Everything about Jahangir totally explained
» For people named Jahangir Khan, see Jahangir Khan (disambiguation).
Nuruddin Salim Jahangir (full title:
Al-Sultan al-'Azam wal Khaqan al-Mukarram, Khushru-i-Giti Panah, Abu'l-Fath Nur ud-din Muhammad Jahangir Padshah Ghazi [Jannat-Maksani] (
Persian: نور الدین جهانگیر) (
September 20,
1569-
November 8,
1627) (
OS August 31,
1569 –
NS November 8,
1627) was the ruler of the
Mughal Empire from
1605 until his death. The name Jahangir is from
Persian جهانگير, meaning "Conqueror of the World," "World-Conqueror." Alternative spellings of the name include
Ghehangir, and
Cihangir (in
Turkish). Nuruddin or Nur al-Din is an
Arabic name which means "the Light of the Faith."
Birth
Jahangir was a child of many prayers.
It is said to be by the blessing of
Shaikh Salim Chisti (one of the revered sages of his times) that
Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar's first surviving child, the future Jahangir, was born. He was born at the
dargah of the
Shaikh Salim Chishti, in the village
Fatehpur Sikri near
Agra. The child was named Salim after the darvesh and was affectionately addressed by Akbar as Sheikhu Baba.
Akbar developed an emotional attachment with the village Sikri (abode of Chishti). Therefore, he developed the town of Sikri and shifted his imperial court and residence from Agra to Sikri, later renamed as
Fatehpur Sikri.
Education
Akbar ensured that his son received the best education possible. Salim started his studies at the age of four and was taught
Fārsi,
Turkish,
Arabic,
Urdū, history, arithmetic, geography and other sciences by important tutors like Abdur Rahim Khan-i-Khanan, a renowned soldier and scholar.
Marriage
Salim was made a
Mansabdar of ten thousand (Das-Hazari), the highest military rank of the empire, after the emperor. He independently commanded a regiment in the
Kabul campaign of
1581, when he was barely twelve. His Mansab was raised to Twelve Thousand, in
1585, at the time of his betrothal to his cousin Manbhawati Bai, daughter of Bhagwan Das of Amber. Bhagwan Das (son of Raja Bharmal) was the brother of Akbar's wife Rajkumari
Hira Kunwari, also known as
Mariam Zamani.
The marriage with Manbhawati Bai took place on
February 13,
1585.
Khusraw Mirza was the offspring of this union. Thereafter, Salim was allowed to marry, in quick succession, a number of accomplished girls from the aristocratic Mughal and Rajput families. One of his favourite wives was a Rajput Princess, known as Jagat Gosain and
Princess Manmati, who gave birth to Prince Khurram, the future
Shah Jahan, Jahangir's successor to the throne.The total number of wives in his harem was more than eight hundred.
Jahangir married the extremely beautiful and intelligent
Mehr-un-Nisa (better known by her subsequent title of
Nur Jahan), in May
1611. She was the widow of
Sher Afghan. She was witty, intelligent and beautiful, which was what attracted Jahangir to her. Her abilities are said to range from fashion designing to hunting. There is also a myth that she'd once killed four tigers with six bullets.
Revolt
In
1600, when
Akbar was away from the capital on an expedition, Salim broke into an open rebellion, and declared himself
Emperor. Prince Salim finally succeeded to the throne on
November 3,
1605, eight days after his father's death. Salim ascended to the throne with the title of Nuruddin Muhammad Jahangir Padshah Ghazi, and thus began his 22-year reign at the age of 36. Having seized power, he'd to fend off his own son Prince
Khusraw's claim to the throne. Khusraw was defeated in
1606 and confined in the fort of Agra. Later on, in
1607 unearthing a conspiracy for his murder, Jahangir had Khusraw blinded as punishment, although his eyesight wasn't completely lost. Jahangir also executed the fifth
Sikh Guru Arjan Dev and confiscated his property, because he was thought to have blessed Khusraw.
In
1622, Khurram (
Shah Jahan), younger brother of Khosraw, had Khusraw murdered in a conspiracy to eliminate all possible contenders to the throne. Taking advantage of this internal conflict, the Persians seized the city of Qandahar and as a result of this loss, the Mughals lost control over the trade routes to Afghanistan, Persian and Central Asia and also exposed India to invasions from the north-west.
