Digging deeper into the history of Ahoms

India has been the cradle of some magnificent architectural monuments. Be it the Ajanta and Ellora caves in Maharashtra or one of the wonders of the world, the Taj Mahal. This country never fails to leave the people in complete awe and wonder. One such magnificent chain of monuments Ahom dynasty lay in Assam the laps of the Northeastern regions of the country.

The history of the famous dynasty dates back to the 13th Century when India was surviving under the rule of the slaves of the barbaric Islamic invaders. It was the time when the roots of the Delhi Sultanate was strengthening under the Mamluks, the North-Eastern fronts of the continent felt the footsteps of some new invaders. The invaders ruled uninterrupted for six centuries. Came in the convoy of 90,000, led by their leader, Chaolung Sukapha, who laid the foundation of the empire which later came to be the Ahom Dynasty.

The Ahoms were the Descendents of the Shan or most prominently known as the Tai tribe of Chinese origin who had settled in the region of Upper Burma during the early centuries of the Christian era.

The Zenith of the Ahom power and culture was reached during the reign of Rudra Simha (1696- 1714). He was a clever and powerful ruler who maintained cordial political relations with the rulers of Bengal and other neighbouring territories.

Rudra Simha again shifted his capital from Gargaon to a place called Meteka near present Sibsagar City and built a fine city called Rangpur, the city of palaces. The chief architect of the new capital was Ghansyama, a Muslim from Bengal who had converted to Hinduism. This logically resulted in the assimilation of Muslim architectural designs with the Hindu theme. Thus, was achieved the finest synthesis of Muslim architectural features such as domes, arches etc. with the Hindu sikhara type of temples.

The architecture of the Ahom can be divided into two categories- secular and religious. The religious architecture of the Ahoms is dominated by Shiva, Vishnu and Devi. Of the different forms of secular architecture, mention may be made of forts, palaces, Pavilions magazines houses, tanks, maidans etc.

The architecture of the Ahoms serve as a great heritage to the country and is a pride of Assam