THE LAST KING IN INDIA
ROSIE LLEWELLYN-JONES
The Last King in India
Wajid ‘Ali Shah, 1822–1887
HURST & COMPANY, LONDON
First published in the United Kingdom in 2014 by
C. Hurst & Co. (Publishers) Ltd.,
41 Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3PL
© Rosie Llewellyn-Jones, 2014
All rights reserved.
Printed in India
Distributed in the United States, Canada and Latin America by
Oxford University Press, 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016,
United States of America
The right of Rosie Llewellyn-Jones to be identified as the author of this publication is asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
A Cataloguing-in-Publication data record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN: 978-1-84904-408-0
eISBN: 978-1-84904-536-0
www.hurstpublishers.com
This book is printed on paper from registered sustainable and managed sources.
To the memory of Stanley Menezes, ‘better than the best’
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements
List of Illustrations
Chronology
Glossary
Introduction
1. ‘That Energetic Old Lady’
2. Pageants and Pantomimes
3. The Sorrows of Akhtar
4. The House of Fairies
5. At Garden Reach
6. A Tigress Escapes from the Menagerie
7. A Mimic Kingdom
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Although writing is a solitary task, luckily there are people with whom I can share my ideas, my finds and my enthusiasm. A number of friends (and some email acquaintances) have been helpful, particularly in finding images, which I did not have time to search for. I would like to thank the following:
Nawab Jafar Mir Abdullah, an old friend, who has done much to keep the spirit of nawabi Lucknow alive, not least with his theatrical interpretations of the king.
Sahebzada Humayun ‘Ali, a direct descendant of the king, who provided me with some images and much material on the royal burial ground near Garden Reach.
Dr Sâqib Bâburî, who has not only advised on mundane matters like the proper transliteration and meaning of Urdu and Persian words, but has also made many helpful scholarly suggestions. Like me, he shares a growing feeling that some, at least, of Wajid ‘Ali Shah’s literary compositions deserve to be made available to a wider audience.
Michael Brooke and his cousin Michael Douglas, descendants of Sir William Sleeman, who identified a previously unknown portrait of their ancestor, and led me to see him in a more sympathetic light.
Christopher Buyers, whose online genealogical tables of the Awadh royal family (and many other royal families) are invaluable in tracing the tangled mesh of Wajid ‘Ali Shah’s hundreds of wives and descendants.
Dr Sophie Gordon, curator of the Royal Photographic Collection, Windsor Castle, who helpfully found references to the Awadh family’s visit to England in 1856–58.
Charles Greig, who alerted me to images of the king in private hands, and who shared some Lucknow adventures with me.
Pramod Kumar KG, of Eka Cultural Resources and Research, who found a number of images of the king.
Shahanshah Mirza, his wife Fatima and his father Sahebzada Wasif Mirza, direct descendants of the king, for their unfailing hospitality, courtesy and encouragement, as well as their practical help in taking me to Garden Reach and answering queries on Shi‘a rituals.
Mirza Kaukab Qadr, author of Vājid ‘Alī Shāh kī adabī aur s̲aqāfatī khidmāt, the most comprehensive catalogue to date of the king’s works, and a direct descendant, who kindly gave me some images of Garden Reach.
Jaya Ravindran of the Reading Room at the National Archives, New Delhi, who has helped me find the research material for this book, as for previous books.
Mr Kenneth Robbins, a fellow Lucknow enthusiast, who shares his finds with me.
Dr S. A. Sadiq, a direct descendant, who has an impressive library and picture gallery on the royal families of Awadh and Murshidabad.
Emma Stuart of the Royal Library, Windsor Castle, who let me examine the beautiful Ishqnama manuscript.
Peter Wynne-James, the grand-nephew of Sir Trevredyn Rashleigh Wynne, who purchased the Sultan Khana at Garden Reach on the king’s death, when he was appointed agent and chief engineer of the newly formed Bengal Nagpur Railway.
