Ali Gauhar was born on 25 June 1728, he is historically known as Shah Alam II, the eighteenth Mughal Emperor, was the son of Alamgir II. Shah Alam II became the emperor of a crumbling Mughal empire, his power was so depleted during his reign that it led to a saying in Persian, Sultanat-e-Shah Alam, Az Dilli te Palam, meaning, 'The kingdom of Shah Alam is from Delhi to Palam', Palam being a suburb of Delhi.
Shah Alam faced many invasions mainly by the Emir of Afghanistan, Ahmed Shah Abdali, which led to the Third Battle of Panipat between the Maratha Empire, who maintained suzerainty over Mughal affairs in Delhi and the Afghans led by Abdali. In 1760, the invading forces of Abdali were driven away by the Marathas, led by Sadashivrao Bhau, who deposed Shah Jahan III, the puppet Mughal emperor of Imad-ul-Mulk, and installed Shah Alam II as the rightful emperor under the Maratha suzerainty.
Shah Alam II was considered the only and rightful emperor but he wasn't able to return to Delhi until 1772, under the protection of the Maratha general Mahadaji Shinde. He is known to have fought against the British East India Company during the Battle of Buxar.
Shah Alam II also authored his own Diwan of poems and was known by the pen-name Aftab. His poems were guided, compiled and collected by Mirza Fakhir Makin.
Escape From Delhi:
Prince Ali Gauhar, afterwards Emperor Shah Alam II, had been the heir apparent of his father Alamgir II. Prince Ali Gauhar's father had been appointed Mughal Emperor by Vizier Imad-ul-Mulk and Maratha Peshwa's brother Sadashivrao Bhau who had completely dominated and later killed Alamgir II and kept Prince Ali Gauhar under surveillance. After a daring escape from Delhi, Prince Ali Gauhar appeared in the eastern provinces in 1759, hoping to strengthen his position by gaining control over Bengal, Bihar and Odisha.
In the year 1760 after gaining control over Bengal, Bihar & parts of Odisha, the Mughal Crown Prince Ali Gauhar and his Mughal Army of 30,000 intended to overthrow Mir Jafar and Imad-ul-Mulk after they tried to capture or kill him by advancing towards Awadh and Patna in 1759. But the conflict soon involved the intervention of the assertive East India Company. The Mughals clearly intended to recapture their breakaway Eastern Subah's and were led by Prince Ali Gauhar, who was accompanied by Muhammad Quli Khan, Kadim Husein, Kamgar Khan, Hidayat Ali, Mir Afzal and Ghulam Husain Tabatabai. Their forces were reinforced by the forces of Shuja-ud-Daula, Najib-ud-Daula and Ahmad Shah Bangash. The Mughals were also joined by Jean Law and 200 Frenchmen and waged a campaign against the British during the Seven Years' War.
Prince Ali Gauhar successfully advanced as far as Patna, which he later besieged with a combined army of over 40,000 in order to capture or kill Ramnarian a sworn enemy of the Mughals. Mir Jafar was fraught in terror at the near demise of his cohort and sent his own son Miran to relieve Ramnarian and retake Patna. Mir Jafar also implored the aid of Robert Clive, but it was Major John Caillaud, who dispersed Prince Ali Gauhar's army in the year 1761 after four major battles including Battle of Patna, Battle of Sirpur, Battle of Birpur and Battle of Siwan.
After negotiations assuring peace Shah Alam II was escorted by the British to meet Mir Qasim the new Nawab of Bengal, who was nominated after the sudden death of Miran. Mir Qasim soon had the Mughal Emperor's investiture as Subedar of Bengal, Bihar and Odisha, and agreed to pay an annual revenue of 2.4 million dam. Shah Alam II then retreated to Allahabad was protected by the Shuja-ud-Daula, Nawab of Awadh from 1761 until 1764. Meanwhile Mir Qasim's relations with the British began to worsen he initiated reforms that withdrew many of the advantages enjoyed by the British East India Company, he also ousted Ramnarian a sworn enemy of the Mughal Empire and created Firelock manufacturing factories at Patna with the sole purpose of giving advantage to the newly reformed Mughal Army.
Angered by the these developments the East India Company sought his ouster. Mir Qasim was chased out of Bengal, Bihar and Odisha; he encouraged Shuja-ud-Daula the Nawab of Awadh and even the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II to engage the British.
