Bengal Subah

The Bengal Subah was a subdivision of the Mughal Empire encompassing much
of the Bengal region, which includes modern Bangladesh and the Indian state of Subah of Bengal
West Bengal between the 16th and 18th centuries. The state was established ‫( ﺼﻮﺑﻪ ﺑﻨﮕﺎل‬Persian )
following the dissolution of the Bengal Sultanate, when the region was absorbed বাংলার সু বাহ (Bengali )
into one of the largest empires in the world. The Mughals played an important role
in developing modern Bengali culture and society
. Subdivision of the Mughal
Empire
Bengal was the Mughal Empire's wealthiest province.[3] It generated 50% of the →
empire's GDP and 12% of the world's GDP.[4] According to economic historian ←
→
Indrajit Ray, it was globally prominent in industries such as textile manufacturing
←
and shipbuilding,[5] with the capital Dhaka having a population exceeding a 1576–1757 →
million people.[4] It was an exporter of silk and cotton textiles, steel, saltpeter, and ←
→
agricultural and industrial produce.[4] By the 18th century, Mughal Bengal ←
emerged as a quasi-independent state, under the Nawabs of Bengal, before being →
conquered by the British East India Company at the Battle of Plassey in 1757,
which directly contributed to the Industrial Revolution in Britain[6][7][8][9] (such
as textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution), but led to
deindustrialization in Bengal.[6][7][8][4]

Contents
History
Mughal Empire
Nawabs of Bengal
Maratha invasions
British colonization A German map from 1740 showing
North India and Central Asia, including
Military campaigns Mughal Bengal on the eastern flank
Architecture
Capital Dhaka (1608–39 and
Art
1660–1704)[1]
Demographics
Murshidabad (1704-
Population
1757)
Religion
Rajmahal (1595-96
Immigration
and 1639-1660)[2]
Economy and trade Tandah
Agrarian reform
Industrial economy Government Viceregal
Administrative divisions Historical Early modern period
Government era
• Battle of 1576
List of Viceroys
Raj Mahal
List of Nawab Nazims • Nawabs of 1717
See also Bengal
References • Battle of 1757
Plassey
Today part
 of Bangladesh
History India

Mughal Empire
The Mughal absorption of Bengal began during the reign of the first Mughal
emperor Babur. In 1529, Babur defeated Sultan Nasiruddin Nasrat Shah of the
Bengal Sultanate during the Battle of Ghaghra. Babur later annexed parts of Bengal.
His son and successor Humayun occupied the Bengali capital Gaur, where he stayed
for six months.[10] Humayun was later forced to seek in refuge in Persia because of
Sher Shah Suri's conquests. Sher Shah Suri briefly interrupted the reigns of the both
the Mughals and Bengal Sultans.

After the defeat of expansionist Bengal Sultan Daud Khan Karrani at Rajmahal in
1576, Mughal padshah (emperor) Akbar the Great announced the creation of Bengal
as one of the original twelve Subahs (top-level provinces), bordering Bihar and The Mughal absorption of Bengal
Orissa subahs, as well asBurma. progressed during the reigns of the
first two emperors Babur and
Bengal's physical features gave it such a fertile soil, and a favourable climate that it Humayun
became a terminus of a continent-wide process of Turko-Mongol conquest and
migration, informs Prof. Richard Eaton.[11] The Mughal conquest of Bengal began
with the decisive victory of Akbar's army over the independent Afghan ruler of the province
Daud Karrani, at Tukaroi (near Danton, Midnapore district) on March 3, 1575. It took many
years to overcome the resistance of ambitious and local chiefs. By a royal decree of November
24, 1586 Akbar introduced uniform subah administration throughout the empire. However, in
Tapan Raychaudhuri's view the consolidation of Mughal power in Bengal and the pacification
of the province really began in 1594.[12]

