Dr. Rukhsana Iftikhar * (* Assistant Professor, Department of History, University of the Punjab, Lahore.)
Abstract
In fifteen and sixteen centuries Indian women were usually banished from public or political activity due to the patriarchal structure of Indian society. But it was evident through non government arenas that women managed the state affairs like male sovereigns. This paper explores the construction of bourgeois ideology as an alternate voice with in patriarchy, the inscription of subaltern female body as a metonymic text of conspiracy and treachery. The narratives suggested the complicity between public and private subaltern conduct and inclination – the only difference in the case of harem or Zannaha, being a great degree of oppression and feminine self –censure. The gradual discarding of the veil (in the case of Razia Sultana and Nur Jahan in Middle Ages it was equivalents to a great achievement in harem of Eastern society). Although a little part, a pinch of salt in flour but this political interest of Mughal women indicates the start of destroying the patriarchy imposed distinction of public and private upon which western proto feminism constructed itself.
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Mughal rule in India had blessed with many brilliant and important aspects that still are shining in the history. They left great personalities that strengthen the history of Hindustan as compare to the histories of other nations. In these great personalities there is a class who indirectly or sometime directly influenced the Mughal politics. This class is related to the Mughal Harem. The ladies of Royalty enjoyed an exalted position in the Mughal court and politics.
They were considered so influential that many persons
succeeded in approaching the Emperor
through them.
Central Asian Tradition
In order to understand the prominent role of women at
the Mughal court it has to be borne in
mind that women in the central Asian
region from which the ‘House of Timur’ originated enjoyed considerably more freedom and were more
active than those in the central Islamic
regions. Alanquwa the mythical female ancestor of Chingiz Khan played an important role in the
prehistory of the Mughals. The chief
wife of Timur, founding father of the Mughal
dynasty was also a highly independent lady. In more recent history there was Babur’s maternal grandmother Isan
Daulat Begum, the wife of Yunus Khan
Mughal who after the death of Babur’s father managed everything for her grandson. (1) In the words
of Babur
When it comes to tactics and strategy, there were few women like my grandmother Isan Daulat Begum. She was intelligent and a good organizer mostly arrangements were made according to her stipulations.(2)
Furthermore Babur’s mother Qultug Nigar Begum was the very energetic lady, the chief wife of Umar Shaykh Mirza and she accompanied her son Babur on many of his campaigns.
Razia Sultanaa As A Source Of Inspiration
Razia worked as a source of inspiration for Mughal
ladies to take active part in politics.
In India the Turks who had fully
assimilated political traditions of the Persians accepted the right of female to sovereignty already raised a lady
Razia Sultanaa to the throne. The example
of Razia Sultana encouraged the ladies of
Mughal royalty to take active part in politics. The family of Babur which inherited the traditions of Chingiz
khan and Timur allowed their female
sufficient political right and enabled them to share the political rights. (3)
Political Domination Of Mughal Ladies
The company of women for Mughal men was a normal part
of almost all their activities. Women
took part actively at court functions,
in wars and some of the prominent ladies participated in business dealings with domestic and foreign
petitioners behind the veil. The
chronicles contain a wealth of documentations on women in the imperial household who were often as powerful
as their husbands acting as patrons of
architecture, art and science, playing a role in government, having the right to issue edicts,
intervenes in the political matters. The
safety and protection of the Zananah however did not stop Mughal women from
direct and indirect involvement in public
affairs. Mughal women showed great dignity in the exercise of
power. Akbar had appointed his sister
Bakhtunnisa as governor of Kabul. She
successfully administrated the area for three years. There were other ladies who were very dominant in the
political affairs in the Great Mughals
even outside the harem. As Rani Durgavati the
Chandel princess of Gondwana governed her country with great courage and capacity. Her country was better
administrated and more prosperous than
that of Akbar the Great.(4)
Mughal women participated in the political culture of
their times by different ways and means
as follows:
1. Matrimonial alliance:
In Mughals,
many marriages were based on political motives.
They strengthen their position in different regions through these marriages. Mughal women worked behind the
scenes in marriage negotiations, guided
emperors and princes in directions that would be most beneficial as political alliances and
welcoming new wives into the complex
culture of the women’s apartments. Mubarika a lady of Pashtun clan of Yusufzay to whom Babur
married which improved his standing in
the eyes of the Afghan highlanders. Similarly Babur married her sister to Shabani Khan and after
getting the rule of Hindustan he called
her sister back by getting divorced from Shabani Khan. So women played a great role in these
political marriages. As Nurjahan married
the daughter of her brother Mumtaz Mahal to
Shahjahan to strengthen her position and later married her daughter Ladli Begum to the other son of
Jahangir.(5)
2. Diplomatic missions:
These ladies corresponded by letters and by couriers
with the noble wives of rulers of other
countries and kingdoms and strengthen
the contacts that were beneficial to the empire. The ladies
actively corresponded to the nobles and other
officials. In the list of the ladies who
actively corresponded in Mughal period were Hamida Bano Begum, Nurjahan, Mumtaz Mahal and Jaahan Ara
.
