South India · Andhra Pradesh
Guntur, Andhra Pradesh
Sources: open-meteo, wikimedia
About Guntur
- Inland
Where it is
Guntur is a city in coastal Andhra Pradesh, on the fertile plains south of the Krishna River, about 23 km south-west of the new capital, Amaravati, and close to Vijayawada.
History
The area was ruled in turn by the Satavahanas, Ikshvakus, Eastern Chalukyas, Kakatiyas, Reddi kings and Vijayanagara, and later by the Golconda sultans and the Nizam. After a spell under the French it passed to the British East India Company, which took Kondaveedu Fort in 1788, and Guntur grew as a market town for the rich farmland around it.
People
Telugu is the main language, and Urdu is spoken by a sizeable community. Much of the city's life turns on farming and the trade in chillies, cotton and tobacco, and its food is famously spicy, from gongura pickle to chilli-laden curries.
Known for
- Guntur chillies and its vast chilli market
- Tobacco and cotton trading
- Kondaveedu Fort
- Uppalapadu Bird Sanctuary
- Fiery Andhra cooking
Did you know?
During the total solar eclipse of 18 August 1868, the French astronomer Jules Janssen, observing from Guntur, recorded a bright yellow line in the Sun's spectrum that led to the discovery of helium.
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