Asaf Jah I.

Nizam ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah I.

Qamar ud-Din, Chin Qilich Khan, Khan-i-Dauran, Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah I. (born August 11, 1671 , † May 22, 1748 near Burhanpur ), was an Indian nobleman at the Mughal court who, after He had won the governorship of the Deccan in 1720, became the founder of a Muslim dynasty that ruled the princely state of Hyderabad until 1948.

Origin and youth

Alam Shaikh came from Samarkand in the country of Bukhara . The older of his two sons Khwaja Abid came in 1654/5 on the way to Mecca through India, where he presented at the court of the Mughals. On his return trip in 1657, in the war of succession that broke out, he sided with Aurangzeb , who promoted him several times and finally bestowed the title of Khan . He later became governor ( subedar ) and carried the title Qilich Khan. He fell during the siege of Golkonda on Jan. 30, 1687. He had five sons, the eldest was Shahab ud-Din (= Ghazi ud-Din Firuz Jung ). His first wife was Safia Khanam, daughter of Sadullah Khan, the vizier of Shah Jahan , she became the mother of:

Qamar ud-Din, the later Asaf Jah I. At the age of 6, he received a mansab of 4,000 with 450 mounted men from the emperor , which was increased to 5,000 the next year. Further ranks were raised during his childhood. Since 1685 he was allowed to call himself Khan, from 1690 Chin Qilich Khan. In 1700 he became governor ( subedar ) of the Karnatik and Faujdar (a kind of police chief and judge) for Talikota . Two years later he became governor of Bijapur , and he received his first sarpech (turban ornament set with jewels) and a horse and an elephant. With the appointment as garrison commander ( thanedar ) of Sanpagon a further increase in rank went hand in hand.

Under Bahadur Shah and Jahandar Shah

After Aurangzeb's death, Prince Azam tried to get him on his side by appointing him governor of the Burhānpur trading post, whose walls he had reinforced, and the title of Khan-i-Dauran . After Azam had fallen, Prince Muazzam, the new Shah Alam Bahadur († 1712), appointed him to his court in 1705, confirmed all his ranks and titles and appointed him governor of Oudh and Faujdar for Lucknow . After a while, however, Chin Qilich Khan withdrew from politics and lived modestly.

At first he supported Azim ush Shan in the question of succession to the throne , but was then raised in rank by the winner Jahandar Shah . Within the Sunni Turani faction (with their fighters) he was influential during the brief reigns of Jahander and Farrukh Siyar.

Under Farrukh Siyar

The weak but cruel ruler Farrukh Siyar (1713-19) gave him the title Nizam -ul-Mulk (Urdu: نظام‌الملک) and made him governor of the six provinces of the Deccan and Faujdar of the Carnatic in 1713. During his first term in office in Aurangabad , the Nizam managed to organize tax and tribute collection more efficiently, as well as to keep the ever-advancing Marathas in check. As early as 1715 he was called back to the imperial court, where he remained neutral to the outside world. He did not like the intriguing atmosphere at court under the control of the Sayyid brothers. For his subsistence, and to remove his troops from the capital, soon after the fall of Farrukh, he was made Faujdar for Muradabad and governor of Malwa .

Dekkan from 1720

In order to avoid an intrigue directed against him by the Sayyids, he went back to the Deccan on his own initiative and defeated the deputy appointed by them, a nephew of Hussain Ali Khan, in the Battle of Pandher (June 19, 1720). The new emperor Muhammad Shah (r. 1719-48), the head of Hussain, marinated in salt, had been sent as an accompaniment to a friendly letter, there was nothing else left but the new conditions by Firman rubber stamp. Two years later he was called to Delhi as a vizier at the end of 1722 and was also to become governor of Gujarat , which he visited until July 1723. Unpopular with the Hofschranzen because of his severity and thrift, he had already had enough of their intrigues in November 1723 and resigned from his office. He himself went hunting on December 18th, "discovered" a Marathi invasion (which he had organized) and set up camp for some time near Sehor.

He set out again, against the will of the ruler, to take over the districts of the Deccan. In June 1724 he came back to Aurangabad, where Mubariz Khan , a former follower of Hussain Ali, had represented him. On October 11, 1724 there was a battle near Shakarkheldar in Berar , with the governor's troops being defeated. The place was renamed Fathkhelda ("Village of Victory"). The nizam went to safe Hyderabad, where he arrived on January 16, 1725.