3. Appointments on official posts:
Women at court had an important role in the appointments and promotion of relatives and friends to positions of political and financial responsibilities. The most noted example of this involvement in the shaping of court hierarchy was Nurjahan whose family benefited tremendously from her potion as Jahangir’s wife.(6)
4. Court politics:
The most important way women shaped Mughal politics
was by actual involvement in political
affairs at court. They were acting as
mediators and peacemaker. The most famous example of such intercession by women in the role of
peacemakers occurred at the end of
Akbar’s reign when the intense efforts of Gulbadan Begum, Maryam Makani and Salima Sultana Begum proved
successful in bringing about a
reconciliation between Akbar and Salim.(7)
Criteria Of Sovereignty In Political Affairs.
According to Fatima Mernissi ,
“There are two indisputable criteria of sovereignty
in Islam. The name of the head of state
is proclaimed in the Khutba at the
Friday service in the mosque and it is
inscribed on the coins”(8)
Although Mughal men allowed their women to participate
in political matters but they did not
share the privilege of Khutba with any lady
even a person like Jahangir who was fully influenced by Nurjahan and she was equally possessed the power but even
her name was not allowed to be read in
the Friday Khutba. The royal ladies had many
other privileges only without Khutba such as:
Minting the coins, Royal seal, Official correspondence and Titles. (9)
Prominent Female Political Figures of Mughal Era
Maham
Begum was the Shia wife of Babur. She was married to Babur in 1506 A.D. She accompanied her
husband to Badakhsan and Tranoxiana and
stood by him through thick and thin. She enjoyed exalted position in the time of Babur and was
the only queen who was allowed to sit by
the side of the king on the throne at Delhi. For two and a half years after the death of her
husband she continued taking an active
interest in the contemporary politics. She held a very high place in the harems of Babur, Humayun and
Akbar.(10)
Bibi Mubarika was another wife of Babur. Babur married
her in 1519 A.D in Afghanistan. It was a
political marriage and a clear cut
example of matrimonial alliance of Mughals. She helped Babur in solving some of his political problems. She
was the daughter of Malik Sulaman Shah
belonged to the Yusufzai Tribe of the Afghans. This tribe was the most troublesome of all the
tribes of the Afghans. She helped Babur
considerably in lessening the tension between the Afghans and him by conciliating the Yusafzais
and their chief Malik Shah Mansur. She
strengthened Babur’s hold in Afghanistan.(11)
In the reign of Humayun the first lady who occupied an important position in the Harem was Khanzada Begum, the eldestsister of Babur. After the death of Maham Begum she was raised to the status of the principal lady of the palace and was given the title of “Padshah Begum”. Humayun had great faith in her and always consulted her in solving the complicated problems of the family. In 1541 A.D when Humayun was moving towards Thatta he learnt that Hindal had occupied Qandhar at the instance of Qadracha Khan (governor of Qandhar and Kamran had marched against him to recover Qandhar). He was greatly disturbed at the news of this fraternal discord and requested his aunt Khanzada Begum to go to Qandhar, intervene in this matter and try to bring reconciliation between the two brothers. Khanzada Begum went there but could not succeed in her mission. In 1545 A.D when Humayun returned form Iran and laid siege to the fort of Qandhar. Kamran found himself in difficulty. He sent Khanzada Begum to Askari who was in charge of the fort with a secret instruction to hold out the fort till the arrival of Kamran. But Askari could not resist the forces of Humayun. The fall of the effort became obvious. As such according to the instruction of Kamran, Askari sent Khanzada Begum to negotiate peace with Humayun. As the issue had not yet been finally settled when she fell seriously ill and died in September 1545 A.D. As principal lady of the harem, Khanzada Begum took fairly keen interest in the political affairs. (12)
Gulbadan was the daughter of Zahir ud din Babur. She
was born in 1522 A.D. In the period of
Humayun when he had to face a great
challenge from Sher Shah Suri he called an advisory meeting to crush the revolt of Sher Shah Suri. In this
meeting Gulbadan Begum participated
actively. Due to her continuous efforts she was able to remove the clashes between Humayun and
Hindal. She was of the view that only by
the collective efforts of the four brothers the danger of Sher Shah Suri could be ended. She wrote
first official document of Mughal
history on the request of her nephew Akbar.
According to Mrs. Beverage the translator of Humayunnama:
“When Jahangir revolted against Akbar at that time Gulbadan Begum and Hamida Banu Begum performed the role of the conciliator and on the request of both ladies Akbar forgave Jahangir”(13)
Mah Chuchak Begum was step mother of Mughal king
Akbar. Her son Mirza Mohammad Hakim was
appointed the governor of Kabul by
Humayun in 1556 A.D .He was placed under the
guardianship of Munim Khan. But Mah Chuchak Begum was an ambitious lady and exercised her influence to
a great extent in the political affairs of Kabul. In 1560 A.D after the fall of
Bairam Khan when Munim Khan was called
back to the court, this situation was
fully exploited by Mah Chuchak who gradually started a firmer grip over Kabul. She managed to force out Ghani
Khan and persuaded him to leave for
India. Kabul was now under direct control of Mah Chuchak Begum who appointed Fazil Beg to look
after the administration. After the
murder of Fazil Beg she appointed Shah
Wali Atka as the general manager of Kabul but he started arrogating too much power for himself and Begum managed
to put him to death. In 1563 A.D when
the news of the expulsion of Ghani Khan
and confused state of affairs at Kabul reached the court, Emperor Akbar decided to send Munim Khan to establish
peace and order in the province. Munim
Khan himself was interested in going to Kabul in order to take revenge of his son. But the
resistance offered by Afghans could not
break down .Munim Khan was ultimately defeated and compelled to retreat.
