2016-05-17 Tue

Bahadur Shah – II better known as Bahadur Shah Jafar was the last Mughal Emperor of India. His short reign turned out to be of a huge significant for a big turmoil it witnessed.

Bahadur Shah himself was not an ambitious rule. Though he received formal education in the military arts as well as in Urdu, Persian and Arabic like every other prince; his interest lied in poetry and music.

Born as a second son of the Mughal Emperor Akbar Shah II, Bahadur Shah was clearly not a choice to ascend the throne. However, circumstances ultimately led to his ascension to the throne after his father’s death. Even as an emperor he did not rule over a large empire; his empire barely extended beyond Delhi's Red Fort.

By that time India was on the verge of a rebellion. In May 1857, the Indian soldiers – joined by others - revolted against the East India Company. The uprising sprung from Meerut where sepoy revolted and marched towards Delhi. They declared Bahadur Shah Zafar as the emperor of India who also accepted their allegiance.

The revolt was suppressed. The sons of Bahadur Shah were executed. Bahadur Shah was himself exiled to Rangoon where he died in 1862 at the age of 87. This was the final chapter of the history of the Mughals.

In the memory of the last Mughal, India Post issued a stamp in 1975 on 200th Birth anniversary of this Mughal Emperor. The stamp of INR1.00 features a poem written by the Emperor.