2

British-Nizam Relations

ritish-Nizam relations shaped the socio-economic and political

B: aspects of Hyderabad State. Being the largest princely state

in India, relations with Hyderabad were very important to
the British. The Nizams were viewed as the most faithful ally of the
British, as they were instrumental in the establishment of British
power in south India and stood by them in critical situations. The
British and the Nizams mutually benefited from the alliance. Had
the Nizams not allied with the British, Hyderabad would have been
conquered by the Marathas and their regime might have ended by the
end of the eighteenth century. Similarly, had the British not allied
with the Nizams, the former would not have been able to defeat the
French and send them out of India. The British kept Hyderabad
State unconquered to put a check on the Marathas who emerged as
a strong power in India after the fall of the Mughal Empire.
However, the Nizams were eventually made powerless through
treaties, agreements, alliances, honours, titles, gifts and friendship.
The British never had a good opinion of the historically-developed
practices of Hyderabad State, or for that matter, all the princely
states. Its political institutions were equated with the politics of
medieval Europe, and its rulers were seen as feudal, despotic, violent,
arbitrary and venal. Once British rule was strongly entrenched
elsewhere in India, this state was gradually brought under British
suzerainty, becoming what was called a 'princely state'. Under this
system of indirect rule', local rulers were honoured with a throne
and titles such as the 'Star of India', while being closely monitored
 British-Nizam Relatlons 17

and regulated by a representative of the colonial power who lived

at the capital city, who was known as the resident. This system
of indirect rule was one of the mcans through which the colonial
state maintained its control over India. lhere wcrc many other such
allied forces like zamindars, jagirdars and local landlords, who were
instrumental in the establishment and maintenance of colonial rule.
Nonetheless, the rajas and nawabs (princes/ kings) proved to be the
most faithful allies of the colonial power, and their regimes ended
along with the demise of colonial power in India.
The political rivalries between the south Indian powers and
intrigue politics in their courts led the European companies o
erfere in the local politics. By the middle of the eighteenth century,
the Peshwas of Puna, the Nawabs of Mysore and the Nizams of
Hyderabad stood out as the main rival powers in the south. The death
of the Nawab of Karnatic (Arcot) in 1732, who was a subordinate
of the Nizam, resulted in a war of succession, often referred to as
the (three) Karnatic wars; these took place between 1746 and 1763.
A conflict was also witnessed when the first Nizam died in 1748.
These wars led to intense rivalries among the rulers of the south, as
each party was supported by the states of the region. The European
companies, particularly the French and the English, endeavoured to
take advantage of the situation and establish themselves politically
in India, The French company, which was the last to come to
India, was, however, the first to establish political power in India.
However, the British East India Company emerged as the foremost
power in India defeating allother European companies, including
the French.
Basing their fort at Pondicherry, the French came into active
politics from the early 1740s under the ambitious Governor Dupleix
by supporting Chanda Sahib for Karnatic nawabship against Sa-ed
Muhammad who was appointed by the Nizam-ul-Mulk. Dupleix's
initial plan was to establish French power in the Karnatic region
by putting Chanda Sahib on the throne of Arcot. But the death of
the Nizam-ul-Mulk led him to redesign his plan. The Nizam-ul
Mulk left behind six sons and this led to intense succession rivalry
between them. His second son Nasir Jung procaimed himself as
the subedar of the Deccan. Nasir Jung's support to Chanda Sahib
 18
History of Modern Telangana

