Indore, city, central India, in Madhya Pradesh State. It is the commercial center of an agricultural region in which wheat, millet, corn, cotton, opium, and oilseed are produced. In the city are factories that manufacture cotton textiles, hosiery, chemicals, furniture, and metal products. The city is the site of several palaces and two institutions of higher learning. Founded in 1715, Indore rose to prominence under the Maratha dynasty of Holkars. In 1818 it was made a British protectorate and capital of the princely state of Indore, which merged with Madhya Bharat in 1948. Indore became part of the new Madhya Pradesh State in 1956. Population (1991) 1,091,674.
