The British were very angry, they surrounded Delhi completely. The rebel soldiers fought with full force but were defeated. Troops of the East India Company captured the city in September. At that time the Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar was 82 years old.
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Mughal last king of the sultanate Bahadur Shah Zafar Spent the last time of his life in Burma. In that area where there was no sign of Mughal rule. But he did not realize this at all, because he was his son. Mirza Mughal And were shattered in the sorrow of losing their grandsons. The same son who became the last prince of Mughal rule who could never sit on the throne of the emperor.
By shooting that prince, the British punished Bahadur Shah Zafar for participating in the 1857 rebellion. Let’s know the whole story.
Mirza Mughal was the fifth son of the last Mughal emperor.
The real name of Mirza Mughal was Sultan Muhammad Zaheer Uddin. He was the fifth son of Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar. He was born in 1817. According to historians, his mother Sharif ul Mahal Sayyedini belonged to an elite Sayyid family. After the death of his half-brother Mirza Fakhru in 1856, Mirza Mughal became the eldest surviving son of Bahadur Shah Zafar. This was the period when the British rule had started on India. The East India Company had announced that Bahadur Shah Zafar would be the last Mughal ruler.
Mughal emperors jumped in the rebellion of 1857
After 1856, Mirza Mughal was the eldest among the princes. He would have been the successor of the emperor after Bahadur Shah Zafar, but by then the East India Company had announced that Bahadur Shah Zafar would be the last Mughal emperor. In such a situation, Mirza Mughal decided to oppose the British. On May 9, 1857, after revolting against the British officers in Meerut, the rebel soldiers left for Delhi and asked the Mughal emperor for support.
The date was May 12, when someone reached Zafar’s court after many years. Bahadur Shah Zafar gave this responsibility to Mirza Mughal and after assessing all the equations, Mirza talked about appointing his father in charge of the rebel soldiers. The rebel soldiers accepted this. Mirza Mughal was made the commander-in-chief of this rebel army.
… when 53 Englishmen were killed
On 16 May 1857, the rebel army created panic in Delhi. Soldiers, palace servants and others together killed 52 British. Mirza Mughal had a direct hand in this act, but he was inexperienced and had to face the consequences when a large army of rebels led by Bakht Khan reached Delhi from Bareilly. Bakht Khan was a former officer of the East India Company and had been an artillery officer in the company during the Afghan wars. Since the emperor was angry with the looting happening in Delhi, he appointed Bakht Khan as Commander-in-Chief in place of Mirza Mughal. Later Mughal Mirza was given the charge of administration in the city of Delhi.
British army surrounded Delhi
The British were very angry, they surrounded Delhi completely. The rebel soldiers fought with full force but were defeated. Troops of the East India Company captured the city in September. At that time the Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar was 82 years old. He came out of the Red Fort and reached Humayun’s tomb to take shelter. At that time Mirza Mughal and two other princes Mirza Khizr Sultan and a grandson Mirza Abu Bakr were with the emperor. The East India Company had become angry with the Mughal family for supporting the rebellion.
British kept the condition of surrender
Major Hodson, the commander of the British army, got information from the spy that where the emperor was hiding. Hodgson sent notice to surrender, but he refused to do so. The next day Hodgson went to the tomb with 100 Indian soldiers and ordered the emperor and the princes to surrender. At that time the emperor went to pray at the tomb. Hodgson sent two Indian allies for talks and was told that his life would be spared if he surrendered.
Broke the agreement, shot the princes
As part of the agreement, the Emperor came out and met Hodson. The emperor was given breakfast and refreshments and was sent to Delhi with a contingent of soldiers. Hodgson remained with the contingent that was escorting the princes. The people followed the princes. The contingent had just reached the gate of Delhi when Hodson asked Mirza Mughal and the other two princes to get down from the car. Took off the upper clothes of the three princes. Hodgson took out his gun and shot the three unarmed princes. The British soldiers kept their ornaments with them. The dead bodies of all the three princes were thrown in the bullock cart and all the three dead bodies were left at the nearby police station, so that seeing them, the crowd could panic and never rebel against the British again. The place where the three princes were shot is still called Khooni Gate.
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