Most prominent local chiefs or landlords being the 'Bara Bhuiyas' or Baro-Bhuyans (twelve
bhuiyas). Many of the chiefs subjugated by the Mughals, some of the Bara Bhuiyas in
particular, were Hindu or Pathan upstarts who grabbed territories during the transition from
Afghan to Mughal rule, but a few such as the Rajas of Bishnupur, Susang, and Chandradwip;
were older Hindu princes who had ruled independently from time immemorial.[13] By the
17th century, the Mughals subdued opposition from the Baro-Bhuyans landlords, notably Isa
Khan. Bengal was integrated into a powerful and prosperous empire; and shaped by imperial
Akbar developed the
policies of pluralistic government. The Mughals built a new imperial metropolis in Dhaka
modern Bengali calendar
from 1610, with well-developed fortifications, gardens, tombs, palaces and mosques. It served
as the Mughal capital of Bengal for 75 years.[14] The city was renamed in honour of Emperor
Jahangir. Dhaka emerged as the commercial capital of the Mughal Empire, given that it was the centre for the empire's largest
exports: cotton muslin textiles.[15]

The Mughal conquest of Chittagong in 1666 defeated the (Burmese) Kingdom of Arakan and reestablished Bengali control of the
port city, which was renamed as Islamabad.[16] The Chittagong Hill Tracts frontier region was made a tributary state of Mughal
Bengal and a treaty was signed with theChakma Circle in 1713.[17]

Between 1576 and 1717, Bengal was ruled by a Mughal Subedar (imperial governor). Members of the imperial family were often
appointed to the position. Viceroy Prince Shah Shuja was the son of Emperor Shah Jahan. During the struggle for succession with his
brothers Prince Aurangazeb, Prince Dara Shikoh and Prince Murad Baksh, Prince Shuja proclaimed himself as the Mughal Emperor
in Bengal. He was eventually defeated by the armies of Aurangazeb. Shuja fled to the Kingdom of Arakan, where he and his family
were killed on the orders of the King at Mrauk U. Shaista Khan was an influential viceroy during the reign of Aurangazeb. He
consolidated Mughal control of eastern Bengal. Prince Muhammad Azam Shah, who served as one of Bengal's viceroys, was
installed on the Mughal throne for four months in 1707. Viceroy Ibrahim Khan II gave permits to English and French traders for
commercial activities in Bengal. The last viceroy Prince Azim-us-Shan gave permits for the
establishment of the British East India Company's Fort William in Calcutta, the French East
India Company's Fort Orleans in Chandernagore and the Dutch East India Company's fort in
Chinsura. During Azim-us-Shan's tenure, his prime minister Murshid Quli Khan emerged as a
powerful figure in Bengal. Khan gained control of imperial finances. Azim-us-Shan was
transferred to Bihar. In 1717, the Mughal Court upgraded the prime minister's position to the
hereditary Nawab of Bengal. Khan founded a new capital in Murshidabad. His descendants
formed the Nasiri dynasty. Alivardi Khan founded a new dynasty in 1740. The Nawabs ruled
over a territory which included Bengal proper,Bihar and Orissa.

Nawabs of Bengal
Dhaka, the capital of
The authority of the Mughal Court rapidly disintegrated in the 18th century, following the rise
Bengal, was named
of the Maratha Empire in India and foreign invasions by Nader Shah of Persia and Ahmad Jahangir Nagar in honor of
Shah Abdali of Afghanistan. In Bengal, the system saw most wealth hoarded by the elites, the fourth Mughal monarch
with low wages for manual labour. Jahangir

The Nawabs of Bengal entered into treaties with numerous European colonial
powers, including joint-stock companies representing Britain, Austria, Denmark,
France and the Netherlands.

Maratha invasions
The resurgent Hindu Maratha Empire launched brutal raids against the prosperous
Bengali state in the 18th century, which further added to the decline of the Nawabs
of Bengal. A decade of ruthlessMaratha invasions of Bengalfrom the 1740s to early A sculpture of the Nawab's royal
1750s forced the Nawab of Bengal to pay Rs. 1.2 million of tribute annually as the peacock barge, Los Angeles County
Chauth of Bengal and Bihar to the Marathas, and the Marathas agreed not to invade Museum
Bengal again.[18][19] The expeditions, led by Raghuji Bhonsle of Nagpur, also
established the De facto Maratha control over Orissa, which was formally
incorporated in the Maratha Dominion in 1752.[18][19][20] The Nawab of Bengal also paid Rs. 3.2 million to the Marathas, towards
the arrears of chauth for the preceding years.[21] The chauth was paid annually by the Nawab of Bengal to the Marathas up to 1758,
until the British occupation of Bengal.[22]

