Chittagong’s fine natural harbour was known to the Mediterranean world from the early Common Era and to Arab sailors by the 10th century. It was called Porto Grande by Portuguese and Venetian voyagers and was described by Joao de Barros in 1552 as “the most famous and wealthy city of the Kingdom of Bengal.” It has been generally identified with the city of Bengala described by early Portuguese and other writers. Conquered by the Muslims in the 14th century, Chittagong passed to the Arakanese in the next century. The piratical raids of the Arakanese and their Portuguese mercenaries led to the dispatch of a strong force by Shaista Khan, the Mughal governor (nawab) of Bengal, who in 1666 occupied the region. Chittagong was ceded to the British East India Company in 1760.
Chittagong was constituted a municipality in 1864 and grew in different directions along the main routes of transportation. Although the headquarters of the Bangladesh Railway are in Chittagong and the railway workshop is in the nearby town of Pahartali, the port remained the centre of city life and trade. After the creation of Pakistan in 1947, much trade was diverted to Chittagong from Calcutta (now Kolkata,India), and the port was improved considerably. With well-equipped facilities and numerous permanent jetties and moorings, the port became the gateway of Bangladesh for foreign trade.
It was very good to know the history of Chittagong