To all of the above-named, my most grateful thanks. Any errors in this book are the sole responsibility of the author.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
(Between pages 126 and 127)
1. The queen mother, Janab-i ‘Aliyyah, enters the train at Southampton station. From the Illustrated London News 6 September 1856. Author’s collection.
2. The queen mother and party at Drury Lane Theatre, London. From the Illustrated London News 14 March 1857. Author’s collection.
3. The Awadh princes, Sikandar Hashmat and Hamid ‘Ali, at the Art Treasures Exhibition, Manchester, July 1857. Photograph by Leonida Caldesi. Royal Collection Trust © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2013.
4. Prince Sikandar Hashmat, embellished photograph, i.e. the crown and robes have been painted on to an existing photograph. Private collection.
5. Wajid ‘Ali Shah in Qaisarbagh. Painting on cloth, c.1851. From the collection of Kenneth and Joyce Robbins.
6. Wajid ‘Ali Shah celebrates the Basant (Spring) Festival on the river Gomti. Sir William Sleeman, in red coat, sits next to the king. Hussainabad Picture Gallery, Lucknow.
7. The Great Vine and the Lanka, Qaisarbagh, Lucknow. Artist unknown, c.1862. © Alkazi Collection of Photography, Delhi.
8. Wajid ‘Ali Shah is recognised as heir apparent, c.1847. Gouache on paper. Private collection.
9. Prince Mustafa ‘Ali Khan, elder brother of Wajid ‘Ali Shah. Attributed to Felice Beato, March/April 1858. Albumen silver print 18.4 x 13.2 cm. © The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles.
10. Wajid ‘Ali Shah greets Viscount Hardinge, the governor general, at Lucknow c.1847. Gouache on paper. © The British Library, London Add. Or. 742.
11. Wajid ‘Ali Shah with wife (possibly Akhtar Mahal) and child. Photograph by Ahmad ‘Ali Khan, early 1850s. From William Low, Lieutenant-Colonel Gould Hunter-Weston (1914).
12. Wajid ‘Ali Shah, oil painting, possibly from a lost original by George Duncan Beechey. Hussainabad Picture Gallery, Lucknow.
13. Wajid ‘Ali Shah and Safaraz Mahal, from the Ishqnamah, folio 263, Windsor Castle. Royal Collection Trust © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2013.
14. Wajid ‘Ali Shah and Begam Hazrat Mahal from the Ishqnamah, folio 155. The caption reads: The likeness of Iftikharun-nisa’ Khanum, Lady Hazratmahall, before the Sultan-e ’Alam, year 1261 of the Hijrah. c.1845. Windsor Castle. Royal Collection Trust © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2013.
