Background

The first English "factory" (a compound including warehouses and residences) in Surat in 1613 was built with the permission of local authorities, by 1617 they had received official permission from Emperor Jahangir himself to establish factories in several parts of the empire. The Mughals clearly understood the value of maritime commerce and wanted to keep sea routes to and from India open; they consistently tried to maintain freedom of trade along India's coasts to the best of their ability, although hampered by the lack of a navy.

The same time that the Mughal empire was being consolidated in north .a, new states that had arisen from the disintegration of the Bahli and Vijayanagara kingdoms were flourishing in peninsular India. Tough the successor states to the Bahmani Sultanate were in place by around 1500, they reached their greatest heights only after the defeat of yanagara in the 1565 Battle of Talikota. The best spoils of that victory went to the Adil Shahs of Bijapur, situated immediately north of the yanagara capital, who thus acquired the rich fertile lands and mineral resources of the Raichur doab (the area near the confluence of the Krishna Tungabhadra rivers) that had long been a bone of contention. The other important dynasties to succeed the Bahmanis were the Nizam hs of Ahmadnagar, who controlled much of what is now Maharashtra, the Qutb Shahs of Golkonda, who were based in northern Andhraiesh.
The Bahmani and Vijayanagara success states resembled their predecessors in numerous respects, especially their artistic and linguistic cultures, but the greater movement of people and goods, and ideas that was characteristic of the early modern era was to shape these new states in important ways.

The independent Deccan Sultanates were all derived from the Bahli state and so exhibit some similarities. The most obvious one was the e of Afaqi-Deccani balance within the nobility, a situation inherited from the Bahmanis. The Afaqis were the foreign faction, predominantly Persian-speaking Iranians, though Arabs and even Africans were represented among them. The Deccanis were descendants of Muslims who had migrated from north India, along with indigenous converts. The tension between the two factions went back to the fifteenth century, a period in which there was extensive immigration to the Deccan from outside the subcontinent. A Portuguese estimate from the early 1500s puts the size of the foreign immigrant population in the Deccan at between 10,000 and 12,000 people; among them were military men, scholars, merchants, and Sufis. Immigrants from the Middle East continued to arrive in the Deccan during the sixteenth century, most notably in the period up to 1575. In contrast, the flow of people from Iran and the Arabic-speaking world had sharply declined in north India during the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, only to begin rising again in the last decades of the 1500s. As a result, the impact of Iranians and the Persian culture they brought with them was considerably greater in the Deccan of c. 1600 than in the Mughal north.

Bazaars and Peteas

Bijapur being the capital and big business centre attracted merchants and travelers in large number from the Deccan and many parts of India and foreign lands. Abdal, a court poet in his Ibrahim Namah writes,

“ at the markets of Bijapur) the wealthy merchants of different countries sat in every direction (with their costly items).. In Bijapur the merchants could stay in the Sarais (inns) attached to the mosques or other public buildings. Such Sarais are found at Taj Boudi, Sandal Masjid, Bukhari Masjid, Ballad Khan Masjid etc. Nawab Mustafa Khan, a celebrated noble of Mohammed Adil Shah built a big Sarai in the west of Bijapur, which is now used as the District Jail.

The following market places were established respectively by the Adil Shahi Sultans in and around Bijapur. Yusuf Adil Shah:

Bijapur Bazar names during Adil Shahi Era

Markovi Bazar, Thana Bazar, Naghthana Bazar, Daulat Bazar, Dahan Khan Bazar, Markur Bazar, Murad Khan Bazar, Palah Bazar, Mubarak Bazar and. Shahpeth (old) Bazar. Ismail Adil Shah: Kamal Khan Bazar, NakaBazar and Bare-Khudavand Bazar. Ibrahim Adil Shah I: Jagate Bazar, Roa Bazar, Sher Karkhana Bazar, Rangeen Masjid Bazar, Fateh Zaman Bazar, Karanzah Bazar, Sara Bazar, and ShikarKhan Bazar Ali Adil Shah I: Jumma Masjid Bazar, SikandarBazar, FarhadKhan Bazar, Dilir Khan Bazar and Haidar Bazar. Mohammed Adil Shah: Padshahpur Bazar. Ali Adil Shah II: Shahpeth (new) Bazar. Others: Ikhlas Khan Bazar, Yusuf Rumi Khan Bazar, Shah Abu Turab Bazar, Abdur Razzaq Bazar, Langar Bazar, Mahmood Shah Bazar, etc.