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Shah Abdul Mali a turbulent noble form the family of
great Sayyids of Tirmiz having escaped
form the prison from Lahore arrived at
Kabul in search of protection and refuge and approached to Begum. The Begum consulted her confidential
advisers and finally she welcomed him,
treated him with generosity and married her
daughter Fakhrun nisa Begum to him with a view to strengthen the position of her family. But Shah Abdul Mali
did not like the influence of Mah
Chuchak begum and started asserting his position. In order to establish his complete supremacy over the
politics of Kabul he conspired against
Begum and finally put her to death in 1564 A.D.
After the death of her husband Mah Chuchak Begum took active interest in the politics of Kabul and tried
to dominate the scene for the next eight
years. In order to strengthen the position of her son Mirza Hakim she even lost her life.(14)
Maham Aanga was chief nurse of Akbar. She played
very active role during the early years
of Akbar. She was the wife of Nadim Kuka
and mother of Baqi and Adam Kuka. She remained very influential on the personality of Akbar.
Akbar had great respect for her. She
loved Akbar so much that she happily agreed to expose her life at Kabul for him in 1547 A.D. when
Kamran was fighting against Humayun,
threatened to expose Akbar to the fire of a cannon.
Maham Aanga’s influence remained form 1560-1564 A.D Maham was a very ambitious lady and used Akbar as an instrument to carry on her plans. (15)
After the death of Humayun in 1556 A.D Bairam
Khan became the regent of Akbar.
Gradually Akbar began to dislike the idea
of regency. He was tired of Bairam Khan and was anxious to assert
his own personality. In this situation
Akbar found a favorable response form
Maham Aanga. Her relatives occupied important offices of Akbar’s government. At that time Shahab-ud-din
was the governor of Delhi and Baqi Khan
of Aligarh (kul). In 1560 A.D when Akbar went
on a hunting expedition from Agra then Maham Aanga communicated this close secret to Shahab ud din. They
explained to the emperor that as long as
Bairam Khan would remain alive he would not be able to exercise his authority. This exasperated the
mind of Akbar. Receiving encouragement
from Maham Aanga incensed at the conduct of Bairam Khan Akbar arrested some of his messengers
which resulted in creating gulf between
Akbar and Bairam Khan. Bairam Khan finally
left for Mecca in 1561 A.D after the fall of Bairam Khan Akbar’s attention was drawn towards Malwa. Malwa was
ruled by Baz Bahadur at that time. Akbar
sent Adham Khan son of Maha Aanga
towards Malwa to occupied this area and Baz Bahadur was defeated in 1561 A.D Adam Khan took all property,
treasure and even Seraglio including
singing and dancing girls in his possession. Adham Khan made a mistake at that time. Instead of
sending booty to the emperor he sent
only few elephants. Akbar was very much annoyed at the misconduct of Adham Khan. Akbar left Agra to
surprise Adham Khan. Maham Aanga sent
two swift couriers to warn her son but
Akbar reached before them. Adham Khan was stunned at Emperor’s arrive. Maham Aanga intervenes at that time
in the issue. She arranged the articles
and Adam Khan presented them before Akbar. Adham Khan persisted in his wickedness. He
deliberately kept two beauties of Baz
Bahadur’s Harem. Akbar knew it he gave orders to search them out. Maham Aanga perceived that if there two
women were discovered by his majesty the
veil over Adham Khan’s act would be
raised. Therefore she put these two ladies to death.(16)
Maham Aanga with her loyalty and wisdom considered the prime confident of the emperor Akbar. She
took Shahab ud din and Khwaja Jahan in
her confidence and manipulated that appointment of Babadur Khan (Brother of Ali Quli Khan) to
the office of Vakil. Though, he became
vakil. In 1561 A.D Akbar appointed Atka Khan as
the Prime Minister, Maham Aanga who from her excellent service’s abundant wisdom and exceeding devotion
regarded herself as the substantive
prime minister was displeased at that time. Munim Khan was also discontented at the growing influence
of Maham Aanga. This influence started disappearing so Akbar recalled Adham
Khan from Malwa and appointed Muhammad
Khan Shirwani. Adham Khan was very much
annoyed and decided to kill Akbar when on Akbar’s call Adham Khan came to the court he had plan to
kill the Akbar. When Adham Khan came the
court Shams ud din Atqa Khan tried to stop
him, he murdered Atqa Khan. Adham Khan further proceeded to kill Akbar who was in his harem at that time.
Akbar did not spare him and ordered to
throw him down from the terrace and Adham Khan died. Akbar himself visited Maham Aanga and gave
her the news of Adham’s death. After 40
days of her son’s death Maham Aanga died
to grief in 1564 A.D.