was necessary but it was impossible in the changed circumstances

of the Nizam-
the grandson
Dupleixthen supported Muzaffar Jung,Deccan. The British supported
ul-Mulk, for the subedarship of the
combined with the able
Nasir Jung, But Dupleix''s clever diplomacy
victory for the French in the
commandership of Bussy had brought
French established their profound
Amboor battle. By 1750. the their
Hyderabad and Karnatic and continued the Sway in
infuence in the third son of Nizam-
the state for a decade. Salabat Jung,on the latter's assassination in
ul-Mulk, succeeded Muzaffar Jung
a weak personality, Bussy virtually ruled
was
1/51.As Salabat Jung of Diwan Ramdas Pandit, a nominee of
Hyderabad with the help the grants given by Muzaffar
confirming
the French. Apart from whole of the Northern
the
Circars to
Jung, Salabat Jung granted
tremendous pressure on the activities of the
the French. This put
in the south.
British East India Company between the French and the Vizianagaram
Thefamous Bobbili war
power in the south.
helped the British gain
1757 indirectly
rajas in
the British supported Raja Ananda Gajapati of
After the war, by the French
Meanwhile, Bussy was called back situation, the
Vizianagaram.
Pondicherry. Taking advantage of this
Governor of After
defeated the French in the Chandurtiwar in 1758.
British first political treaty with
British concluded their
this victory, the secured the Northern Circars which
the Nizam Salabat Jung and
French earlier. Further, the French were defeated
was held by the
the Wandiwashi war in 1760 after which they were thrown out
in supremacy in the south by
of India. The British established their
son of the Nizam-ul-Mulk,
supporting Nizam AliKhan, the fourth Hyderabad in 1762 by
who declared himself as the Nizam of Mughal ruler also issued
imprisoning his brother Salabat Jung. The Deccan. He was the
a farman confirming his subedarship of the title was used
this
first ruler to have used the title of Nizam, and
by allthe subsequent rulers.
The British diplomatically supported Nizam Ali Khan to check
power of the Marathas and the Mysore nawabs who were
the rising
also enemies to the Nizam. Indeed, the Nizam had a humiliating
treaty with the Marathas after the latter defeated the former in the
Udgir war of 1760, parcelling the northern part ofthe Maratha region
 British-Nizam Relations 19

of the state. Although the Marathas were down after the defeat in
the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761 at the hands of Ahmed Shah
Abdali, they were stillastrong political force in India. On the other
hand, Hyder Ali of Mysore was asserting his power in Karnatic. In
this desperate situation, Nizam Ali Khan had a historic treaty with
the British in 1766under which he parcelled the Northern Circars,
except Guntur which was under the rule of his younger brother,
Basalat Jung.
Indeed, Nizam Ali Khan did not like this treaty at heart and tried
to have an amicable understanding wich Hyder Ali to fight out the
British. This information reached the British, who then occupied
the fortress of Khammam. Knowing this, the Nizam became nervous.
Kandregula Jogi Pantulu, a dubase (mediator) of the Company
from Andhra, persuaded the Nizam to make afresh treaty with the
British. In fact, the British decided to have apermanent alliance with
che Nizam to check the Marathas despite the Nizam's disapproval
of such an alliance with them. Thus, a treaty was made at Madras
in 1768, under which the Nizam had to surrender five districts of
coastal Andhra permanently as well as the rights of revenue collection
over Karnatic. The English further agreed to pay an annual tribute
of Rs 7 lakh each for the Northern Circars and Karnatic Bhalaghat,
and to assist the Nizam with two battalions of sepoys and six pieces
of artillery manned by the Europeans whenever he required it. The
British breached the norms of the treaty by not paying the annual
tribute to the Nizam. They also demanded that the Nizam surrender
Guntur, thereby violating the treaty, and occupied it in 1788.
After the treaty, the allied forces of the British and the Nizam
waged three Mysore wars between 1766 and 1799 and three Maratha
wars between 1775 and 1818. The Nizams got some territories
from the Mysore nawabs and the Marathas, but eventually the
Nizams became British protectorate states by the end of these wars.
The subsidiary alliance was instrumental in this respect. While
maintaining an alliance with the British, the Nizam continued to
persuade a friendship with Tippu Sultan, Hyder Ali's son, and the
Marathas, even with the French in Pondicherry against the British.
Seeing this tendency, Wellesley, the Governor General, directed
the resident to press upon the Nizam for a fresh treaty. The British
20 History of Modern Telangana

dismissal of the French from the Nizam's service .

