Human settlement in the region dates back to the 11th century around the ancient town of Ashaval. In 1411, Sultan Ahmed Shah of the Gujarat Sultanate founded Ahmedabad to serve as his new capital. Under the sultans, the city grew into a magnificent center of Indo-Islamic architecture.
By the late 16th century, the city came under Mughal rule when Emperor Akbar conquered Gujarat in 1573. It remained a thriving center for textiles and trade. During the 18th century, control of the city passed to the Maratha Empire, and eventually, in 1818, the British East India Company took over. Under British rule, the city saw massive industrialization, establishing numerous cotton mills that earned it the moniker "Manchester of India."
Ahmedabad played a pivotal role in the Indian independence movement. Mahatma Gandhi returned from South Africa and established two ashrams here: Kochrab Ashram in 1915 and the iconic Sabarmati Ashram in 1917. The city became the nerve center of the freedom struggle, most notably serving as the starting point for the historic Salt March (Dandi March) in 1930.
Post-independence in 1947, Ahmedabad served as the capital of the newly formed state of Gujarat from 1960 until 1970, when the capital was moved to the purpose-built neighboring city of Gandhinagar. In recent decades, the city has evolved into a modern metropolis, bouncing back from the devastating 2001 Gujarat earthquake to witness massive infrastructural and economic growth.
