ORIS'SA A former kingdom on the east coast of llindustan. which extended from BI 'mg a 1—n part of which it included—on the north to the banks of the Godavari on the south, and from the coast on the east to GOID1 \Vilna on the west, embracing, an area much larger than that of the region which now beat, the name. The authentic history of Orissa begins with the foundation of the Kesari, or Lion, dynasty. about A.n. 474. The Hindu rulers of the land were always Brahmanieal rather than Buddhistic in religion, and they possessed a high degree of cul ture and civilization. Orissa maintained its position as an independent monarchy till the six teenth century, when the Mohammedans began to ham.ss the country. Finally. in 1508, the last independent King of Orissa was defeated by Solei man, the Afghan King of Bengal. under the walls of Jaipur, and in 1578 the Afghans in their turn were forced to surrender Orissa to Akbar, and it remained a portion of the dominions of the Great Mogul until 1751. In 1742 the Alabrattas began wresting the country from the declining power of the Mogul emperors.and in 1751 Orissa became a Mahratta province. The Great ceded his rights to the East India Company in 1765. Under the Alahrattas the condition of the country was wretched in the extreme, and in addition to the distress (111,4`d by their lawlessness Orissa was ravaged by famine in 1770 and again in 1777. 1D 1803 the Alahratta power was crushed and Orissa became-an English possession. Revolts took place in 1SO4 and in 1817-18. An agreement was made between the East India. Company and the native
chiefs and princes by which the former bound themselves to perform certain services for the country (as maintaining the river banks in good I repair), while the latter engaged to pay a, yearly tribute. Of the mak' principalities into which Orissa was divided, a large number fell into arrears with the Government, and the result was that numbers of the estates were sold, and the Government, as a rule, became the purchaser. Much of the territory originally forming a por tion of this kingdom thus fell into the hands of the British. In 1865-66 a terrible famine visited the eountly. The present British commissioner ship of Orissa extends from a point a little west of the flugli estuary to the borders of :Madras, and includes the delta of the mahanadi. it con stitutes southwesternmost portion of Bengal. The British districts have an area of 9841 square miles, and the native States of Orissa, 17 in num ber, embrace an area about once and a half as large. The British districts had a population. in 1891, of 4,047,352; in 1901, of 4.350.372. The native States have about 2,000,000 people. The hill districts, which nowhere presen an elevation of more than 3000 feet, are in habited by the Gonds, the Roles. the Somalis, am the Rhoads. The irrigation of a large portion o' Orissa is provided for by an extensive and enstl, system of eanals taken over by the Governmen in 1868. The chief towns are Cnttack, the eapi tat, Balasor, an important seaport, and the hol city of Puri.