Battle of Buxar:
The Battle of Buxar was fought on 22 October 1764 between the forces under the command of the British East India Company led by Hector Munro, and the combined armies of Mir Qasim, the Nawab of Bengal; Shuja-ud-Daula the Nawab of Awadh; the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II. The battle fought at Buxar, then within the territory of Bengal, a town located on the bank of the Ganges river, was a decisive victory for the British East India Company.
Diwani rights:
Soon after the Battle of Buxar, Shah Alam II, a sovereign who had just been defeated by the British, sought their protection by signing the Treaty of Allahabad in the year 1765. Shah Alam II granted the Diwani (right to collect revenue) of Bengal(which included Bihar and Odisha) to the British East India Company in return for an annual tribute of 2.6 million rupees. The company further secured for him the districts of Kora and Allahabad this allowed the British East India Company to directly tax more than 20 million people. Revenue was also collected by the deputy Nawab Muhammad Reza Khan.
Absence from Delhi:
Shah Alam II's absence from Delhi was due to the terms of the treaty he had signed with the British. But his son and heir apparent Prince Mirza Jawan Bakht and Najib-ul-Daula, represented the emperor for the next 12 years in Delhi.
Shah Alam II died of natural causes.
His grave lies, next to the dargah of 13th century, Sufi saint, Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki at Mehrauli, Delhi in a marble enclosure, along with that of Bahadur Shah I (also known as Shah Alam I), and Akbar Shah II.
Return To Delhi:
The emperor resided in the fort of Allahabad for six years, while Warren Hastings who had been appointed Governor of Bengal in 1774 discontinued the tribute of 2.6 million Rupees and also made over the districts of Allahabad and Kara to the Nawab of Awadh. These measures amounted to a repudiation of the company's vassalage as Diwan and the annexation of Bengal. Shah Alam II agreed to the consultation of the British, who advised him never to trust the Marathas.
In the year 1771 the Marathas under Mahadji Scindia returned to northern India and even captured Delhi. Shah Alam II, was escorted by Mahadji Scindia and left Allahabad in May 1771 and in January 1772 reached Delhi with a battle-ready force trained on the European model, under the command of his able and loyal commander, Mirza Najaf Khan, together they sought to restore some of the long lost glories of the Mughal Empire. Along with the Marathas they undertook to win the crown lands of Rohilkhand and defeated Zabita Khan, capturing the fort of Pathar garh with its treasure.
Immediately after recapturing the throne Shah Alam II, began to depend on Mirza Najaf Khan. Maratha armies withdrew from the north in 1773 after the murder of Narayan rao Peshwa at Pune.
In the year 1787, an embassy of Bijaya Singh from Jodhpur presented itself to the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II, bringing homage and the golden key of the Fortress of Ajmer. The envoy explained that he was instructed by his masters Bijaya Singh, Pratab Singh the Kachwaha Dhiraj of Jaipur to present the golden key as a token of their wish that the Imperial army led by Shah Alam II himself should march to take complete possession of the empire once again.
After the defeats at Muzzaffargarh and later at Ghanaur, Majad-ud-Daula was arrested by the orders of Shah Alam II, who then recalled Mirza Najaf Khan. This led to the former Grand Vizier's arrest for causing miscalculations and collaborating with the enemies of the emperor. The traitor was imprisoned and a sum of two million dam in stolen revenue recovered from him. It was Shah Alam II's poor judgement and vacillation that led to his own downfall. Mirza Najaf Khan had given the Mughal Empire breathing space by having a powerful, well managed army in its own right. In 1779 the newly reformed Mughal Army decisively defeated Zabita Khan and his Sikh allies the rebels lost 5,000 men including their leader and therefore did not return during the lifetime of Mirza Najaf Khan. Unfortunately upon the general's death, Shah Alam's bad judgement prevailed. The dead man's nephew, Mirza Shafi whose valour had been proven during various occasions, was not appointed commander in chief. Shah Alam II instead appointed worthless individuals whose loyalty and record were questionable at best. They were soon quarreling over petty matters. Even the corrupt and treasonous former Grand Vizier, Majad-ud-Daula was restored to his former office, he later colluded with the Sikhs and reduced the size of the Mughal Army from over 20,000 to only 5,000 thus bringing the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II at the mercy of his ruffian enemies.
Shah Alam II died of natural causes in 19 November 1806.
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