20 Facts About Muhammad Shah

Muhammad Shah was son of Khujista Akhtar, the fourth son of Bahadur Shah I After being chosen by the Sayyid Brothers of Barha, he ascended the throne at the young age of 16, under their strict supervision.

Muhammad Shah's reign was marked by rapid and irreversible decline of the Mughal Empire that was exacerbated by Nader Shah's invasion of India and the sacking of Delhi in 1739.

In 1721, Kasim Ali Khan who was an officer in Mughal Empire under Muhammad Shah employed against the Kolis of Kheda district to collect the fine but they refused to pay and there was a battle in Pethapur between Kolis and Mughal army under Kasim Ali Khan.

Muhammad Shah was sent to pursue the Mughal Grand vizier Syed Hassan Ali Khan Barha, who was defeated at the battle of Hasanpur by Muhammad Amin Turani, Khan-i Dauran, Sher Afkan Panipati, and Amin-ud-Din Sambhali.

Muhammad Shah advised Muhammad Shah to be "as cautious as Akbar and as brave as Aurangzeb".

Muhammad Shah lost the emperor's confidence when he appointed Hamid Khan, a relative to Saadullah Khan and his maternal uncle, to administer Gujarat after having sending him on the pretext of restoring order to the province.

Mubariz Khan was a former ally of the Barha Sayyids, who was appointed by Muhammad Shah to kill Asaf Jah I Taking advantage of Mubariz Khan's conventional weaknesses, Asaf Jah I defeated and eliminated his opponent during the Battle of Shakar Kheda.

The ears of the Muhammed Muhammad Shah were possessed by the Amir-ul-Umara, Khan-i Dauran.

Muhammad Shah appointed Qamar-ud-Din Khan as Grand Wazir to succeed Asaf Jah.

Muhammad Shah is known to have introduced religious institutions for education such as Maktabs.

Mohammad Muhammad Shah was a patron of the performing arts, almost at the cost of administrative priorities, paving the way for the disintegration of governance.

Bajirao and his Marathas fled southeast to Badshahpur, where he corresponded with the emperor Muhammad Shah, who ratified peace by agreeing the handover of Malwa to the Marathas.

The Afsharid forces soon encountered bands of Sikh rebels whom Nader Muhammad Shah predicted would clearly benefit after his invasion.

Muhammed Muhammad Shah commissioned a royal chhatri to pay tribute to Rao Bal Kishan.

Nader Muhammad Shah became furious, ordered to massacre the populace, and leaving at least 30,000 dead.

Muhammad Shah had to hand over his daughter Jahan Afruz Banu Begum as a bride for Nader Shah's youngest son.

Muhammad Shah was joined by Sadatullah Khan II and Anwaruddin Muhammed Khan together they recaptured Arcot and initiated the Siege of Trichinopoly, which lasted five months and forced the Marathas led by Murari Rao Ghorpade to evacuate the Carnatic.

However, due to four years of continuous wars, emperor Muhammad Shah was forced to cede Orissa to the Marathas.

Muhammad Shah took a second wife, Sahiba Mahal, and had a daughter Hazrat Begum, who was married to Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1757.

Muhammad Shah's tomb is located in an enclosure within the Nizamuddin Dargah complex.