The
Nawabs of Bengal were the hereditary
nazims or
subadars (provincial governors) of the
subahA Subah was a province of the Mughal Empire in South Asia. The governor of a subah was known as a subahdar, which later became subedar to refer to an officer in the Indian Army...
(province) of
BengalBengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
during the
Mughal ruleThe Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
and the de-facto rulers of the province.
History
From 1717 until 1880, three successive Islamic dynasties — the Nasiri, Afshar and Najafi — ruled Bengal:
The first dynasty, the Nasiri, ruled from 1717 until 1740. The founder of the Nasiri, Murshid Quli Jafar Khan, was born a poor Deccani Oriya
BrahminBrahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
before being sold into slavery and bought by one Haji Shafi Isfahani, a
PersianThe Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
merchant from Isfahan who converted him to Islam. He entered the service of the Emperor Aurangzeb and rose through the ranks before becoming
NazimA nazim is the coordinator of cities and towns in Pakistan. Nazim is the title in Urdu of the chief elected official of a local government in Pakistan, such as a district, tehsil, union council, or village council....
of Bengal in 1717, a post he held until his death in 1727. He in turn was succeeded by his grandson and son-in law until his grandson was killed in battle and succeeded by
Alivardi KhanAli Vardi Khan was the Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa during 1740 - 1756. He toppled the Nasiri Dynasty of Bengal and took power as Nawab.-Early life:...
of the Afshar Dynasty in 1740.
The second dynasty, the Afshar, ruled from 1740 to 1757. They were succeeded by the third and final dynasty to rule Bengal, the Najafi, when Siraj Ud Daula, the last of the Afshar rulers was killed at the
Battle of PlasseyThe Battle of Plassey , 23 June 1757, was a decisive British East India Company victory over the Nawab of Bengal and his French allies, establishing Company rule in South Asia which expanded over much of the Indies for the next hundred years...
in 1757.
Under the Mughals
BengalBengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
subah was one of the wealthiest parts of the Mughal empire. As the Mughal empire began to decline, the Nawabs grew in power, although nominally sub-ordinate to the Mughal emperor. They wielded great power in their own right and ruled the
subah as independent rulers for all practical purposes by the 1600s.
Defeat By Maratha
Maratha After defeating Mughals in Delhi now turn towards Bengal, the first invasion of Maratha on Bengal took place in 1742 under general Bhaskar Pant who was general in army of Bhonsale Maratha. Initial stages in which Maratha plundered the army of Ali Vardi Khan but reinforcements allow him to escape a humiliating defeat but till that time Maratha has captured Murshidabad, plunder Hugli and committed excess atrocities on the population of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa irrespective of their religion. The atrocities in Bengal is considered the worst atrocities ever by any Army in India which included arson, gang rape, damaging crops etc. The first invasion was expelled after the defeat of Raghuji Bhonsle Army was defeated in Katwa. Second invasion took place in 1743AD, the army of Maratha was much larger this time but the rivalry between Raghuji Bhonsle and Peshwa Baji Rao failed this invasion. Ali vardi khan promised Peshwa 20 lacs for driving Raghuji Bhonsle out in which Peshwa Army was successful. Raghuji Bhonsle wanted to establish independent empire apart from the Peshwa this was the main reason of rivalry between them. Ali Vardi Khan offered Peshwa the chauth of Bengal apart from the 20lacs as a tribute to Baji Rao. But soon maratha buried their differences Peshwa and Raghuji bhonsle signed the deal according to which Peshwa will get Malwa, Agra, Allahabad, Ajmer, and parts of Bihar and Raghuji will get rest of Oudh, Bihar and Orissa. Maratha continued their attacks and in 1751 Ali vardi khan surrender before Maratha.
The treaty includes 20 lacs as chauth for Bengal(includes both west Bengal and Bangladesh) and 12 lacs for Bihar(including Jharkhand) after this Maratha promised never to cross the Boundary of Nawab of Bengal territory.