It bears out that Akbar acted according to his own
will. Akbar had emancipated himself from
the tutelage of Bairam Khan and the
strong influence of Maham Aanga who was very cunning, an intriguer and strong in the matter of political
contact. In short the theory of
petticoat government led by Maham Aanga does not appeal much. It appears that Akbar took advantage of Maham
Aanga’s position and talent the whole
political scenario showed that Maham Aanga had the ability to manage the political
matters.(17)
According to I.H. Qureshi
“Maham was a cunning, an intriguer and strong in political contacts: is baseless because these things are quite legal in the case of male”(18).
Bakhtunnisa was the half-sister of Akbar and was
married to Khwaja Hasan of Badakshan. In
1581 A.D Muhammad Hakim the governor of
Kabul had conspired against Akbar in 1580 A.D rebelled in Kabul. He invaded the Punjab and advanced
to Lahore but was checked by Mansing who
was then governor of the province. Akbar
declared war on Muhammad Hakim and he took shelter into hills. The emperor himself went to Kabul. Muhammad Hakim
was pardoned but was humiliated by the
appointment of his sister Bakhtunnisa Begum to
the governorship of Kabul. Akbar informed her that he had no concern with Muhammad Hakim and in the case of his
misbehaving again he would not be shown
any kindness. After the departure of the Emperor from Kabul though Muhammad Hakim resumed his
old position yet all the official orders
were issued in his sister’s name by appointing
Bakhtunnisa to the government of Kabul. Akbar succeeded in managing the situation. Bakhtunnisa Begum
skillfully helped the Emperor in solving
this problem.(19)
Hamida Bano Begum was the daughter of Sheikh Ali Akbar. She got married with Humayun at the age of 14. Her title was Maryam Makani, the Merry of both the worlds. When the circumstances of Hindustan did not remain suitable for Humayun he decided to migrate towards Iran. When Shah Tahmasp heard the news of the arrival of Humayun, he sent his brother to welcome him. There were many persons who tried to create hatred in the heart of Shah Tahmasp for Humayun on religious bases but by the great wisdom of Hamida Bano Begum they remained fail in their motives. Hamida Bano Begum got the favor of the Sultanaah (sister of Shah Tahmasp) and became her favourite, through Sultanaah, Hamida Bano Begum asked Shah Tahmasp to give some force to Humayun that he would be able to reattack the Hindustan. On the request of Sultanaah Shah Tahmarp gave a big Army to Humayun. Even after coming back to Hindustan Hamida Bano Begum remained very important and loving for Sultanaah. Even in the period of Akbar when there were some chances of breaking up good relations between Hindustan and Iran. Hamida Bano Begum remained very important and loving for Sultanaah. Even in the period of Akbar when there were some chances of breaking up good relations between Hindustan and Iran Hamida Bano Begum always stopped the Akbar to break up the relations. Due to the efforts of Hamida Bano Begum the relations between Iran and Hindustan always remained good.(20)
She was also a very active part of the conspiracy of
Maham Aanga, Atka Khan, Mula Pir
Muhammad and Mirza Aziz Kuka against the
Khan Baba Bairam Khan. They all were against the extra ordinary influence of Bairam Khan. Due to the
efforts of Hamida Bano Begum and her
party they became successful to eliminate the
influence of Bairam Khan and sent him to Mecca. After the departure of Bairam Khan ,Hamida Bano Begum and her
party remained influential on the
affairs of the state for a long time. When Akbar was leaving for the Deccan, prince Salim who had
not been granted audience for sometime
past due to his habit of excessive drinking was
permitted to make Kornish by the pleadings of Maryam Makani who softened the heart of the Emperor. Once again
Salim committed a serious crime. Tired
of the long reign of his father which had already lasted for more than forty years and
impatient to occupy the throne, he
resolved to capture it by force. In 1601 A.D he unfurled the banner
of revolt and assumed the royal title at
Allahabad. The situation became
critical. The emperor was very unhappy. No one dared to petition
for the prince. In the end Maryum Makani
and Gulbadan Begum his aunt begged for
his forgiveness. The emperor granted their wishes. The prince was allowed to present himself before
the emperor.(21)
Hamida Bano Begum was very much dominated in the
court politics. She had the right to
issue the farmans and she had done
official correspondence for the settlement of different matters.
Salima Sultana was wife of Bairam Khan before Akbar.
She was the daughter of Mirza Noor ud
din Muhammad, grand daughter of Babur
and niece of Humayun. She was very influential in the state politics and Akbar always took advice from
her on many political affairs. Even in
the case of prince Salim’s revolt she remained very influential on the decisions of Akbar
regarding Salim punishment. Umrah of
Mughal court gave advice to Akbar that he should give a horrible punishment to Salim at that time she
was the lady who forbade Akbar to do
this. She said it would not in the favor of country. She confirmed him that she could make Salim
agreed to come to Akbar to accept his
mistakes. Akbar directed Salima Sultana Begum
to convey the news of forgiveness to the prince. She went to him
with an elephant named Fath Lashkar, a
special horse, a robe of honor and thus
through her efforts the prince was finally pardoned in 1603 A.D. During the very first year of the reign of
Jahangir his stepmother Salima Sultana
Begum accompanied by some other Begums of the
harem played a very significant role in contemporary politics. In
1605 A.D Khusru the oldest son of
Jahangir revolted against his father at
the instigation of Mirza Aziz Koka better known as Khan Azam( the son of Shamshuddin Atka).
