Any history of Karachi prior to the 19th century is brief. According to the legend, Krokola was settled when an old fisherwoman by the name of Mai Kolachi, settled near the delta of the Indus river to start a community. At Krokola, Alexander the great camped and built a fleet for the voyage back to Babylonia. Alexander's admiral Nearchus sailed back to Mesopotamia from 'Morontobara' port which is probably the modern Manora Island at Karachi harbor. When Muhammad bin Qasim conquered modern Pakistan in the year 712, the city was called Debal (or Debul). It has been said that Debal was the ancestral village of present day Karachi. However, this has neither been proven or disproven. It was in 1772 that the village Kolachi-jo-Goth was changed from a fishing village to a trading post when it was selected as a port for trade with Muscat and Bahrain. In the following years a fort was built and cannons brought in from Muscat were mounted on it. The fort had two doorways, one facing the sea called the Khara Dar or Brackish Gate and one facing the River Lyari called the Meetha Dar or Sweet Gate. Currently, the site of those gates corresponds to the location of the neighbourhoods of Kharadar and Meethadar. In 1795 the city passed from the Khan of Kalat to the rulers of Sindh.Monday, April 28, 2008
History
Any history of Karachi prior to the 19th century is brief. According to the legend, Krokola was settled when an old fisherwoman by the name of Mai Kolachi, settled near the delta of the Indus river to start a community. At Krokola, Alexander the great camped and built a fleet for the voyage back to Babylonia. Alexander's admiral Nearchus sailed back to Mesopotamia from 'Morontobara' port which is probably the modern Manora Island at Karachi harbor. When Muhammad bin Qasim conquered modern Pakistan in the year 712, the city was called Debal (or Debul). It has been said that Debal was the ancestral village of present day Karachi. However, this has neither been proven or disproven. It was in 1772 that the village Kolachi-jo-Goth was changed from a fishing village to a trading post when it was selected as a port for trade with Muscat and Bahrain. In the following years a fort was built and cannons brought in from Muscat were mounted on it. The fort had two doorways, one facing the sea called the Khara Dar or Brackish Gate and one facing the River Lyari called the Meetha Dar or Sweet Gate. Currently, the site of those gates corresponds to the location of the neighbourhoods of Kharadar and Meethadar. In 1795 the city passed from the Khan of Kalat to the rulers of Sindh.