During their occupation of Bihar[23] and western Bengal up to the Hooghly River,[24] the Maratha invaders, called "Bargi" in
Bengali, perpetrated atrocities against the local population.[24] The Marathas are estimated to have killed about 400,000
people.[25][23] This devastated Bengal's economy, as many of the people killed in the Maratha raids included merchants, textile
weavers,[23] silk winders, and mulberry cultivators.[25] The Cossimbazar factory reported in 1742, for example, that the Marathas
looms.[23]
burnt down many of the houses where silk piece goods were made, along with weavers'

British colonization
By the late-18th century, the British East India Companyemerged as the foremost military power in the region, defeating the French-
allied Siraj-ud-Daulah at the Battle of Plassey in 1757, that was largely brought about by the betrayal of the Nawab's once trusted
general Mir Jafar. The company gained administrative control over the Nawab's dominions, including Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. It
gained the right to collect taxes on behalf of the Mughal Court after the Battle of Buxar in 1765. Bengal, Bihar and Orissa were made
part of the Bengal Presidency and annexed into the British colonial empire in 1793. The Indian mutiny of 1857 formally ended the
authority of the Mughal court, when theBritish Raj replaced Company rule in India.
Other European powers also carved out small colonies on the territory of Mughal
Bengal, including the Dutch East India Company's Dutch Bengal settlements, the
French colonial settlement in Chandernagore, the Danish colonial settlement in
Serampore and the Habsburg Monarchy Ostend Company settlement in Bankipur.

Military campaigns
According to João de Barros,[26] Bengal enjoyed military supremacy over Arakan British soldiers firing at Bengali
and Tripura due to good artillery.[27] Its forces possessed notable large cannons. It forces underneath a mango orchard
was also a major exporter of gunpowder and saltpeter to Europe.[28][29] The Mughal in Plassey (Palashi), 1757
Army built fortifications across the region, including Idrakpur Fort, Sonakanda Fort,
Hajiganj Fort, Lalbagh Fort and Jangalbari Fort. The Mughals expelled Arakanese
and Portuguese pirates from the northeastern coastline of the Bay of Bengal. Throughout the late medieval and early modern periods,
Bengal was notable for its navy and shipbuilding. The following table covers a list of notable military engagements by Mughal
Bengal:-

Conflict Year(s) Leader(s) Enemy Rival Leader(s) Result

Daud Khan
Battle of Tukaroi 1575 Akbar Bengal Sultanate Mughal victory
Karrani
Daud Khan
Battle of Raj Mahal 1576 Khan Jahan I Bengal Sultanate Mughal victory
Karrani

Khan Jahan I
1576– Shahbaz Khan Isa Khan
Conquest of Bhati Baro-Bhuyan Mughal victory
1611 Kamboh Musa Khan
Man Singh

Qasim Khan Chishti

Ahom-Mughal 1615– Assamese
Mir Jumla Ahom kingdom Ahom kings
conflicts 1682 victory
Ram Singh I

Kingdom of Mrauk Thiri

Mughal-Arakan War 1665–66 Shaista Khan Mughal victory
U Thudhamma
Battle of Plassey 1757 Siraj-ud-Daulah British Empire Robert Clive British victory
 Daud Khan receives a Bibi Mariam Cannon Jahan Kosha Cannon Dalmadal Cannon
robe from Munim Khan