It is said that Khan Azam used to go to the court
dressed in his shroud because he
apprehended that he would be killed any day. But he had no control over his tongue. One night
he had exchange of words with Amir ul
Umra Sharif Khan the grand Wazir in a private
meeting the Emperor took counsel of the prominent nobles in which both Amir ul Umrah and Mahabat Khan suggested
that Khan Azam should be put to death
immediately. But Khani-i-Jahan Lodhi opposed
the idea. At this moment Salima Sultana Begum called out from behind the Purdah
“You’r Majesty; all the Begums are assembled in the Zanana for the purpose of interceding of Mirza Aziz Koka. It will be better if you come there otherwise they will come to you”(22)
Jahangir was thus constrained to go to the female
apartment and on account of the pressure
exercised by the Begums he finally
pardoned him. On another occasion after the rebellion of Khusru was crushed in 1613 A.D his mother and sisters
requested the Emperor repeatedly that as
the prince was repenting for his past behavior he should be pardoned and
permitted audience. At the intercession of
Salima Sultana Begum Jahangir ultimately allowed audience to Khusru and permitted him to pay his respects
to the Emperor every day.
She was the Jaipuri Queen of Akbar the great. There is
no marriage in the sub continent which
proved more effective than the marriage
of Akbar and Maryam uz Zamani. She was very much influential on political field. Her marriage
with Akbar made Hindustan an influential
class of Rajput community in the Mughal politics. It created a union between Hindu and Muslim
community and it ended the disputes
among the people of different religions. It was influence of Maryum uz Zamani that the marriage of
prince Salim and others took place in
Rajput families. She got very much strength of
government after the death of Jahangir. She was supreme in all departments. She was from those ladies who
had the right to issue the sanads or
parvanah. In the field of official correspondent she was also very much dominated. Hindu Queens shared
equal influence in politics like Muslim
Queens. Particularly in the case of Maryam uz
Zamani she had equal rights as in political matters, official correspondence, domination in Harem etc. after
he death there was a great tomb built as
there were tomb of prominent Muslim Queens like
Nurjahan and Mumtaz Mahal.(23)
One of the most striking personalities of Mughal
dynasty was Nurjahan Begum , daughter of
Itimad-ud-daula. She was married to Jahangir
in 1611 A.D the Emperor married her and gave her the title of Noor Mahal (Light of the palace) in 1611
A.D and Nurjahan (Light of the world) in
1616 A.D.(24)
Nurjahan was a courageous lady and was endowed with
the capacity of understanding the
political problems and of taking active
interest in matters of administration. She served as a sound adviser
to her husband. The emperor reposed
great confidence in her. Naturally she
exercised great influence over her husband. “Emperor Jahangir taken pride in her as she possesses the
ability to defeat even the heavens
through her wise and clever devices.” (25)
The influence exercised by Nurjahan on the Emperor as
well as the contemporary politics of the
empire is a matter on which the opinions
are divided. According to some historians Jahangir was very much under her influence and according to
other group of historians Jahangir was
independent. He shared authority with Nurjahan but he did not give her all the powers. According to
Prof. Shuja ud din, Nurjahan and her
family was not all in all. Jahangir was very much independent all the rules of
foreign and domestic policy laid down by
the name of Jahangir but there is an other side of the coin that Nurjahan and her family was overtaken all the
machinery of government. It is said that
she was a very ambitious lady and wanted
to have power in her own hands. According to Ellison Banks Findly:
“She formed a Junta (clique) of her close
relatives including her father
Itimad-ud-daula, her mother Asmat Begum
and her borther Asaf Khan”(26)
To strengthen the group in 1612 A.D Khurram the 2nd
son of Jahangir was also included in it
through his marriage with the daughter
of Asaf Khan. It was through the help of this junta, Nurjahan exercised her influence by giving important
places to her relatives. As mentioned in
Iqbal-Nama-i-Jahangiri
“Day by day her influence and dignity increased no grant of lands was conferred upon any women except under her seal. Sometimes she would sit in the balcony of her palace, while the nobles would present themselves and listen to her dictates. Coin was struck in her name. On all farmans also receiving the imperial signature, the name of “Nur Jahan, the Queen Begam”, was jointly attached. At last her authority reached such a pass that the King was such only in name”(27)
According to Razia Gauhar in her thesis Harem
influence on Mughal society and
politics:“Nurjahan attained a position never
before enjoyed by the wife of a prince in India”(28)
She sometimes sat in Jhoraka window and dictated
orders to officers and received Nurjahan
the important messenges.Coin were struck
in her name.
The domination of Nurjahan roused the jealousy of
other nobles. Later on Khurram had
gained the title of Shahjahan and
gradually coming into prominence in the political affairs of the Empire. There developed a tension between
Shahjahan and Nurjahan which ultimately
alienated the prince form this group.
Mahabat Khan had great jealousy of extra ordinary
domination of Nurjahan on politics of
the country. This jealousy of Mahabat Khan
resulted into an open rebellion. He even went to the extent of
taking the king captive in a surprise
attack. When Nurjahan learnt about it her
blood was up. Her husband and king had been taken prisoner. She called a council of nobles castigated Asif
Khan and rebuked the others that:“All
this has happened through your neglect and stupid arrangements”(29)
River Jahlum separated the captive king and Nur
Jahan. Accompanied by many royal
officers she plunged into the river to
fight Mahabat Khan. Having failed in battle and in effecting the Emperor’s release she surrendered her to
Mahabat Khan and joined her husband in
captivity. Once again she started planning to rescue her husband.
