Gaud

Introducing Gaud

A site of great historical importance, Gaud (or Gaur) has more historic mosques than any area in Bangladesh, except Bagerhat. It’s over 100km west of Rajshahi, right on Bangladesh’s western border – some of its sights are in India, some in Bangladesh.

The Hindu Senas established their capital here, after which the Khiljis from Turkistan took control for three centuries, to be followed in the late 15th century by the Afghans. Under the Afghans, Gaud became a prosperous city, surrounded by fortified ramparts and a moat, and spread over 32 sq km. Replete with temples, mosques and palaces, the city was visited by traders and merchants from all over Central Asia, Arabia, Persia and China. A number of mosques are still standing today, and some have been restored. None of the buildings from the earlier Hindu kingdoms remain.

Today there is something of a strange air lying over the town and it doesn’t seem quite Bangladeshi. At first you can’t work out what it is that’s missing, but then you realise that nobody is responding to your greetings and, even more strangely, the streets are almost deathly quiet. No people, no cars, no trucks and, most weird of all, no rickshaws.

Last updated: Mar 24, 2009