The Chalukyas
After the decline of the Andhra Satavahanas, theTelangana region and the area surrounding it were ruled over by many kings in the subsequent years.
The next event in Telangana's history, is being ruled over by the Kalyani branch of Chalukya. They governed the Telangana region from 624 AD to 1075 AD. During this time, the regions surrounding Hyderabad were known as 'Golkonda'. The Kakatiyas were the vassals of the Chalukyas who looked after the Golkonda region. The Chalukya empire began to weaken in the eleventh century and dissolved into four parts. After dissolution the Golkonda region came under the control of the Kakatiyas, who made themselves the rulers. |
The Kakatiyas
The Kakatiyas, who were the feudal chieftains of the Kalyani Chalukyas earlier, took control of the Golkonda region in 1158 AD. The capital of the Kakatiyas was located in Warangal, 148 km Northeast Of Hyderabad. The reign of the Kakatiya dynasty is regarded as the golden period of the history of Telangana.
Prataprudrudu I During the reign of the Prataprudrudu I, the Kakatiyas declared themselves independent ( in 1163). From then onwards, Telugu was used as the language for documentation of official purposes replacing the official language Kannada used by the Chalukyas. Ganapati Deva Ganpati deva reigned between 1199- 1260. Under his reign, the Kakatiya empire was expanded and he included areas beyond the Telangana region. The Telugu speaking Godavari and Krishna delta also came under the Kakatiya empire. He fortified the capital, Oragallu (Now known as Warangal) by building a massive granite wall. Ganapati Deva also took many measures to strengthen the economy. He encouraged trade across countries. Rani Rudrama Devi Rani Rudrama Devi ruled between 1262- 1289 CE. She fortified the capital's defences by raising the wall constructed by Ganapti Deva and also added a second wall. She also fortified the Golkonda fort. Prataprudrudu II Prataprudrudu II was the grandson of Rudrama Devi. During his reign the Kakatiya dynasty came to an end. In 1310 Sultan Alauddin Khilji (The Delhi Sultanate) conquered the Kakatiyas and took the Kohinoor diamond. This war made the Kakatiyas vassals. After that the Kakatiya dynasty was completely destroyed. |
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The Bhamani Sultanate
The Bhamani sultanate was establsihed by Muhammad bin Tughlaq's governor, Ala-ud-dun Bahama who revolted against Tughlaq. During this time frame, the Golkonda regions were being ruled by the Musunuri Nayaks, who were subjugated by the Bahmani Sultanate and turned into vassals.
Sulatn Quli who was the governor of the Golkonda region, revolted against the Bhamani Sultanate and established the Qutub Shahi dynasty. |
The Qutub Shahi Dynasty
Quli Qutub ul-mulk ( Ruled from 1512- 1543)
As mentioned earlier, Quli Qutub ul-mulk served the Bhamani Sultante. He served the Bhamani king Muhammad Shah. In a strikingly similar manner, when the Bhamani Sultanate began to decline and weaken, Quli Qutub ul-milk declared himself the ruler of the Golkonda province- which was also called Muhammad nagar.
He took on the title ' Qutub Shah' and established the Qutub Shahi dynasty. He rebuilt the Golkonda fort (which was built by the Kakatiyas) and strengthened it. He was assassinated by his own son- Jamshed Quli Qutub in the year 1543. |
Jamshed Quli Qutub (Ruled from 1543- 1550)
Jamshed Quli Qutub was the second Qutub Shahi king. He assassinated his own dad- Quli Qutub Ul mulk; He blinded his elder brother and he forced his other brother, Ibrahim Quli, to flee to Vijaynagar- just to become king. Very little is known about his reign- but he didn't rule for long. He ruled for seven years and died in the year 1550 due to Tuberculosis.
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Subhan Quli Qutub Shah (Ruled in the year 1550)
The sudden death of Jamshed Quli Qutub resulted in the crowning of his 7 year old son as king- Subhan Quli Qutub. He ascended the throne after the death of his father. Saif Kahn (Also known as Ain Mulk) acted as his regent. But Subhan Quli Qutub's reign did not last for long- his uncle returned to claim the throne.
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Ibrahim Quli Qutub Shah Wali ( Ruled from 1550-1580)
Ibrahim had to flee from Jamshed Quli Qutub and went to Vijaynagar. He was honoured by Aliya Rama- the powerful patriarch. During his exile, he developed a keen interest in telugu. After the death of his brother, his nephew- Subhan Quli Qutub ascended the throne. Taking advantage Ibrahim Quli Qutub returned to claim the throne. During his reign he patronised Telugu poets such as Singanacharudu, Adakai Ganagadharudu and Kandruku Rudrakavi as well as Arabic and Persian poets. In Telugu literature Ibrahim Quli Qutub is known as 'Malki Bharma'. He strengthened the Golkonda fort during his reign. He also worked on the famous Hussain Sagar and Ibrahim Bagh. On the Makki Darwaza, and inscription describes Ibrahim Quli Qutub as 'The greatest of Soverigns'. He died in the year 1580 due to an illness. |
Muhammad Quli Qutub Shah ( Ruled from 1580- 1611)
The reign of Muhammad Quli Qutub Shah marks a turning point in Telangana's history. It was during his reign that the construction of the city Hyderabad began.
