It was founded at Kanpur in 1894 in the first annual convention of Nadwatul Ulema ("Organisation of Scholars") by Muhammad Ali Mungeri, Ashraf Ali Thanwi, Mahmud-ul-Hasan and Shibli Nomani with an idea to counter the challenge of western education. The institution was intended to be a modified version of Deoband.
Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama - Wikipedia