Khusru Bagh- The Hidden Gem of Prayagraj, An evidence of tragic tale of Original heir to the Mughal Throne.
Khusru Bagh- The Hidden Gem of Prayagraj, An evidence of tragic tale of Original heir to the Mughal Throne.
Introduction to Prayagraj
Mughal Emperor Akbar built a fort on the bank of the holy Sangam in 1575 C.E. and named it as "Illahabad" which has later on become Allahabad (now officially known as Prayagraj). Prince Salim led a revolt against his father Akbar from Allahabad. After the death of Akbar in 1605 C.E. his son Salim served as emperor under the name Jahangir. He was a great lover of the garden and built Khushru Bagh as his pleasure resort during his stay (1599-1605 C.E.) as the prince in Allahabad (officially known as Prayagraj).
"You must have heard about Shah
Jahan but you might have never heard about his half-brother and original heir to the Mughal throne, Khusru.
Yes, welcome to real-life Game of Throne."
Khusru Bagh- The Hidden Gem of Prayagraj, An evidence of tragic tale of Original heir to the Mughal Throne.
A Tragic Tail of Khusru Mirza
Born 16 August 1587
Lahore, Mughal Empire
Died 26 January 1622 (aged 34)
Burial Prayagraj
Wives Daughter of Mirza Aziz Koka
Daughter of Jani Beg Tarkhan of
Thatta
Daughter of Muqim, son of Mihtar
Fazil Rikabdar
House Timurid
Father Jahangir
Mother Shah Begum
Religion Islam
The Mughal Empire ruled most of India and Pakistan in the
16th and 17th centuries When the second Mughal emperor Akbar’s health began to
deteriorate in the 1590s, he grew troubled by his oldest son and heir,
Jehangir’s wine and opium addiction. He had already lost his second and third
sons to opium. Jehangir was given to terrible mood swings and an impatience to
ascend the throne. At this time, Akbar turned to his grandson, i.e the first
son of Jehangir, Khusru as the future emperor. At 18, Khusro was everything his
father was not. Good-natured, brave, just, a skilled battleground commander and
beloved by the people of the court and the empire.
In a shocking turn of events, Akbar named his son Jehangir,
not Khusro, as the next emperor, at his deathbed. Upon ascending to the throne,
Jehangir immediately threw Khusro into jail fearing his widespread popularity
and a future attempt to usurp his crown. True to his fears, Khusro escaped
captivity and tried to overthrow his father alongside an army of loyalists. His
rebellion was crushed; Khusro was blinded on the instructions of his angry
father and imprisoned once again.
Eleven years later, Jehangir’s opium addiction to opium grew
and he languished as a ruler. Meanwhile, Jehangir’s twentieth wife Nur Jahan,
an intelligent and shrewd lady, rose to the occasion and the real seat of power
shifted to her. The heir to the throne and Jahangir’s favourite son Prince Khurram/future
Shah Jahan resented his stepmother’s undue influence and that his father turned
to not him, but Nur Jahan for advice.
Aware of Shah Jahan’s disapproval, Nur Jahan wanted to
consolidate her position of power. She offered Khusro her daughter’s hand in
marriage and an opportunity to reclaim the throne. To understand what was at
stake for a blind Khusro, you have to understand that he had been in captivity for
over a decade. Accepting this proposal meant a life out of confinement, a
chance to rule again and live like royalty. Seems like a simple choice, right?
But Khusro declined his repeated offer. All this happened at a time, where polygamy and harems were
widely accepted and considered a way of life.
Shah Jahan wanted to ensure that Khusro would not do him any
damage and forced Nur Jahan to transfer Khusro to his custody. She had no
strings attached and eventually, she complied. In a short period of time, Shah
Jahan had him strangled.
"This is the end of the tragic tale of the real heir to the"
ABOUT KHUSRU BAGH
Situated over forty acres and shaped like a quadrangle. Khusro bagh, completed in various stages from the period of 1622-1625.
In khushru bagh (bagh = Garden), there is four centrally protected monuments/mausoleum, is made out of sandstone, namely Shah Beghum's Tomb, Khushru's Tom, Nisar Beghum,s Tomb and Bibi Tamolon's Tomb.
1- The earliest tomb, in a three-tier mausoleum, is that of Jahangir’s First wife Man Bai or Shah Beghum (born Manbhawati Bai) (d. 1604), Jahangir's Rajput wife and the daughter of Maharaja Bhagwant Das and Khusrau Mirza's (d. 1622) mother.
She became so distressed with Jahangir fighting with their
son (Khusro obviously) that she committed suicide by swallowing opium. An interesting point to note that is her mausoleum
has a Chatri {umbrealla} instead of a typical Mughlai dome. The Chatri is a
distinct feature of the Rajput style of architecture, exists to celebrate and
honour her roots and heritage. The inscription on the tomb with floral arabesque was carved by Jahangir's greatest calligrapher Mir Abdullah Mushkin Qalam.
2- Nisar Begum Tomb (d. 1624), Khusrau Mirza's sister and Jahangir's daughter
The most majestic and beautiful building of the three. The tomb was constructed in the year 1624-25 C.E. It is situated between the tomb of her mother and brother. She had this tomb build for herself. This tomb is much more impressive, the ceiling and the walls of the tomb are inked with vivid colour frescos and exquisite carving of Persian phase, cypress trees, vessels, flowers and plants.
3- Khusru Tomb was the eldest son of Jahangir and queen Sha began
It is the two-storeyed building with arched walls surmounted by a large hemispherical dome on an octagonal drum, with the small pavilion at the corners. The interior consists of a single room, wall painted with a design of the floral pattern, cypresses etc. On the dome, there is a painted medallion with star and geometric patterns, similar to the ones in the contemporary tomb of Imad-ud-Daulah, Agra.
4- Bibi Tamolon's Tomb
Fourth mausoleum extreme west, which has no sign of cenotaph and is without any inscription. It is sometimes associated with the Istambole Beghum of Fatehpur Sikhri, but another version is that a sister of Khusru had built it for herself but buried elsewhere.
The monument/mausoleum is not only a testimony of Mughal
architecture but is also a focal point
for historians due to its association with the First War of Independence in
1887. In the Mughal era, it was the headquarter of the Sepoy who revolted against Britishers during the First War of Independence.
Fourth mausoleum extreme west, which has no sign of cenotaph and is without any inscription. It is sometimes associated with the Istambole Beghum of Fatehpur Sikhri, but another version is that a sister of Khusru had built it for herself but buried elsewhere.
Mausoleum, not only a testimony of Mughal architecture but also a focal point for historians
You can spend leisure time with your family and friends or
plan a picnic on a sunny winter afternoon in the garden that surrounds the
tomb. The best time to visit the monument is early morning if you want to ditch
the hustle and bustle of locals.
Open- all days 6am-8pm.
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DISCLAIMER- The facts/info. are taken from various reliable sources, I have tried to present a piece of concise and quality information regarding the topic.
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