Gorakhpur

Gorakhpur, a district and city in the North-West Provinces of British India. The former has an area of 4,578 square miles, being bounded N. by Nepaul, S. by the river Gogra, E. by Champaran and Saran, and W. by Fyzabad and Barti. It consists for the most part of a wide alluvial plain stretching up to the feet of the Himalayas, and broken by a few sandhills and many dense forests. Rivers, lakes and marshes abound, among the former being the Rapti, the Gogra,'both Gandaks, the Kuana. and others. The population, chiefly Hindu, shows a tendency to increase. Cotton, timber, rice, and other grains form the chief produce. Gautama Buddha, the founder of the Buddhist cult, died in this region, which thus became the cradle Of the new faith. The British occupation dates from 1801. The city of Gorakhpur was founded about ii 1400 on the Rapti, and is the administrative centre of the district, possessing -a considerable trade in timber and food-stuffs.