Hayat Bakshi Begum
Hayat Bakshi Begum | |
---|---|
Died | 26 February 1667 |
Burial | |
Spouse | Sultan Muhammad Qutb Shah |
Issue | 3, including Abdullah Qutb Shah |
Father | Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah |
Hayat Bakshi Begum (died 26 February, 1667) was the royal consort of Sultan Muhammad Qutb Shah, the sixth ruler of the Golconda Sultanate in south India. When her son Abdullah Qutb Shah was made sultan at the age of fourteen in 1626, she acted as regent for the first few years of his reign, and continued to wield considerable influence in the state until her death.[1]
Biography
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Golconda%2C_tombe_qutb_shahi%2C_moschea_grande_02.jpg/220px-Golconda%2C_tombe_qutb_shahi%2C_moschea_grande_02.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Golconda%2C_tomba_di_Hayat_Bakshi_Begum%2C_05.jpg/220px-Golconda%2C_tomba_di_Hayat_Bakshi_Begum%2C_05.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Hayat_Bakshi_Begum%27s_Sarcophagus.jpg/220px-Hayat_Bakshi_Begum%27s_Sarcophagus.jpg)
Early life
She was the only daughter of Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah. Muhammad did not have any male heirs, and hence decided to wed his daughter to his nephew Sultan Muhammad Qutb Shah, and make him the heir to the throne.[2]
She married Sultan Muhammed Qutb Shah in 1607.[2] When Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah died on 16 January 1612, Sultan Muhammad Qutb Shah ascended the throne and Hayat Bakshi Begum became principal consort. Sultan Muhammad Qutb Shah often turned to Hayat for counsel.
Regent
In 1626, Sultan Muhammad died, and Hayat had her son Abdullah Qutb Shah crowned. The new sultan was fourteen years old, and Hayat ruled as regent for the first few years of his reign, and would wield considerable influence in the kingdom until her death.[1][3]
In 1656, she made a treaty with Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. According to the treaty, Abdullah's daughter would be married off to Mughal prince Muhammad Sultan and the Golconda Sultanate would be ceded to the Mughals after Abdullah's death.[4]
She died on 26 February 1667.[5] She was buried in a tomb within the Qutb Shahi tombs. Her tomb is the only woman's tomb which is equal in size to the tombs of the kings.[1]
Legacy
In 2019, IIT Hyderabad released a Virtual Reality film entitled Ma Saheba – The queen of Hyderabad, about Hayat Bakshi Begum.[6][7]
References
- ^ a b c Haig, Thomas Wolseley (1907). Historic Landmarks of the Deccan. Allahabad, Printed at the Pioneer Press. pp. 62–63.
- ^ a b Khan, Md. Abdul Wali (1961). Ramesan, N. (ed.). Qutub Shahi Coins in the Andhra Pradesh Government Museum. Government of Andhra Pradesh. p. 8.
- ^ Siddiqi, Abdul Majeed (1956). History of Golcunda. Literary Publications. pp. 135, 145, 390.
- ^ Nayeem, M. A. (2002). Studies in History of the Deccan: Medieval and Modern : Professor A.R. Kulkarni Felicitation Volume. Pragati Publications. pp. 333–335. ISBN 978-81-7307-075-4.
- ^ Bilgrami, Syed Ali Asgar (1927). Landmarks Of The Deccan. pp. 55, 169.
- ^ Somasekhar, M. "IIT-H brings out historical narrative of Begum Hayat Bakshi with virtual reality". @businessline. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Lasania, Yunus Y. (9 October 2019). "Now, learn about Hyderabad's Hayat Bakshi Begum through VR experience". mint. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
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