In the meantime, Delhi had changed its mind and issued a firman to reinstate Nizam-ul-Mulk as governor. However, this news came too late. The Nizam, who now controlled a third of the state's income and nearly three quarters of the Mughals' war material, thanked them in a submissive letter and pledged eternal loyalty to the Mughal emperors. His descendants continued this practice, never declaring themselves independent until the last Mughal was exiled after the Sepoy Uprising in 1858 . All appointments for offices and jagirs pronounced by the nizam, as well as the minting of coins (up to under Asaf Jah III. ) For and in the name of the ruler in Delhi, even when he had become completely powerless after the capture of the city in 1803. The Nizam himself, known as the governor with Sipah Salar ("military leader"), always saw himself as a subject ( fidwi ), although he betrayed his master three times during his career. In Aurangabad he was and remained the de facto second man in the empire.

The six provinces of the Deccan stretched between the Narmada River in the north and Rameswaram in the south, and from Poona to the Bay of Bengal, and thus bordered the areas of interest of the East India Company and the French on the Coromandel Coast . The area was administratively divided into 93 districts ( sarkar ) and 1228 paraganas , for each of which a competent official was appointed who received a fief for his maintenance. These officials had military, legal and - most importantly - fiscal tasks at the same time. The respective ranks ( mansab ) within the ruling class were important , of which several often came together. The due taxes ( peshkash ) were still delivered to the Mughal court, but not without keeping a substantial part for themselves.

Apart from his enemies at court, there were problems with the Marathas , who in 1719 had been granted the right to raise tribute ( chauth ) and taxes in the Mughal countries. The officials appointed for this purpose ( kamavisdar or gumashta ) were happy to be supported by troops. Nizam-ul-Mulk tried to prevent this practice for his areas through direct payments. At times he supported the pretender Shambhuji . In negotiations after the Battle of Palkhed near Daulatabad (March 11, 1727), he had almost reached his goal, but the tax collectors of the Marathas managed to get their ruler Shahu to refuse and instead declare war on the Nizam again. In the Treaty of Mungi-Shevgaon (March 6/22, 1728) the Nizam only managed to ensure that cash payments were made for the province of Hyderabad. The fighting against the Peshwa Baji Rao I dragged on in Gujarat and Malwa for almost a decade. After winning a battle in front of Bhopal in January 1738, the Peshwa achieved recognition of his rule in Malwa in the Treaty of Sironj (Jan. 17). The nizam, although on the losing side, had no personal losses.

At the request of the beleaguered emperor, he went to Delhi in the summer of 1737, where he was received most venerably. Asaf Jah not only received the highest possible title , but also a charqab, a precious vest, elaborately embroidered with gold. First he was given the task of taking action against the Marathas in Malwa. At the battle of Karnal (February 24, 1737) against Nadir Shah , he refused allegiance to the Mughal for his 8,000 troops. In 1738 he played an intermediary role with Nadir Shah in order to obtain his withdrawal. More honors and titles followed, although he had little success in the fight against the Marathas or against Nadir Shah. He finally left Delhi on August 7, 1740 and reached Burhanpur on November 19.

Away from Daulatabad today

His second son, Nasir Jung, was appointed as deputy in the Deccan by his father when he went to Delhi in 1737. After Baji Rao's death (March 1740), he saw the opportunity to become governor himself. Asaf Jah reached Aurangabad, which had been abandoned by his rebellious son, in March 1741. Negotiations with the advancing father were unsuccessful. After some fighting and flight, he was captured on August 2nd, 1741 outside Aurangabad after a battle imprisoned for some time. Asaf Jah consolidated his rule over the next few years.

A Marathen invasion in Arcot , whose prince Trichonoply (today: Tiruchirappalli ) had annihilated, was the reason for a campaign in 1743, which the Raja of Tanjore paid with 4 million Rs . In January 1744 an advantageous peace agreement was reached, but he has been ailing since his return. In 1746 an insurgent Raja was expelled from Balkonda . A devastating famine hit the Deccan in 1747. His mausoleum is in the Daulatabad fort .

The almost 30 years of his administration in the Deccan were a peaceful time for Indian standards at the time, especially since the region had had little peace and quiet under the frequently changing governors in the previous 40 years since the invasion of Aurangzeb. During his time Nizamabad was founded, the city wall around Hyderabad and the Harsul Canal through Aurangabad were built. During his life he promoted Muslim scholars and poets; himself he wrote numerous poems in the court language Persian, which were collected in two volumes.

Succession

Asaf Jah I. had six daughters and six sons. A grandson and four sons fought over the successor. None of his descendants regained their military or diplomatic skill.