15. Wajid ‘Ali Shah in his zananah at Lucknow, late 1840s/early 1850s. Gouache on paper. State Museum, Lucknow.
16. The Sultan Khana today, Garden Reach, Kolkata. Author’s collection.
17. Wajid ‘Ali Shah, date and photographer unknown. Private collection.
18. Wajid ‘Ali Shah in old age, date and photographer unknown. © Alkazi Collection of Photography, Delhi.
CHRONOLOGY
Wajid ‘Ali Shah 1822–1887
1822 born 30 July at Lucknow, the second son of Prince (later King) Amjad ‘Ali Shah and
the prince’s first wife, Malikah Kishwar (later known as Janab-i ‘Aliyyah)
1830 sexually assaulted by the servant woman Rahiman
1837 14 November, preliminary marriage ceremony is delayed due to death of his uncle, King Nasir ud-Din Haider. His grandfather, Mohammed ‘Ali Shah, becomes king, thus placing Wajid ‘Ali Shah in line to the throne
1838 January, first nikah marriage to Khas Mahal is finalised
1839 first son, Nosherwan Qadr, born deaf and dumb
1842 Amjad ‘Ali Shah becomes king. Wajid ‘Ali Shah declared heir apparent, while his elder brother, Mustafa ‘Ali Khan, is passed over
1843 heir apparent writes Radha Kanhaiya ka Qissa, a play based on an episode in Lord Krishna’s life
1845 British Resident John Shakespear complains to the governor general about the heir apparent
1846 first performance of the play Darya-i-Ta’ashshuq, written by the heir apparent
1847 13 February, Wajid ‘Ali Shah becomes king on the death of his father
20 February, false report of human sacrifice at a Hindu temple
5 July, chief minister dismissed and ‘Ali Naqi Khan becomes new minister
8 November, Viscount Hardinge, the governor general, visits Lucknow and threatens annexation
1847/8 the Ishqnamah, a romantic autobiography, is written by the king
1848 land revenue reforms proposed by the king are rejected by the governor general. Building of Qaisarbagh Palace begins at a cost of 80 lakhs
3 March, Dr Aloys Sprenger arrives to catalogue the royal libraries
17 March, outgoing governor general refuses to meet the king or his heir
27 May, king sends letter of welcome to Lord Dalhousie, the new Governor General
1849 11 January, William Sleeman appointed as British Resident at Court
1 December, Sleeman begins his tour of rural Awadh
1850 Dalhousie travels through Cawnpore but declines to meet the king
September, Janab-i ‘Aliyyah orders her son, the king, to divorce six of his wives, including Begam Hazrat Mahal, mother of a young son
Alambagh, a country house, is built and named after the king’s first wife
1851 Sleeman warns the king against employing musicians in government posts
5 June, the king marries a second nikah wife, Akhtar Mahal, then aged eleven
30 July, Dalhousie sarcastically suggests that the king send his head in a crown to the Great Exhibition in London
December, Dalhousie fails to visit Lucknow or receive anyone from the Court
1852 further criticism of the king by Sleeman. Qaisarbagh Palace completed and its gardens laid out
1853 the king’s troops mutiny because they have not been paid
14 April, two ambassadors sent by the king to Dalhousie are turned away
July, the first Yogi Mela is staged in Qaisarbagh December, Sleeman sends a privately printed copy of his Journey through the Kingdom of Oude to Dalhousie
1854 November, Sleeman resigns because of ill health December, James Outram is appointed new Resident
1855 January, a 21-gun salute ordered to mark British victory in the Crimea
February, Outram sends king a warning letter about bloodshed at Ayodhya
Private Life of an Eastern King published in London causes a sensation
July/August, clashes and bloodshed between Muslims and Hindus at Ayodhya. The king sends troops who kill between 300 and 400 Muslims
21 November, Court of Directors order Dalhousie to annex Awadh
1856 15 January, Dalhousie orders Outram to prepare troops for annexation
13 February, king refuses to sign annexation treaty
28 February, Lord Canning sworn in as new governor general
13 March, king and relatives leave Lucknow en route for Calcutta
13 May, king arrives by boat in Calcutta; Canning refuses to discuss the annexation
3 June, king moves to Garden Reach
15 June, king’s mother, brother and son leave Calcutta for London
15 August, the royal party arrive at Southampton December, Canning tells the king that annexation is irreversible
1857 16 January, king’s brother and son meet the Court of Directors in London
10 May, the Great Uprising begins in Meerut and quickly spreads to Delhi
16 June, king is arrested and taken to Fort William 1 July, siege of the British Residency at Lucknow begins
4 July, the royal party meet Queen Victoria at Buckingham Palace
5 July, Begam Hazrat Mahal’s son crowned king in Qaisarbagh Palace
17 November, British Residency at Lucknow relieved
1858 24 January, king’s mother dies in Paris hotel 25 February, king’s brother dies in London
1–15 March, Lucknow recaptured by British troops. Begam Hazrat Mahal flees to Kathmandu
