Later Mughals v1.c6.s2: Sec. 2.—Measures Taken on Alamgir's Death.
Later Mughals v1.c6.s2
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Sec. 2.—Measures Taken on Alamgir's Death.
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As soon as the Emperor had breathed his last, the Wazir, Asad Khan, known as Amir-ul-umara, sent for all the nobles. He bound them by oaths to act in union while Sarbarah Khan the kotwal or officer in charge of the camp police was sent out to preserve order. Meanwhile the Qazi-ul-qazzat with other learned and holy men prepared the body for the tomb. Letters were sent in all haste to Prince Azam Shah by Asad Khan and by the Prince's sister, Zinat-un-nissa, requesting him to return without a moment's delay. [Kamwar, Jangnama].
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On the second night after the Emperor's death Azam Shah arrived, accompanied by a few of his chief men. He was met and escorted in by all the nobles, except Asad Khan and Hamid-ud-din Khan, who were engaged within the imperial enclosure (gulal-bar) in guarding the corpse and performing ceremonies of mourning. The nobles proffered the usual condolences and congratulations. Azam Shah wept when he first saw his father's corpse, and in the presence of such old and faithful servants as Hamid-ud-din Khan and Amir Khan, called aloud his father's name like the poor do when they mourn. On the 6th March 1707 the body was sent off in charge of Hamid-ud-din Khan to Daulatabad, about 10 miles north-west of Aurangabad, and there buried, as Alamgir had requested, in the courtyard surrounding the tomb of the saint Shaikh Zain-ul-haq, Azam Shah assisting to carry the bier as far as the principal entrance of the camp. The tomb is about 4 miles west of Daulatabad. It has a platform of red stone 3 gaz long and 2½ gaz wide. The place was named Khuldabad, and Bahadur Shah allotted several villages yielding a revenue of Rs. 50,000 a year from parganas in sarkar Daulatabad, for the feeding of the poor and other expenses. In 1121 these villages were formed into a new pargana called Khuldabad. [Iradat ; K. K. ii. 566, 649 ; Kamwar ; M.M. 7.]
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The funeral ceremonies being completed and the first days of this book. The Persian text is also contained in Fraser MS. 118= Bodleian No. 1923, f. 13a.
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of mourning having elapsed, Azam Shah on the 10th Zul Hijja 1118 (14th March 1707), the *Id-uz-zuha*, ascended the throne with the usual ceremonial. In the tent used as public audience hall a pulpit was erected, whence Shaikh Abdul Khaliq read the *khutba*, or public prayer for the sovereign's welfare, in the name of Azam Shah, by the style and title of Abul-fayaz, Qutb-ud-din, Muhammad Azam Shah, Ghazi. The chief officials and commanders, nearly all of whom were present with the late Emperor in camp, submitted to Azam Shah in a body. Some were really attached to him, such as Mutallib Khan, Tarbiyat Khan, Amanatullah Khan and some others. The rest were indifferent. The leaders of the Mughals, however, a very important and influential body, held aloof, Ghazi-ud-din Khan Firuz Jang, then subahdar of Berar and his son Chin Qilich Khan (afterwards Nizam-ul-mulk) evaded taking part in the approaching campaign; while Muhammad Amin Khan, cousin of Firuz Jang, although he deserted Kam Bakhsh and started for Hindustan with Azam Shah, did not proceed further than a stage or two beyond Burhanpur and thence returned to the Dakhin. Azam Shah was in reality angry at Khan Firuz Jang's refusal to march with him, but thought it wisest to dissemble, and at that chief's request appointed him to the charge of the Aurangabad province and his son, Chin Qilich Khan, to that of Burhanpur. [Iradat 11, K. K. ii. 566, M.M. 8, Dil. 162b, Kamwar, Jangnama.]
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One story [*Masir-ul-umara*, ii. 877] is, that when Zulfiqar Khan joined near Aurangabad, Azam Shah asked him for advice. "Leave your wives and family at Daulatabad, as Alamgir did," replied Zulfiqar Khan, "and give them money for the expenditure of two months. Do not march by the pass of Fardapur but by that of Dewal Ghat, thus giving Khan Firuz Jang a chance of joining." The Prince, in his usual haughty way, said that if there were a real enemy in front, it would be right to leave his family behind. But Muazzam's character was well known; he was not another Dara Shukoh. His (Azam Shah's) own special troops were sufficient; those of the late Emperor were of no use, except to shout *Mubarak* and *Salamat*. Why should he leave his direct road for the sake of obtaining the aid of a blind man? [Khan Firuz Jang had been totally blind for twenty years.]