Bachhawali Cannon Battle of Chittagong in

1666 between the
Mughals and Arakanese

Architecture
Mughal architecture proliferated
Bengal in the 16th, 17th and 18th
centuries, with the earliest example
being the Kherua Mosque in Bogra
(1582).[30] They replaced the
earlier sultanate-style of
architecture. It was in Dhaka that
the imperial style was most lavishly
View of the hammam and audience
indulged in. Located on the banks
hall in Lalbagh Fort Bengali curved roofs were copied by
of the Buriganga River, the old
Mughal architects in other parts of
Mughal city was described as the the empire, such as in the Naulakha
Venice of the East.[31] Its Lalbagh Fort was an elaborately designed complex of Pavilion in Lahore
gardens, fountains, a mosque, a tomb, an audience hall (Diwan-i-Khas) and a walled
enclosure with gates. The Great Caravanserai and Shaista Khan Caravanserai in
Dhaka were centres of commercial activities. Other monuments in the city include the Dhanmondi Shahi Eidgah (1640), the Sat
Gambuj Mosque (c. 1664–76), the Shahbaz Khan Mosque (1679) and the Khan Mohammad Mridha Mosque (1704).[30] The city of
Murshidabad also became a haven of Mughal architecture under the Nawabs of Bengal, with the Caravanserai Mosque (1723) being
its most prominent monument.

In rural hinterlands, the indigenous Bengali Islamic style continued to flourish, blended with Mughal elements. One of the finest
examples of this style is the Atiya Mosque in Tangail (1609).[30] Several masterpieces of terracotta Hindu temple architecture were
also created during this period. Notable examples include theKantajew Temple (1704) and the temples of Bishnupur (1600–1729).

Art
An authentic Bengali-Mughal art was reflected in the muslin fabric of Jamdani
(meaning "flower" in Persian). The making of Jamdani was pioneered by Persian
weavers. The art passed to the hands of Bengali Muslim weavers known as juhulas.
The artisan industry was historically based around the city of Dhaka. The city had
over 80,000 weavers. Jamdanis traditionally employ geometric designs in floral
shapes. Its motifs are often similar to those in Iranian textile art (buta motif) and
Western textile art (paisley). Dhaka's jamdanis enjoyed a loyal following and
received imperial patronage from the Mughal court in Delhi and the Nawabs of
Bengal.[32][4]

A provincial Bengali style of Mughal painting flourished in Murshidabad during the Nimtoli Deuri, named after the neem
18th century. Scroll painting and ivory sculptures were also prevalent. tree, is now a property of the Asiatic
Society of Bangladesh

Jamdani muslin is a Murshidabad-style

legacy of Mughal Bengal painting of a woman
playing the sitar

Scroll painting of a Ghazi

riding a Bengal tiger

Demographics

Population
Bengal's population is estimated to be 30 million in 1769, after the British East India
Company's conquest of Bengal at the Battle of Plassey in 1757 and prior to the
resulting Great Bengal famine of 1770.[33] In comparison, the entire Indian
population is estimated to be 190 million in 1750[34] (with Bengal accounting for
16% of its population), the Asian population is estimated at 502 million in 1750[35]
(with Bengal accounting for 6% of its population), and the world population is
A riverside mosque in Mughal Dhaka
estimated at 791 million in 1750[35] (with Bengal accounting for 3.8% of its
population).
Prior to British rule, Bengal's capital city of Dhaka had a population exceeding a
million people.[4]

Religion
Bengal was an affluent province with a Bengali Muslim majority, along with a large
Bengali Hindu minority.[6]

Immigration The Armenian church and cemetery

in Dhaka
There was a significant influx of migrants from the Safavid Empire into Bengal
during the Mughal period. Persian administrators and military commanders were
enlisted by the Mughal government in Bengal.[36] An Armenian community settled in Dhaka and was involved in the city's textile
trade, paying a 3.5% tax.[37]

Economy and trade

The Bengal Subah had the largest regional economy in the Mughal Empire. It was
described as the paradise of nations. 50% of the gross domestic product (GDP) of
the empire was generated in Bengal. The region exported grains, fine cotton muslin
and silk, liquors and wines, salt, ornaments, fruits, and metals. European companies
set up numerous trading posts in Mughal Bengal during the 17th and 18th centuries.
Dhaka was the largest city in Mughal Bengal and the commercial capital of the
empire. Chittagong was the largest seaport, with maritime trade routes connecting
the port city to Arakan, Ayuthya, Balasore, Aceh, Melaka, Johore, Bantam,
A Dutch trading post in Mughal
Makassar, Ceylon, Bandar Abbas, Mecca, Jeddah, Basra, Aden, Masqat, Mocha and Bengal, 1665
the Maldives.[38][39]

