View source for Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah I

{{Short description|Nizam of Hyderabad from 1724 to 1748}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox noble
| honorific_prefix = [[Nizam of Hyderabad|Nizam-ul-Mulk]]
| name = Asaf Jah I
| title = Chin Qilich Khan, 
<br> Nizam-ul-Mulk <br> Asaf Jah
| image = Asaf Jah I.jpg
| caption = Nizam-ul-Mulk {{circa|1745}}
| succession = 1st [[Nizam of Hyderabad]]
| CoA = 
| reign = 31 July 1724 – 1 June 1748
| tenure = {{Circa}} 1677–1748
| predecessor = ''Position Established''
| successor = [[Nasir Jang Mir Ahmad]]
| spouse = {{plainlist|
*Umda Begum
*Said-un-Nisa Begum}}
| issue = {{plainlist|
*[[Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung II|Firuz Jung]]
*[[Nasir Jung]]
*[[Salabat Jung]]
*[[Nizam Ali Khan, Asaf Jah II|Asaf Jah II]]
*Basalat Jung
*Humayun Jah
*Khair-un-Nisa Begum
*Mukarrama Banu Begum
*Khan Bahadur Begum}}
| noble family = [[Asaf Jahi Dynasty]]
| father = Nawab [[Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung I]]
| mother = Safiya Khanum
| birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1671|08|11}}
| birth_place = [[Agra]], [[Agra Subah]], [[Mughal Empire|Mughal India]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1748|06|1|1671|08|11}}
| death_place = [[Burhanpur]], [[Hyderabad Deccan]]
| place of burial = [[Khuldabad]] (near [[Aurangabad, Maharashtra|Aurangabad]]), [[Hyderabad State]], [[Mughal Empire|Mughal India]]<br/>(now in [[Maharashtra]], [[India]])
| module = {{Infobox military person
  | embed      = yes
  | allegiance = [[File:Alam of the Mughal Empire.svg|23px]] [[Mughal Empire]]
  | branch     = [[File:Asafia flag of Hyderabad State.svg|23px]][[Nizam of Hyderabad]]
  | rank       = [[Nizam]]<br>[[Grand Vizier]] (formerly)<br>[[Subahdar]] (formerly)<br>[[Faujdar]] (formerly)<br>[[Sowar]] (formerly)
  | battles    ={{collapsible list|title = {{nobold|''See list''}}|{{tree list}}
*<B>Against [[Sayyid Brothers]]</B>
**Battle of Ratanpur (Jun,1720)
**[[Battle of Balapur]] (Jul,1720)
*<B>Against [[Marathas]] </B>
**[[Deccan Wars]](1680-1707)
**[[Siege of Wagingera]](1704)
**[[Battle of Palkhed]] (1728)
**[[Battle of Bhopal]](1737)
*<B>Against [[Mughals]] </B>
**[[Battle of Shakar Kheda]] (1724)
*<B>[[Mughal-Persian Wars]]</B>
**[[Nader Shah's invasion of the Mughal Empire| Nader's invasion]](1738-39)
***[[Battle of Karnal]](1739)
{{tree list/end}}
}}
}}
| full name = Mir Qamar-ud-din Khan Chin Qilich Siddiqi Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah I
| years_active = {{Circa}} 1677–1748
}}

'''Mir Qamar-ud-din Khan Siddiqi ''' (11 August 1671{{Spaced ndash}}1 June 1748) also known as '''Chin Qilich Qamaruddin Khan''', '''Nizam-ul-Mulk''', '''Asaf Jah''' and '''Nizam I''', was the first [[Nizam of Hyderabad]].<ref>Jaswant Lal Mehta · 2005, Advanced Study in the History of Modern India 1707-1813, p;142</ref><ref>Military History of India, Jadunath Sarkar · 2022 p;132</ref>

He began his career during the reign of the Mughal emperor [[Aurangzeb]], who made him a general. Following the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, Asaf Jah preferred to remain neutral, refusing to favour any one of Aurangzeb's warring sons. When Aurangzeb's third son [[Bahadur Shah I|Bahadur Shah]] ultimately emerged victorious, Asaf Jah was rotated as governor of multiple Mughal provinces until 1714, when he was appointed as [[Viceroy of the Deccan]] with authority over six Mughal provinces in southern India from 1714 to 1719. From 1719 onwards, he was involved in combating the intrigues of the [[Sayyid Brothers|Sayyid brothers]]. From 1720 to 1722, he helped the new Mughal emperor [[Muhammad Shah]] in eliminating the Sayyid brothers and was elevated, as a reward, to the [[Grand Vizier|grand viziership]] from 1722 to 1724. 

Political intrigues compelled Asaf Jah to rebel against the emperor and in 1724 Muhammad Shah was forced to recognize Asaf Jah as the permanent Viceroy of the Deccan. Later that year Asaf Jah proclaimed himself Nizam and began the [[Asaf Jahi dynasty]], with himself as its first ruler.<ref name="WilliamIrvine_1922">{{cite book | title = Later Mughals. Vol. 2, 1719–1739 | year = 1922 | author = William Irvine | author-link = William Irvine (historian) | oclc = 452940071 | page = 271 }}</ref>{{sfn|Mehta|2005|p=143}}<ref>{{cite book| last = Rai| first = Raghunath| title = History| publisher = FK Publications| isbn = 9788187139690 }}</ref><ref name="Faruqui">{{cite journal|last=Faruqui|first=Munis D.|title=At Empire's End: The Nizam, Hyderabad and Eighteenth-Century India|journal=Modern Asian Studies|volume=43|number=1|date=2009|pages=5–6|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|doi=10.1017/S0026749X07003290|jstor=20488070|s2cid=146592706}}</ref> The Nizam essentially became a [[Tributary state|tributary]] of the [[Maratha Empire|Marathas]] following his defeat at the hands of Peshwa [[Bajirao I]] in 1728.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra Nath |url=https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Anglo_Maratha_Relations_1785_96/Y-kanqrtVhYC?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Anglo-Maratha Relations, 1785-96 |date=1994 |publisher=Popular Prakashan |isbn=978-81-7154-789-0 |pages=198 |language=en |quote=It was Bajirao I who had imposed chauth on the Nizam's dominions and, over a long period, it had accumulated to quite a large amount. To all intents and purposes the Nizam was a tributary of the Marathas;}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gordon |first=Stewart |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/marathas-16001818/1098497E96D2AFA760D18DB311A91C80 |title=The Marathas 1600–1818 |date=1993 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=978-0-521-26883-7 |series=The New Cambridge History of India |location= |pages=122 |quote=Palkhed resulted in the following concessions by the Nizam: <br>(1) recognition of Shahu as the sole Maratha monarch; <br>(2) recognition of his right to chauth and sardeshmukhi of the Deccan;<br>(3) reinstating the Maratha collectors who had been driven out;<br>(4) agreement to pay the outstanding arrears of chauth and sardeshmukhi. <br>The implications, however, were much more important. First, in the military sphere, Bajirao had defeated the best-equipped Mughal army of the day under its best general.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Faruqui |first=Munis D. |date=2009 |title=At Empire's End: The Nizam, Hyderabad and Eighteenth-Century India |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/modern-asian-studies/article/abs/at-empires-end-the-nizam-hyderabad-and-eighteenthcentury-india/A19C9D4C7DD0313FCDAA25F27E745585 |journal=Modern Asian Studies |language=en |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |volume=43 |issue=1 |pages=21-22 |doi= |issn= |quote=The struggle between Shahu and the Nizam (who was supported by Sambhaji) lasted three years. By 1728, however, Shahu was victorious. Seeing the writing on the wall, the Nizam agreed to recognize Shahu as Shivaji’s sole successor; support for Sambhaji was dropped. The Nizam also agreed to all of Shahu’s taxation demands except one: the creation of a Maratha-operated bureaucracy to collect the tributary taxes.}}</ref>