Baji Rao thus is hailed as the greatest Maratha chief after
Shivaji because of his success in subjecting Muslim rulers of east India in states such as Bengal, Bihar and Orissa to the Maratha rule.
Under British Rule
After the Nawab Siraj Ud Daulah (the last independent ruler of Bengal) was defeated by the British forces of Sir Robert Clive at
PalashiThe Battle of Plassey , 23 June 1757, was a decisive British East India Company victory over the Nawab of Bengal and his French allies, establishing Company rule in South Asia which expanded over much of the Indies for the next hundred years...
in 1757, the Nawabs became puppet rulers dependent on the British. The Nawab who replaced Siraj-ud-daula was
Mir Jafar-Notes:# "Riyazu-s-salatin", Ghulam Husain Salim - a reference to the appointment of Mohanlal can be found # "Seir Muaqherin", Ghulam Husain Tabatabai - a reference to the conspiracy can be found...
. He was personally led to the throne by Robert Clive after triumph of the British in battle. He briefly tried to re-assert his power by allying with the Dutch, but this plan was ended by the
Battle of ChinsurahThe Battle of Chinsurah took place near Chinsurah, India on 25 November 1759 during the Seven Years' War between a force of British troops mainly of the British East India Company and a force of the Dutch East India Company which had been invited by the Nawab of Bengal Mir Jafar to help him eject...
. After the grant of the
Diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa by the Mughal emperor
Shah Alam IIShah Alam II , also known as Ali Gauhar, was a Mughal emperor of India. A son of Alamgir II, he was exiled to Allahabad in December 1759 by Ghazi-ud-Din, who appointed Shah Jahan III as the emperor. Later, he was nominated as the emperor by Ahmad Shah.Shah Alam II was considered the only and...
to the British East India Company in 1765 and the appointment of Hastings by the East India Company as their first Governor General of Bengal in 1771, the Nawabs were deprived of any real power, and finally in 1793, when the
nizamat (governorship) was also taken away from them, they remained as the mere pensioners of the British East India Company. In 1880,
Mansur Ali KhanMansur Ali Khan may refer to:*Mansoor Ali Khan , a South Indian actor who is prominent in Tamil films*Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, Indian cricketer; he was also 9th and last Nawab of Pataudi*Mansur Ali Khan , 1830–1884...
, the last Nawab of Bengal was forced to relinquish his title. His son,
Nawab Sayyid Hassan Ali Mirza Khan BahadurSayyid Hassan Ali Mirza Khan Bahadur, GCIE was the first Nawab of Murshidabad and the eldest son of Mansur Ali Khan, the last Nawab of Bengal. Educated at La Martiniere College in Lucknow and in England, he was appointed heir to his father's titles in 1873...
, who succeeded him, was given the lesser title of Nawab of Murshidabad by the British. Hassan's descendants continued the title until 1969 when the last Nawab of the dynasty died; since then the title has been in dispute.
The Nawabs of Bengal (1717-1880)
Lineage
| Nawab |
Reign |
Shuja-ud-Din Muhammad KhanShuja-ud-Din Muhammad Khan was the second Nawab of Bengal. He married Zainab un-nisa Begum, the daughter of Murshid Quli Khan and after the death of his father-in-law on June 30, 1727, he became the Nawab Nazim of Bengal Subah .-Early life:Born at Burhanpur, Deccan, as Mirza Shuja ud-din Muhammad...
1727–1739 |
| Sarfaraz Khan -Early life:Born Mirza Asadullah, sometime after 1700, he ascended as the Nawab of Bengal under the title Mutaman ul-Mulk, Ala ud-Daula, Nawab Sarfaraz Khan Bahadur, Haidar Jang [Mirza Asadullah], Nawab Nazim of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa...
|
1739–1740 |
Alivardi KhanAli Vardi Khan was the Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa during 1740 - 1756. He toppled the Nasiri Dynasty of Bengal and took power as Nawab.-Early life:...
