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when he laid the foundation of the Hyderabad city. |
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Hyderabad History during Mughal Attack
Mughal Attack
Fall of Qutub Shahi and the rise of Asaf Jahis
Abul Hasan Tana Shah was the last king of Golconda. It was during his reign that the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb after a siege of 8 months was able to storm into the fortress when the gates were opened by a traitor in 1687. Abul Hasan was taken prisoner first to Bidar and then to Daulatabad (Aurangabad) where he died in prison after 12 years of captivity.
On September 22, 1687, Golconda was conquered by Aurangzeb and became a part of the six Mughal provinces in the Deccan. Mahabat Khan who was initially the Commander of the Golconda army, switched sides and joined the Mughal camp. He was appointed the Governor of Golconda-Hyderabad state, by Aurangzeb.
Asaf Jahi Dynasty - Nizams
1724 - 1948
Though Aurangzeb tried to consolidate his authority over Hyderabad, the city began to lose its importance. The final nail was struck when the capital of the new province was shifted from Hyderabad to Aurangabad, which became the new headquarters of the Mughals in the Deccan.
In 1713, the Mughal Emperor, Farruksiyar, appointed a twenty six year old warrior Qamaruddin as the new Governor of Deccan. Qamruddin was the grandson of Chin Qilij Khan, Aurangzeb's brave commander who lost his life during the siege of Golconda. The young Governor proved to be an able administrator and earned the title of Nizam-ul-Mulk or the Governor of the Kingdom.
In October 1724, Nizam-ul-Mulk declared himself Subedar or Governor of the six Deccan provinces - Aurangabad, Bidar, Bijapur, Berar, Adilabad and Hyderabad.
Between the fall of the Qutub Shahi dynasty and the rise of the Asaf Jahis dynasty, the city of Hyderabad steadily deteriorated. Aurangzeb's only contribution to the city was the completion of the Mecca Masjid in 1693. In 1763, after a gap of nearly seventy six years Hyderabad regained its lost glory when Nizam Ali Khan, the second Asaf Jahi ruler moved the capital back from Aurangabad to Hyderabad.
Nizam (Urdu: نظام ), a shortened version of Nizam-ul-Mulk (Urdu: نظامالملک ), meaning Administrator of the Realm, was the title of the native sovereigns of Hyderabad state, India, since 1719, belonging to the Asaf Jah dynasty. The dynasty was founded by Mir Qamar-ud-Din Siddiqi, a viceroy of the Deccan under the Mughal emperors from 1713 to 1721 and who intermittently ruled under the title Asaf Jah in 1724, and After Aurangzeb's death in 1707, the Mogul empire crumbled and the viceroy in Hyderabad, the young Asaf Jah, declared himself independent.
By the middle of 18th century, the scions, known as The Nizams, had quickly surpassed the Mughals ruling a vast dominion of about 125,000,000 acres (510,000 km2) in south India. They were among the wealthiest people in the world. Seven Nizams ruled Hyderabad for two centuries until Indian independence in 1947.
The Asaf Jahi rulers were great patrons of literature, art, architecture,culture, Jewelry collection and rich food.
The Nizams ruled the state until its annexation into the Indian Union in 1948.
The Asaf Jahi dynasty originated in the region around Samarkand, but the family came to India from Baghdad in the late 17th century. Shaikh Mir Ismail (Alam Shaikh Siddiqi) Alam ul-Ulema,son of Ayub younus Salim, son of Abdul Rehman Shaikh Azizan Siddiqi, fourteenth in direct decent from Sheikh Shihab-ud-din Siddiqi Suhrawardy, of Suharwada in Kurdistan, a celebrated [Sufi] mystic, or dervish, who was himself a direct descendant paternal of Abu Bakr siddiq, maternal (first) a lady of the family of Mir Hamadan (descendant of prophet Mohammed ) a distinguished Sayyid of Samarkand.
The first Nizams ruled on behalf of the Mughal emperors. But, after the death of Aurangazeb, the Nizams split away from the Mughals to form their kingdom. When the British achieved paramountcy over India, the Nizams were allowed to continue to rule their princely states. The Nizams retained power over Hyderabad State until its annexation into the Indian Union in 1948, after Indian independence.
The Asaf Jah dynasty had only seven rulers; however there was a period of 13 years after the rule of the first Nizam when three of his sons (Nasir Jung, Muzafar Jung and Salabath Jung) ruled. They were not officially recognized as the rulers.
A legend about the first Nizam states that, on one of his hunting trips he was offered some kulchas (an Indian bread) by a holy man and was asked to eat as many as he could. The Nizam could eat seven kulchas and the holy man then prophesied that seven generations of his family would rule the state.
The Nizams, by an honored Hyderabad tradition that no Nizam has ever left India no matter how good a reason might exist for doing so, they believed, "the Sovereign is too precious to his people ever to leave India.".
Ever since Hyderabad stood aloof from the great first war of Indian Independence of 1857 while betraying many Indians and also at time acting against those who opposed the British such as Haidar Ali and Tipu Sultan, its Royal Family have been accorded by British Royalty special honors and the Nizam was given the official status of Faithful Ally.
Seven Asaf Jah Rulers - Seven Nizams
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