Mumtaz Mahal

For other uses, see Mumtaz Mahal (disambiguation).

Mumtaz Mahal
Empress consort of the Mughal Empire
Portrait of Mumtaz Mahal on ivory, 17th‑century, held at the Lahore Museum in Lahore, Pakistan
Padshah Begum
Tenure19 January 1628 – 17 June 1631
PredecessorNur Jahan
SuccessorJahanara Begum
BornArjumand Banu Begum
27 April 1593
Agra, Mughal Empire
Died17 June 1631(1631-06-17) (aged 37)
Burhanpur, Mughal Empire
Burial
Taj Mahal, Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India
Spouse
​
(m. 1612)​
Issue
among others...
HouseTimurid (by marriage)
FatherAbu'l-Hasan Asaf Khan
MotherDiwanji Begum
ReligionShia Islam[1][2][3][4][5]

Mumtaz Mahal (Persian pronunciation: [mum.ˈtɑːz ma.ˈhal]; lit. 'The Exalted One of the Palace'; born Arjumand Banu Begum; 27 April 1593 – 17 June 1631)[6] was the empress consort of Mughal Empire from 1628 to 1631 as the chief consort of the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan.[7] The Taj Mahal in Agra, often cited as one of the Wonders of the World,[8] was commissioned by her husband to act as her tomb.[9]

Mumtaz Mahal was born Arjumand Banu Begum in Agra to a family of Persian nobility. She was the daughter of Abu'l-Hasan Asaf Khan, a wealthy Persian noble who held high office in the Mughal Empire, and the niece of Empress Nur Jahan, the chief wife of Emperor Jahangir and the power behind the emperor.[10] She was married at the age of 19 on 10 May 1612 or 16 June 1612 to Prince Khurram,[11][12] later known by his regnal name Shah Jahan, who conferred upon her the title "Mumtaz Mahal" lit. 'The Exalted One of the Palace'.[13] Although betrothed to Shah Jahan since 1607,[14] she ultimately became his second wife in 1612.[15][16] Mumtaz and her husband had 14 children, including Jahanara Begum (Shah Jahan's favorite daughter),[17] and the Crown prince Dara Shikoh, the heir-apparent,[18] anointed by his father, who temporarily succeeded him until deposed by Mumtaz Mahal's sixth child, Aurangzeb, who ultimately succeeded his father as the sixth Mughal emperor in 1658.[19]

Mumtaz Mahal died in 1631 in Burhanpur, Deccan (present-day Madhya Pradesh) during the birth of her 14th child, a daughter named Gauhar Ara Begum.[20] Shah Jahan had the Taj Mahal built as a tomb for her, which is considered to be a monument of undying love. As with other Mughal royal ladies, no contemporary likenesses of her are accepted, but imagined portraits were created from the 19th century onwards.

  1. ^ "The Cause of The Taj:: Mumtaz Mahal". Taj Mahal Official Website. Uttar Pradesh Tourism. Archived from the original on 19 June 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023. She was religiously a Shi'a Muslim.
  2. ^ Khan, Hamza. "Now, Shias assert claim to Taj Mahal". The Indian Express. Lucknow. Archived from the original on 3 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  3. ^ Srivastava, Piyush (27 November 2014). "Battle for Taj Mahal continues between Shia and Sunni sect leaders". India Today. Lucknow. Archived from the original on 3 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  4. ^ Shaikh, Ayesha (24 November 2014). "Who is the rightful claimant to Taj Mahal?". The Express Tribune. Archived from the original on 4 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  5. ^ DHNS (24 November 2014). "After Sunnis, now Shias too claim Taj Mahal". Deccan Herald. Archived from the original on 3 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  6. ^ Pickthall, Marmaduke William; Asad, Muhammad (1 January 1975). "Islamic Culture". 49. Islamic Culture Board: 196. Archived from the original on 30 August 2023. Retrieved 13 April 2017. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. ^ Lach, Donald F.; Kley, Edwin J. Van (1998). Asia in the Making of Europe, Volume III: A Century of Advance. Book 2, South Asia. University of Chicago Press. p. 689. ISBN 9780226466972.
  8. ^ Tillotson, Giles (2008). Taj Mahal. London: Profile Books. p. 11. ISBN 9781847652478.
  9. ^ Phillips, Rhonda; Roberts, Sherma, eds. (2013). Tourism, Planning, and Community Development Community Development – Current Issues Series. Routledge. p. 128. ISBN 9781135711887.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Thackeray was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Khan, Inayat (1990). The Shahjahannama. Translated by Fuller, A. R. Oxford Library Press. p. 6.
  12. ^ Emperor, Jahangir (1999). Jahangirnama. Translated by Thackston, W. M. Washington D. C; New York: Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; Oxford University Press. p. 137. ISBN 9780195127188.
  13. ^ Ahmed, Akbar S. (2009). Islam Today a Short Introduction to the Muslim World. London: I.B. Tauris & Co. p. 94. ISBN 9780857713803.
  14. ^ Tillotson 2012, p. 20.
  15. ^ Tillotson 2012, p. 3.
  16. ^ Tillotson 2012, p. 27.
  17. ^ Richards, J.F. (1995). Mughal empire (Transferred to digital print. ed.). Cambridge, Eng.: Cambridge University Press. p. 126. ISBN 9780521566032.
  18. ^ Balabanlilar, Lisa (2015). Imperial Identity in the Mughal Empire: Memory and Dynastic Politics in Early Modern South and Central Asia. I.B.Tauris. p. 131. ISBN 9780857732460.
  19. ^ Esposito, John L. (2004). The Oxford Dictionary of Islam. Oxford University Press. p. 29. ISBN 9780199757268. Archived from the original on 30 August 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  20. ^ Kumar, Anant (January–June 2014). "Monument of Love or Symbol of Maternal Death: The Story Behind the Taj Mahal". Case Reports in Women's Health. 1. Elsevier: 4–7. doi:10.1016/j.crwh.2014.07.001. Retrieved 21 December 2015.