The Story of Faizabad & its Begums

Faizabad has been in the news because of the recent decision by the Government of Uttar Pradesh to rename the district of Faizabad, Ayodhya. Most people, outside Uttar Pradesh, don’t even know about the historic town of Faizabad, as it gets completely dwarfed by its more famous and news-making neighbour – Ayodhya. But Faizabad and Ayodhya which are just 6 km apart, have very separate and distinct histories.

Ayodhya, known as ‘Saketa’ in ancient India, dates back to the time of the Kosala Mahajanapada (5th-6th century BCE) and is also believed to the birthplace of Lord Ram; Faizabad, meanwhile is a young city – just 296 years old and it served as the first capital of the Nawabs of Awadh. The story of Faizabad is part of the lesser known story of the Nawabs of Awadh, in the early ‘pre-Lucknow’ years.