XANAl7/ TOIVJV 371
the great empire of Harshavardhana in Northern India. The Chinese
pilgrim, Hiuen Tsiang, who visited this monarch and travelled with
him from Allahabad to Kanauj, describes the magnificence of his court.
Harshavardhana's death was the signal for anarchy, and the detailed
history of the following years is unknown. In the latter half of the
ninth century a dynasty of Raghuvansi kings reigned from Kanauj,
which was also called Mahodaya, over an extensive dominion. One
of these kings was defeated in 917 by the king of Gujarat, but restored
by the Chandel king of Mahoba. In 1019 Mahmud of Ghazni
plundered Kanauj, which now came into the power of the Rathors, the
most celebrated of whom was Gobind Chand (1115-55). Nearly 200
years later, in 1194, Muhammad Ghori defeated Jai Chand, the last ot
the Rathor kings, and the great kingdom of Kanauj came to an end'
Under the Muhammadans Kanauj became the seat of a governor, but
lost its old importance. In the fifteenth century it was included for
some years in the Sharki kingdom of Taunpur ; and when Mahmud, son
of Firoz Tughlak, lost his hold on Delhi, he resided here for a time.
It was close to Kanauj, though across the Ganges in Hardoi District,
that Humayun was defeated by Sher Shah. Under Akbar, when order
had once been restored, Kanauj entered on a long period of peace, and
it is recorded in the Ain-i-Akbari as the head-quarters of a sarkar.
During the eighteenth century it belonged sometimes to the Nawabs
of Farrukhabad, again to the Nawabs of Oudh, and at times to the
Marathas. The town or kingdom of Kanauj has given its name to an
important division of Brahmans, and to many subdivisions of lower
castes. Of the Hindu buildings which must have graced the place,
nothing remains intact. The fine Jama Masjid, built in 1406 by
Ibrahim Shah of Jaunpur, was constructed from Hindu temples, and
the site is still known to Hindus as Sita kl rasoi, or ' Sita's kitchen.'
There are many tombs and shrines in the neighbourhood, the most
notable being those of Makhdum Jahaniya south-east of the town,
and of Makhdum Akhai Jamshid 3 miles away, both dating from the
fifteenth century. The most conspicuous buildings are, however,
the tombs of Bala Pir and his son, Shaikh Mahdi, religious teachers
who flourished under Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb. The neighbourhood
for miles along the river is studded with ruins, which have not been
explored. The town lies on the edge of the old high bank of the
Ganges, and, but for the high mounds and buildings described above,
is not distinguishable from many places of similar size. The houses
are fairly well built but small, and the most conspicuous modern
building is a fine sarai recently completed. The dispensary, tahsili,
and munsift are at Sarai Miran, 2 miles south of Kanauj. The town
is administered under Act XX of 1856, with an income of about
Rs. 4,000. It is famous for its scent distilleries, where rose-water, otto |
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