Fall of the Mughal Empire v1.c15.s8.12

v1.c15.s8.12

For liberating the Emperor from Safdar Jang’s bondage, the first necessary step was to clear the palace of the wazir’s officers and to surround the sovereign’s person with loyal troops and nobles antagonistic to the wazir. Events quite naturally worked to this end. The treacherous murder of Jāvid Khan had given to the nobles whose high rank and independence might raise them to rivalry with the wazir, a reasonable ground for refusing to attend Court unless they could enter the fort with strong body guards,—which Safdar Jang had forbidden. All lesser nobles outside the wazir’s party had been impoverished by dismissal from their posts and loss of income from their jāgirs and therefore could not appear in public in becoming equipment. Thus, the Courts now held by Ahmad Shah were attended only by the agents and underlings of Safdar Jang. The grandeur and concourse of the Delhi darbār was gone. The Emperor keenly resented this falling off in splendour, and the higher society of Delhi and the general public were behind him in his desire to end Safdar Jang's usurped control over the Crown. All things being ready, the Emperor secretly looked out for a partisan of his own to replace Shujā-ud-daulah as Chief of Artillery and ex-officio commander of the palace defences. Noble after noble shrank from accepting a post which would be a challenge to the all-powerful wazir, but in the end a willing instrument was found. Then the blow was struck, and in the following way.