History of Mumbai

• The city was a centre of trade with Persia and Egypt in 1000 BCE
• In 1661 it came under British control as part of the marriage settlement between King Charles II and Catherine of Braganza; sister of the king of Portugal
• Even British naval power was no match for the Mughals, Marathios, Portuguese, and Dutch, all of whom had interests in the region
• By the turn of the 19th century, however, external events helped stimulate the growth at the city
• The decay of Mughal power in Delhi, the Mughal-Maratha rivalries and the instability in Gujarat drove artisans and merchants to the islands for refuge, and Bombay began to grow, with the destruction of Maratha power, trade and communications to the mainland were established, existing connections to Europe were extended, and Bombay began to prosper
• In 1857 the first spinning and weaving mill was established, and by 1860 the city had become the largest cotton market in India
• The American Civil War (1861-65) and the resulting cutoff of cotton supplies to Britain caused a great trade boom in Bombay
• But, with the end of the Civil War, cotton prices crashed and the bubble burst
• By that time, though, the hinterland had been opened, and Bombay had become a strong centre of import trade
• The opening in 1869 of the Suez Canal which greatly facilitated trade with Britain and continental Europe, also contributed to Bombay's prosperity
• Yet, as the population increased unkempt overcrowded and unsanitary condition become more widespread ague, for example, broke out in response to those problem, the Cy Improvement Trust was established to open new locol for seftement and to erect dwellings for the artson classes.
• The destruction of the Babri Masjid (Mosque of Babur") in Ayodhya in December 1972 sparked Sectorian roting in Bombay and throughout India that lasted into early 1993 and paused the deaths of hundrech al people A few years later the city changed its name to Mumbak fre Marathi name for the city.
• Overcrowding, traffic congestion, environmental polution, and widespread poverty, however, remained ongoing problems