It officiated:

1. June 1, 1748 to December 16, 1750: Nasir Jung Mir Ahmad (* 1712) the second son. After his release, his father's deputy in Aurangabad again. 1749 Nizam ud-Daula, shot by Himmat Khan, Pashtun chief of Kurnool on behalf of the French
2. December 16, 1750 to February 13, 1751: Muhyi ud-Din Muzaffar Jung Hidayat (grandson), allied with the French. Murdered on the way to the enthronement in Hyderabad after a battle at Lakkaredi-palli against the troops of his Pashtun ally.
3. as usurper: February 1751 - † October 16, 1752: Mir Muhammed Pannah (= Ghazi ud-Din; eldest son.) Representative of his father as vizier in Delhi, when Nasir Jung was attacked in 1737. Claim supported by the Peshwar. Poisoned by stepmother in Aurangabad.
4. February 13, 1751 to July 8, 1762: Mir Ali Salabat Jung (* 1718). The third son, brought into office with (paid) French support after the murder of Muzaffar Jung. Recognized in Delhi, with the titles Asaf ud-Daula and Amir-ul-mamalik. Deposed by his brother, captured (July 6, 1762) in the fort of Bidar, murdered there in 1763 (or died in 1764?).
5. July 8, 1762 to August 6, 1803: Ali Khan Asaf Jah II. (1734–1803, the youngest son, = Nizam Ali ). Since 1759 with far-reaching powers. After his success against the Marathas off Poona (peace January 2, 1762), took the opportunity to overthrow his brother on return (installed by the British).

The Nawabs of the small state Baoni (300 km²) founded in 1784 are also descendants of Asaf Jah.

literature

• Henry George Briggs: The Nizam. His history and relations with the British government. 2 volumes. Bernard Quaritch, London 1861, ( digitized volume 1 ; digitized volume 2 ).
• Omar Khalidi: Haydarabad State under the Nizams 1724-1948. A bibliography of monographic and periodical literature (= Haydarabad Historical Society. Monograph Series. 2). Haydarabad Historical Society, Wichita KS 1985, ISBN 0-930811-00-3 .
• Muhammed A. Nayeem: Mughal Administration of Deccan Under Nizamul Mulk Asaf Jah. (1720-48 AD). Jaico, Bombay et al. 1985.
• Muhammed A. Nayeem: The splendor of Hyderabad. The last phase of an oriental culture, 1591-1948 AD Revised edition. Hyderabad Publishing, Hyderabad 2002, ISBN 81-85492-20-4 .
• Sarojini Regani: Nizam-British Relations, 1724-1857. sn (Distributed by Booklovers), Hyderabad 1963, (Concept Publishing Company, New Delhi 1988, ISBN 81-7022-195-1 ).
• Nawwāb Ṣamṣām-ud-Daula Shāh Nawāz Khān and his son ʿAbdulḥayy: The Maāthir-ul-Umarā. Being biographies of the Muhammadan and Hindu Officers of the Timurid Sovereigns of India from 1500 to about 1780 AD translated into English by Henry Beveridge, revised, annotated and completed by Baini Prashad. Volume 2. The Asiatic Society, Calcutta 1952, pp. 409-407, (Reprinted edition. Ibid. 2003, ISBN 81-7236-146-7 ).
• Yusuf Husain Khan: Nizāmu'l-Mulk, Āsaf Jāh I. Founder of the Haiderabad state. Basel Mission Press, Mangalore 1936.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ 79 years old according to the Muslim lunar years. According to legend, * 1644, died at the age of 104.
2. ↑ See the Lexicon Maāthir-ul-Umarā, Vol. II, p. 410.
3. ↑ fallen and blinded on Feb. 27, 1719, strangled 2 months later
4. ↑ De facto, since viziers of the Mughals did not give up their office for life. In fact, he was promoted pro forma to the honorary post of Wakil-i Mutlaq . Nayeem (2002), pp. 84f
5. ↑ 20 ° 13 'N, 76 27' E, = Sakharkheda, about 55 km from Aurangabad. Nizam losses: 3 officers dead, a handful of men. On the opposite side Mubariz Khan and two of his sons and 3,000 men killed.
6. ↑ 29.68 ° N, 76.98 ° E
7. ↑ Nadir Shah is said to have offered him the throne of Delhi in 1739, disgusted by the weakness and corruption of Muhammad Shah. Cambridge History of India, 1928, Vol. IV, Chap. XIII, p. 385
8. ↑ 18 ° 40'38 "N, 78 ° 6'11" E
9. ↑ cf. en: Aurangabad Near Water System

See also

Commons : Asaf Jah I  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

• Mughal Empire
• Hyderabad (State)