==Background==
Mir Qamar-ud-din Khan was the son of [[Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung I|Ghazi ud-Din Khan]] and Safiya Khanum, the daughter of [[Saadullah Khan (Mughal Empire)|Sa'adullah Khan]]. Sa'adullah Khan was a [[Punjabi Muslims|Punjabi Muslim]] noble who was the [[Grand Vizier]] (1645–1656) of [[Mughal Emperor]] [[Shah Jahan]]; during his tenure construction of [[Taj Mahal]] was completed.<ref name="x594">{{cite book | last=Nayeem | first=M.A. | author2=Indian Council of Historical Research | title=Mughal Administration of Deccan Under Nizamul Mulk Asaf Jah, 1720-48 A.D. | publisher=Jaico Publishing House | series=A Jaico book | year=1985 | isbn=978-81-7224-325-8 | page=2}}</ref><ref name="y066">{{cite book | last1=Kulakarṇī | first1=A.R. | last2=Nayeem | first2=M.A. | title=History of Modern Deccan, 1720/1724-1948: Political and administrative aspects | publisher=Abul Kalam Azad Oriental Research Institute | year=2000 | page=23}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{cite book |last1=Sharma |first1=Gauri |title=Prime Ministers Under the Mughals 1526-1707 |date=2006 |publisher=Kanishka, New Delhi |isbn=8173918236|page=50}}</ref> His paternal grandfather [[Kilich Khan]] hailed from [[Samarkand]] in present-day Uzbekistan.{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=1}} In 1654, Kilich Khan came to India for the first time while on his way to the ''[[Hajj]]'' (Islamic pilgrimage) during the reign of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. After completing the pilgrimage, he migrated to India and joined erstwhile Mughal prince Aurangzeb's army in the [[Deccan]] in 1657.{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=2}} Khan fought in the [[Battle of Samugarh]] which ended with the defeat of Aurangzeb's brother [[Dara Shikoh]].{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=4}} Besides being a commander in Aurangzeb's army, he also served as governor of Zafarabad (present-day [[Bidar]]).{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=8}} Khan's eldest son and Nizam-ul-Mulk's father Ghazi ud-Din Khan migrated to India in 1669, and got employed in Aurangzeb's army, raised a General and later as governor of [[Gujarat]].{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=11-12}}{{sfn|Faruqui|2013|p=3-4}}<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=8ixuAAAAMAAJ&q=syed+nobleman |title= Hyderabad, 400 Glorious Years |author= K. Chandraiah |date= 1998 |publisher= K. Chandraiah Memorial Trust |page= 71 }}</ref>

==Early life==
He was born on 11 August 1671 as Mir Qamaruddin Khan to Ghazi ud-Din Khan and his first wife Safia Khanum (Wazir-un-Nisa Begum) at [[Agra]], the name was given to him by the Mughal Emperor Aurangazeb.<ref>{{cite book|title=Later Mughal|author=William Irvine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ak5oFjTys8MC&pg=PA270|publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Distri|year=1971|page=270}}</ref>{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=41}}{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=42}}

Mir Qamaruddin was educated privately. Due to his long residence in the Deccan, he adopted the flowing robes of the Marathas, tight in the waist, and made obeisance in the Deccan fashion.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=m3gtAAAAMAAJ&q=mahratta |title= Punjab |page= 107 |author= Zulfiqar Ahmad |date= 1982 |publisher= Sang-E-Meel Publications }}</ref> He wrote poetry in Urdu in the typical Deccani style of the age.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=3ysfAQAAMAAJ&q=nizam+ul+mulk+poetry+urdu+deccan |title= Islamic Culture: Volume 12 |author=Marmaduke William Pickthall, Muhammad Asad |date= 1967 |publisher= Islamic Culture Board, Academic and Cultural Publications Charitable Trust (Hyderabad, India) }}</ref> In 1677 aged six, Mir Qamaruddin accompanied his father to the Mughal court. Aurangzeb awarded him a [[Mansabdar|Mansab]]. Mir Qamaruddin displayed considerable skill as a warrior and in his teens he began accompanying his father into battles, for which Mir Qamaruddin Khan received a rank of 400 [[Sepoy|''zaat'']] and 100 [[Sowar|''sowar'']] in 1684.{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=42}} In 1688 aged 17 he joined his father in the successful assault on the [[Adoni|fort of Adoni]] and was promoted to the rank of 2000 ''zaat'' and 500 ''sowar'' and presented with the finest [[Arabian horse|Arab steed]] with gold [[Saddle seat|trappings]] and a [[Incense|pastille]] perfumed with [[ambergris]] from the Mughal court. In 1690 aged 19 he was bestowed with the title ''Chin Qilich Khan'' (boy swordsman) and was gifted with a female elephant by Aurangazeb. In 1693, the Marathas besieged the [[Panhala Fort]]. In response, Mir Qamaruddin fought and defeated the Marathas at [[Karad]]. 30 Marathas were taken prisoner.{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=44}} In 1698, Aurangzeb sent Mir Qamaruddin to put down a revolt at [[Bagalkot|Nagori]], near [[Bijapur]]. The emperor was satisfied with his expedition and subsequently sent him to [[Kotha, Punjab|Kotha]] to restore order. Following his success, he was raised to a rank of 3,000 zaat and 500 Sowar. In 1699 Aurangzeb promoted him to 3,500 ''zaat'' and 3,000 Sowar. Mir Qamaruddin successfully sieged the Panhala Fort which was occupied by the Marathas. He closed all the roads as a result of which no supply could reach the inhabitants.{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=44}} The fort fell to his forces on 9 June 1700. Satisfied with his services, Aurangzeb made him the ''[[faujdar]]'' (garrison commander) of [[Bijapur]] and increased his rank by 400 "Sowar".{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=45}}

==Career==

===Life After Aurangzeb===
The disintegration of the Mughal empire which Aurangzeb had well established, began upon Aurangzeb's death in 1707. The [[Sayyid brothers]] (Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan and Sayyid Hassan Ali Khan Barha) became highly influential in the Mughal Court after Aurangzeb's death and became [[kingmaker|king maker]]s during the anarchy following the death of emperor Aurangzeb in 1707.<ref name="sen2">{{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra |title=A Textbook of Medieval Indian History |publisher=Primus Books |year=2013 |isbn=978-9-38060-734-4 |pages=193}}</ref> They created conflict in the Mughal court by eliminating and appointing new emperor one after other. When [[Bahadur Shah I]] (1707-1712) died, his successor [[Jahandar Shah]] (1712-1713) was assassinated and his nephew [[Farrukhsiyar]] (1713–1719) became the emperor with the support of the Sayyid brothers, Farrukhsiyar was later blinded, deposed and murdered and his first cousin [[Rafi ud-Darajat]] (February–June 1719) became Emperor and died of lung disease, when his elder brother [[Rafi ud-Daulah]] (June–September 1719) became Emperor who also died of lung disease, thus [[Muhammad Shah]] (1719–1748) the grandson of Bahadur Shah I from his fourth son [[Jahan Shah (Mughal prince)|Jahan Shah]] ascended the throne at the age of 17 years with the Sayyid brothers as his [[regent]]s.<ref name="Shaharyar_Begums_2000">{{cite book|title=The Begums of Bhopal|author=Shaharyar M. Khan|edition=illustrated|publisher=I.B.Tauris|year=2000|isbn=978-1-86064-528-0|page=18}}</ref>