insisted on the also
condition for the treaty. By this treaty, the British
the primary
the quota of troops that they had hithete
proposed to increase ease
Nizam by six battalions, and these were called the
supplied to the this condition and a new
Nizam agreed to
subsidiary troops'. The Treaty of Hyderabad in 1798.
By
treaty was concluded called the
agreed to pay a sum of Rs 24, 17,100 annually
this treaty, the Nizam English. The Nizam was also allowed
for the six battalions of the
correspondence with the Marathas with the knowledge of
to have
the British. subsidiary troops, the
with the succes of the
Being jubilant alliance with the Nizam, keeping
British sought to strengthen their
Maratha threat in view. The Nizam was also struggling to meet
the Wellesley thus concluded
the subsidiary troops.
the expenses of 'subsidiary alliance' with the Nizam in
a new treaty called the
this treaty declared that the Nizam and the
1800. The preamble to interest,
they shared the same
Company were in fact one and that reality was different.
course, the
policy, friendship and honour. Offorces in the state was increased
The total strength of the British
of cavalry equipped with
to eight battalions and two regiments
was also allowed to use these
forces
modern weapons. The Nizam
any power in India. However, the Nizam agreed not to have
against matters of foreign relations
hostility with any Indian states, and in all
Company. The Nizam also
to act according to the interest of the towards the expenses of the
agreed to hand over theCeded Districts
Nizam not only lost his
subsidiary forces. Thus, with this treaty, the
areas. The burden of
sovereignty but also good revenue-producingthe state economy and
the subsidiary forces indeed further ruined
was said that Nizam Ali
made the Nizam perpetually dependent. It
Khan died of heartbreak after this treaty. was a carefully
Making the Nizam economically dependent
programme by the Company. The British fulilled this
designed burden of the armed forces on
task by continuously incrcasing the economictreaty of 1802 on
the Nizams, by imposing the lopsided Observing the poor
them and by interfering in their internal matters. Wellesley,
performance of the subsidiary forces in the Maratha war,and pay the
modernise the force
in 1804, pressured the Nizam to
 British-Nizam Relations 21
Ce as
also regular salary monthly, which would cost him Rs 15 lakhs per
erto month. It was also proposed to allow the Company to appropriate
the the entire revenueof Berar suba towards these expenses. The Nizam
ew did not acceptthis proposal. After Henry RuSsell became the resident
By in 1811, he worked out a new schema to form a separate force to
deal with the internal law and order situation in the state. Thus,
al'edly in 1812, a force called the 'Rusell Brigade' was formed consisting
Of of two British battalions. This was subsequently developed into the
Hyderabad Contingency. It was filled with English officers with
he very high salaries that were paid by the Nizam. It was an additional
burden on the Nizam besides the expenses of the subsidiary force.
The Nizam was reluctant to pay salaries to these forces and as a
et
result, the salaries were accumulated in arrears. The British realised
d
these salaries through the diwan, Raja Chandulal, whose appointment
was proposed by the British.
After the death of Nizam Ali Khan, the British began interfering
even in the internal matters of the state, particularly in the
appointments of diwan and peshkar. After the death of diwan Mir
Alam, who was appointed against the wishes of the Nizam, in 1808,
there was a bitter struggle between the Nizam and the British on the
appointment of thenext diwan. As a compromise, Munir-ul-Mulk
was appointed as diwan and Raja Chandulal, who was supported
by the British,was appointed as peshkar. But the British pressured
the Nizam to keep all the powers of revenue in the hands of the
peshkar. Raja Chandulal became diwan upon the death of Munir
ul-Mulk in 1838 and continued in offce till 1843. His long regime
was a boon for the British and a curse to the Nizams.
Raja Chandulal tried his best to pay the salaries of the Hyderabad
Contingency through various mechanisms, but he could not pay an
Finally, he made
it as the salaries were accumulated in arrears.
to
agreement with William Palmer & Company to pay the salaries
in 1814
the Contingent forces regularly. This Company was formed
service to start
by William Palmer who had retired from the Nizam's
The other members included
a commercial career in Hyderabad. Bankati
Hastings Palmer; William Currie, the Residency Surgeon;
the resident
friend of
Das, a Hindu millionaire; Samuel Russell, a
money to
Henry Russell to whom the resident had entrusted his
 Telangana
22 History of Modern
invest in the busines; and William Rumbold,son-i-law offGovernor

