Khusrau Mirza

Khusrau Mirza
Mirza[1]
Prince Khusrau with a falcon
Shahzada of the Mughal Empire
Born16 August 1587
Lahore, Mughal Empire
Died26 January 1622(1622-01-26) (aged 34)
Burhanpur, Mughal Empire
Burial
Tomb of Khusrau Mirza, Khusro Bagh, Allahabad
Wives
Issue
HouseTimurid
FatherJahangir
MotherShah Begum
ReligionSunni Islam

Khusrau Mirza (16 August 1587 – 26 January 1622) was the eldest son of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir and his first wife, Shah Begum.[2][3] The young prince displayed exceptional skills and wisdom and had the privilege to be groomed by the Mughal Emperor (Akbar) himself for the throne of the Mughal Empire. He turned out to be the most capable and qualified son of Jahangir but was befallen by an unfortunate destiny. Being Jahangir's eldest son, he was the heir-apparent to his father but Jahangir favoured his son Khurram Mirza as he held an animosity against Khusrau.[citation needed]

The charismatic prince was loved by the common people widely known for his valour, battlefield talent, and was free of all vices of the people of his age. It is noted that Akbar used to see himself in Khusrau as a brave, capable, and talented battlefield commander and a charismatic person.[4] Khusrau Mirza had powerful people backing him which included his father-in-law Mirza Aziz Koka, his maternal uncle Raja Man Singh, Queen Mother Mariam-uz-Zamani, Salima Sultan Begum and Jahangir's favourite sister Shakr-un-Nissa Begum, all of them together tried to secure a pardon for the charming prince and save him from death penalty.

  1. ^ Mughal title Mirza, the title of Mirza and not Khan or Padshah, which were the titles of the Mongol rulers.
  2. ^ The Grandees of the Empire Ain-i-Akbari, by Abul Fazl, , Mariam-uz-Zamani.
  3. ^ Fazl, Abul (1907). The Akbarnama. Vol. III. Translated by Beveridge, Henry. ASIATIC SOCIETY OF BENGAL. p. 1239.
  4. ^ Pinheiro, Father (1595). "Provincial report of Bengal, part 1". 65. Asiatic society of Bengal(1896): 68. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)