Hafiz Shamsuddin Ahmad mentions “The greater part of Maner is now in ruins; but it must have been a large and well populated town in ancient times; as its remains, scattered over a large area, indicate. It is at present the centre of a Pargana with a Police Station, a Post Office and a Charitable Dispensary attached to it; but in ancient Persian records it is invariably mentioned as a ‘Badla’, i.e. a town; and old legal documents refer to it as Adalat-ul-Alia, a High Court, with signatures of two Qazis on them, which point out unmistakably to the fact that during the Muhammadan period, it must have been a place of great political importance.

It was more or less an important place during the Hindu period also; for in the account of the conquest of Bihar by the Muhammadans, the historians mention Maner along with Bihar as a separate entity. This importance of Maner was, no doubt, due to its topography. Situated just at the junction of the two great rivers, the Ganges and the Son, it was on the high way of commerce and must have been a trade centre; while with a high and strong fortress on the river side to protect it, it must have commanded a position of great strategic importance in those times.”

To be continued.....