===Later Mughals and Asaf Jah===
After [[Aurangzeb]] died in 1707, Asaf Jah was appointed [[Governor]] of [[Oudh]]. After [[Bahadur Shah I]]'s death in 1712 Asaf Jah opted for a private life in [[Delhi]]. His sabbatical was cut short when in 1714 [[Farrukhsiyar]] appointed Asaf Jah I as [[Viceroy of the Deccan]]—(administrator of six Mughal governorates) with the title ''Nizam-ul-Mulk'' (Administrator of the Realm) and ''Fateh Jung''.<ref name="Richards">{{cite book|title=The Mughal Empire, Part 1|volume=5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHyVh29gy4QC|pages=279–281|last=Richards|first=John.F.|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|year=1993|isbn=9780521566032|access-date=29 June 2021}}</ref> In 1719, Asaf Jah was then called upon by Farrukhsiyar to help fight off the Sayyid brothers, Farrukhsiyar lost his strife against the Sayyid brothers and was killed in 1719. In due course from 1719 to 1722, Asaf Jah I was on a mission to eradicate the Sayyid brothers from the Mughal court and to make this happen he organized and promoted Central Asian nobles in the Mughal court against the Sayyid brothers, in 1720 he captured the forts of Asirgarh and Burhanpur in Deccan and killed Mir Alam Ali Khan, the adopted son of Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan, who was the Deputy Subahdar of the Deccan. Muhammad Shah with the help of Asaf Jah, got Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan murdered in 1720 and Sayyid Hassan Ali Khan Barha poisoned in 1722, Muhammad Shah assumed an independent Mughal Emperor and as a reward in 1722, Asaf Jah was appointed as [[List of Mughal grand viziers|Grand Vazir]] (Prime Minister) of the Mughal Empire. As a Grand Vazir Asaf Jah's attempts to reform the court corruption created for him many enemies. In 1723, Asaf Jah's differences with the court noble increased and alarmed by his growing power, Muhammad Shah transferred him from the court of Delhi to [[Awadh]]. Nizam rebelled against the order, resigned as the Grand vizier left all imperial responsibilities and marched towards the Deccan by the end of the year 1723.<ref>{{cite news|title=Nizam-Ul-Mulk Asaf Jah I, Delhi's Sayyid Brothers and Rise of the British East India Company|url=https://www.therahnuma.com/nizam-ul-mulk-asaf-jah-i-delhis-sayyid-brothers-and-rise-of-the-british-east-india-company/|publisher=Rahnuma e Deccan|date=6 March 2019|access-date=3 August 2021}}</ref><ref name="Richards"/>{{sfn|Mehta|2005|pp=93–143}}<ref name="Roy">{{cite book|title=Holy Ignorance: When Religion and Culture Part Ways|publisher=Columbia University Press|page=95|isbn=978-0-231-80042-6|last=Roy|first=Olivier|year=2011}}</ref><ref name="Śekhara">{{cite book|title=From Plassey to Partition: A History of Modern India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0oVra0ulQ3QC|pages=16–18|last=Bandyopadhyaya|first=Sekhara|publisher=[[Orient Blackswan]]|year=2004|isbn=9788125025962|access-date=2 August 2021}}</ref> Under the influence of Asaf Jah's opponents, [[Muhammad Shah]] issued a decree to [[Mubariz Khan]]-the Governor of Hyderabad, to stop Asaf Jah which resulted in the [[Battle of Shakar Kheda]].{{sfn|Mehta|2005}}{{page needed|date=December 2021}}<ref name="Roy"/> In 1724, Asaf Jah I defeated [[Mubariz Khan]] and in response the Mughal emperor recognized him as the viceroy of the Deccan.<ref name="PVK_1987">{{cite book |first=P. V. |last=Kate |title=Marathwada Under the Nizams, 1724–1948 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tjndiykddsIC&pg=PA11 |year=1987 |publisher=Mittal |isbn=978-81-7099-017-8 |pages=11–13}}</ref>

===Governor of Bijapur===

Mir Qamar-ud-din became the ''[[subahdar]]'' (governor) of [[Bijapur]] in 1702 and was awarded a [[Working animal|steed]] by Emperor Aurangzeb. In the same year, he was also given the ''faujdari'' of Azamnagar and [[Belgaum]]. In 1704, he became the ''faujdar'' of [[Bidar|Nusratabad]] and [[Mudgal]].{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=45}} In 1705  Mir Qamar-ud-din survived the attacks during the [[Siege of Wagingera|Siege of Wagingera Fort]], and led an assault in the hillock of Lal Tikri.{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=46}} He attacked the Marathas who were attempting to provide supplies to the besieged inhabitants at [[Vardhangad Fort]]. The Marathas were ultimately defeated. Mir Qamar-ud-din was raised to a rank of 5,000 zaat and 5,000 "Sowar" for his performance in the siege. He was also awarded with a [[sabre|jewelled sabre]] and an elephant.{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=47}}

===Viceroy of the Deccan===

On 10 January 1713, Mughal prince [[Farrukhsiyar]] defeated Mughal Emperor [[Jahandar Shah]] in the Battle of Agra and later killed him, One of Mughal general [[Zulfiqar Khan Nusrat Jung]] aided and intrigues Jahandar Shah after the death of his father [[Bahadur Shah I]] in 1712 to overcame all his brothers-(including the battle in which [[Azim-ush-Shan]] the father of Farrukhsiyar was drowned in the [[Ravi River]]) and ascended the throne of Mughal Emperor, in return, Zulfiqar Khan was made [[Grand vizier]], "Amir-ul-Umara" and [[Viceroy of the Deccan]] all at once. Zulfiqar Khan was captured and strangled to death in 1713 AD with the orders of Farrukhsiyar.<ref>[[John F. Richards]], ''[[The New Cambridge History of India]]: The Mughal Empire'' (New York: [[Cambridge University Press]], 1993), p. 262</ref><ref name="Reeti&Lasya">{{cite web|title=A brief history of the Nizams of Hyderabad|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/traveller/ot-getaway-guides/the-nizams/|last1=Pandharipande|first1=Reeti|last2=Nadimpally|first2=Lasya|work=outlookindia.com/|date=5 August 2017|access-date=8 August 2021}}</ref>

In 1713 [[Farrukhsiyar]] appointed Mir Qamaruddin as [[Viceroy of the Deccan]]—(administrator of six Mughal governorates) and [[Faujdar]] of [[Carnatic region]] with the title ''Nizam-ul-Mulk'' (Administrator of the Realm) and ''Fateh Jung'' (Conqueror of battles).<ref name="Richards1">{{cite book|title=The Mughal Empire, Part 1|volume=5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHyVh29gy4QC|pages=273–281|last=Richards|first=John.F.|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|year=1993|isbn=9780521566032|access-date=29 June 2021}}</ref> He was a competent diplomatic person and accomplished his responsibilities very well, he eventually organized the administration, augmented finances and obtained full control over the Deccan including Carnatic region, the Nizam abrogated Maratha's from collecting Chauth in the region under his control which was granted by his predecessors. Nizam had been with Aurangzeb throughout his Deccan campaign. He was aware of the territory as well as the native communities for which he avoided confrontation with the Marathas and locals, rather he reduced the growing influence of Marathas in Deccan by bringing [[Sambhaji II]] of [[Kolhapur]] to his side and appointing the rival Maratha generals (Maratha generals, Candrasen Jadhav, Sultanji Nimbalkar and [[Raja Ramabha Rao Bahadur]]) under his services.<ref name="Sinha">{{cite journal|title=The new foundations of Maratha power|last=Sinha|first=H.N|journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/44304068|page=232|volume=23|year=1960|jstor=44304068|access-date=9 August 2021}}</ref><ref name="Paul">{{cite book|title=Baji Rao: The Warrior Peshwa|last=Paul|first=Jaiwant.E|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5KohEAAAQBAJ|pages=24–25|publisher=Roli Books Private Limited|isbn=9789351941200|year=2017|access-date=9 August 2021}}</ref>{{sfn|Mehta|2005|pp=24–25}}<ref name="Reeti&Lasya"/><ref name="Maha_Gaz1">{{cite web|title=The Marathas and the Nizam|url=https://gazetteers.maharashtra.gov.in/cultural.maharashtra.gov.in/english/gazetteer/History%20Part/History_III/chapter_8.pdf|publisher=[[Government of Maharashtra]]|access-date=9 August 2021}}</ref><ref name="Maha_Gaz2">{{cite web|title=District Gazetteers list|url=https://cultural.maharashtra.gov.in/english/gazetteer/list.php|publisher=[[Government of Maharashtra]]|year=2006|access-date=9 August 2021}}</ref>{{note|21}} In 1715 AD, Farrukhsiyar under the influence of Sayyed brothers, call back Nizam to Delhi, and replaced Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan (one among the Sayyed brothers) as the viceroy of Deccan.<ref name="Maha_Gaz1"/><ref name="Maha_Gaz2"/>{{note|21}}

