The third son of Jahangir, Shah Jahan participated in military campaigns against the Rajputs of Mewar and the Lodis of the Deccan.
47 Facts About Shah Jahan
2.
Shah Jahan commissioned many monuments, including the Red Fort, Shah Jahan Mosque and the Taj Mahal, where his favorite wife Mumtaz Mahal is entombed.
3.
In foreign affairs, Shah Jahan presided over the aggressive campaigns against the Deccan Sultanates, the conflicts with the Portuguese, and the wars with Safavids.
4.
Shah Jahan was laid to rest next to his wife in the Taj Mahal.
5.
Shah Jahan's reign is known for doing away with the liberal policies initiated by Akbar.
6.
Shah Jahan led the recitation of the Quran every morning and gave her husband many lessons on the substance of life and death and begged him not to grieve.
7.
Shah Jahan was at last ordered to return to his quarters by the senior women of his grandfather's household, namely Salima Sultan Begum and his grandmother Mariam-uz-Zamani as Akbar's health deteriorated.
8.
Shah Jahan was later ordered to bring Mariam-uz-Zamani, his grandmother and Jahangir's harem to him.
9.
Khurram was in constant conflict with his stepmother, Nur Jahan who favoured her son-in-law Shahryar Mirza for the succession to the Mughal throne over him.
10.
Shah Jahan tried to weaken his position in the Mughal court by sending him on campaigns far in Deccan while ensuring several favours were being bestowed on her son-in-law.
11.
Nur Shah Jahan was deprived of her imperial stature, privileges and economic grants and was put under house arrest on the orders of Khurram and led a quiet life till her death.
12.
However, Shah Jahan first married Princess Kandahari Begum, the daughter of a great-grandson of Shah Ismail I of Persia, with whom he had a daughter, his first child.
13.
Shah Jahan bore him fourteen children, out of whom seven survived into adulthood.
14.
Contemporary historians note that Princess Jahanara, aged 17, was so distressed by her mother's pain that she started distributing gems to the poor, hoping for divine intervention, and Shah Jahan was noted as being "paralysed by grief" and weeping fits.
15.
Shah Jahan's body was temporarily buried in a walled pleasure garden known as Zainabad, originally constructed by Shah Jahan's uncle Prince Daniyal along the Tapti River.
16.
Shah Jahan's death had a profound impact on Shah Jahan's personality and inspired the construction of the Taj Mahal, where she was later reburied.
17.
Shah Jahan served him with great diligence and love in order that her father should accede to her petitions.
18.
Shah Jahan rapidly became an important member of Jahangir's court and, together with her brother Asaf Khan, wielded considerable influence.
19.
Prince Khurram resented the influence Nur Jahan held over his father and was angered at having to play second fiddle to her favourite Shahryar, his half-brother and her son-in-law.
20.
Shah Jahan was first lodged in Delwada Ki Haveli and subsequently shifted to Jagmandir Palace on his request.
21.
Shah Jahan entered Dhaka and "all the elephants, horses, and 4,000,000 rupees in specie belonging to the Government were delivered to him".
22.
Shah Jahan's rebellion did not succeed in the end and he was forced to submit unconditionally after he was defeated near Allahabad.
23.
Shah Jahan obtained control of Prince Khurram's three sons who were under her charge.
24.
Shah Jahan, meaning "King of the World", alluding to his pride in his Timurid roots and his ambitions.
25.
Shah Jahan was Khalifat Panahi, but Zill-i Allahi, or the "Shadow of God on Earth".
26.
Shah Jahan's first act as ruler was to execute his chief rivals and imprison his stepmother Nur Jahan.
27.
Those put to death included his brother Shahryar; his nephews Dawar and Garshasp, sons of Shah Jahan's previously executed brother Prince Khusrau; and his cousins Tahmuras and Hoshang, sons of the late Prince Daniyal Mirza.
28.
In various forms, Shah Jahan appropriated his Timurid background and grafted it onto his imperial legacy.
29.
In 1632, Shah Jahan captured the fortress at Daulatabad, Maharashtra and imprisoned Husein Shah of the Nizam Shahi Kingdom of Ahmednagar.
30.
Shah Jahan appointed Aurangzeb as Viceroy of the Deccan, consisting of Khandesh, Berar, Telangana, and Daulatabad.
31.
Shah Jahan expanded the Mughal Empire to the west beyond the Khyber Pass to Ghazna and Kandahar.
32.
Shah Jahan sent an embassy to the Ottoman court in 1637.
33.
Shah Jahan gave orders in 1631 to Qasim Khan, the Mughal viceroy of Bengal, to drive out the Portuguese from their trading post at Port Hoogly.
34.
Shah Jahan was particularly outraged by the activities of Jesuits in that region, notably when they were accused of abducting peasants.
35.
Shah Jahan banned the Jesuits in preaching their religion and making converts from both Hindus and Muslims.
36.
Shah Jahan's treasurer was Sheikh Farid, who founded the city of Faridabad.
37.
In 1622, Shah Jahan sent Raja Vikramjit who was Governor of Gujarat to subdue the Kolis of Ahmedabad.
38.
Shah Jahan restored the disorder soon and defeated the Koli rebels.
39.
When Shah Jahan became ill in 1658, Dara Shikoh assumed the role of regent in his father's stead, which swiftly incurred the animosity of his brothers.
40.
Shah Jahan faced Dara's army near Agra and defeated him during the Battle of Samugarh.
41.
Princess Jahanara had planned a state funeral which was to include a procession with Shah Jahan's body carried by eminent nobles followed by the notable citizens of Agra and officials scattering coins for the poor and needy.
42.
Shah Jahan left behind a grand legacy of structures constructed during his reign.
43.
Shah Jahan was one of the greatest patrons of Mughal architecture.
44.
Shah Jahan's reign ushered in the golden age of Mughal architecture.
45.
Shah Jahan personally owned the royal treasury, and several precious stones such as the Kohinoor.
46.
Shah Jahan had the Peacock Throne, Takht e Taus, made to celebrate his rule.
47.
Shah Jahan placed profound verses of the Quran on his masterpieces of architecture.