Bijapur Petha names during Adil Shahi Era
We foud suburban markets called the Peths in the vicinity of Bijapur. They are as follows: Habibpur Peth, Salabatpur Beth, Tahwarpur Peth, Zohrapur Peth, Afzalpur Peth (Takiyah), Shahpur or Khudanpur or Khudawandpur Peth, Danatpur Peth, Sikandarpur Peth, Quadhpur Peth, Khwaspur Peth, Imampur Peth, Kumutagi Peth etc.

GOLKONDA AND BIJAPUR DIAMOND MINES

In Bljftpur there were 15 mines, of which only those yielding the smallest stones were allowed by the King to be worked.

1 This, as also some of the other localities, are given by Dutens and Castellani as being in Asia !—a rather wide geographical expression; they have long been objects of search to me, till traced by means of this paper, partly to prevent large stones becoming too common, and partly to avoid exciting Aurangzeb's cupidity. The mines were—1. Ramulconeta [Rammalakota, i.e. Tavernier's Raolconda] ; diamonds of a mangelin weight were seldom found there, generally they were much smaller. Broken diamonds, called shemboes, were found there. 2. Banugun-napellee [Banaganapalle, 37 miles SE. of Karnfll]. 3. Pendekull [Pendekallu]. 4. Moodawaram [? Muddavaram, 7 miles ESE. of Rammalakota]. 5. Cumerwille [Coomroly of A.S. close to Gooramankonda]. 6. Paulkull [?]. 7. Workull [? Oruvakal]. 8. Lungeepoleur [Langapolur, 5 miles S. of Karnul], 9. Pootloor [Polur]. 10. Punchelingull [Panchalingala, left bank of Tungabhadra]. 11. Shingarrampent [?]. 12. Tondarpaar [Tandrapad, left bank of Tungabhadra]. 13. Gundepelle [?]. 14. Donee [Dhone]. 15. Gazerpellee [this is close to Baswapur].

I would venture to commend the identification of those mines which are unplaced in the above list to someone with local knowledge.

We are told in the Earl Marshal's paper that in Golkonda the miners and merchants were much oppressed, and in a miserable state of poverty, from having to submit to tyrannical squeezing and heavy duties on provisions, tobacco, and betel. With extraordinary inconsistency, although the King of Golkonda, 'Abdulla Kutb Shah, and the King of Bijapur, 'Adil Shah, had agreements with the miners that all diamonds above a certain weight were to be reserved for them, still they would not only pay highly for large stones conveyed to their capitals secretly by the merchants, but would bestow dresses of honour upon those who brought such stones to them for sale.

Although it is possible that many persons in India may be surprised at the statement that there were formerly diamond mines of considerable importance and value in the region of Bengal, which is about to be described ; and although it is probably the case that many who have resided for long periods in the very District itself have never heard of the:

1 There is a mountain in the kingdom of BIjapur ' where they dig out diamonds, whioh mountain is a league distant from the city, and is surrounded by a wall, and is kept by a strong guard' (Varthema, 118).

2 Major Leonard Munn has published an interesting paper on' Ancient Mines and Megaliths in Hyderabad', Memoirs and Proceedings of the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, vol. lxiv (1921), part ii, No. 5.