===Governor of Malwa-challenges-restoring Emperor===
{{Main|Battle of Balapur}}
The Sayyid brothers, known as the ''badshahgar''(king-makers),<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0KMEAQAAIAAJ&q=barah+sayyid |title=Sikhism, an Oecumenical Religion |page=87 |author= Kapur Singh |date=1993 |publisher=Institute of Sikh Studies }}</ref> became the sole authority of Mughal court reducing the status of the Turkic and the Irani noblemen. As a result, they formed a force of counter-revolution against the Sayyid brothers. The head of the Counter-Revolution was Nizam. To subdue the counter-revolution, the Sayyid brothers shifted Nizam-ul-mulk from Delhi. In 1715 AD, the Nizam was appointed as the Governor of [[Malwa]]-(central India), a lesser position than the previous post. in 1716 AD Nizam unwillingly accepted the new post so that he could reinforce his forces against the Sayyid brothers and check and halt the increasing influence of Marathas in the central India region.<ref name="Akhtar">{{cite thesis|title=Composition and role of the nobility (1739-1761)|url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/144523653.pdf|last=akhtar|first=MD Shakil|page=39-59|publisher=Aligarh Muslim University|year=2008|access-date=28 September 2021}}</ref>

In 1719, Nizam became suspicious of the machination of the Sayyed brothers and understood their intentions to take over the Mughal Empire. When two of the Mughal Emperors died simultaneously within a year due to the same ailment and [[Muhammad Shah]] the 18-year-old Mughal prince was appointed Mughal Emperor and [[Sayyid Brothers]] as [[regent]] to the Mughal Emperor, the Nizam commence full-fledged preparation to launch an armed action against them. When the Sayyid Brothers learned about the Nizam's situation, they got furious and issued an imperial order asking the Nizam to report to Delhi. Alternately they planned an attack on Nizam in case he did not report. Meanwhile, Nizam received a secret communication from the Mughal empress's mother "Resist the Sayyids, and you will find yourself a place of Honor in the history of Mughals, May Allah help you in a war of righteousness against suppression", and later a secret communication was sent by Emperor Muhammad Shah to get him relief from the atrocities of Sayyid Brothers. Nizam was convinced of the Sayyid Brothers' planning and refused to report to Delhi and decided to eliminate the Sayyid brothers.<ref name="Paul"/>

In Delhi, the Sayyid brothers released an imperial order to attack Nizam's forces from two fronts, thus dispatched a 20,000 imperial army of Delhi led by Dilawar Khan to attack from the North and the Army of Governor of Aurangabad led by Alim Ali (the adopted son of Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan) to attack from South. Nizam being a military strategist rather than marching towards Delhi decided to move southwards to the Deccan where he had many sympathizers to support. The Nizam utilizing his diplomatic manipulation occupied [[Asirgarh Fort]] from Mughals and left [[Ujjain]] towards [[Burhanpur]]. His army clashed with Dilawar Khan aided by Maratha reinforcement near Burhanpur ([[Khandwa]]) in June 1720, Dilawar Khan and Marathas were defeated and Nizam took over Burhanpur. Sayyed brothers hopeless with the battle result issued an imperial order appointing Nizam as Viceroy of Deccan.<ref name="Richards1"/><ref name="Paul"/>

Mughal empress's mother alarmed Nizam that "Plans are already being made to mount a strong invasion of the south, be on your guard" Meanwhile Sayyed brothers ordered Alim Ali-(Uninformed by Sayyed brothers about Nizam's appointment as Viceroy of Deccan) to march towards Nizam and stop him from reaching Aurangabad. Nizam wanted to avoid any war against a 20-year-old Alim Ali and sent his envoy, but all his efforts to avoid war went in vain when in July 1720 AD Alim Ali approached with his army, though Alim Ali fought with bravery he lost against Nizam well-equipped army. Frustrated with the defeat of Alim Ali, the Sayyed brothers now decided to attack with a much larger imperial army of 50,000 led by Emperor [[Muhammad Shah]], they decided to move towards the south by collecting reinforcement from [[Rajputana]]. While the Mughal army was encamped in the outskirts of Delhi, a plot was devised against the Sayyid brothers and a section of Nizam's sympathizers a Turcic soldier assassinated the commander and chief of the [[Mughal Army]] [[Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan Barha|Sayyid Hussain]] (one of Sayyed Brothers) on 9 October 1720. When [[Sayyid Hassan Ali Khan Barha|Abdullah Khan]] was informed about the death of his brother, he became furious and marched towards Delhi from [[Agra]] to avenge his brother's murder, he led an army against the Emperor Muhammad Shah with his own puppet Emperor, [[Muhammad Ibrahim (Mughal emperor)|Ibrahim]]. Muhammad Shah assigned Nizam's uncle and sympathizer [[Muhammad Amin Khan Turani]] to march towards Agara to deal with Abdullah Khan, the battle was fought near [[Hasanpur]], and most of Abdullah Khan army deserted him, Abdullah Khan personally fought on foot following the Barha tradition and was captured in November 1720, and eventually being poisoned while in captivity. [[Muhammad Shah]] was crowned Emperor without any regent and Muhammad Amin Khan Turani was appointed as first [[Grand vizier]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ervine |first1=William |title=The later Mughals |year=2006 |publisher=Low Price Publications |isbn=8175364068}}</ref><ref name="Malik">{{cite journal|title=Farmans of Muhammad Shah to Nizam ul Mulk|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/44140616|year=1965|volume=27|pages=183–192|publisher=Indian History Congress|last=Malik|first=Zahiruddin|journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress|jstor=44140616|access-date=11 August 2021}}</ref><ref name="Richards1"/><ref name="Paul"/> Nizam choose to continued his stay in Deccan and when Muhammad Amin Khan Turani died in 1721, he was offered to be [[Grand vizier]] of Mughal Empire.