“She cajoled the unwilling, she bribed the greedy,
she strengthened the wavering she had
out promises to all.(30) Jahangir died
in 1627 A.D with his death the power of
Nurjahan ended. Despite her best efforts to enthrone her son in law Shahryar, Shajahan succeeded to the throne
and it ended the political domination of
Nurjahan- a long chapter of Mughal history.
Arjunmand Bano Begum later known as Mumtaz Mahal was the daughter of Asaf Khan, brother of
Nurjahan and Wazir of the emperor
Jahangir. During the early years of the reign of Shahjahan his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal exerted some
pressure in political matters. Even
before the accession of Shahjahan to the throne of Delhi she had followed him cheerfully in his
wanderings and exile, patiently bearing
the pains and rigors of life in the forests of Telingaha, Bengal, Mewar and Deccan. According to J.N.
Chaudhary:
“In 1628 A.D when Shahjahan ascended the throne she occupied the premier position in the harem and the emperor usually consulted her about private as well as state affairs”(31)
She was entrusted with the Royal Seal. After the
state documents had been finally drafted
they were sent to the imperial harem and
it was her privilege to imprint the seal on them. This enabled her to get an insight into the
current affairs in some of which she
took active interest. The seal of Mumtaz Mahal was containing an elegant Persian couplet:
“By the grace of God, Mumtaz Mahal became the companion in the world of Shahjahan in the shadow of God”(32)
In 1627-28 A.D when Shahjahan traveled from South to
North in order to occupy the throne he
heard reports about the doubtful
attitude of Saif Khan the governor of Gujrat. He ordered him to be brought to the court. Saif Khan was brother
in law of Mumtaz Mahal she was
interested in his safety and therefore sent Parastar Khan to Ahmadabad to see that no calamity befell him.
It was on her recommendation that the
Emperor relieved the rigors of the imprisonment of Saif Khan and ordered that
he should be subjected neither to mental
nor physical torture.
According to Manucci, Mumtaz Mahal was also
responsible for creating ill feeling
towards and destroying the hold of the
Portuguese of Hugli. She was quite hostile towards them because
they had carried off two of her slave
girls. It is said that she was determined
to inflict severe punishment on them but her early death left her
desire unfulfilled. Her determined hostility
towards the Portuguese aggravated the
wroth of Shahjahan against them. (33)Her career was short and she died in 1631 A.D,.
After the death of Mumtaz Mahal in 1631 A.D the honor
of being the premier lady of Harem fell
upon Jahan Ara Begum the eldest daughter
of Shajahan. She took active part in political matters. anyone , a stranger, a courtier or a governor
who wish to obtain the favor from the
Emperor found it necessary to win the support of Jahanara. As the first lady of the realm and
as such among all the ladies of Mahal
the Begum Saheb was the most respected.(34)
Jahan Ara Begum sometimes healed the discords in
the imperial family which showed its
political influence in 1644 Aurangzeb
influenced by unwise council of some of the foolish advisors and by some of his acts annoyed the
Shahjahan. In the reaction Shahjahan
confiscated his Jagirs and ranks. Then it was on the appeal of Jahan Ara Begum that the
emperor forgave Aurangzeb and restored
to him the former rank and office. As the 1st lady of the realm, Jahan Ara enjoyed every powerful
position. Jahan Ara had a great
influence on official correspondence. Her farmans to the foreigners, governors of the Empire and
rulers of other countries kept very much
power and were very effecting in solving the problems.
Some chiefs and native rulers also approached to her
seeking her help in solving their
problems. On one occasion Raja Budh
Prakash of Sirmur sent to her valuable presents and requested her to present his case to the emperor for deciding
his dispute with the Raja of Garhwal.
Realizing the enormous influence of Jahan Ara Begum the foreign traders personally went to pay
her respect. When the Dutch embassy
found it unsuccessful in getting permission to carry out their trade in India they made every effort to win
the favor of principal members of the
court and particularly of Jahan Ara whose influence on father was unbounded. When the war of
succession started among her brothers
for obtaining the throne of Delhi in 1658 A.D Jahan Ara Begum favoured Dara, helped him and prayed
for her success. She tried her best to persuade her brothers to avoid any
conflict. Jahan Ara wrote a letter to
Aurangzeb in which she tried to convince him that “The emperor was in actual control of the
state affairs and that with the
exception of that spent in prayers, he
devotes the whole of his time to looking after the welfare of his subjects and to propagating
religion”. She warned him of his
temerity and said “It is against all
canons of wisdom and foresight to fight the eldest prince. You should observe the path of
loyalty and obedience and should stop at
the place where you have arrived. To
prevent the waste of Muslims lives on
either side send your representations to court.”(35)
But the counsel turned on deaf ears. In May, 1658
A.D Aurangzeb crossed Chambal and
reached near Samugarh. Dara failed to
hold Chambal against Aurangzeb and Aurangzeb after crossing Chambal reached Bhadruru forty miles east of
Dholpur. At this moment before the
battle of Samugarh started on 23rd May 1658 A.D
Jahanara Begum sent a letter to Aurangzeb again asking him to give up the evil designs and obey his father. She
further used her political wisdom and
suggested to Aurangzeb that the Punjab entrusted to Dara, Gujrat to Murad, Bengal to Shuja and rest of
the empire with the position of near
apparent and title of Iqbal Buland should go to you.(36)
As she was very genius in politics so when Aurangzeb
came into power,she sent him presents
and in return to get permission to stay
with her father in prison in the Agra Fort. For gaining importance in the eye of Aurangzeb, she requested her
father in his last days to pardon
Aurangzeb for the wrong he had done to his father.(37)
Roshan Ara was the second daughter of Shahjahan.
