Sannyasi and Fakir Raiders in Bnegal

This volume traces the activities of the bands of Sannyasis and Fakirs who infested many parts of Bengal in the latter part of the Eighteenth Century. They were a feature of those unsettled. times and their suppression was part of the task imposed on the British in evolving an orderly administration. This narrative has been compiled as a contribution towards the social and local history of rural Bengal and as giving a picture of a state of affairs which has happily long passed away. It is based for the most part on the documents preserved in the Bengal Historical Record Room, and the events have been mostly described in the words of the records themselves. The material was extracted from the records by the Record Room staff under the direction of Mr. A. Cassells, I.C.S., in 1921 23 and later placed at my disposal. The work of editing and annotating these sources together with the further research involved has been possible only during the scanty leisure gained from official duties during the last few years. I am deeply indebted to Mr. Cassells for his help and suggestions and constant encouragement and my thanks are due to Babu Suresh Chandra Roy, Keeper of Records to the Government of Bengal, and his staff for their assistance.