Bayazid Baz Bahadur Khan was the last
Sultan
Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...
of the
Malwa Sultanate, who reigned from 1555 to 1562. He succeeded his father, Shuja'at Khan. He is known for his romantic liaison with
Roopmati.
Baz Bahadur as sultan did not bother to look after his kingdom nor maintained a strong army, being devoted to the arts and to his paramour. He fell in love with the beautiful Hindu shepherdess called Roopmati and also built the Rewa Kund, a reservoir at Mandu, equipped with an aqueduct to the
Narmada. The
Mughals
The Mughal Empire was an early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to the highlands of pre ...
defeated him and captured his
Hindu
Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
queen
Roopmati, who killed herself at this turn of events.
In 1561,
Akbar's army led by
Adham Khan and
Pir Muhammad Khan attacked
Malwa and defeated Baz Bahadur in the battle of
Sarangpur on 29 March 1561. One of the reasons for Adham Khan's attack seems to be his lust for Rani
Roopmati. Rani Roopmati poisoned herself upon hearing of the fall of
Mandu. Baz Bahadur fled
to
Khandesh. Akbar soon recalled Adham Khan and handed over the command to Pir Muhammad, who attacked Khandesh and proceeded up to
Burhanpur but was soon defeated by a coalition of three powers:
Miran Mubarak Khan II of
Khandesh, Tufal Khan of
Berar and Baz Bahadur. Pir Muhammad died while retreating. The confederate army pursued the Mughals and drove them out of Malwa, and thus Baz Bahadur regained his kingdom for a brief period. In 1562, Akbar sent another army led by Abdullah Khan which finally defeated Baz Bahadur, who fled to
Chittor. Malwa was absorbed by the Mughals, with Baz Bahadur becoming a fugitive at various courts for a number of years. In November 1570, he surrendered to Akbar at
Agra
Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...
and joined his service.
Bahadur's capital was Mandu (now in
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...
), which then became an important city in the
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...
. The
Jahaz Mahal is located in Mandu.
[
File:Baz Bahadur's Palace 01.jpg, Baz Bahadur's Palace in Mandu
File:Baz Bahadur's Palace 09.jpg, The courtyard of the Palace
File:A_coin_of_Baz_Bahadur.jpg, A copper coin of Baz Bahadur
]
References
{{reflist
Sultans of Malwa
People from Dhar
16th-century Indian monarchs
16th-century Indian Muslims