Apart fromthese oficial members, there

General Lord Hastings. including Charles Russell, the residenr.
were some secret members and officials of
the Residency. The
resident
brother: the assistant
were indeed run from the Residency
businesses of the Company actually formed to open a banking
ofice itself. The Company was and also to exploit the timber yield,
Hyderabad
agency in the state ofGodavari for building ships. But the hidden
on the bank of the to loot the Nizam government.
From
agenda of the Company was involved
Governor General, severalpeople were
the resident to the Treaty of 1800, the Bricish
according to the
in this loot. In fact, economic transactions with Hyderabad
private companies having
State were labelled illegal. pay Rs 2 lakh per month to the
Palmer & Company agreed to
paying salaries to the Contingent Force, which amounted
Nizam for return, the Nizam's government
million per year. In
to Rs 2.4 which yielded Rs 3 million.
revenues of Berar,
assigned to them the interest on
way, the Company got a 25 per cent annual
In this
lent. In collaboration with Chandulal, the Company
the money it
rate of
of interest on mollified and false loans. The
collected a high
particular, used to charge 48 per cent interest on the
resident, in Palmer himself received
to the Nizamn. William
money he lent
80,000 per month as pension from the Nizam's government
Rs Company for
illegally. Chandulal also borrowed money from the Company
the
several other purposes. He borrowed Rs 60 lakh from
takkavi (crop loans)
in 1819 to clear certain debts and to advance
the
tothe cultivators. If there was insufficient money coming from
Company, he borrowed from other moneylenders who were then
given revenue collection rights over the villages and taluks.
Palmer & Company and the moneylenders collected revenue
from the peasants forcefully, with the help of the army, even
during bad seasons. Many peasants Aed from the villages due to this
Suppressive taxation. This scandal came to lightonly when Resident
the
Metcalfe investigated the business of the Company in 1821, and
Company was declared illegal and was banned from doing business
in Hyderabad State. But by then,the Nizam's government had been
hit by financial crisis,which made the Nizam politically vulnerable.
 British- Nizam Relations 23

In 1820, the Nizann's government owed Rs 8.35 million in debr to

Palmer &Company and Rs 1.7 million in dcbt to the native bankers.
Of course, the British governmcnt provided the money at the rate
of 6per cent interest to the Nizam to repay the debts to Palmer &
Company. But it was just shifted from Palmer & Company to the
British government. The Nizam now had to act at the command
of the British government.
The commercial treaty of 1802 between the British and the Nizam
was another blow to the economy of the state. The primary aim ot
the treaty was to bring about free fow of goods between the two
territories. Under this treaty, all transit duties were abolished on the
articles being transited from one part of the British territories tO
another through Hyderabad State and vice versa; an import duty of
5per cent was imposed. The treaty also sought to establish regulated
economy in Hyderabad State along modern lines by setting up
nakas (custom houses). This treaty destroyed traditional production
and marketing systems. In fact, the treaty made the economy of
Hyderabad perpetually dependent. The British undermined the trade
and prosperity of many princely states through customs policies that
benefited trade in British areas at the expense of those states. Many
a time, goods exported from the states to the British territories were
sent back on the pretext of poor quality or for being unhygienic.
This can be seen from the fact that mud-salt was exported from
Hyderabad to Madras Presidency. The Company had complete
monopoly on salt trade, and no other state or company was allowed
to make salt.
The important aspect of this treaty was that Hyderabad State
was allowed to use the sea-port of Masulipatam and set up a
commercial factory there, as the state became landlocked after the
Treaty of 1766. The treaty also ensured all-time protection to the
Nizam's ships by the British Navy in all the ports belonging to
the British. But the new Customs Act passed by the British lndian
government did not honour the terms of this treaty. The Nizam's
ships were stopped at Masulipatam and an import duty was imposed
on goods which were to go to the various territories of Hyderabad
from the port. When the Nizam'sgovernment brought the violation
of the norms of the treaty to the notice of the British government,
 24 Historyof Modern Telangana
the latter did not respond or avoided responding. Thus, all the
treaties nmade withthe Nizams were designedto protectthe interests
of the British.
The cession of Berar was
another blow to the economy of the
irregular
Nizam's government. The
financial crisis and payment of
to popular disturbances
salaries tothe armed forces gradually led as the Wahabi movement
further fanned
in the state. This was movemens
state, which was started as an anti-British
spread in the
India. In fact, Prince Mubariz-1d
by the Muslims in north
movement in Hyderabad State. Of course, tha
Doula headed the movement was suppressed soon b.
prince was arrested and the by Col. Stewart alarmed the
the report sent
Col. Stevwart. But financial crisis in the state. The crisis was
British to normalise the
by the ruthless borrowings for the maintenance of
largely caused
the Contingent forces. situation, could
for the
Chandulal, who was solely responsible
the problem and resigned from diwanship in 1843. Before
not solve cede Berar to the British. But the
resigning, he had proposed to
did not like the idea and cleared the debts to the British by
Nizam
jewels worth Rs 8 lakh from
taking out Rs 10 million in cash and
relíet. The expenses
his private treasures; it only provided temporary
Rs 40 lakh a year, which
of the Contingency forces came up to
of the state. In
amounted to nearly one-third of the total revenue
British stood at
1849, the debt of the Nizam's governnment to the
forces.
about Rs 45 lakh apart from the arrears of the Contingent
debt to
The Nizam's government also owed about Rs 2 crore in
the local sabukars (moneylenders). The British suggested that the
Nizam cut down the force gradually but there was opposition trom
the nobles and the proposal was stalled. The British indeed wanted
to free the Contingent forces from being dependent on the Nizam's
government for salaries by securing an assignment of special districts
towards payment of itssalaries.
The British had been eyeing the Berar and Raichur territories
for a long time, as these places had rich fertile black soil favourable
for cotton crops and yielded good revenue. A proposal was made
to the Nizam that the outstanding debt would be cancelled and the
Contingent would be thereafter maintained by them if the Berar
 British-Nizam Relations 25

