Mirza Ghiyas Beg

Ghiyas
An 18th-century portrait of Mirza Ghiyas Beg. Color and gold over gold-sprinkled black ground on paper.
Vakil of the Mughal Empire
(Grand Vizier)
In office
1611–1622
MonarchJahangir
Personal details
Bornc. 1544
Tehran, Safavid Empire
Diedc. 1622
Kangra, Mughal Empire
SpouseAsmat Begam
RelationsKhvajeh Mohammad-Sharif (father)
Mohammad-Taher Wasli (brother)
Ahmad Tehrani (uncle)
Amin Razi (cousin)
Jahangir (son-in-law)
ChildrenMuhammad-Sharif
Abu'l-Hasan Asaf Khan
Manija Begum[1]
Nur Jahan
Ibrahim Khan Fath-i-Jang
Khadija Begum
Military service
AllegianceMughal Empire
Years of service1577–1622
Emperor Jahangir and Mirza Ghiyas Beg

Mirza Ghiyas Beg (Persian: مرزا غياث بيگ), also known by his title of I'timad-ud-Daulah (Persian: اعتماد الدوله), was an important official in the Mughal Empire, whose children served as wives, mothers, and generals of the Mughal emperors.

Born in Tehran, Mirza Ghiyas Beg belonged to a family of poets and high officials. Nevertheless, his fortunes fell into disfavor after the death of his father in 1576. Along with his pregnant wife Ismat Begum, and his three children, they immigrated to India. There he was received by the Mughal emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605), and was enrolled into his service. During the latter's reign, Mirza Ghiyas Beg was appointed treasurer for the province of Kabul.

His fortunes further increased during the reign of Akbar's son and successor Jahangir (r. 1605-1627), who in 1611 married his daughter Nur Jahan and appointed Mirza Ghiyas Beg as his Prime minister. By 1615, Mirza Ghiyas Beg had risen to further prominence, when he was given the status of 6,000 men and was given a standard and drums, a prestige normally restricted for distinguished princes.

  1. ^ Koch, Ebba; Losty, JP. "The Riverside Mansions and Tombs of Agra: New Evidence from a Panoramic Scroll Recently Acquired by The British Library" (PDF).