The Nawab of Awadh or the Nawab of Oudh /ˈaʊd/ was the title of the rulers who governed the state of Awadh (anglicised as Oudh) in north India during the 18th and 19th centuries. The Nawabs of Awadh belonged to an Iranian dynasty[1][2][3] of Sayyid origin[4][5] from Nishapur, Iran. In 1724, Nawab Sa'adat Khan established the Oudh State with their capital in Faizabad and Lucknow.
| Nawab of Awadh (Oudh) | |
|---|---|
 Seal | |
| Details | |
| First monarch | Saadat Ali Khan I |
| Last monarch | Birjis Qadr |
| Formation | 1722 |
| Abolition | 1858 |
| Residence | Chattar Manzil |
History
The Nawabs of Awadh were semi-autonomous rulers within the fragmented polities of Mughal India after the death in 1707 of Aurangzeb. They fought wars with the Peshwa, the Battle of Bhopal (1737) against the Maratha Confederacy (which was opposed to the Mughal Empire), and the Battle of Karnal (1739) as courtiers of the Moghul.[6]
The Nawabs of Awadh, along with many other Nawabs, were regarded as members of the nobility of the Mughal Empire. They joined Ahmad Shah Durrani during the Third Battle of Panipat (1761) and restored Shah Alam II (r. 1760–1788 and 1788–1806) to the imperial throne. The Nawab of Awadh also fought the Battle of Buxar (1764) preserving the interests of the Moghul. Oudh State eventually declared itself independent from the rule of the Moghul in 1818.[7]
List of rulers
All of these rulers of the Royal House of Awadh used the title of Nawab from 1722 onward:
| Portrait | Titular Name | Personal Name | Birth | Reign | Death |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Burhan ul Mulk Sa'adat Khan برہان الملک سعادت خان | Saadat Ali Khan I | 1680 Nishapur, Khurasan, Safavid dynasty, Persia | 1722 – 19 March 1739 | 1739 |
 | Abul-Mansur Khan Safdar Jung ابو المنصور خان صفدرجنگ | Muhammad Muqim | 1708 | 1739 – 5 October 1754 | 1754 |
 | Shuja-ud-Daula شجاع الدولہ | Jalal-ud-din Haider Abul-Mansur Khan | 1732 | 1754 – 26 January 1775 | 1775 |
 | Asaf-ud-Daula آصف الدولہ | Muhammad Yahya Mirza Amani | 1748 | 26 January 1775 – 20 April 1797 | 1798 |
 | Asif Jah Mirza | Wazir Ali Khan وزیر علی خان | 1780 | 21 September 1797 – 21 January 1798 | 1817 |
 | Yamin-ud-Daula | Saadat Ali Khan II سعادت علی خان | 1752 | 21 January 1798 – 11 July 1814 | 1814 |
 | Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar Shah | Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar Shah غازی الدیں حیدر شاہ | 1769 | 11 July 1814 – 19 October 1827 | 1827 |
 | Abul- Mansur Qutub-ud-din Sulaiman jah | Nasir-ud-Din Haidar Shah ناصر الدیں حیدر شاہ | 1803 | 19 October 1827 – 7 July 1837 | 1837 |
 | Abul Fateh Moin-ud-din | Muhammad Ali Shah محمّد علی شاہ | 1777 | 7 July 1837 – 7 May 1842 | 1842 |
 | Najm-ud-Daula Abul-Muzaffar Musleh-ud-din | Amjad Ali Shah امجد علی شاہ | 1801 | 7 May 1842 – 13 February 1847 | 1847 |
 | Abul-Mansur Mirza | Wajid Ali Shah واجد علی شاہ | 1822 | 13 February 1847 – 11 February 1856 | 1 September 1887 |
 | Mohammadi Khanum | Begum Hazrat Mahal بیگم حضرت محل | 1820 | 11 February 1856 – 5 July 1857 Wife of Wajid Ali Shah and mother of Birjis Qadra (in rebellion) | 7 April 1879 |
 | Ramzan Ali رمضان علی | Birjis Qadr بر جیس قدر | 1845 | 5 July 1857 – 3 March 1858 (in rebellion) | 14 August 1893 |
Pretenders to the throne of Awadh
- Meerza family. ...
- Nawab Meher Quder Zahid Ali Meerza (son of Nawab Birjis Qadr)
- Nawab Kaukab Quder Meerza (grandson of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah and son of Nawab Meher Quder Zahid Ali Meerza)[8]
- Nawab Kamran Meerza (son of Kaukab Meerza)[8]
- Nawab Ibrahim Ali Khan Sheesh Mahal[9]
Gallery
Saadat Ali Khan I, the first Nawab of Awadh, who laid the foundation of that state.
Safdarjung is accused of making peace with the Maratha Confederacy.
Shuja-ud-Daula fought the Maratha Confederacy during the Third Battle of Panipat on behalf of the Great Moghul, he's also known to have fought during the Battle of Buxar.
Shuja ud-Daula and his ten sons
Shuja-ud-Daulah on a hunt
Shuja's army in Oudh
Oudh Cavalry
Mumtaz-ud-Daulah of the Budh Royal Family attributed to Felice Beato
Moksim-ud-Daulah
Gates of the Palace at Lucknow by W. Daniell, 1801.
Gate of the Lal-Bagh fort at Faizabad in 1801.
.jpg)
See also
References
Further reading
- Ashirbadi Lal Srivastava (1899–1973): The First Two Nawabs of Awadh. A critical study based on original sources. With a foreword by Sir Jadunath Sarkar. Lucknow : The Upper India Publishing House 1933. xi, 301 S. Originally Phil. Diss. Lucknow 1932. 2. rev. and corr. ed. Agra : Shiv Lal Agarwal 1954. About Burhan ul Mulk Sa'adat Khan (1680–1739) and Safdar Jang (1708–1754), Nawabs of Awadh
- Ashirbadi Lal Srivastava (1899–1973): Shuja-ud-Daulah. Vol. I (1754–1765). Calcutta : Sarkar Midland Press 1939 A thesis approved for the degree of doctor of letters by the Agra University in 1938. 2., rev. and corr. ed. Agra : Shiva Lal Agarwala 1961. Vol. II (1765–1775) Lahore : Minerva 1945. 2. ed. Agra : Agarwal 1974. About Shuja-ud-Daula (1732–1775), Nawab of Awadh
External links
- Nawabs of Awadh
- THE COURT LIFE UNDER THE NAWABS OF AWADH (1754–1797)
- Roots of North Indian Shi‘ism in Iran and Iraq:Religion and State in Awadh, 1722–1859, by J. R. I. Cole. University of California Press, 1989.
- HISTORICAL SERIES No. LVI
- Advanced study in the history of modern India, Volume 2, by G. S. Chhabra, Lotus Press, 1 January 2005