rerritories were permanently ceded to them. The Nizam opposed

this idca strongly and promised the resident that the debt to the
Company would bc paid in three months and that the paymenf
of the Contingency forces would be regularised. Ihe sahukars of
Hvderabad would stand surety for his word. At one point in time,
ro clear the Company debts, the Nizam was also prepared to keep
his ornaments as surety. The British did not accept the Nizam's
proposa. They forced the Nizam to sign the Treaty of Berar in 1853
under which Berar, Raichur and Balaghat districts, yielding revenue
of about Rs 50lakh, were ceded to the British. After deducting the
cost of administration of these territories, the balance was to be
refunded to the Nizam.
The cost of the maintenance of the Contingency drastically
decreased in the subsequent years. But the British did not pay the
balance amount to the Nizams till 1873. However, Raichur was
restored tothe Nizam in 1860 as the revenue from Berar was steadily
increased and exceeded the actual expenses of the Contingent. Salar
Jung made tireless attempt to restore Berar. He wrote nine petitions
and innumerable letters to the British. He appointed an agent to
persuade the matter in London, but to no avail. The last Nizam
reopened the issue in 1923, and at last a symbolic sovereignty of
the Nizam was accepted over Berar in 1936 but it was still kept
under theadministration of the British. The Nizam's elder son was
called the Prince of Berar-a prince without any rights. The whole
was
transaction that led to the conclusion of the Treaty of Berar
Siraj-ul-Mulk, a
based on force and fraud. It was said that Diwan
caused by the cession
man of integrity, died because of the tension Hyderabad State
to
of Berar. The cession of Berar was a big loss
in many respects.
paramountcy in
The Residency system was a symbol of British
the Nizam government
the state. It was through this system that Treaty of 1798,
Under the
was checked, policed and administered.
Achilles Kirkpatrick was appointed the first resident of
James representatives in the
Hyderabad. Although there were Company Kirkpatrick played a crucial
State from 1779, they acted as agents. with the Nizams, besides
relations
role in establishing British Building in Kotiin 1803 which
constructing the romantic Residency
 Telangana
26 History of Modern

European architecture. Although the policy was to0 nor

symbolises Nizams, all policy matter,
interfere in the internal matters of the of diwans and other
of the state, including the
appointment
of the
heads
residen:
decided with the consent
Of departments, were from his position, he was asked by the
When Chandulal resigned letter through the resident. ThËis
resignation
Nizam to forward the
of the Nizam. Between 1843 and 1853
shows the vulnerability appoint his diwan. The sixth and
free to
the Nizam was relatively assert their powers to appoint their own
seventh Nizams tried to with
pressure was placed upon them. Disgusted executives
diwans, but great as
British-appointed diwans, both the Nizams acted
the
time.
of the state for some administering the personal lives of
The residents were even their opinions on whomn members
the Nizams, such as expresing The little Nizam's rearing and
to marry.
of the royal family were of the Resident. When Mahbub Ali
education were also concerns
an
turned four, there was pressure from the resident to appoint
Khan
superintendent to look after his upbringing and education.
English the child was seven. After
postponed the issue until
Salar Jung four days, he started
completion of four years, four months andBismillah ceremony, in
a
the child's religious education first with
and say its prayers.
which a child is taught how to read the Quran formed to select
resident was
Later on, a committee headed by the
selected. However, his wife
an English tutor and John Clerk was
educating
died and so, Clerk left for London. The responsibility ofSalar Jung
Clerk.
the young Nizam then fell on his brother Claude
Nizam s
had to interveneat every stage in the selection of theyoung
English tutor. There was a degree of controversy on the wearing
of shoes by the tutor in the palace. The resident saw the removal of
shoes in the palace as disrespectful to the British. But Salar Jung
argued that the wearing of shoes in the palace was against local
tradition and took the matter to the Viceroy and won the battle.
Mahbub Ali Khan also had a similar experience in relation to his son
Osman Ali Khan's education. Alchough he was English educated,
he reluctantly accepted Bryan Egerton, who was appointed on the
recommendation of the Viceroy, as superintendent of the young
Nizam's education.
 British-Nizam Relations 27