Roshan Ara Begum was not on very
friendly terms with her sister Jahan Ara
Begum. She tried to assist Aurangzeb in his plan of snatching the crown from the trembling hands of his father.
She was in touch with the affairs in the
seraglio and secretly conveyed to her brother regular developments. When she heard the news that
Aurangzeb illness she had taken up arms
in order to occupy the throne of Delhi she placed at his disposal all gold and silver available to
her. Aurangzeb promised her the title of
Shah Begum which he conferred on her in 1699 A.D in addition to cash reward of five lakhs of
rupees. As mentioned by Beriner when
Aurangzeb fell ill in May 1662 A.D she began to take active interest in the state affairs. Just
Dara had done at the illness of
Shahjahan she withheld the report of her brother’s illness.(38)
According to Manucci:
“She took the royal seal and wrote letters to many Rajas and generals on behalf of nine year old Sultana Azam”(39)
She did not allow any one to see the Emperor and a
rumor spread that he was dead. She
persuaded the Hindu princes to support
Azam. Prince Mazzam resented it and attempted to kill her design. When the emperor came to know the activities
of his sister he was immensely
displeased and she lost much of her brother’s love and regard for her.
Aware of her importance Tavernier who was in India
from 1641 to 1664A.D called her the
‘Ground Begun’ and once presented to her
eunuch a watch with a painted case. Bernier too was aware of her constant influence to the court, in a
letter written from Surat on 10th March
1668A.D. as a guideline for the establishment of French factories in the Mughal Empire he wrote:
“Roshan Ara Begum is so much in favor that it would perhaps be better to give her a few
presents”(40)
 |
The daughters of Emperor Aurangzeb Zeb un Nisa also
took active interest in the political
matters. In 1658 A.D when the war of
succession was going on between the brothers of Aurangzeb his
father in law Shah Nawaz Khan did not
extend him any help. After the defeat of
Dara, Aurangzeb got his father in law imprisoned. In the end it was on the insistence of Zebunnisa Begum
that Shah Nawaz Khan her maternal
grandfather was released. Similarly when prince Azam was punished (1701-5 A.D) for quarrelling
with the superintendent of his harem he
sent the petition of pardon through his sister Padshah Begum.(41)
It is found that Zebunnisa after appeared in the court
with a veil on her face and assisted her
father in his deliberations. In court
she sat in Purdah and gave advices to Emperor Aurangzeb regarding the politics of court. It appears that she
had also effective voice in matters of
appointment. Once Aurangzeb wrote to her recommending some names for a post adding that if she did
not approve of it, it should not be
done.(42)
Zebunnisa was an ardent partisan of her younger
brother Muhammad Akbar. She actively
helped him during his rebellion in 1679
A.D in the year 1681 A.D the prince accompanied the emperor to Rajput wars in command of the advance
division and through out the next year
he had a full army corps under his command. Then he gave himself to evil adviser rebelled against
his father and proclaimed himself
emperor. He issued a manifesto deposing his father as a violator of Islamic law
and been marched for a battle against him in
1681 A.D. During the course of the rebellion the princes held a
secret correspondence with her. When the
rebellion failed and Akbar’s deserted
camp was seized by the imperialists, Zebunnisa’s letter to Akbar was discovered and she had to face the
fury of her father’s wrath. As mentioned
in Maasir-i-Alamgiri:
“Her property and pension of four lakhs of rupees a year were confiscated and she was imprisoned at Samugarh for the rest of her life where she died in 1702 A.D.” (43)
Zinat un Nisa was also another daughter of Auranzeb.
He entrusted her with a very responsible
task the care of Martha captives, the
widow of Shambhaji and her son Shahu. The Begum was born of the same mothers as prince Akbar and
entertained a tender feeling for Maratha
who had been friendly to Akbar.(44) She felt deep sympathy for Yesu Bai and her son. She protected them
from her fathers wrath. In 1707 A.D when
Shahu went to the Deccan from the river Narmada
Zinat-un-Nisa helped him considerably to facilitate his journey.
