Chittagong

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Chittagong /tʃɪtəɡɒŋ/ (Bengali: চট্টগ্রাম Bengali pronunciation: [tʃɔʈʈɔgram]: Porto Grande De Bengala; Mughal Islamabad) is the second most populous city and main seaport of Bangladesh. It is a major commercial, financial and industrial hub. Located on the Karnaphuli River, it is the administrative seat of Chittagong District and Chittagong Division (the largest division of Bangladesh). The metropolitan area has a population of 4 million residents. The city straddles hilly terrain and faces the Bay of Bengal.

Chittagong has a recorded history dating back more than a millennium. Arabs traded with its port since the 9th-century. It was visited by numerous historic world travellers, such as Ibn Battuta and Niccolo De Conti, as well as the Chinese Imperial Treasure Fleet. It gained prominence as a Portuguese trading center during the 16th-century. Under British rule, it was a divisional capital in the Bengal Presidency and the headquarters of the Assam Bengal Railway. The Port of Chittagong developed during the late 19th-century. It was a major gateway for the tea, rice, jute and oil trade in the region. The city and its airport were a vital base for American and British forces during the Burma Campaign in World War II. After the Partition of British India in 1947, Chittagong became the chief port of East Pakistan. During the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, the declaration of Bangladesh's independence was proclaimed from Chittagong.

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