Page 61 - SST Class 07

Towns, Traders

and Craftsmen 8

q Source of information q Causes and types of towns
q Growth of major towns

Introduction Sometimes, a town can serve more than one need,
as it can be a capital town while being a trade and
When the population or trade of a village grows, it
takes the form of a town. The growth of a town is a pilgrimage town at the same time.
long drawn process. It may take decades or Capital Towns
centuries for a town to be established fully. The places where kings held their courts often

The growth of a large number of towns during the developed into the towns. Among such cities were
medieval period resulted from the fact that various Delhi, Ajmer, Kannauj, Ujjain and Dhar
dynasties ruled in different parts of the country and developed under the Rajputs. Kanchi, Badami and
the rule was more stable as compared to the Ellora developed under the Pallavas and Lahore,
ancient period, despite the large number of battles Agra, Fatehpur Sikri developed under the
that were fought during this period. The Delhi Mughals.
Sultanate, the Vijayanagara kingdom, the Bahmani Capital or court towns were set up due to many
kingdom, the Cholas, the Pandyas, the Rajputs, the factors. A ruler set up his court at a place keeping
Mughals, the Marathas and others played an many factors in mind, such as fertility of the land,
important role in the growth of towns. Moreover, development of infrastructure and facilities,
the increased trade and administrative activities accessibility, transport, natural cover from enemy,
necessitated the establishment of newer towns. prosperity of the people etc. A place chosen for a
capital town was such from where the
SOURCE OF INFORMATION administration of the whole territory could be run
efficiently. This was the reason that sometimes
Our source of information about the old towns
and the growth of new towns depends on the land rulers changed their capital towns from one place
to another, as done by the Tughluqs or Mughals.
revenue records of different rulers and the travel For similar reasons, many battles were fought for
accounts by different writers. The monuments also
reveal to us about the founding and importance of the control of the town of Kannauj in the ancient
and early medieval periods.
a town.

CAUSES AND TYPES OF TOWNS

The establishment or growth of a town can be for
different purposes, or it can be a mixture of many
purposes, such as social, religious, political,
economic, military etc. The chief causes and types
of towns can be capital or court towns, trade
towns, pilgrimage or temple towns, industrial
Fatehpur Sikri Varanasi
towns, port towns, military towns etc.
Towns, Traders and Craftsmen
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