Mahabat Khan ( ur, مهابت خان) (full title ''Mahabat Khan Khan-e-Khanan Sipah-Salar Zamana Beg Kabuli)'', born Zamana Beg (died 1634), was a prominent Mughal general and statesman, perhaps best known for his coup against the Mughal

Emperor Jahangir Nur-ud-Din Muhammad Salim (30 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was the fourth Mughal Emperor, who ruled from 1605 until he died in 1627. He was named after the Indian Sufi saint, Salim Chishti. Ear ...

in 1626. He also served Subahdar of Malwa Subah from 1611 to 1623 and

Bengal Subah The Bengal Subah ( bn, সুবাহ বাংলা; fa, ), also referred to as Mughal Bengal ( bn, মোগল বাংলা), was the largest subdivision of the Mughal Empire (and later an independent state under the Nawabs of Be ...

during 1625–1626. He earned the title ''Khan-i-Khanan'' from emperor Shah Jahan.

Early life

Born Zamana Beg, Khan's father was Ghiwar Beg Kabuli who came from

Shiraz Shiraz (; fa, شیراز, Širâz ) is the fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars Province, which has been historically known as Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the population of the city was 1,565,572 p ...

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...

and subsequently to India.

Career in the Mughal Army

Upon entering the Mughal service, Zamana Beg enjoyed a rapid ascent through the ranks of the Mughal army. He began his military career in the personal forces of Crown Prince Salim (who later went on to become

). Having endeared himself to the crown prince, he was soon made an officer in charge of 500 men. Prince Salim sent him to Malik Ambar to remove the campaign of Prince Daniyal in the Deccan. He also led Salim’s army during the Rajputana campaign in Mewar. Mahabat Khan was gifted a concubine from Mewar; she died in childbirth. Upon Jahangir's rise to the throne in 1605, he was granted the honorific title ''Mahabat Khan,'' and was promoted to the rank of commander of 1,500 men, and bakhshi (treasurer) of the emperor's private privy purse. Mahabat Khan rose to prominence in 1623, when he was made commander of the Mughal forces sent to defeat the unsuccessful rebellion of Prince Khurram (who later went on to become Emperor Shah Jahan) in the

Deccan The large Deccan Plateau in southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bounded by the ...

. For his loyal service, he was recognised as a 'pillar of the state',Findly, Ellison Banks
Nur Jahan: Empress of Mughal India
Retrieved on 5 February 2008. and was ultimately promoted to chief commander of the Mughal army, with a personal force of 7,000 men.

Rebellion

Mahabat Khan's success in quelling Prince Khurram's rebellion was not met with pleasure by many members of the Mughal court, who began to fear and resent the general's growing prestige and influence. Empress

Nur Jahan Nur Jahan, born Mehr-un-Nissa P ersian: نورجهان (; – 18 December 1645) was the wife and chief consort of the Mughal emperor Jahangir from 1620 until his death in 1627. Nur Jahan was born Mehr-un-Nissa, as the daughter of a Mirza Gh ...

was especially concerned, and in an effort to curb Mahabat Khan's rising power, she arranged to have him made governor of

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

, a province far removed from the Mughal capital at

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

. Furthermore, in an effort to humiliate him in the imperial court, Nur Jahan had him charged with disloyal conduct and ordered him to return to Lahore to face trial. As a result of Nur Jahan's machinations against him, Mahabat Khan decided to take action, and so in 1626, he led an army of loyal

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

soldiers to the

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

. He had also brought the wives and families of many of them, so that, if driven to extremity, they would fight to the last for the lives and honour of themselves and their familie

Meanwhile, Jahangir and his retinue were preparing to head to

, and were encamped on the banks of the

River Jhelum A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

. Mahabat Khan and his forces attacked the royal encampment, and successfully took the emperor hostage; Nur Jahan, however, managed to escape. Mahabat Khan declared himself emperor of India at Kabul, however his success was short-lived.

, with the help of nobles who were still loyal to Jahangir, came up with a plan to free her husband. She surrendered herself to Mahabat Khan, and once reunited with her husband, put her plan into action. She had Jahangir convince Mahabat Khan that he was satisfied with the current arrangement, as it had freed him from her clutches. Mahabat Khan believed that he had won over the former emperor, failing to realise that Jahangir was in fact siding with Nur Jahan. Consequently, he decreased the

guards that he had placed around Jahangir, and prepared to return to Lahore with the captive emperor. Meanwhile, Nur Jahan arranged for an army to meet them en route to

; in the ensuing battle, Nur Jahan's forces were victorious, and Jahangir was freed from captivity. Mahabat Khan with the help of Raja Nathu Mall of Majhaul

settled the remaining wounded Rajputs and their family in the forests of

Gorakhpur Gorakhpur is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, along the banks of the Rapti river in the Purvanchal region. It is situated 272 kilometers east of the state capital Lucknow. It is the administrative headquarters of Gorakhpur dis ...

, Uttar Pradesh. Thus Mahabat Khan's brief reign lasted approximately 100 days.

Later life and death

Following his unsuccessful coup, Khan fled to the Deccan. There, Prince Khurram convinced him to surrender himself to Jahangir. However, with the death of Jahangir shortly thereafter in October 1627, Khan went unpunished. Upon Prince Khurram's rise to the throne as Emperor Shah Jahan, Mahabat Khan was appointed governor of

Ajmer Ajmer is one of the major and oldest cities in the Indian state of Rajasthan and the centre of the eponymous Ajmer District. It is located at the centre of Rajasthan. It is also known as heart of Rajasthan. The city was established as "' ...

. He was later transferred to a post in the Deccan, where he died in 1634. His body was carried back to

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

, where he was buried on the ground of the shrine of Qadam Sharif. Upon death, his eldest son, Mirza Amanullah, was awarded the title 'Khan Zaman', while his second son, Luhrasp, was granted his late father's title, Mahabat Khan.Beale, Thomas William
An Oriental Biographical Dictionary
Retrieved on 5 February 2008.

References

{{Authority control 1634 deaths Subahdars of Bengal Mughal generals Year of birth unknown