|Bangladesh :: Brief History|
Capital City: Dhaka
National Holiday: Independence Day, 26 March (1971); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is Vict
National Anthem: Click here for anthem.Brief History: Bengal became Islamic starting in the 13th century and developed into a wealthy centre of trade and industry under the Mogul Empire during the 16th century. European traders had arrived in the late 15th century and eventually the British East India Company controlled the region by the late 18th century, from which the British extended their rule over all of India. When Indian independence was achieved in 1947, it was divided in a predominantly Muslim Pakistan and a predominantly Hindu India.
Bengal was thus divided into an eastern part called East Pakistan and a western part, the Indian state of West Bengal. East Pakistan was dominated and frequently neglected by West Pakistan and tensions turned into a struggle for independence in 1971. In March 26, The Pakistani Army started one of the bloodiest genocides in recent times, killing innocent men, women and children. Major Ziaur Rahman declared the Independence of Bangladesh using a makeshift Radio Transmitter from the Port city of Chittagong. The attempted repression of this movement resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Bengalis and a refugee problem that led to Indian intervention in December and, subsequently, independence from Pakistan. The Pakistani Army surrendered in December 16, 1971, and Bangladesh became an independent Nation.
|©2013, TAS - Travel Agent Software Ltd. The information in the World Wide Travel Guide is derived from a combination of original works, public domain sources and open source materials. With the exception of WTO Statistics, photos, graphic images and maps, all content is licensed under the Creative Commons licenses. See Acknowledgements and Disclaimer for more information. For a full list of the contributors contact us at .|