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''Bangladesh forms the East Bengal region in the Indian subcontinent, located in the fertile Ganges-Brahmaputra basin, where civilization dates back more than 4,300 years. The early history of the region featured a succession of city states and Indian empires, internal squabbling, and a tussle between Hinduism and Buddhism for dominance. Islam arrived in late-classical antiquity. The spread of Sufism, coupled with agrarian reform and expansion under Muslim rule, lead to the process of conversion and emergence of the Bengali Muslims.[1] Christianity arrived during the late-Middle Ages with European merchants and missionaries.
The rich and fertile Bengal delta was the crossroads of ancient and historic trade routes connecting India, China and Southeast Asia and flourished in maritime trade with the Middle East, East Africa and Europe. Bengal served as a historic commercial hub for centuries and was home to rich trading centres in Wari-Bateshwar, Mahasthangarh, Chandraketugarh, Vikrampura, Sonargaon, Bhitagarh, Somapura, Bagerhat, Jahangir Nagar, Chittagong, Hoogly, Satgaon and Calcutta.
The borders of present-day Bangladesh were established during the British-partition of Bengal and India in 1947, when the region became East Pakistan, part of the newly formed state of Pakistan. It was separated from West Pakistan by 1,600 km (994 mi) of Indian territory. Due to political, economic and linguistic discrimination, popular agitation and civil disobedience grew against the Pakistani state. Led by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Bengali people increasingly demanded self-determination, culminating in the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.
The new state- the People’s Republic of Bangladesh- was founded as a constitutional, secular, democratic, multiparty, parliamentary republic. After independence, Bangladesh endured widespread poverty and famine, as well as political turmoil and military coups. The restoration of democracy in 1991 has been followed by economic progress and relative political calm, although the country’s two main political parties- the Awami League and the BNP- remain highly polarized and often at confrontational loggerheads.''

Sourced http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Bangladesh where further information can be found.