===Grand Vizier of Mughal Empire===

In 1721 AD, Nizam ul-Mulk was rewarded for eliminating the [[Sayyid Brothers]] with the post of ''Wakil E Mutlaq'' [[Grand vizier]] in the court of [[Muhammad Shah]], the 18-year-old successor. From Muhammad Shah's point of view, he expected Asaf Jah I to act as an elderly statesman and faithful servant of the emperor, but the cunning Asaf Jah proved to be more self-willed and attempted to use his influence with the emperor to increase his territorial ambitions in the Deccan. With the pretext of restoring law and order in Gujarat, he sent there an expedition and appointed his maternal uncle, the relative of [[Saadullah Khan (Mughal Empire)|Saadullah Khan]] (سعد الله خان) named Hamid Khan, to administer Gujarat. Hamid Khan engaged Shujaat Khan Gujarati in battle and shot him with an arrow in the chest while on top of his elephant, and finally entered Ahmedabad as a conqueror.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IrzuyqW1aRwC&dq=hamid+khan+shujaat+khan&pg=PA507 |title= Hyderabad Affairs:Volume 4 |date=1883 |author= Moulvi Syed Mahdi Ali }}</ref> Shujaat Khan Gujarati's brother, Rustam Ali Khan, who had advanced towards Ahmedabad was also defeated with the aid of two Maratha commanders.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ivMAUx6Hdl8C&dq=hamid+khan+marathas&pg=PT89 |title= Ahmedabad:From Royal City to Megacity |date= 2011 |publisher=Penguin Books Limited |author= Achyut Yagnik |isbn= 9788184754735 }}</ref> Muhammad Shah sent Sarbuland Khan to punish Hamid Khan. As Sarbuland Khan opposed this mission, with his request Muhammad Shah released Sayyid Najmuddin Ali Khan Barha from prison to join his imperial army, with the reward of the governorship of Ajmer. Although a large number of Sarbuland Khan's men fell, in the heat of battle Shaikh Allahyar Khan delivered the victory to the imperialists. Both Hamid Khan and the Marathas suffered heavy losses. As a result, Hamid Khan departed to Aurangabad in the Deccan.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IrzuyqW1aRwC&dq=hamid+khan+sarbuland+khan&pg=PA508 |title= Hyderabad Affairs:Volume 4 |page=508 |date=1883 |author=Moulvi Syed Mahdi Ali|publisher=Harvard University }}</ref> Thus the Nizam failed to win the confidence of the Emperor and lost in the estimation of the nobles.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d1wUgKKzawoC |title=Advanced Study in the History of Modern India 1707-1813 |author= Jaswant Lal Mehta |date=2005 |publisher=New Dawn Press, Incorporated |page=145 |isbn=9781932705546 }}</ref> For the Nizam, his desire to restore the decorum of Mughals lapsed when some courtiers, cliques of corrupt concubines and eunuchs along with harlots and jesters who were the Emperor's constant companions became Nizam's enemy and coercively built distrust in the mind of Emperor about Nizam's growing power, thou Muhammad Shah had been dependent entirely upon the policies and courage of the Nizam, he transferred him from the court of Delhi to [[Awadh]] in 1723 AD. Muhammad Shah was young and foolish and allowed his confidants to make remarks about him when he had made his obeisance in the Deccan fashion, which created a grudge between them.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=SHgtAAAAMAAJ&q=mahratta |title= Notes on Punjab and Mughal India: Selections from Journal of the Punjab Historical Society |publisher= Sang-e-Meel Publications |page= 381 |date= 1988 }}</ref> His efforts were misrepresented and thwarted by the nobles close to the Emperor.<ref>{{cite book |title= A New History of India |author= Ishwari Prasad |date= 1940 |publisher= Indian Press, Limited |page= 334}}</ref> Nizam rebelled against the imperial order, abdicated as the Grand Vizier and marched towards the Deccan against the will of Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah. Under the influence of Nizam's opponents, Muhammad Shah issued a decree to [[Mubariz Khan]]-the Governor of Hyderabad, and a former ally of the Barha Sayyids,<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=bkRxDwAAQBAJ&dq=muhammad+shah+appointed+mubariz+khan&pg=PA6 |title= A New Look at Modern Indian History (From 1707 to The Modern Times), 32e |page= 6 |publisher= S Chand Limited |date= 2018 |isbn= 9789352534340 }}</ref> to stop and kill the Nizam which resulted in the [[Battle of Shakar Kheda]].{{sfn|Mehta|2005|p=143}}{{page needed|date=December 2021}}<ref name="Roy"/> In 1724, with the help of the Marathas,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H5lGEAAAQBAJ&dq=asaf+jah+deccan+1739&pg=PA60 |title= War in the Eighteenth-Century World |page=60 |author=  Jeremy Black  |date= 2012 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn= 9780230370005 }}</ref> Asaf Jah I defeated Mubariz Khan and in response, the Mughal emperor was forced to recognize him as the viceroy of the Deccan with the title of ''Asaf Jah''.<ref name="PVK_1987" /><ref name="Mahajan">{{cite book|title=History of Medieval India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JnscEAAAQBAJ|pages=175–178|last=Mahajan|first=VD|publisher=S Chand Publication|year=2007|isbn=9788121903646|access-date=8 August 2021}}</ref>

===Nizam of Hyderabad===
{{See also|Nizam's Carnatic campaigns (1725-27)}}
On 11 October 1724, the Nizam established autonomous rule over the Deccan region and started what came to be known as the [[Asaf Jahi dynasty]]. Subsequent rulers retained the title ''Nizam ul-Mulk'' and were referred to as Asaf Jahi Nizams, or [[Nizam of Hyderabad|Nizams of Hyderabad]].<ref name="Richards1"/><ref name="columbia&TOI">{{cite book|title=Muslim civilization in India|chapter=A century of political decline: 1707–1803|url=http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00islamlinks/ikram/part2_19.html|last=Ikram|first=S. M.|year=1964|publisher=Columbia University|isbn=978-0-231025-80-5|access-date=12 August 2020}}
*{{cite news|title=Testing time again for the pearl of Deccan|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Testing-time-again-for-the-Pearl-of-Deccan/articleshow/5324913.cms?referral=PM|last=Rao|first=Sushil|newspaper=[[The Times of India]]|date=11 December 2009|access-date=22 April 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910232115/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Testing-time-again-for-the-Pearl-of-Deccan/articleshow/5324913.cms?referral=PM|archive-date=10 September 2015}}</ref> Nizam remained loyal to the Mughal Emperor, did not assume any imperial title, and continued to acknowledge Mughal suzerainty.{{sfn|Mehta|2005|pp=93–94}} He acquired ''de facto'' control over Deccan and thus all six Mughal viceregal governorates of Deccan became his feudatory.<ref name="taylor">{{cite book|title=Ancient and Modern India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sm_71j9KYPcC|last1=Mackenna|first1=P. J.|last2=Taylor|first2=William Cooke|year=2008|page=98|publisher=Wertheimer and Company|isbn=978-1-247867-35-9|access-date=5 August 2020}}</ref><ref "name=corner">{{cite book|title=The History of China and India: Pictorial and Descriptive|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofchinain00corn|last=Corner(Julia)|first=Miss|year=1847|pages=298–310|publisher=H.Washbourne|isbn=978-1-011544-27-1|access-date=12 August 2020}}</ref>

In 1725 AD, as a sovereign ruler, the Nizam wanted to strengthening the Deccan by controlling the growing influence of the Marathas, he confronted and defeated Maratha forces and prevented them from collecting levies in [[Carnatic region]]—(it was granted to Marathas by his predecessor [[Syed Brothers|Mughal Viceroy of Deccan]] in 1719 AD).<ref name="Kumar">{{cite web|title=BA Semester VI- Maratha History 1707-1818 AD (HISKB 602)|url=http://uafulucknow.ac.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/BA-Semester-VI-HISKB-602.pdf|last=Kumar|first=Mukesh|work=Department of History, KMC Language University, Luckhnow|year=2020|access-date=1 September 2021}}</ref><ref name="Bosu&Basu">{{cite journal|title=Trading world of the Southern coromandel and the crisis of the 1730's|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44141147|year=1981|pages=333–339|journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress|volume=42|last1=Bosu|first1=Bhaskarjyoti|last2=Basu|first2=Bhaskrjyoti|jstor = 44141147|format=PDF|access-date=2 September 2021}}</ref> In 1726 AD [[Sambhaji II]] of [[Kolhapur]] sought the Nizam's arbitration to settle issues with [[Shahu I]] of [[Satara (city)|Satara]] which Shahu declined, thus in 1727 AD the Nizam armies captured [[Pune]] and appointed Sambhaji II as [[Chhatrapati]].<ref name="Kumar"/><ref name="Sardesai">{{cite book|title=New History of the Marathas: The expansion of the Maratha power, 1707-1772|volume=2|url=https://indianculture.gov.in/ebooks/new-history-marathasthe-expansion-maratha-power-1707-1772|pages=96–101|last1=Sardesai|first1=Govind Sakharam|year=1948|publisher=Phoenix Publications|access-date=1 September 2021}}</ref> These valorous acts of the Nizam started an extended series of conflicts with Shahu who used a [[Guerrilla warfare]] technique led by his [[Baji Rao I|Peshwa Baji Rao I]], which resulted in the [[Battle of Palkhed]] in 1728 AD, Sambhaji II repudiate at the last moment and the Shahu forces surrounded the Nizam, he sign the treaty with Shahu which restored him as a Chhatrapati of Marathas and the right to collect levies in the Carnatic region.<ref name="Kumar"/><ref name="Sardesai"/>

1733 AD  the Nizam and Baji Rao had made a compact to support each other in times of external attacks, in 1734 The Marathas attacked and captured [[Bundelkhand]] and [[Malwa]] from the Mughal control, and in exchange for these territories the Mughal emperor gave them the right to collect levies from Deccan, to which the nizam refused and the secret compact among both was broken.<ref name="Sewell">{{cite book|title=The Analytical History of India: From the Earliest Times to the Abolition of the Honourable East India Company in 1858|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g7LnhfByCQAC&pg=PA69|pages=68–71|last=Sewell|first=Robert|publisher=W.H. Allen and Company|year=2008|access-date=28 September 2021}}</ref> in 1737 AD when Maratha forces gathered in Delhi, Nizam marched against Maraths from Deccan to stop the invasion thus Marathas withdraw from Delhi and with the help of Nawab of Bhopal, they make a counterattack on Nizam's armies which resulted in the [[Battle of Bhopal]], later in January 1738, a peace treaty was signed between both the parties and withdraw to their regions.<ref name="Sewell"/><ref name="maratha">[https://books.google.com/books?id=bXWiACEwPR8C&dq=maratha+delhi+1737&pg=PR23 An Advanced History of Modern India]</ref><ref name="MP">{{cite book | title = Madhya Pradesh Through the Ages | author = S.R. Bakshi and O.P. Ralhan | publisher = Sarup & Sons | year = 2007 | isbn = 978-81-7625-806-7 | page = 384 }}</ref><ref name="Maha_Gaz2"/>{{note|1}}

