Islam Khan Chisti
The tomb of Islam Khan, in the courtyard of the Jama Masjid, Fatehpur Sikri
12th Subahdar of Bengal
In office
10 June 1607 – 1613
MonarchJahangir
Preceded byJahangir Quli Khan
Succeeded byMuhtashim Khan
Personal details
Born
Shaikh Alauddin Chisti

c. 1570
Diedc. 1613
Bhawal, Bengal, Mughal Empire
Resting placeJama Masjid, Uttar Pradesh, India
ParentShaikh Badruddin Chisti
RelativesSalim Chishti (grandfather)
Mukarram Khan (son-in-law)
Qutubuddin Koka (cousin)
OccupationMughal General

Shaikh Alauddin Chisti (1570–1613; known as Islam Khan Chisti) was a Mughal general and the Subahdar of Bengal. He transferred the capital of Bengal from Rajmahal to Dhaka and renamed it Jahangirnagar. He was awarded the titular name of Islam Khan by Mughal emperor Jahangir.

Early life

Islam Khan was a playmate of Jahangir in childhood.[1] Khan and Jahangir were foster cousins; Khan's paternal aunt, whose father was Salim Chisti, had been the foster mother of Jahangir. Qutubuddin Koka was Khan's first cousin also. He was first appointed as the Subahdar of Bihar.[1]

Subahdar of Bengal

Islam Khan's tomb inside Salim Chisti Mazar

Islam Khan was appointed the Subahdar of Bengal in 1608. His major task was to subdue the rebellious Rajas, Bara-Bhuiyans, Zamindars and Afghan chiefs. He arrived Dhaka in mid-1610.

He fought with Musa Khan,[2] the leader of Bara-Bhuiyans and by the end of 1611 he was subdued.[1] Islam Khan also defeated Raja Pratapaditya of Jessore, Raja Ramchandra Basu of the Chandradwip Kingdom at the Conquest of Bakla and Raja Ananta Manikya of Bhulua.[1] Then he annexed the kingdoms of Koch Bihar, Koch Hajo and Kachhar. Thus he took total control over Bengal. He moved the capital of Bengal to Dhaka from Rajmahal. He renamed Dhaka to Jahangirnagar.

Death

After 5 years of ruling, Islam Khan died at Bhawal in 1613. He was buried in Fatehpur Sikri and laid by the side of his grandfather Shaikh Salim Chishti.

Shaikh Alauddin Chisti's tomb in Ajmer, known as the Dargah Sharif, has become a major pilgrimage site for people of all faiths.[3] Every year, thousands of devotees from all over the world visit the shrine to pay their respects to the great Sufi saint and seek his blessings.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Karim, Abdul (2012). "Islam Khan Chisti". In Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A. (eds.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
  2. ↑ Sen, Sailendra (2013). A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books. p. 165. ISBN 978-93-80607-34-4.
  3. ↑ "Ajmer dargah".

Further reading

  • Sir Jadunath Sarkar, History of Bengal, II (Dhaka, 1948)
  • Abdul Karim, History of Bengal, Mughal Period, I, (Rajshahi, 1992)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.