1740–1756 |
| Siraj-ud-Daula |
1756–1757 |
Mir Jafar Ali Khan-Notes:# "Riyazu-s-salatin", Ghulam Husain Salim - a reference to the appointment of Mohanlal can be found # "Seir Muaqherin", Ghulam Husain Tabatabai - a reference to the conspiracy can be found...
1757–1760 |
| Mir Qasim Mir Qasim was Nawab of Bengal from 1760 to 1764. He was installed as Nawab by the British East India Company replacing Mir Jafar, his father-in-law, who had himself been installed by the British after his role in the Battle of Plassey...
|
1760–1763 |
| Mir Jafar Ali Khan -Notes:# "Riyazu-s-salatin", Ghulam Husain Salim - a reference to the appointment of Mohanlal can be found # "Seir Muaqherin", Ghulam Husain Tabatabai - a reference to the conspiracy can be found...
|
1763–1765 |
| Najimuddin Ali Khan Sayyid Najimuddin Ali Khan , formally known as Sujah-ul-Mulk Najimuddaula Nawab Nazim Najimuddin Ali Khan Bahadur Mahabat Jang, was Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa from 1765 to 1766. He was the son of Mir Jafar with his third wife Muni Begum...
|
1765–1766 |
| Najabut Ali Khan Sayyid Najabut Ali Khan succeeded his elder brother Najimuddin Ali Khan as the Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa on 22 May, 1766....
|
1766–1770 |
| Ashraf Ali Khan Sayyid Ashraf Ali Khan was the eleventh Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa and the fourth of the Najafi dynasty. The son of Mir Jafar and Rahat-un-Nisa, he was adopted and reared by his aunt Nafisat-un-Nisa ....
|
1770–1770 |
| Mubaraq Ali Khan Mubaraq Ali Khan, born 1759 in Murshidabad, died 6 september 1793, was the successor of Ashraf Ali Khan. He was the Nawab of Bengal from 1770 to 1793.-See also:*List of rulers of Bengal*History of Bengal*History of India...
|
1770–1793 |
| Baber Ali Khan Baber Ali Khan was the successor of Mubaraq Ali Khan. He was the Nawab of Bengal from 1793 to 1810.-See also:*List of rulers of Bengal*History of Bengal*History of India...
|
1793–1810 |
| Zainul Abedin Ali Khan Zainul Abedin Ali Khan was the successor of Baber Ali Khan. He was the Nawab of Bengal from 1810 to 1821.-See also:*List of rulers of Bengal*History of Bengal*History of India...
|
1810–1821 |
| Ahmad Ali Khan Ahmad Ali Khan was the successor of Mubaraq Ali Khan. He was the Nawab of Bengal from 1821 to 1824.-References:...
|
1821–1824 |
| Mubarak Ali Khan II |
1824–1838 |
| Mansur Ali Khan |
1838–1880 (abdicated) |
Nawabs of Murshidabad (Najafi) 1880-1969
Lineage
| Nawab |
Reign |
| Nawab Sayyid Hassan Ali Mirza Khan Bahadur Sayyid Hassan Ali Mirza Khan Bahadur, GCIE was the first Nawab of Murshidabad and the eldest son of Mansur Ali Khan, the last Nawab of Bengal. Educated at La Martiniere College in Lucknow and in England, he was appointed heir to his father's titles in 1873...
|
1880–1906 |
| Nawab Sayyid Wasif Ali Mirza Khan Sayyid Wasif Ali Mirza Khan Bahadur, KCSI, KCVO was a ruling Nawab of Murshidabad during 1906-1959. Educated at Rugby and at Trinity College, Oxford, he succeeded his father Nawab Sayyid Hassan Ali Mirza Khan Bahadur at his death in 1906...
|
1906–1959 |
| Nawab Sayyid Waris Ali Mirza Khan Bahadur Sayyid Waris Ali Mirza Khan Bahadur , was the last Nawab of Murshidabad. He succeeded his father, Nawab Sayyid Wasif Ali Mirza Khan, and ruled for ten years, from 1959-1969. Although he left three sons at his death in 1969, since then there has been no clear successor to the title....
|
1959–1969 |
External links