The Nizam divided his newly acquired kingdom into three parts.  One-third became his private estate known as the [[Sarf-i-Khas]], one-third was allotted for the expenses of the government and was known as Diwan's territory, and the remainder was distributed to nobles ([[Jagirdar]], [[Zamindars]], [[Deshmukh]]), who in return paid Mazars (gifts) to the Nizam for the privilege of collecting revenue from the villages under their suzerainty. The most important of these were the [[Paigah family|Paigah]] estates. The [[House of Paigah]] doubled up as generals, [[Nawab Abu'l Fateh Khan]] who served as general of the nizams, the paigah's making it easy to raise an army should the Nizams Dominions come under attack. They were the equivalent to the [[Barmakids]] for the [[Abbasid]] [[Caliphate]]. Only second to the Nizam's family.

====War against the Marathas====

The Nizam wrote some advice for his successors in the Ma'asir-i Nizami:<ref>{{cite book |title= Expanding Frontiers in South Asian and World History Essays in Honour of John F. Richards |author= Richard M. Eaton |date= 2013 |publisher= Cambridge University Press |page= 20 }}</ref> 
<blockquote>
"It is necessary for the ruler of the Deccan who desires his safety, peace from war, and the prosperity of his country to have peace with the [[Marathas]] who are the landholders[zamindaran] of this region."</blockquote>

{{quote box|width=25%|quote="The earth dried up, the clouds without dew, Alas! for the poor handful of grass."But Marathas never fight directly on the battlefield and always run around and fight from behind the mountains."|source='''Warid''', ''written proverb describing [[Asaf Jah I]] and Samsam-ud-Daula's campaign against the [[Maratha]]s in 1734''<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/latermughals02irviuoft/latermughals02irviuoft_djvu.txt Full text of "Later Mughals;"]</ref>
}}

{{Campaignbox Later Mughal-Maratha Wars}}

In 1725, the Marathas clashed with the Nizam, who refused to pay [[Chauth]] and [[Sardeshmukhi]] to the [[Maratha]]s. The war began in August 1727 and ended in March 1728. Nizam signed a treaty named Treaty of Mungi-Shevgaon at [[Shevgaon]] near [[Nashik]] by [[Bajirao I]], the son of Peshwa [[Balaji Vishwanath]] Bhatt.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Yosuf Hussain Khan |url=http://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.77281 |title=Nizam Ul Mulk Asaf Jahi Founder Of The Hyderabad State |date=1936}}</ref>

====Maratha Treaty====

Anxious to divert Marathas away from his Deccan strongholds, and to save himself from the Mughal emperor of North India's hostile attempts to suppress his independence,<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=p5VYH7FhoTsC&q=It+is+necessary+to+take+our+hands+off+Malwa.+God+willing,+I+will+enter+into+an+understanding+with+them |title= Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Poona: Volumes 51-53 |page= 94 |publisher= Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute  |date= 1970 |quote= The Mughal court was hostile to Nizam-ul-Mulk. If it had the power, it would have crushed him. To save himself from the hostile intentions of the Emperor, the Nizam did not interfere with the Maratha activities in Malwa and Gujarat. As revealed in the anecdotes narrated by Lala Mansaram, the Nizam-ul-Mulk considered the Maratha army operating in Malwa and Gujarat as his own}}</ref> The Nizam encouraged the Marathas to invade [[Malwa]] and the northern Indian territories of the Mughal empire.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=1BY9AAAAIAAJ&dq=Finally+,+in+the+following+year+,+the+nizam+entered+into+a+secret+agreement+with+the+peshwa+by+which+he+offered+to&pg=PA549 |title= The New Cambridge Modern History |page= 549 |date= 1957 |publisher= University Press }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=h6Y9AAAAMAAJ&q=connived |title= Mughal Empire in India, 1526-1761: Volume 3 |author= Shripid Rama Sharma |date= 1934 |publisher= Karnatak Printing Press }}</ref> The Nizam says that he could use the Marathas to his advantage in the Maasir-i Nizami:<ref>{{cite book |title= Expanding Frontiers in South Asian and World History Essays in Honour of John F. Richards |author= Richard M. Eaton |date=  2013 |publisher= Cambridge University Press |page= 21 }}</ref> 
<blockquote>
"I consider all this army (Marathas) as my own and I will get my work done through them. It is necessary to take our hands off Malwa. God willing, I will enter into an understanding with them and entrust the Mulukgiri(raiding) on that side of the Narmada to them."
</blockquote>

==Nader Shah==

In 1739, from beyond the [[Hindu Kush]], [[Nader Shah]] started advancing towards [[Delhi]] through [[Afghanistan]] and the [[Punjab region|Punjab]].<ref name="William&Anita">{{cite news|title=One diamond to rule the world|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/books/one-diamond-to-rule-the-world/|newspaper=The Indian Express|last1=Dalrymple|first1=William|last2=Anand|first2=Anita|date=11 December 2016|access-date=17 August 2021}}</ref>

Nizam ul-Mulk sent his troops to [[Karnal]], where [[Mughal Empire|Mughal]] Emperor [[Muhammed Shah]]'s forces had gathered to turn back the Persian army. Influenced by suspicions of the Hindustani party, Muhammad Shah refused to give command of the army to the Nizam,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FKw5AQAAIAAJ&q=muhammad+shah+hindustani+party |title=India and the Passing of Empire
|author=Sir George Dunbar  |date=1951 |page=50 }}</ref> which was given instead to the commander-in-chief, Khan-i Dauran.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=9w9uAAAAMAAJ&q=khan+dauran+head+army |title= Role of Jats and Rajputs in the Mughal Court, 1707-1740 |date= 1993 |author= Sunanda Bhattacharya |page= 37 }}</ref> The combined forces of Muhammad Shah and the Nizam were cannon fodder for the Persian cavalry and was defeated by Nader Shah's superior [[weapon]]ry and tactics. The Nizam remained inert with a third of the army during the battle, likely hoping to take the places of his rivals at court.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=d1wUgKKzawoC&dq=saadat+khan+baggage&pg=PA148 |title= Advanced Study in the History of Modern India 1707-1813 |author= Jaswant Lal Mehta  |date= 2005 |page= 148 |publisher= Sterling Publishers Pvt. |isbn= 9781932705546 }}</ref> He watched the battle passively without participation, as he believed it was futile to wage war against such a formidable foe rather than save himself and his men. He told the messenger sent by Muhammad Shah:<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.117946/page/n101/mode/2up |author=Zahiruddin Malik |page=98 |title=A Mughal Statesman Of The Eighteenth Century |date=1973 }}</ref>
<blockquote>"Whatever the king likes, he is free to speak and make orders, but he does not understand the art of warfare. The stupid fellows went to launch a campaign without order and discipline, and by their folly destroyed a force of 40,000...The king is angry with me for not carrying out his commands. The reality is they did not listen to my advice."
</blockquote>

Nader Shah entered [[Delhi]] and stationed his troops there. Some locals of Delhi quarrelled and attacked his soldiers. After nine hundred of his soldiers were killed in a bazaar brawl, Nader Shah flew into a rage, drew out his sword from the scabbard and ordered a massacre. Muhammad Shah was unable to prevent Delhi from being destroyed. When Nader Shah ordered the massacre in Delhi, neither the helpless Mughal Emperor Muhammed Shah nor any of his Ministers dared to speak to Nader Shah and negotiate a truce. Asaf Jah came forward and risked his life by going to Nader Shah and asking him to end the bloodbath of the city.<ref name="William&Anita"/> Legend has it that Asaf Jah said to Nader Shah <blockquote> "You have taken the lives of thousands of people of the city, if you still wish to continue the bloodshed, then bring those dead back to life and then kill them again, for there are none left to be killed." </blockquote> These words had a tremendous impact on Nader Shah – he ended the massacre on condition and returned to Persia.<ref name="William&Anita"/>

==Later life==

The Nizam was well suited to rule his territory. The administration was under control. In March 1742, the British who were based in Fort St George in [[Madras]] sent a modest [[hamper]] to Nizam ul-mulk in recognition of his leadership of the most important of the Mughal successor states. Its contents included a gold throne, gold and silver threaded silk from [[Europe]], two pairs of large painted-looking glasses, equipage for coffee cups, 163.75 yards of green and 73.5 yards of crimson velvet, brocades, Persian carpets, a gold ceremonial cloth, two Arab horses, half a dozen ornate rose-water bottles and 39.75 chests of rose water – enough to keep the Nizam and his entire Darbar fragrant for the rest of his reign. In return, the Nizam sent one horse, a piece of jewellery and a note warning the British that they had no right to mint their currency, to which they complied.

