THE QUTUB SHAHIS LAID TO REST

The Qutb Shahis Tombs are located in the Ibrahim Bagh, close to the famous Golkonda Fort in Hyderabad, India. They contain the tombs and mosques built by the various kings of the Qutb Shahi dynasty. The galleries of the smaller tombs are of a single storey while the larger ones are two storied. In the center of each tomb is a sarcophagus which overlies the actual burial vault in a crypt below. The domes were originally overlaid with blue and green tiles, of which only a few pieces now remain.

During the Qutb Shahi period, these tombs were held in great veneration. After their reign, the tombs were neglected until Sir Salar Jung III ordered their restoration in the early 19th century. A garden was laid out, and a compound wall was built. Once again, the tomb-garden of the Qutb Shahi family became a place of serene beauty. All except the last of the Qutb Shahi sultans lie buried here.
Sultan Muhammed Quli Qutb Shah’s mausoleum is considered the grandest of the Qutb Shahi tombs. Built in 1602 A.D., the tomb is on a terrace of 65m square and 4m high. A flight of steps leads to the mausoleum proper, which is 22 m square on the outside and 11 m square on the inside. There are entrances on the southern and eastern sides. The tomb is in a vault below the terrace. Inscriptions in Persian and the Naskh scripts decorate it.

Now that we are through with the Qutub Shahis we move our attention to the main dynasty who shaped Quli Qutub Shahi’s vision of Hyderabad.

The real story begins here.

Aurangzeb had appointed Nizam-Ul-Mulk in charge of Hyderabad, He had his plans for the development of this spectacular city. He had made immense changes and brought some strict rules for every aspect of life. One of them being a 17 clause document was a blueprint for the governance and personal conduct that ranged from keeping troops well fed to an apology for neglecting his wife.
During his rule, the treasury had enough money to last seven generations if spent properly.
On June 1, 1748, he summoned his second son Nasir Jung, his wives and chief nobles to his bedside, said his prayers and died aged 77. Nizam-Ul-Mulk is remembered as laying the foundation stone for what would become the most important Muslim state outside the Middle East by a first half of the twentieth century. He not only founded the state but also organized and established it.

Enter Nasir Jung

Nasir Jung

Enter Nasir Jung; born on 26 February 1712 he was the second son of Nizam Ul- Mulk. The first Nizam left six sons and one grandson fighting for their right to succeed him. It was Nasir Jung who made the first move, seizing the treasury and claiming the title Nizam. Nasir Jung was described as “high-spirited”, but tender hearted, qualities at the time didn’t make for a long life expectancy. According to James Grant Duff, the nineteenth-century author of the iconic History of the Marathas, Nasir Jung was also a poet and a lover of literature.

Nasir Jung always hated the French. Still smarting from having their pride insulted by Nasir Jung the French-backed Nizam Ul-Mulk’s grandson Muzzafar Jung. Unlike his scheming uncle, Muzzafar Jung was said to be”brave and gallant youth, with a noble promise of making a great and good monarch”. He also had the advantage of being Nizam Ul-Mulk’s nominated heir.

Date of birth of Muzaffar Jung is not known.

The British backed Nasir Jung resulting in making him the second Nizam which will reign a short period of time. He was a scheming man who schemed his way to the seat of power.There were a lot of scheming and planning by done Nasir Jung in order to stay on the throne. for instance, during the siege of the fort of Gingee, the British had thrown their support behind Nasir Jung with some 30000 native troops and combined forces of Muzzafar Jung. When Muzzafar Jung refused to attack along with his uncle, Nasir Jung promised forgiveness and has sworn on the Quran. The guards took Muzzafar Jung and locked him in custody despite being promised that he would not be taken, prisoner

The end of Nasir Jung

After a successful siege on the fort of Gingee Nasir Jung sent most of his troops back to Hyderabad while he went to Arcot on a small hunting expedition. Seizing that exact moment the french general Dupleix sent a force of 250 European and 4200 sepoys to attack Gingee and took the fort under the french empire. Stung by defeat Nasir Jung assembled a force of 60000 men to retake the fort but failed. After this failure, Nasir Jung wore a white robe and rode unarmed on his elephant to the camp of the Nawab of Kurnool, Himmat Khan demanding that his men join him and fight the common enemy. As instructed by Dupleix, Himmat Khan refused to move and when Nasir Jung called him a coward, the nawab and his watchmen “discharged their guns into his breast and sent him to paradise at once”.