Real wages and living standards in 18th-century Bengal were higher than in Britain, which in turn had the highest living standards in
Europe.[40]

Bengali Muslim society.[41]

Local Sufi leaders combined Islamic and Bengali cultural practices which developed

Agrarian reform
The Mughals launched a vast economic development project in the Bengal delta which transformed its demographic makeup.[41] The
government cleared vast swathes of forest in the fertileBhati region to expand farmland. It encouraged settlers, including farmers and
jagirdars, to populate the delta. It assigned Sufis as the chieftains of villages. Emperor Akbar re-adapted the modern Bengali calendar
to improve harvests and tax collection. The region became the lar
gest grain producer in the subcontinent.

Being so fertile and climatically favourable for agriculture, Bengal became one of the most important khalisa or crown lands and the
most desired jagirs, as it was one of the highest revenue yielding subahs. For instance, in the year 1595-6 it is said to have yielded
25,69,94,043 dams in revenue.[42]

We find meagre accounts of the Bengal revenue administration in Abul Fazl's Ain-i-Akbari and some in Mirza Nathan's Baharistan-i-
Ghaybi.[43] According to the Ain,

“The demands of each year are paid by installments

in eight months, they (the ryots) themselves bringing
mohurs and rupees to the appointed place for the
receipt of revenue, as the division of grain between
 the government and the husbandman is not here
customary. The harvests are always abundant,
measurement is not insisted upon, and the revenue
demands are determined by estimate of the crop.”[43]

From the above extract we learn that the payment of the annual
revenue demand was carried out in eight monthly instalments.
However, Raychaudhuri points out that according to the Baharistan,
there were two collections a year following the two harvests in
autumn and spring. Secondly, it tells us that the payments were made
A 3D reconstruction of theBara Katra in modern-
in cash, and directly to the government. The last fact obviously refers day Dhaka
to only khalisa lands. Finally, the most important fact that we come
across is that the method of crop-estimation and not land
measurement was current in Bengal.[43] However, the other point that poses itself as pointed out by Sir Irfan Habib is that, since, in
Bengal the authorities levied revenue not upon the peasants but upon the zamindars, it does not become immediately clear where in
this passage Abul Fazl is speaking of the payment of revenue by the peasants to the zamindars and where of the payment by the
zamindars to the state. The initial statements, as they contain an explicit reference to the peasants would seem to be referring to them
only. It seems that the resort to measurement took place in Bengal largely when the old jama fixed on the zamindars was thought to
be completely obsolete. A mid- eighteenth century manual Risala-i-Zira'at describes this as a recognised practice in Bengal. This
may really be the meaning of Abul Fazl's rather vague statement that measurement was not objected to. It is possible that since such
measurements were so rarely employed, and then with the use of local standards, no regular area statistics could be compiled on its
basis. Abul Fazl's statement that the revenue demand was based on nasaq must then refer to the demand on the zamindars being
[44]
retained at the same set of figures for long periods of years.

Bengali peasants were quick to adapt to profitable new crops between 1600 and 1650. Bengali peasants rapidly learned techniques of
[45]
mulberry cultivation and sericulture, establishing Bengal Subah as a major silk-producing region of the world.

The increased agricultural productivity led to lower food prices. In turn, this benefited the Indian textile industry. Compared to
Britain, the price of grain was about one-half in South India and one-third in Bengal, in terms of silver coinage. This resulted in lower
[40]
silver coin prices for Indian textiles, giving them a price advantage in global markets.

Industrial economy
The Mughal Empire had 25% of the world's GDP. Under the Mughals, Bengal Subah generated 50% of the empire's GDP, and thus
had 12% of the world's GDP.[4] Bengal was an affluent province that was, according to economic historian Indrajit Ray, globally
prominent in industries such as textile manufacturing and shipbuilding.[5] Bengal's capital city of Dhaka was the empire's financial
capital, with a population exceeding a million people, and with an estimated 80,000 skilled textile weavers. It was an exporter of silk
and cotton textiles, steel, saltpeter, and agricultural and industrial produce.[4] Bengal's industrial economy in the Mughal era has been
described as a form ofproto-industrialization.[46]