She might also have helped the release
of Shahu and his mother. It is said that
Balaji was in secret correspondence with her and it was with her assistance that she guarded the interest of
Shahu. Zinat-un-Nisa sometimes acted as
an intermediary also between the emperor and the princes with regard to political matters. In
1691 A.D the siege of Jinji started
under the command of Asad Khan and his son Nusrat Jang. In 1693 A.D Kam Baksh the youngest son of
Aurangzeb was arrested for his
opposition to the two generals and also for his intrigues with the enemy. When he arrived at the court (in 1693
A.D.) it was through the mediation of
Zinat-un-Nisa that he was granted interview with the emperor in the harem.(45)
It is a great achievement of the women that they
became successful to leave their marks
in the field of politics irrespective the
restrictions of purdah and harem in Medieval India. They did not
only participate in the political
affairs but on many occasions seems to be
dominant on their male sovereigns. These ladies advised them in the critical matters. They had the coins of their
name; they got the right to sit besides
the king and to issue the farmans on his behalf. This aspect is a great example of liberal attitude
towards women in the confined structure
of Mughal harem.
*****
Reference
1. Annemarie Sehimmel, The Empire of the great
Mughals, Lahore: Sang-e-Meel
Publications, 2005, p. 144.
2. Annette Susannah Beveridge, Trans. Babur-Nama,
Vol.2, Delhi: Low Price Publicaitons,
1989, p. 91.
3. Rekha Misra, Women in Mughal India, Delhi:
Munshiram Manonarial, 1967, p.
16-17.
4. P.N Chopra, Life and letters under great Mughals,
Delhi: Shiva Lal Agarwala & Co (p)
Ltd., 1975, p. 121.
5. Annemarie, The empire of the great Mughals,Opcit.,
p. 145. 6. Zeenat Ziad, the magnificent
Mughals, Karachi: Oxford Univeristy
Press, 2002, p. 49-51.
7. Ibid., p. 52.
8. Fatima Mernissi, Hidden from History, Forgotten
Queens of Islam, Lahore: ASR
publications, 1993, p. 71.
9. Dr. Mubarak Ali, The court of the great Mughals
based on Persian sources, Lahore: Book
traders, 1986, p. 58-59. 10. Rekha,
Women in Mughal, Opcit., p. 18.
11. Ibid, p. 18-19
12. Ibid, p. 19-20.
13. Gul-Badan Begum, Humayun-Nama, Lahore:
Sang-e-Meel Publications, 1987, p.
8-9
14. Abul-ul-FazalAllami, Akbarnama,Vol. 2,
Calcutta;Royal Asiatic Society Bengal,
1948, P, 150.
15 V. A. Smith, Akbar the great Mughal, Bombay: S.
Chand & Co., 1962, p. 36
16 Elliot & Dowson, The history of India as told
by its own historians, Allahabad: Kitab
Mhal, 1964, p. 23-25
17 Rekha Misra, Women in Mughal India,Opcit;p,29. 18 Ishtiaque Hussain Qureshi, Akbar the Architect
of Mughal Empire,Dehli,Royal Book
Company,1978.p,61-2.
19 Rekha Misra,Women in Mughal India,Opcit;p31. 20 Gulbadan, Humayun Nama,Opcit., p. 240
21 I.H. Qureshi,Akbar the Architect of the Mughal Empire,Opcit.,p.64.
22 Rekha Misra,Women in Mughal ,Opcit;p33.
23 R. Nath, Private life of the Mughals of India.
(1526-1803 A.D), Mumbai: Rupa & Co.
2005, p. 48-50.
24 Mohammad Shuja ud Din, The life and times of
Noorjahan, Lahore: The caravan book
house, 1967, p. 26.
25 Fergus Nicoll, Shahjahan,The Rise and fall of
Mughal
Emperor, Penguin Viking, 2009, p. 66.
26 Ellison Banks Findly, Nurjahan Empress of Mughal India, Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2001, p.
43-45.
27 Ibid, p. 43.
28 Razia Gauhar, Harem influence on Mughal society 7
politics, Lahore: University of the
Punjab, 1963-64, p. 75.
29 K. S. Lal, the Mughal Harem, Delhi: Aditya
Prakashan, 1988, p. 84.
30 Ibid, p. 84-85.
31 J. N Chaudhry, Mumtaz Mahal, Islamic Culture, 1937,
p. 373. 32 Fergus Nicoll, Shajahan,
Opcit., p. 166-67.
33 Niccolao Manucci, Travel through Mughal India,
Lahore: Historical printers, 1976, p.
182.
34 N. J. Temuri, Jahan Ara, Ph. D thesis,(unpublished)
Punjab University, p. 45-46.
35 Banarsi Prasad Saksena, History of Shahjahan of
Delhi. Lahore: Book traders, nd, p.
329.
36 Misra, Women in Mughal,Opcit., p. 45.
37 Lal, Mughal Harem,Opcit., p. 97.
38 Bernier, Travels in the Mughal empire,
Westminster, Archibald constable &
company, n. d, p. 427.
39 Manucci, Travel through Mughal,Opcit., p. 59. 40 Bernier, Travels In Mughal India ,Opcit.,
p. 439. 41 Annie Krieger Krynicki,
captive princess; Zebunissa daughter
of emperor Aurangzeb, Karachi: Oxford University
Press, 2005, p. 51-4
42 Jahangir, Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, Vol.1. Lahore:
Sang-e-Meel Publications, 2001, p.
80.
43 Saqi Mustad Khan, Maasir-i-Alamgiri, (Calcuta:
Royal Asiatic Socieyt of Bengal, 1947),
p. 126
44 Rekha, Women in Mughal, Opcit.p, 51.
45 Ibid;p,53
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