Shah Jahan: The Rise and Fall of the Mughal Emperor, Fergus
Nicoll, Penguin Books, pp 332, Rs. 899.00
Shah Jahan, the Mughal Emperor who was a “ruthless political
operator, who only achieved power by ordering the murder of two brothers and at
least six other relatives, one of them the legitimately crowned Emperor Dawar
Baksh… an enlightened despot, a king who dispensed largesse to favored
courtiers but ignored plague in the countryside.”
This is how Fergus Nicoll introduces Shah Jahan, in his book
Shah Jahan: The Rise and Fall of the Mughal Emperor that academically scrutinizes
the life, time and reign of the Emperor.
It speaks volumes for the King’s character that in this
detailed account of his 31 years of rule, one does not come across a single act
of goodness or kindness for the people. The official diary, maintained daily
diligently by a writer, extensively quoted by Nicoll does not give any evidence
that Shah Jahan was bothered about his subjects. Famines and plagues visited
the population at regular frequency. But the people had to pay the rent fixed
for them.
“The poor, by contrast, thronged every village, highway and
urban back-street across the entire empire,” says Nicoll. A Dutch trader in India at the
time wrote, “If their villages were unable to pay the full amount of rent, they
could be sold – man, woman or child – or charged with fomenting rebellion. For
in Mughal India
defaulting was tantamount to treason.” What a tragic picture. This when the
emperor’s treasury was bursting and overflowing.
Nicoll gives a detailed account of the Emperor’s wealth at
several places in the book. Here is one of them: “The fact that Shah Jahan
could spend five million rupees on his widow’s tomb with such nonchalance is an
indicator of the vast wealth at his disposal.” Together the provinces brought
“Shah Jahan’s total income to nearly 190 million rupees. Most of that money
flowed directly into the imperial coffers as crown-land revenue. The remainder
was allocated at the emperor’s discretion to 655 named individuals: members of
the royal family and the members of the nobility whose fiefdom financed their
private militias and lavish lifestyles.” The author goes on to further
illustrate the emperor’s wealth by comparing it to the pitiable state of
finances of his contemporaries in the West. For instance, King Charles I in
1635 was struggling with a financial crisis, to maintain his court at an annual
budget of half a million pounds.
As could be expected the book is full of political
executions and mass murders. The supporters of political rivals are finished
off, their heads separated, lined up for display to act as warning. During the
reign of Shah Jahan’s father Jahangir, the fifth Sikh Guru Arjun Dev was
executed and the possessions of his followers confiscated. The Guru, not a
supporter of any group had only accorded the routine hospitality to Prince
Khusraw, in the form of a tilak and spiritual advice when the latter came
calling on him. Khusraw (elder brother of Shah Jahan) was then rebelling
against his father. When taking the throne, the already incarcerated Khusraw’s
murder was ordered by Shah Jahan.
The book elaborately describes the coming up of Taj Mahal,
right from the stage of conception. The Red Fort, Jama Masjid and other
structures by the Emperor have been penned extensively.
Shah Jahan, the man has got lost in this painstakingly
researched book. There is no account of his personal life, as a father, husband
(except that he loved Mumtaj Mahal to distraction and subjected her to annual
pregnancies) and a victim of his son’s (Aurangzeb) political ambitions. Nicoll
has ignored records that show that Shah Jahan was incestuous and used both his
daughters Jahan Ara and Roshan Ara sexually and cruelly put to death their
lovers when caught.
Nicoll has glossed over the religious fanaticism of Shah
Jahan. His very anti-Hindu stances including the reintroduction of jazia the
tax on Hindus, though several Rajput kings were his vassals and supplied money
and men for his wars. The demolition of the ancient Vishwanatha temple in Kashi
was carried out by Shah Jahan. The incident is mentioned by Nicoll in passing
as a general demolition of temples in Benaras for “beautification” of the city.
This book is an academic work, on an Emperor who is taught
in Indian history books as the ‘builder of Taj Mahal and a man who had an
undying love for his wife.’ Nicoll opens our eye to the King that Shah Jahan
was. Though the account on the social scene and the plight of the people comes
rather late in the book and is not very elaborate, it gives an idea about the
life of Hindus in Hindustan then. It of course
only got worse under 40 years of Aurangzeb’s rule. That account would have to
wait for another book.
Fergus Nicoll has been a current affairs journalist for the
BBC since 1988 and is widely travelled. He received a generous grant from the
Society of Authors to work on the book. The book no doubt is the result of
labourious research of a committed academic mind.
(Penguin Books, 11, Community Centre, Panchsheel Park,
New Delhi-110 017.)
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