The plunder of Bengal directly contributed to the Industrial Revolution in Britain,[6][7][8][9] with the capital amassed from Bengal
used to invest in British industries such as textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution and greatly increase British wealth,
while at the same time leading todeindustrialization in Bengal.[6][7][8][4]

Textile industry

Under Mughal rule, Bengal was a center of the worldwide muslin and silk trades. During the Mughal era, the most important center
of cotton production was Bengal, particularly around its capital city of Dhaka, leading to muslin being called "daka" in distant
markets such as Central Asia.[47] Domestically, much of India depended on Bengali products such as rice, silks and cotton textiles.
Overseas, Europeans depended on Bengali products such as cotton textiles, silks and opium; Bengal accounted for 40% of Dutch
imports from Asia, for example, including more than 50% of textiles and around 80% of silks.[48] From Bengal, saltpeter was also
shipped to Europe, opium was sold in Indonesia, raw silk was exported to
Japan and the Netherlands, and cotton and silk textiles were exported to
Europe, Indonesia andJapan.[49]

Shipbuilding industry

Bengal had a large shipbuilding industry. Indrajit Ray estimates shipbuilding

output of Bengal during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries at 223,250
tons annually, compared with 23,061 tons produced in nineteen colonies in
North America from 1769 to 1771.[50] He also assesses ship repairing as very
advanced in Bengal.[50]
A woman in Dhaka clad in fine Bengali
Bengali shipbuilding was advanced compared to European shipbuilding at the muslin, 18th century
time. An important innovation in shipbuilding was the introduction of a
flushed deck design in Bengal rice ships, resulting in hulls that were stronger
and less prone to leak than the structurally weak hulls of traditional European ships built with a stepped deck design. The British East
India Company later duplicated the flushed deck and hull designs of Bengal rice ships in the 1760s, leading to significant
improvements in seaworthiness and navigation for European ships during theIndustrial Revolution.[51]

Administrative divisions
In the revenue settlement by Todar Mal in 1582, Bengal Subah was divided into 24 sarkars (districts), which included 19 sarkars of
Bengal proper and 5 sarkars of Orissa. In 1607, during the reign of Jahangir Orissa became a separate Subah. These 19 sarkars were
further divided into 682 parganas.[52] In 1658, subsequent to the revenue settlement by Shah Shuja, 15 new sarkars and 361 new
parganas were added. In 1722,Murshid Quli Khan divided the whole Subah into 13 chakalahs, which were further divided into 1660
parganas.

Initially the capital of the Subah was Tanda. On 9 November 1595, the foundations of a new capital were laid at Rajmahal by Man
Singh I who renamed it Akbarnagar.[53] In 1610 the capital was shifted from Rajmahal to Dhaka[54] and it was renamed
Jahangirnagar. In 1639, Shah Shuja again shifted the capital to Rajmahal. In 1660, Muazzam Khan (Mir Jumla) again shifted the
capital to Dhaka. In 1703, Murshid Quli Khan, then diwan (prime minister in charge of finance) of Bengal shifted his office from
Dhaka to Maqsudabad and later renamed itMurshidabad.

In 1656, Subahdar Shah Shuja reorganised the sarkars and added Orissa to the Bengal Subah.

The sarkars (districts) and the parganas/mahallahs (tehsils) of Bengal Subah were:[52]
 Sarkar Pargana
Udamabar/Tandah (modern-day areas include Birbhum and Murshidabad) 52 parganas
Jannatabad (Lakhnauti) 66 parganas
Fatehabad 31 parganas
Mahmudabad (modern-day areas includeNorth Nadia and Jessore) 88 parganas
Khalifatabad 35 parganas
Bakla 4 parganas
Purniyah 9 parganas
Tajpur (West Dinajpur) 29 parganas
Ghoraghat (South Rangpur, Bogra) 84 parganas
Pinjarah 21 parganas
Barbakabad 38 parganas
Bazuha 32 parganas
Sonargaon 52 parganas
Srihatta 8 mahals
Chittagong 7 parganas
Sharifatabad 26 parganas
Sulaimanabad 31 parganas
Satgaon 53 parganas
Mandaran 16 parganas

Sarkars of Orissa:

Sarkar Mahal
Jaleswar 28
Bhadrak 7
Kotok (Cuttack) 21
Kaling Dandpat 27
Raj Mahendrih 16

Government
The state government was headed by a Viceroy (Subedar Nizam) appointed by the Mughal Emperor between 1576 and 1717. The
Viceroy exercised tremendous authority, with his own cabinet and four prime ministers (Diwan). The three deputy viceroys for
Bengal proper, Bihar and Orissa were known as the Naib Nazims. An extensive landed aristocracy was established by the Mughals in
Bengal. The aristocracy was responsible for taxation and revenue collection. Land holders were bestowed with the title of Jagirdar.
The Qadi title was reserved for the chief judge. Mansabdars were leaders of the Mughal Army, while faujdars were generals. The
Mughals were credited for secular pluralism during the reign of Akbar, who promoted the religious doctrine of Din-i Ilahi. Later
rulers promoted more conservative Islam.

In 1717, the Mughal government replaced Viceroy Azim-us-Shan due to conflicts with his influential deputy viceroy and prime
minister Murshid Quli Khan.[55] Growing regional autonomy caused the Mughal Court to establish a hereditary principality in
Bengal, with Khan being recognised in the official title of Nazim. He founded the Nasiri dynasty. In 1740, following the Battle of
Giria, Alivardi Khan staged a coup and founded the short-lived Afsar dynasty. For all practical purposes, the Nazims acted as
independent princes. European colonial powers referred to them asNawabs or Nababs.[56]
List of Viceroys

Man Singh I, the Rajput

Viceroy of Mughal Bengal
(1594–1606)

Shaista Khan, Viceroy

(1664–1688)
 Personal Name[57] Reign

Munim Khan Khan-i-Khanan 25 September 1574 – 23 October

‫ ﺧﺎن ﺧﺎﻧﺎں‬،‫ﻣﻨﻌﻢ ﺧﺎن‬ 1575
Hussain Quli Beg Khan Jahan I 15 November 1575 – 19 December
‫ ﺧﺎن ﺟ ﺎں اول‬،‫ﺣﺴﯿﻦ ﻗﻠﯽ ﺑﯿﮓ‬ 1578

Muzaffar Khan Turbati

1579–1580
‫ﻣﻈﻔﺮ ﺧﺎن ﺗﺮﺑﺘﯽ‬

Mirza Aziz Koka Khan-e-Azam

‫ﺧﺎن اﻋﻈﻢ‬،‫ﻣﯿﺮزا ﻋﺰﯾﺰ ﮐﻮﮐ‬ 1582–1583

Shahbaz Khan Kamboh

‫ﺷﮭﺒﺎز ﺧﺎن ﮐﻤﺒﻮہ‬ 1583–1585

Sadiq Khan
1585–1586
‫ﺻﺎدق ﺧﺎن‬ Viceroy Muhammad Azam
Shah (1678–1679), later the
Wazir Khan Tajik
1586–1587 Mughal Emperor
‫وزﯾﺮ ﺧﺎن‬

Sa'id Khan
1587–1594
‫ﺳﻌﯿﺪ ﺧﺎن‬

Raja Man Singh I

‫راﺟ ﻣﺎن ﺳﻨﮕﮫ‬ 4 June 1594 – 1606

Qutb-ud-din Khan Koka

‫ﻗﻄﺐ اﻟﺪﯾﻦ ﺧﺎن ﮐﻮﮐ‬ 2 September 1606 – May 1607

Jahangir Quli Beg

‫ﺟ ﺎﻧﮕﯿﺮ ﻗﻠﯽ ﺑﯿﮓ‬ 1607–1608

Sheikh Ala-ud-din ChistiIslam Khan

Chisti June 1608 – 1613
‫اﺳﻼم ﺧﺎن ﭼﺸﺘﯽ‬

Qasim Khan Chishti

1613–1617
‫ﻗﺎﺳﻢ ﺧﺎن ﭼﺸﺘﯽ‬

Ibrahim Khan Fateh Jang

‫اﺑﺮاﯿﻢ ﺧﺎن ﻓﺘﺢ ﺟﻨﮓ‬ 1617–1622
Viceroy Azim-us-Shan
(1697–1712), later the
Mahabat Khan
1622–1625 Mughal Emperor
‫ﻣﺤﺎﺑﺖ ﺧﺎن‬