His reign
Jahangir started his reign with several popular acts. During his reign, there was a significant increase in the size of the Mughal Empire, half a dozen rebellions were crushed, prisoners of war were released, and the work of his father, Akbar, continued to flourish. Jahangir promised to protect
Islam and granted general amnesty to his opponents. He was also well noted for his subsidizes on the work of hundreds of painters and writers, of which he added works of his own.
Jahangir is most famous for his golden “chain of justice.” The chain was setup as a link between the people and Jahangir himself. Standing outside the castle of Agra with sixty bells, anyone was capable of pulling the chain and having a personal hearing from Jahangir himself.
Furthermore, Jahangir preserved the Mughal tradition of having a highly centralized form of government. The son of a
Hindu Rajput mother, Jahangir refrained from making the precepts of
Sunni Islam the cornerstone of his state policies. A faithful Muslim, as evidenced by his memoirs, he expressed his gratitude to Allah for his many victories which he called the “triumphs” of Islam. Nevertheless, Jahangir didn't let his personal beliefs dictate his state policies. Sovereignty, according to Jahangir, was a “gift of God” not necessarily given to enforce God’s law but rather to “ensure the contentment of the world.” Although, the spread of Islam and the implementation of the
Shariah were not the primary aims of the government, Jahangir attempted to implement the sanctions and prohibitions of Islamic law. Even so, it was only in the judicial department of the Mughal administration where Islamic law was applied. In civil cases, Islamic law applied to Muslims and criminal law was the same for both Muslims and Hindus. In matters like marriage and inheritance, both communities had their own laws that Jahangir respected. In the Mughal state, therefore, defiance of imperial authority, whether coming from a prince or anyone else aspiring to political power, or a Muslim or a Hindu, was crushed in the name law and order, not religion.
In this state, Jahangir was also susceptible to the influence of others, a weakness exploited by many. Because of this constant inebriated state,
Nur Jehan, the favourite wife of Jahangir, became the actual power behind the throne.
His autobiography
Jahangir was a good writer and loved nature. He recorded all sorts of wild tales of his life in his autobiography
Tuzk-e-Jahangiri. He liked paintings and collected many of them in his palace. Some of them are still found in museums.
Nur Jahan
The story of Nur Jahan must occupy a very important place in the history of Jahangir. She was the widow of a rebel officer, Sher Afghan, of Mughals. The governor of
Bengal was killed by him and consequently he suffered the same fate at the hands of the guards of the Governor.His widow,Mahrunnissa, was brought to
Agra and placed in the Royal harem in
1607.Jahangir married her in
1611 and gave her the title of Nur Jahan or 'Light of the world'.Jahangir is thought to have had a hand in the death of her husband. But there's no conclusive evidence to prove that he was guilty of that crime.
The character of Nur Jahan was fascinating and deserves praise.She had a piercing intelligence, a versatile temper and sound common sense. She possessed great physical strength and courage.She went on hunting tours with her husband, and on more than one occasion shot and killed ferocious tigers. Her devotion to Jahangir was unmatched.She loved him so much that he forgot all about the world. No wonder he entrusted all the work of the goverenment to her.
The loss of
Kandhar was due to Nur Jahan. When the Persians besieged Kandhar, Nur Jahan was at the helm of affairs. She ordered Prince Khurram to march for Kandhar, but the latter refused to do so. There is no denying that the refusal of the prince was due to her behaviour towards him. Jahangir was responsible for the death of
Guru Arjan Dev and the
Jains suffered a lot at his hands. It was on his orders and in his presence that a bullock was killed in the temple of Kangra. It was Jahangir who gave the orders for the desecration and destruction of the temples near
Pushkar in
Ajmer.
Death
The health of Jahangir was completely shattered due on account of too much of drinking. He was trying to restore it by visiting
Kashmir and
Kabul.He went from Kabul to Kashmir but returned to Lahore on account of severe cold. Jahangir died on the way in
1627 and was buried in
Shahdara Bagh, a suburb of
Lahore,
Punjab,
Pakistan. He was succeeded by his third son,
Prince Khurram who took the title of
Shah Jahan. Jahangir's elegant
mausoleum is located in the Shahdara locale of Lahore and is a popular tourist attraction in Lahore.
Jahangir in media
Nuruddin Salim Jahangir and his father
Akbar the Great were portrayed in the
Hindi film
Mughal-e-Azam, in which Jehangir was played by
Dilip Kumar.
Jalal Agha also played the younger Jehangir at the start of the film.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Jahangir'.
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