Despite the tension between the two cultures, English culture had
aprofound impact on Hyderabadi culture. Of coursce, the English
were also equally inhuenced by Hyderabadi culture. The well-known
love story of resident James Achilles Kirkpatrick and Khairunissa
Begum was an exampleofa blend of the two cultures. Kirkpatrick
was known as an English Nawab and was granted the title Hashmal
Jung Bahadur by the Nizam. By 1820, European social life had
begun developing in Hyderabad as the resident's power and the
number of English persons increased gradually. Alarge number of
European officials associated with the Hyderabad Contingency and
the Company settled down in the cantonment in Secunderabad.
Secunderabad became a symbol of modern English culture.
Salar Jung imposed astrict restriction on the participation of the
nobles in the Residency social gatherings in order to avoid intrigue
politics. But after his death, there was a free flow of cultural exchange
in the city, as the Nizam and Salar Jung II were active participants
of the new culture. From the 1890s, a new English-educated noble
beca
class was developed in Hyderabad city. Visiting England old
Malwala Palace in the city
a passion to young nobles. The and the noble class.
became a party place for the diwani officials
Hyderabad Club
This class also set up club culture in the city. The centres of new
and the Chaderghat Social Club were the main
social gatherings. had a great influence
The interaction between the two cultures
on the architecture of Hyderabad city. The Falaknuma Palace,
Chowmohalla Complex,
parts of the Purani Haveli palaces in the and the Asman Gadh
(1880s)
the Begumpet Palaces of the Paigah examples of the use of classical
Palace at Saroornagar (1885) are early Falaknuma palace was built
European architecture in the city. TheEuropean style) in 1884 by
in the Palladian style (early modern
Bahadur. But Nizam VI purchased
Paigah noble Sir Vikarul Umra
guest house. King George V and
it in 1897and used it as the state Hyderabad. The other
visited
Queen Mary stayed in it when theyin Hyderabad is the Residency
important Palladian style structure College) built in 1803.It was
Women's
Building (presently the KotiSamuel
supervised by Russell of the Madras Engineers.
designed and Mahboob
House at Calcutta. The
It is a replica of Government
 28 History of Modern Telangana

Tomh
Mansion, The Victorian Mcmorial Orphanage, Raymond's(British
id the Mumtaz College were built in the Early Norman
architect) style. between the two societies did not impact
Ihe cultural adoptions
political relations much. The Nizams and their territories were
their British. However, an Osmanian
always looked down upon by the
or Indo-Saracenic architecture, started to develon
Style of architecture, combination of Qutb Shahi
twentieth century. It was a
in the early architecture. Vincent Jerome Esch was the
and European Gothic architecture. The examples of such architecture
creator of this style of
Kachiguda Railway Station (1916).
in the ciy are the building of College (1921), Hlyderabad Public
City
the High Court (1920), Hospital
School (1924), Osmania (1925), Moazzam Jahi Marker
in Public Garden
(1935),Jubilee Hall (1936) and other buildings British rule thus
(1939).
and Osmania University Arts College the Mughalai
produced an architectural synthesis in India. However,
foundations for
and Qutb Shahi styles of architecture remained the
this new synthesis, and these continued to naintain their
distinct
identities in the architecture of the region.
Therefore, as has been discussed above, the pressing threats
from neighbouring states pushed the Nizam towards embracing the
friendship of the British. In turn, the British fully took advantage
of the situation and made the Nizam perpetually dependent. All
the treaties and agreements were signed in response to the changes
taking place either in British India or in Britain. It is important to
note that these treaties were one-sided and hardly honoured when
it came to the Nizams. The Nizam was not even consulted by the
British when they granted freedom to British India.

REFERENCES
Ali, Syed Mahdi (com.), Hyderabad Affairs, 10 vols, Bombay: The
of India Steam Press, Times
1883-89.
Briggs, Henry George, The Nizam: His History and Relations with the
Government, 2 vols, reprints, New Delhi: Manas Brits
Fraser, Hastings, Our Faithful Aly the Nizam: An Publications, 198).