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From the beginning great dissatisfaction was caused by the Prince's refusal to give promotion or grants of money. A great number of personal favourites, new and untried men, were brought into the service much to the disgust of the older officers. The late Emperor's Wazir, even, Asad Khan, was so pressed by his soldiers for their pay,* that it was only by a loan of a lakh of Rupees from Chin Qilich Khan that he was able to appease them.
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As Asad Khan and his son Zulfiqar Khan (at Alamgir's death away on duty in the south beyond the Krishna†) play a principal part in Azam Shah's contest for sovereignty and continue to be important personages until the accession of Muhammad Farrukh-siyar, it will be well to give here some account of them. Asad Khan (Md. Ibrahim) was the son of Zulfiqar Khan Qaramanlu who took refuge in India from the enmity of the sovereign of Iran. Asad Khan was born about 1631 and entered the imperial service in the 27th year of Shah Jahan (1654). In Alamgir's reign he was long second Bakhshi, then deputy of the Wazir from the 13th year (1670), and in the 19th year (1676) was himself made Wazir. From the 27th year (1684) he served continuously in the Dakhin. His son Zulfiqar Khan (Md. Ismail) was born in 1657, his mother being Mihr-un-nissa Begam, daughter of Asaf Khan, Yamin-ud-daulah. He was thus highly connected on the mother's side. He received his first appointment in the 11th year of Alamgir (1668) and in 1677 married the daughter of Shaista Khan the Amir-ul-umara. At the same time he received the title of Itiqad Khan. In 1689 A.D., as a reward for taking the fort of Raheri and along with it the sons of Sambha Mahratta and his whole family, he was made Zulfiqar Khan. In 1698 he took the Mahratta stronghold of Jinji and was made Nusrat Jang; and in 1702 he succeeded Bahramand Khan as Mir Bakhshi. His last service had been the bringing of reinforcements in 1705, when Alamgir was sore pressed during the siege of Wakinkhera fort which was held by Parya Naik. But envious tongues raised doubts in Alamgir’s suspicious mind by repeating the gossip of the camp and by quoting, in allusion to Zulfiqar Khan’s title, the saying “There is no young man like Ali and no sword like Zulfiqar” (Ali’s sword). To counteract this supposed pre-eminence, Alamgir forthwith began to promote nobles of the Turani party. But at the Emperor’s death these two men Asad Khan and Zulfiqar Khan were incontestably the first in the Empire both in rank and influence. They threw in their lot with Azam Shah. [M.U. i. 310, ii. 93 et seq.]
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∗ During the last decade of Aurangzib's reign, his soldiers' pay used to be usually in arrears for three years. [J. S.]
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† Dil. 158a. and b. [J. S.]
Muhammad Kam Bakhsh and His Movements
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As already stated, Kam Bakhsh had marched for Bijapur a short time before his father’s death. His escort consisted of Mughal troops under the command of Muhammad Amin Khan and others. The Prince had not got beyond Parenda, about 75 miles south-east of Ahmadnagar, when he heard of his father’s death. The Mughal leaders and their men left him without asking his permission, and returned to Ahmadnagar to join Azam Shah. This led to the plunder of much of the Prince’s baggage. In great disorder he hastened on till he was within sight of Bijapur. [K. K. 569 ; Kamwar.]
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For several days Sayyid Niyaz Khan, nephew and deputy of the late subahdar, Chin Qilich Khan, kept the fort gates closed, and made difficulties about delivering possession. After two weeks a settlement was come to and Niyaz Khan gave up the fort. The Prince took up his quarters within it. Some say that while the Prince was still encamped outside Bijapur, Zulfiqar Khan Nusrat Jang, who had been in pursuit of the Mahrattas, and was only a few miles away, on hearing of Alamgir’s death, conceived the project of capturing Kam Bakhsh and delivering him to Azam Shah. [Kamwar ; Iradat 12.] There was an old quarrel between Prince Kam Bakhsh and Zulfiqar Khan dating from the time of the siege of Jinji in the year 1693. This idea was only abandoned in deference to the advice of Rao Dalpat Bundela, an old and experienced man highly esteemed by Zulfiqar Khan. The Khan resumed his march and joined Azam Shah and that Prince, though so much stronger, did not interfere with his younger brother's independence. By some accounts Kam Bakhsh wished to join his brother but his offer was refused. Meanwhile Kam Bakhsh assumed all the attributes of independent sovereignty, granted rank (*mansab*) and titles (*khitab*) appointed a minister and other chief officers of state, assumed the regal style of Dinpanah, ‘Defender of the Faith’, and coined money in his own name. [K. K. 569-570.]