Foreign Accounts

From different parts of world many envoys, merchants, travelers etc. visited Bijapur in its heydays of magnanimity and grandeur, and they left behind their valuable accounts of past grandiosities of Bijapur. In 1013 corresponding to (1604-1605) the Mughal Emperor Akbar, commissioner Mirza Asad Baig, one of grandees of his court to Bijapur for diplomatic dealings. He was a person who saw Agra and Delhi in their glorious days. He wrote his account called, “Haalat-e-Asad Baig or Wakiat-e-Asad Baig”. [10] From his account we shall be able to form some idea of the position which Bijapur occupied among the wonder cities of India in the Medieval Ages. He cites in his impression of the city; the grandeurs of the Adil Shahi court and its customs in the following striking words:

“ On 17th of Shaaban I marched forward with attendants that were with me to meet Adil Khan (Ibrahim Adil Shah II), and was introduced to him in a building upon that lake Gagan Mahal at Bijapur appointed for such ceremonies. It was a very pleasant spot appropriately furnished. In two or three houses the rooms were in a perfect tip-top condition, and after prayer on that day Adil Khan came, wish all pomp and circumstances, followed by a retinue of elephants... that palace, which they called ‘’Hajjah’’ (?) All around the gate of my residence were lofty buildings with houses and porticoes; the situation was very healthy and airy. It lies in open space in the city. Its northern portico is to the east of a ‘’Bazaar’’ of a great extent, as much as thirty yards wide and about two Kos long. Before each shop was a beautiful green tree, and the whole ‘’Bazaar’’ was extremely clean and pure. It was filled with rare goods, such as are not seen or heard of in any other town. There were shops of cloths sellers, jewelers, armourers, vintners, fish-mongers, and cooks... in the jeweler's shops were jewels of all sorts, wrought into variety. of articles, such as daggers, knives, mirrors, necklaces, and ‘’laso’’ into the form of birds, such as parrots, doves and peacocks, etc. all studded with valuable jewels, and arranged upon shelves, rising one above the other. By the side of this shop will be a baker's with rare viands, placed in the same manner, upon tiers of shelves in like manner. Then a clothier's, then a spirit merchant's with various sorts of China vessels, valuable crystal bottles, costly cups, filled with choice and rare essence, arrayed on shelves, while in the front of the shop were jars of double-distilled spirits. Besides that shop will be a fruiter's, filled with all kinds of fruits and sweetmeats, such as pistachios nuts, and relishes, and sugar-candy and almonds.

On another side may be a wine merchant's shop, and an establishment of singers, dancers and beautiful women adorned with various kinds of jewels, and fair-faced choristers, all ready to perform whatever may be desired of them. In short, the whole ‘’Bazaar’’ was filled with wine and beauty, dances, perfumes, jewels, of all sorts, plates, and viands. In one street were a thousand bands of people drinking, and dancers, lovers, and pleasure-seekers assembled; none quarreled or disputed with one another and this state of things was perpetual. Perhaps no place in the wide world could present a more wonderful spectacle to the eye of the traveler... (for Emperor Akbar) I purchased for Rs.25900 emeralds, ‘’pokhraj’’, ‘’Nilam’’ and birds made of jewels. I purchased the diamond and ‘’Dugdugi’’ for Rs.55000 and agreed to pay the price after Mir Jamaluddin approves.. ”

Mirza Asad Baig left Bijapur on 24th January 1604. His graphic account of Bijapur tells us how this city was prosperous, rich and flourishing. [12] Another traveler Manctelslo, who visited the Deccan in 1638 writes,

“ Bijapur was one of the greatest cities in the whole of Asia, more than five ‘’leagues’’ (i.e., fifteen miles) the city had five great suburbs where most of the traders lived and in Scyanpur (Shahpur) were most of the jewelers dealing in costly pearls. ”

Similarly, Jean Baptiste Tavernier, who visited India between 1631 and 1667, was a jeweler, probably he had been to Bijapur for selling some of his jewels. He has left for us an account, in which he describes Bijapur was a great city... in its large suburbs many goldsmiths and jewelers dwelt... the king's palace (Arkillah or citadel) was vast, but ill-built and the access to it was very dangerous as the ditch with which it was girt was full of crocodiles,. in the same way, the Dutch traveler, Baldeous, the English geographer, Ogilby and others praise the greatness of Bijapur

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References

1. Tarekha Farishta
2. Tarekhe Mumlaekathe Bijapur
3. Major Online Resources