Mirza Amanullah Khan Zaman II

‫ ﺧﺎن زﻣﺎں ﺛﺎﻧﯽ‬، ‫ﻣﯿﺮزا أﻣﺎن اﻟﻠ‬ 1625

Mukarram Khan
1625–1627
‫ﻣﮑﺮم ﺧﺎن‬

Fidai Khan
1627–1628
‫ﻓﺪای ﺧﺎن‬

Qasim Khan Juvayni Qasim Manija

‫ ﻗﺎﺳﻢ ﻣﺎﻧﯿﺠ‬،‫ﻗﺎﺳﻢ ﺧﺎن ﺟﻮﯾﻨﯽ‬ 1628–1632

Mir Muhammad Baqir Azam Khan

1632–1635
‫ اﻋﻈﻢ ﺧﺎن‬،‫ﻣﯿﺮ ﻣﺤﻤﺪ ﺑﺎﻗﺮ‬

Mir Abdus Salam Islam Khan Mashhadi

1635–1639
‫اﺳﻼم ﺧﺎن ﻣﺸﮭﺪی‬

Sultan Shah Shuja

‫ﺷﺎہ ﺷﺠﺎع‬ 1639 -1660

Mir Jumla II May 1660 – 30 March 1663

 ‫ﻣﯿﺮ ﺟﻤﻠ‬

Mirza Abu Talib Shaista Khan I

‫ ﺷﺎﯾﺴﺘ ﺧﺎن‬،‫ﻣﯿﺮزا اﺑﻮ ﻃﺎﻟﺐ‬ March 1664 – 1676

Azam Khan Koka, Fidai Khan II

‫ ﻓﺪای ﺧﺎن ﺛﺎﻧﯽ‬،‫اﻋﻈﻢ ﺧﺎن ﮐﻮﮐ‬ 1676–1677

Sultan Muhammad Azam ShahAlijah

‫ﻣﺤﻤﺪ اﻋﻈﻢ ﺷﺎہ ﻋﺎﻟﯽ ﺟﺎہ‬ 1678- 1679

Mirza Abu Talib Shaista Khan I

‫ ﺷﺎﯾﺴﺘ ﺧﺎن‬،‫ﻣﯿﺮزا اﺑﻮ ﻃﺎﻟﺐ‬ 1679–1688

Ibrahim Khan ibn Ali Mardan Khan

‫اﺑﺮاﯿﻢ ﺧﺎن اﺑﻦ ﻋﻠﯽ ﻣﺮدان ﺧﺎن‬ 1688–1697

Sultan Azim-us-Shan
1697–1712
‫ﻋﻈﯿﻢ اﻟﺸﺎن‬

Others appointed but did not show up from 1712 to 1717 and managed by Deputy
Subahdar Murshid Quli Khan.
Murshid Quli Khan
1717–1727
‫ﻣﺮﺷﺪ ﻗﻠﯽ ﺧﺎن‬

List of Nawab Nazims

 Portrait Titular Name Personal Name Birth Reign Death
Nasiri Dynasty

Jaafar Khan
1717– 30 June
Bahadur Murshid Quli Khan 1665
1727 1727
Nasiri

Ala-ud-Din 29 April
Sarfaraz Khan Bahadur ? 1727-1727
Haidar Jang 1740

July 1727
Around 1670
Shuja ud- Shuja-ud-Din Muhammad – 26 26 August
(date not
Daula Khan August 1739
available)
1739

13 March
Ala-ud-Din 29 April
Sarfaraz Khan Bahadur ? 1739 –
Haidar Jang 1740
April 1740

Afsar Dynasty

29 April
Hashim ud- Muhammad Alivardi Khan Before 10 9 April
1740 – 9
Daula Bahadur May 1671 1756
April 1756

April 1756
Siraj ud- 2 July
Muhammad Siraj-ud-Daulah 1733 – 2 June
Daulah 1757
1757

See also
Egypt Eyalet
Ottoman Algeria

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