The City of Kanpur

First Online: November 15, 2005
Page Last Updated: February 17, 2024

The city of Kanpur (spelled as Cawnpore in British records), is an industrial city in northern India located about 45 miles southwest of Lucknow on the banks of the Ganga river. 

Kanpur became an important military and trade station under the rule of the British East India Company around 19th century. It became famous as the site of the Cawnpore Massacre during the Indian War of Independence (see: Sepoy Mutiny) in 1857. The drop in supply of U.S. cotton resulting from the American Civil War in 1860s created a long-term rise in demand in Europe for Indian cotton, and the first textile mills were built in Kanpur between 1869 and 1882. The site was ideal, in close proximity to a large market and midway between the cotton fields in Punjab and the coal mines in Bihar.

Today's Kanpur is famous for its premier educational institutions such as  Indian Institute of Technology - Kanpur (IIT-K) and Harcourt Butler Technological Institute, as a hub of railway transport, and  as host of famous Cricket matches.

Author: Vikas Kamat

See Also:

• The State of Uttar Pradesh