Kathiawar Agency

Kathiawar Agency was a political unit that was part of the old Bombay Presidency in British India. Situated on the Kathiawar peninsula in the western part of the Indian subcontinent, it was composed of almost 200 princely states, which were merged into Bombay state upon India's independence in 1947. The region became part of the new Gujarat state in 1960, when Bombay state was split into Gujarat and Maharashtra states.

There were altogether 193 states of varying size and importance, of which 14 exercised independent jurisdiction, while the rest were more or less under British administration. The eight states of the first class were Junagadh, Nawanagar, Bhavnagar, Porbandar, Dhrangadhra, Morvi, Gondal, and Jafarabad. The agency had an area of 20,882 square miles, and in 1901 the population was 2,329,196. The headquarters of the political agent (who oversaw the affairs of the princely states on behalf of the Governor-General) was at Rajkot, in the centre of the peninsula; this was also the site of the Rajkumar College, where the sons of the rulers were educated. There was a similar school for girasias, or chiefs of lower rank, at Gondal.

The estimated gross revenue of the several states was 1,278,000 rupees in 1911; total tribute (payable to the British, the Gaekwar of Baroda and the nawab of Junagadh), was 70,000 rupees. An excellent system of metre-gauge railways was built at the cost of the leading states. Maritime trade was also very active, the chief ports being Porbandar, Mangrol and Veraval. In 1903–1904 the total sea-borne exports were valued at 1,300,000 rupees, and the imports at 1,120,000. The progressive prosperity of Kathiawar received a shock from the famine of 1899-1900, which was felt everywhere with extreme severity; the population of the agency decreased 15% in the decade 1891-1901 due to the results of famine.