Nawab of Awadh

The Nawab of Awadh or Nawab of Oudh /ˈaʊd/ was the title of the rulers of Kingdom of Awadh (anglicised as Oudh) in northern India during the 18th and 19th centuries. The Nawabs of Awadh belonged to an Iranian dynasty^[1][2][3] of Sayyid origin^[4][5] from Nishapur, Iran. In 1724, Nawab Sa'adat Khan established the Kingdom of Awadh with their capital in Faizabad and Lucknow.

Nawab of Awadh (Oudh)
Seal of the Kingdom of Awadh
First to reign Saadat Ali Khan I 26 January 1722 – 19 March 1739
Details
First monarch	Saadat Ali Khan I
Last monarch	Birjis Qadr
Formation	26 January 1722
Abolition	3 March 1858
Residence	Chattar Manzil

History

See also: Oudh State

The Nawabs of Awadh were semi-autonomous rulers within the fragmented polities of Mughal India after the death of Aurangzeb in 1707. They fought wars with the Peshwa, the Battle of Bhopal (1737) against the Maratha Confederacy (which was opposed to the Mughal Empire), and the Battle of Karnal (1739) as courtiers of the Moghul.^[6]

The Nawabs of Awadh, along with many other Nawabs, were regarded as members of the nobility of the Mughal Empire. They joined Ahmad Shah Durrani during the Third Battle of Panipat (1761) and restored Shah Alam II (r. 1760–1788 and 1788–1806) to the imperial throne. The Nawab of Awadh also fought the Battle of Buxar (1764) preserving the interests of the Moghul. Oudh State eventually declared itself independent from the rule of the Moghul in 1818.^[7]

List of rulers

All of these rulers of the Royal House of Awadh used the title of Nawab from 1722 onward:

Portrait	Titular Name	Personal Name	Birth	Reign	Death
	Burhan ul Mulk Sa'adat Khan برہان الملک سعادت خان	Saadat Ali Khan I سعادت علی خان	1680 Nishapur, Khurasan, Safavid dynasty, Persia	1722 – 19 March 1739	1739
	Abul-Mansur Khan Safdar Jung ابو المنصور خان صفدرجنگ	Muhammad Muqim محمد مقیم	1708	1739 – 5 October 1754	1754
	Shuja-ud-Daula شجاع الدولہ	Jalal-ud-din Haider Abul-Mansur Khan جلال الدین حیدر ابا المنصور خان	1732	1754 – 26 January 1775	1775
	Asaf-ud-Daula آصف الدولہ	Muhammad Yahya Mirza Amani	1748	26 January 1775 – 20 April 1797	1798
	Asif Jah Mirza آصف جاہ میرزا	Wazir Ali Khan وزیر علی خان	1780	21 September 1797 – 21 January 1798	1817
	Yamin-ud-Daula یمین الدولہ	Saadat Ali Khan II سعادت علی خان دوم	1752	21 January 1798 – 11 July 1814	1814
	Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar Shah غازی الدین حیدر شاہ	Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar Shah غازی الدین حیدر شاہ	1769	11 July 1814 – 19 October 1827	1827
	Abul- Mansur Qutub-ud-din Sulaiman jah ابا المنصور قطب الدین سلیمان جاہ	Nasir-ud-Din Haidar Shah ناصر الدیں حیدر شاہ	1803	19 October 1827 – 7 July 1837	1837
	Abul Fateh Moin-ud-din ابا الفاتح معین الدین	Muhammad Ali Shah محمّد علی شاہ	1777	7 July 1837 – 7 May 1842	1842
	Najm-ud-Daula Abul-Muzaffar Musleh-ud-din نجم الدولہ ابا المظفر مصلح الدین	Amjad Ali Shah امجد علی شاہ	1801	7 May 1842 – 13 February 1847	1847
	Abul-Mansur Mirza ابا المنصور میرزا	Wajid Ali Shah واجد علی شاہ	1822	13 February 1847 – 11 February 1856	1 September 1887
	Mohammadi Khanum محمدی خانم	Begum Hazrat Mahal بیگم حضرت محل	1820	11 February 1856 – 5 July 1857 Wife of Wajid Ali Shah and mother of Birjis Qadra (in rebellion)	7 April 1879
	Ramzan Ali رمضان علی	Birjis Qadr بر جیس قدر	1845	5 July 1857 – 3 March 1858 (in rebellion)	14 August 1893

Pretenders to the throne of Awadh

• Meerza family. ...
  • Nawab Meher Quder Zahid Ali Meerza (son of Nawab Birjis Qadr)
  • Nawab Kaukab Quder Meerza (grandson of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah and son of Nawab Meher Quder Zahid Ali Meerza)^[8]
  • Nawab Kamran Meerza (son of Kaukab Meerza)^[8]
• Nawab Ibrahim Ali Khan Sheesh Mahal^[9]

Gallery

• 
  Saadat Ali Khan I, the first Nawab of Awadh, who laid the foundation of that state.
• 
  Safdarjung is accused of making peace with the Maratha Confederacy.
• 
  Shuja-ud-Daula fought the Maratha Confederacy during the Third Battle of Panipat on behalf of the Great Moghul, he's also known to have fought during the Battle of Buxar.
• 
  Shuja ud-Daula and his ten sons
• 
  Shuja-ud-Daulah on a hunt
• 
  Shuja's army in Oudh
• 
  Oudh Cavalry
• 
  Mumtaz-ud-Daulah of the Budh Royal Family attributed to Felice Beato
• 
  Moksim-ud-Daulah
• 
  Gates of the Palace at Lucknow by W. Daniell, 1801.
• 
  Gate of the Lal-Bagh fort at Faizabad in 1801.

See also

• Begum Hazrat Mahal
• List of Shia dynasties
• The Chess Players (film)