Patna Travel and Tourism Guide

Patna has a glorious past from the time it came into prominence in 490 BCE, when Ajatshatru, the king of Magadha changed the capital of the Magadha Empire to Patliputra (currently day Patna). For the next 1000 years, the city grew in stature as one of the primary cities of the Indian Subcontinent. The city had a strategic importance in the expansion plans of the various empires that ruled over India, whether Mauryan, Mughal or the British. With the European arrival, Patna became a centre of international trade and commerce. The British East India Company established a factory here to facilitate and promote trade. Other European powers of that time came in to compete in the lucrative trade. When the Bengal Presidency was partitioned in the year 1912, Patna was declared as the capital of the British province of Bihar and Orissa. Patna continues to be the capital of Bihar post India’s independence.