 9}

The main landmark along the main road in the Ghazi Mian area was the Chihal Satun, or "hall of forty pillars", which was built by Abdullah Khan in the mid-1700s. The main road continued east through Razaganj and Begampur to the Ghazipur Ghat railway station on the eastern city limit.^[13]: 200

Meanwhile, across from the Chihal Satun, another major road split off toward the northeast, passing the Jami Masjid and "the Nawab's garden, tank, and tomb" before joining the Korantadih and Ballia road, which then marked the city's northern boundary. Near this point were the garden of Karimullah and the tank of Dharam Chand.^[13]: 200

Ghazipur opium factory

The opium factory located in the city was established by the British and continues to be a major source of opium production in India. It is known as the Opium Factory Ghazipur or, more formally, the Government Opium and Alkaloid Works. It is the largest factory of its kind in the country and indeed the world.^[27] The factory was initially run by the East India Company and was used by the British during the First and Second Opium Wars with China.^[4] The factory as such was founded in 1820 though the British had been trading Ghazipur opium before that. Nowadays its output is controlled by the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substance Act and Rules (1985) and administratively by the Indian government Ministry of Finance, overseen by a committee and a Chief Controller.^[28] The factory's output serves the global pharmaceutical industry. Until 1943 the factory only produced raw opium extracts from poppies, but nowadays it also produces many alkaloids, having first begun alkaloid production during World War II to meet military medical needs.^[28] Its annual turnover is in the region of 2 billion rupees (approximately 36 or 37 million US dollars), for a profit of about 80 million rupees (1.5 million dollars).^[28] It has been profitable every year since 1820, but the alkaloid production currently makes a loss, while the opium production makes a profit. The typical annual opium export from the factory to the US, for example, would be about 360 tonnes of opium.^[28] As well as the opium and alkaloid production, the factory also has a significant R&D program, employing up to 50 research chemists.^[28] It also serves the unusual role of being the secure repository for illegal opium seizures in India—and correspondingly, an important office of the Narcotics Control Bureau of India is located in Ghazipur.^[28] Overall employment in the factory is about 900. Because it is a government industry, the factory is administered from New Delhi but a general manager oversees operations in Ghazipur.^[28] In keeping with the sensitive nature of its production, the factory is guarded under high security (by the Central Industrial Security Force), and not easily accessible to the general public.^[28] The factory has its own residential accommodation for its employees, and is situated across the banks of river Ganges from the main city of Ghazipur. It is surrounded by high walls topped with barbed wire. Its products are taken by high security rail to Mumbai or New Delhi for further export.^[28]

The factory covers about 43 acres and much of its architecture is in red brick, dating from colonial times. Within the grounds of the factory there is a temple to Baba Shyam and a mazar, both said to predate the factory.^[28] There is also a solar clock, installed by the British opium agent Hopkins Esor from 1911 to 1913.^[28] Rudyard Kipling, who was familiar with opium both medicinally and recreationally,^[29] visited the Ghazipur factory in 1888 and published a description of its workings in The Pioneer on 16 April 1888.^[29] The text, In an Opium Factory is freely available from Adelaide University's ebook library.^[30]

Amitav Ghosh's novel Sea of Poppies deals with the British opium trade in India and much of Ghosh's story is based on his research of the Ghazipur factory. In interview, Ghosh stresses how much of the wealth of the British Empire stemmed from the often unsavoury opium trade, with Ghazipur as one of its centers, but he is also amazed at the scale of the present-day operation.^[27]

The Ghazipur Opium Factory may have one more claim to fame, for a rather unusual problem it has. It is infested with monkeys, but these are too narcotic-addled to be a real problem and workers drag them out of the way by their tails.^[4][27][31]