Bahadur Shah
(1775–1862), last Mughal emperor of India. Born in Delhi, Bahadur Shah II, second son of Akbar Shah II (reigned 1806–1837), was the last Mughal emperor of India, reigning over a large part of the Indian subcontinent from 1837 to 1857. Although the titular sovereign, Bahadur Shah had no actual power, since the British retained real suzerainty over all the Indian territories they controlled, either directly or indirectly, through the well-known administrative system of "indirect rule." Particularly after the Charter Act of 1833, which expanded British rule over India, his authority extended no further than the walls of his palace.
In 1857, during the so-called Indian Great Mutiny against British colonial rule, the elderly Bahadur Shah became the unwilling leader of the revolt and was used as a figurehead by the mutinous Indian troops. When Delhi was recaptured by the British a few months later, Bahadur Shah was exiled to Rangoon in Burma, and his sons were brutally killed by British soldiers after they had surrendered. Bahadur Shah died in exile.
Bahadur Shah's real interest was not power, but poetry, miniatures, music, and calligraphy. Under the pen name of Zafar, he wrote poems of some note; his lyrics, set to music, were frequently performed in Delhi, while his court became a renowned artistic center.
Further Reading
Burke, S. M. (1995) Bahadur Shah: The Last Mogul Emperor of India. Lahore, Pakistan: Sang-e-Meel.
Spear, Percival. (1951) Twilight of the Mughals. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press.
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