It was after Nizam ul-mulk's death that his son and grandson sought help from the British and French to win the throne. Just days before he died in 1748, [[Asaf Jah]] dictated his last will.
The 17-clause document was a blueprint for governance and personal conduct that ranged from advice on how to keep the troops happy and well-fed to an apology for neglecting his wife.
He then reminded his successors to remain subservient to the Mughal Emperor who had granted them their office and rank. He warned against declaring war unnecessarily, but if forced to do so to seek the help of elders and saints and follow the sayings and practices of the Prophet. Finally, he insisted to his sons that "you must not lend your ears to tittle-tattle of the backbiters and slanderers, nor suffer the riffraff to approach your presence."<ref name="Faruqui"/>

==Legacy==
[[File:Hyderabad state 1909.jpg|right|240px|thumb|By the Reign of the seventh Nizam, his dominion was similar in size to Belgium, but it was a far cry from when the first Nizam had ruled over a territory the size of France.]]
Nizam-ul-Mulk is remembered as laying the foundation for what would become one of the most important [[Muslim]] states outside the [[Middle East]] by the first half of the twentieth century. [[Hyderabad State]] survived right through the period of [[British Raj|British rule]] up to the time of [[independence of India|Indian independence]] in 1947, and was indeed the largest – the state covered an extensive 95,337 sq. miles, an area larger than [[Mysore state|Mysore]] or [[Gwalior]] and the size of Nepal and Kashmir put together<ref name="hyd_online_nizams">{{cite web
 |title       = Hyderabad Online : The Nizam Dynasty
 |url         = http://www.hydonline.com/cityscape/history/nizams.htm
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20070416073722/http://www.hydonline.com/cityscape/history/nizams.htm
 |archive-date = 16 April 2007}}</ref> (although it was the size of France when the first Nizam held reign) – and one of the most prosperous, among the [[princely states]] of the [[British Raj]]. The titles of "Nizam Ul Mulk" and "Asaf Jah" that were bestowed on him by the Mughal Emperors, carried his legacy as his descendants ruled under the title of " Nizam of Hyderabad" and the dynasty itself came to be known as the Asaf Jahi Dynasty.

In early 1710, while being as Subedar of [[Awadh]], he was very much disturbed by the Mughal Emperor court politics and crafty cliques present inside the court, that he resigned from Subedar of Awadh and left to live a life of [[Fakir]].{{sfn|Khan|1936|p=51}}

==Personal life==
Asaf Jah was married to Said-un-Nisa Begum, who belonged to a Sayed family from [[Gulbargah]]. From this marriage he had four children, two daughters; one of them being Khair-un-Nisa Begum, who was later married to [[Mutawassil Khan]]<ref name="SarojiniRegani"/>{{rp|18}} and two sons; [[Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung II|Feroz Jung]] and [[Nasir Jung]] (later nizam). From other wives he had four more sons; [[Salabat Jung]] (later Nizam), [[Asaf Jah II|Nizam Ali Khan]] (later Nizam), Basalat Jung, and Mogal Ali Khan.<ref name="Maha_Gaz2"/> He had two more daughters, Mukarrama Banu Begum also known as Kali Begum, who was married to Qiyam-ul-Mulk, the Qiladar of Bidar and Kalyani, and with whom she had a daughter, who married the son of Najm-ud-Daulah in 1766;<ref name="g784">{{cite book | first = Ekbote Gopal | last = Rao | title=The Chronology of Modern Hyderabad, 1720-1890 | publisher=Central Records Office Hyderabad Government | year=1954 | pages=35, 17, 80}}</ref> and Khan Bahadur Begum, who died on 20 November 1788, and was buried in [[Makkah Masjid, Hyderabad]].<ref name="g784"/>

As per the 1749 British records of [[Fort St. George]], Nizam-ul-Mulk even thought about installing his favourite daughter Khair-un-Nisa Begum's son [[Muzaffar Jung]]<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IjJuAAAAMAAJ|title= History of Modern Deccan, 1720/1724-1948: Political and administrative aspects|author=M. A. Nayeem|publisher=Abul Kalam Azad Oriental Research Institute|year=2000|page=38|quote=Muzaffar Jung (Hidayat Muhiuddin Khan) was a grandson of Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah I's favourite daughter Khair-un-Nissa Begum.}}</ref> when he was dissatisfied with the conduct of Nasir Jung. He gave up that idea due to possible serious repercussions and reconciled with Nasir Jung.<ref name="SarojiniRegani"/>{{rp|19}} He recommended bestowing the [[Circars]] of [[Adoni]] and [[Raichur]] to Muzaffar Jung with acceptance of the [[Mughal emperor|Padishah]].<ref name="SarojiniRegani"/>{{rp|19}}

Nasir Jung being Nizam-ul-Mulk's son (i.e. have some claim to the ''Deccan Subah'') and Muzaffar Jung being his favourite grandson<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9Fb26pWqhScC|title=Brief History of Andhra Pradesh|author=Abdul Waheed Khan|publisher=State Archives, Government of Andhra Pradesh|year=1972|isbn=9788170221951 }}</ref>{{rp|50}} lead the succession of one of the most important Subahs of Mughal empire into a severe crisis with was well exploited first by the French and then by British. After defeating Nasir Jung with the help of the French, Muzaffar Jung indeed became Nizam later, but for a very short period.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yXwBAAAAMAAJ|title= History of the Muslims of Indo-Pakistan Sub-continent, 1707-1806, Volume 1|author=Abdur Rashid|publisher=Research Society of Pakistan|year=1978|page=256}}</ref> Interestingly, Muzaffar Jung being favourite grandson of Asaf Jah I, was the only thing that hesitated Nasir Jung about executing him, when he was imprisoned during the [[Carnatic Wars|Second Carnatic War]].<ref name="SarojiniRegani">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9Fb26pWqhScC|title= Nizam-British Relations, 1724-1857|author=Sarojini Regani|isbn=9788170221951|publisher=Concept Publishing Company|year=1988}}</ref>{{rp|31}} Unexpected sudden death of Muzaffar Jung lead his uncle Salabat Jung (i.e. younger brother of Nazir Jung) to be installed as the new Nizam who was deposed by his younger brother [[Nizam Ali Khan]] with the help of British and Marathas.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aHcfv6zkJgQC|title=Architecture and Art of the Deccan Sultanates, Volume 7|author=George Michell, Mark Zebrowski|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1999|page=20|isbn=9780521563215 }}</ref>

The succession feud between Nasir Jung and Muzaffar Jung was one of the most pivotal events in Indian history that led to the interference of European powers.<ref name="SarojiniRegani"/>{{rp|48}} This led to the emergence of [[Robert Clive]] and the ultimate domination of the British in the Indian peninsula in the later years.<ref name=Naravane>{{Cite book |last=Naravane |first=M.S. |title=Battles of the Honorourable East India Company |publisher=A.P.H. Publishing Corporation |year=2014 |isbn=9788131300343 |pages=150–159}}</ref> Irony was that Both Nasir Jung and Muzaffar Jung died due to the betrayal of Pathan Nawabs (i.e. Faujdars) of the circars of [[Kurnool]], [[Kadapa]] and [[Savanur]].<ref name="SarojiniRegani"/>{{rp|43;51}}