2 August, East India Company abolished by Government of India Act
1 November, Proclamation by Queen Victoria marks the end of the Uprising
1860 10 April, severe fire at Garden Reach 27 August, king sells the crown jewels returned to him by the British
1862 king mortgages Garden Reach house to meet his debts
1864 5 October great cyclone hits Calcutta, 60,000 people killed
1866 June, death of Safdar ‘Ali leaves king facing huge debts
1867 king employs Amir ‘Ali Khan as accountant and manager
9 August, king warned by governor general to ‘set his house in order’
1868/70 rebuilding programme at Garden Reach
1869 lavish spending by king on his menagerie
1871/3 second phase of rebuilding at Garden Reach
1874 death of heir apparent, Prince Hamid ‘Ali
1877 king complains to governor general about Mowbray Thomson, his new agent
1878 king requests 50 lakhs to meet his debts, but is refused 31 July, king divorces 27 wives in pension squabble
1879 6 January, two tigers escape from the king’s menagerie
10 April, management of king’s affairs passes to Bengal government
1 May, Commission set up to examine king’s affairs
1880 7 February, Commission recommend changes in king’s household
December, king ‘understood to be impotent’; further births will not be recognised
1882 king congratulates Queen Victoria after failed assassination attempt at Windsor railway station
1884 king sends letters of complaint to the governor general
1886 king’s agent suggests measures to be taken on Wajid ‘Ali Shah’s death
1887 25 April, king falls ill 20/21 June, Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee celebrations
15 September, looting at Garden Reach reported
21 September, king dies at Garden Reach and is buried in Sibtainabad Imambarah, Calcutta
1888 June, properties at Garden Reach are auctioned off to shipping companies
GLOSSARY
Indian names and titles
Indian proper names can be complicated, with prefixes and suffixes. Take, for example, the name of Wajid ‘Ali Shah’s younger brother, General Mirza Muhammad Jawad ‘Ali Sikandar Hashmat Bahadur. He was commander-in-chief of the Awadh Army, and thus a General. Mirza denotes a prince, because he was the son of a king. Muhammad Jawad ‘Ali were his proper names and Sikandar Hashmat his title, by which he was generally known. Bahadur means ‘brave’ and was an honorific title, sometimes used with khan, meaning ‘lord’, so a distinguished man could be awarded the suffix khan bahadur, but this is not part of a proper name. Europeans were sometimes given the title bahadur, and so was the East India Company itself. The names of noblewomen are equally complex. Many had the honorific title ‘nawab’, seemingly a male name, which means ‘deputy’ (see below), so one needs to look for the feminine qualifier, which will be begam, mahal o
r sahibah.
Working men’s names were often prefixed with their profession, so we get Maulawi Masih-ud-Din Khan Bahadur. Khan bahadur, as we have seen, is an honorific title. Maulawi (‘lordly’) is a learned man, often but not always, a cleric. Masih-ud-Din is the man’s name, stripped of its titles. Finally there are the honorific state titles, so Amin-ud-daulah (‘trusted one of the state’) is the state title of Imdad Husain Khan, one-time chief minister of Awadh. Indian children are also given affectionate pet names at birth, which are different from their proper names, and can, embarrassingly, often follow them into adulthood. We do not know what Wajid ‘Ali Shah’s pet name was; but as a poet he adopted the pen name of Akhtar, a celestial star or star of fortune.
amir a ruler, chief or noble
bakhshi paymaster
barahdari an open-sided pavilion, traditionally with twelve arched openings
bhang beverage prepared from leaves of the cannabis plant
bungalow from banglah, a single-storeyed dwelling or temple, typical of Bengal vernacular architecture; later a building of two or more storeys, with a flat roof
cantonment initially an area set aside for the use of the Company’s army, including parade ground and barracks. Later it included residential accommodation for officers’ families, with church, cemetery, library, ice-club, bandstand and gardens.
coolies from quli for ‘servant’, labourers or porters
Court of Directors the executive body of the East India Company in London, who liaised with the Board of Control, a government-appointed body overseeing the workings of the Company
daftar office
dak (sometimes dawk) the Indian postal system, that is, letters
diwan carried by runners, or by dedicated mail carriages a collection of poems, a portfolio or a finance minister/accountant
durbar/darbar a formal assembly of an Indian court of religion or royalty, also employed by British royalty in India to summon native rulers
firman authorised royal edict, validated with royal seals and autographs attached
ghat a landing stage onto a river, often with steps