==Death==

Due to continuous engagement in restoring internal conflicts and resolving [[Mughal–Maratha Wars|increasing threats of neighbouring Marathas]], he was engaged in an extensive tour of his domain. During this tour, in May 1748, he arrived in [[Burhanpur]], he caught a cold and flu that deteriorated his health. Realizing death upon him, the Nizam dictated his last testament (wasiyyatnama), spanning 17 clauses in the presence of his available family members and close confidants. He died on 1 June 1748 aged 77 at [[Burhanpur]] and was buried at [[Mausoleum|''mazaar'']] of [[Sayyid Burhan-ud-din|Shaikh Burhan ud-din Gharib Chisti]], [[Khuldabad]], near [[Aurangabad Maharashtra|Aurangabad]], the place where Nizam's mentor [[Aurangazeb]] is also buried.<ref name="Faruqui"/>

The death of Asaf Jah I in 1748 resulted in a period of political unrest as his sons and grandson—[[Nasir Jung]] (1748–1750), [[Muhyi ad-Din Muzaffar Jang Hidayat|Muzaffar Jang]] (1750–1751) and [[Salabat Jung]] (1751–1762)—contended for the throne backed by opportunistic neighbouring states and colonial foreign forces. The accession of [[Ali Khan Asaf Jah II|Asaf Jah II]], who reigned from 1762 to 1803, ended the instability. In 1768 he signed the [[Treaty of Masulipatam]], surrendering the coastal region to the [[East India Company]] in return for a fixed annual rent.<ref name="Reg Sal Geo">{{cite book|title=Nizam-British relations, 1724–1857|publisher=Concept Publishing|pages=130–150|isbn=978-81-7022-195-1|last=Regani|first=Sarojini|year=1988}}
* {{cite book|title=A comprehensive history of medieval India|publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]]|page=346|isbn=978-81-317-3202-1|last=Farooqui|first=Salma Ahmed|year=2011}}
* {{cite book|title=An historical sketch of the native states of India in subsidiary alliance with the British government|publisher=Asian Education Services|pages=280–292|isbn=978-81-206-1971-5|last=Malleson|first=George Bruce|year=2005}}
* {{cite book|title=The annals of Indian administration, Volume 14| publisher=BiblioBazaar|page=467|isbn=978-1-145-42314-5|last=Townsend|first=Meredith|year=2010}}</ref>

==Titles==
* 1685 : Khan
* 1691 : Khan Bahadur
* 1697 : Chin Qilich Khan (by Emperor Aurangazeb<ref name="hyd_on_the_net_nizams">{{cite web | title = Hyderabad on the Net : The Nizams | url = http://www.hyderabad.co.uk/nizam.htm | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120204205748/http://www.hyderabad.co.uk/nizam.htm | archive-date = 4 February 2012 | url-status = dead }}</ref>)
* 9 December 1707 : Khan-i-Dauran Bahadur
* 1712 : Ghazi ud-din Khan Bahadur and Firuz Jang
* 12 January 1713 : Khan-i-Khanan, Nizam ul-Mulk and Fateh Jang (by Emperor [[Farrukhsiyar]]<ref name="hyd_on_the_net_nizams" />)
* 12 July 1737 : Asaf Jah (by Emperor [[Muhammad Shah]]<ref name="hyd_on_the_net_nizams" />)
* 26 February 1739 : Amir ul-Umara and Bakshi ul-Mamalik (Paymaster-General)
* Final : Chin Fateh Khan, Chin Qilich Khan, Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah, Khan-i-Dauran Bahadur, Khan-i-Khana, Fateh Jung, Firuz Jang, Ghazi-ud-din Bahadur, Amir-ul-Umara, Bakhshi-ul-Mumalik{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}

== In popular culture ==
*In the [[Hindi]]-language TV series [[Peshwa Bajirao (TV series)|''Peshwa Bajirao'']], [[Yuri Suri]] portrays Qamr-ud-din Khan.
*In the 2015 [[Bollywood]] movie ''[[Bajirao Mastani]]'', [[Raza Murad]] appears in a cameo as Asaf Jah I.

==Positions==
* 1701–1705: [[Faujdar]] of [[the Carnatic]] and [[Talikota]]
* 1705–1706: Faujdar of the [[Adil Shahi|Bijapur]]{{Clarify|date=September 2012|The Adil Shahi dynasty only lasted until 1686.}}, [[Azam Nagar]] and [[Belgaum]]
* 1706–1707: Faujdar of [[Raichur]], Talikota, Sakhar and Badkal
* 1707: Faujdar of [[Firozabad]] and [[Balakot]]
* 9 December 1707 – 6 February 1711: [[Subedar]] of [[Oudh]] and Faujdar of [[Gorakhpur]]
* 12 January 1713 – April 1715: Subedar of the [[Deccan Plateau|Deccan]] and Faujdar of [[the Carnatic]]
* April 1717-7 January 1719: Faujdar of [[Moradabad]]
* 7 February – 15 March 1719: Subedar of [[Patna]]
* 15 March 1719 – 1724: Subedar of [[Malwa]]
* 1722–1724: Subedar of [[Gujarat]]

==Military promotions==
* Commander of 400-foot and 100 horse, 1684 (roughly equivalent to a modern [[battalion]] commander or [[lieutenant-colonel]])
* 400-foot and 500-horse, 1691
* 400-foot and 900-horse, 1698
* 3,000-foot and 500 horse, 1698 (roughly equivalent to a modern regimental commander or [[colonel]])
* 3,500-foot and 3,000 horse, 1698 (roughly equivalent to a modern brigade commander or [[brigadier]])
* 4,000-foot and 3,000 horse, 1699,
* 4,000-foot and 3,600-horse, 1700
* 4,000-foot and 4,000 horse, 1702 (roughly equivalent to a modern division commander or [[major-general]])
* 5,000-foot and 5,000 horse, 1705
* 6,000-foot and 6,000 horse, 9 December 1707
* 7,000-foot and 7,000 horse, 27 January 1708
* 8,000-foot and 8,000 horse, 12 January 1713
* 9,000-foot and 9,000 horse, 8 February 1722
{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-hou|[[Asaf Jahi dynasty]]|1671||1748|}}
{{succession box | before= None | title=[[Nizam of Hyderabad]] | after=[[Nasir Jang Mir Ahmad]] | years=1720 – 1 June 1748}}
{{s-end}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book| title = Nizamu'l-Mulk Asaf Jah I | last = Khan | first = Yousuf Hussain | author-link = Yousuf Hussain Khan | publisher = Basel Mission Press | date = 1936 | url = https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.77281/page/n3}}
* {{cite book| last = Mehta |first=Jaswant Lal | title = Advanced study in the history of modern India 1707–1813|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d1wUgKKzawoC| year = 2005| publisher = Sterling| isbn = 9781932705546|access-date=29 September 2021}}
* {{cite book|last=Faruqui |first=Munis D. |chapter=At Empire's End: The Nizam, Hyderabad and Eighteenth-century India |editor1=Richard M. Eaton |editor2=Munis D. Faruqui |editor3=David Gilmartin |editor4=Sunil Kumar |title=Expanding Frontiers in South Asian and World History: Essays in Honour of John F. Richards |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h0_xhdCScQkC&pg=PA1 |date=2013 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-03428-0 |pages=1–38}}

==Further reading==
* [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.281273/mode/2up?q= Nizam ul Mulk early career, life in Delhi, Formation of Empire]

==External links==
*{{Commons-inline}}
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iwPKCRkJmk The Nizam's Golden Era]

{{Hyderabad state}}
{{Nizam of Hyderabad}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Asaf Jah, Khan Qamar Ud Din Siddiqi}}
[[Category:Grand viziers of the Mughal Empire]]
[[Category:1671 births]]
[[Category:1748 deaths]]
[[Category:18th-century Indian monarchs]]
[[Category:18th-century Indian Muslims]]
[[Category:People from Agra]]
[[Category:Nizams of Hyderabad]]
[[Category:Turkic peoples]]
[[Category:People from Burhanpur]]
[[Category:Subahdars of Malwa]]
[[Category:18th-century Mughal Empire people]]
[[Category:Banu Abu Bakr]]