Muhammad Quli Qutub Shah was the third son of Ibrahim Quli Qutub Shah Wali. He ascended the throne at the age of 15 and ruled for 31 years. His reign was the highest point of the Qutub Shahi dynasty's rule. He was an accomplished poet in Persian, Telugu and Urdu. He married Bhagmati, a Hindu woman (after whom Hyderabad was earlier called Bhagyanagar) who changed her name to Hyder Mahal (after whom Hyderabad is named Hyderabad- which also means lion's city). In the year 1589 the construction of Hyderabad commenced, which was built in the banks of the Musi river (5 miles east of Golkonda) to overcome water shortage. He also built the iconic Charminar, which according to legend was built by Muhammad Quli Qutub Shah to thank the Almighty for quelling a plague. Slowly, the fame of Hyderabad rose as it acquired a reputation for its highly successful diamond trade. |
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Sultan Muhammad Qutub Shah (Ruled from 1611-1626)
Sulatan Muhammad Qutub Shah was the nephew and son - in - law of Muhammad Quli Qutub Shah. He married Muhammad Quli Qutub Shah's daughter Hayat Baksh in 1607.
During his reign, the history of the Qutub Shah dynasty was composed. |
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Abdulla Qutub Shah ( Ruled from 1626- 1672)
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Abdulla Qutub Shah was the son of Muhammad Qutub Shah. He was a polyglot and lover of poetry and music. He invited Kshetrayya- a legendary lyric writer to his court.
However, his reign was not as prosperous as that of his ancestors. There was sorrow and a lot of suffering. Aurangazeb, under his father Shah Jahan, conquered the Qutub Shahi Empire by surprise and imprisoned Abdullah Qutub Shah. Negotiations which were carried out were unsuccessful.
Before improsnment he had only one military success- he demolished the decaying Vijaynagar empire by destroying the last capital Vellore. He died in 1672, an unhappy man.
However, his reign was not as prosperous as that of his ancestors. There was sorrow and a lot of suffering. Aurangazeb, under his father Shah Jahan, conquered the Qutub Shahi Empire by surprise and imprisoned Abdullah Qutub Shah. Negotiations which were carried out were unsuccessful.
Before improsnment he had only one military success- he demolished the decaying Vijaynagar empire by destroying the last capital Vellore. He died in 1672, an unhappy man.
Abdullah Hassan Tana Shah (Ruled from 1672- 1686)
Abdullah Tana Shah was the last ruler of the Qutub Shahi dynasty. He was the son in law of Abdullah Qutub shah. He was nickname 'Tani Shah' because he was a benevolent ruler.
He was a person who did not discriminate against other based on their ethinicity or religion. This is proved by Akkanna and Madanna- who were ministers during his reign. He obtained a place in literature due to Kancharla Gopanna- who is known as Ramdas. He sent pearls to the Bhadrachalam Ram temple every Ramanavami - a tradition continued even today by the Telangana Government. Tana Shah's predecessor, had acknowledged the Mughal empire's suzerainty, and paid hefty taxes to Aurangazeb. But Tana Shah did not do this regularly- leading to a military campaign by Aurangazeb against Hyderabad. Qilchi Khan and Quaziudin Kahn Siddiqui led the campaign on behalf of Aurangazeb against Hyderabad for eight months. Aurangazeb won and Tana Shah had to hand over the Nur-ul-Ain diamond, Hope diamond, Witterback diamond and Rogent diamond to Aurangazeb-making him the richest monarch in the world. Tana Shah was imprisoned by Auranagzeb in the Daulatabad fort, Aurangabad for 12 years. He was not buried alongside his ancestors after his death, but was given a modest grave at Khudlabad in Aurangabad. With this the Qutub Shah dynasty came to an end. |
The Nizams of Hyderabad
Aurangzeb appointed Mir Qamar-ud-Din Siddiqui (just in case you are wondering, Qaziuddin Khan Siddiqui, the general who invaded Golkonda earlier is Mir Qamar's grandfather) as the viceroy of Hyderabad.
Asaf Jah I- Mir Qamarudin Khan
Mir Qamarudin took was given the title 'Nizam ul Mulk', which meant 'administrator of the realm'. He had considerable autonomy and was practically 'semi-independent'. When he went to the Deccan he confronted Mumbariz Khan, and defeated him.
And history repeated itself again! The Mughal empire began to crumble in the eighteenth century, taking advantage of this Nizam ul mulk declared himself independent. He declared himself 'Asaf Jah'. He extended the State of Hyderabad from Narmada to Trichinapally from Machillipatnam to Bijapur. He died in 1748 AD. |
Who Gets The Throne?
After the death of Asaf Jah I the competition for the throne began. First, there was a war between his son: Nasir Jung, who was supported by the British, and his grandson: Muzzafar Jung, who was supported by the French.
However, both of them got killed later on. Both were killed by the Nawabs of Kurnool and Cuddapah in 1750 AD (Nasir Jung) and 1751 AD (Muzafar Jung) respectively. The third son of Asaf Jah I, Salabat Jung became the ruler with the help of the French. Due to the seven years was between the British and French in Europe, the French lost power in India and subsequently in the Hyderabad empire. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Nizam Ali Khan the fourth son of Asaf Jah I removed Salabat Jung and declared himself king. With Nizam Ali Khan, the rat race for the throne ended. |
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Asaf Jah II- Nawab Mir Nizam Ali Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi Bahadur Asaf Jah II
Nizam Ali Khan became king at the age of 28. He ruled for 42 years, the longest tenure for any Nizam. His reign was very crucial for the state of Hyderabad- He consolidated the empire, shifted the capital of the Nizam state from Aurangabad to Hyderabad. He also protected his state from Tipu Sultan of Mysore and the Marathas. He also signed a mutual protection treaty with the British.
He died at the age of 69, in the year 1803 and was buried in Mecca Masjid. |
Asaf Jah III- Mir Akbar Ali Khan Sikander Jah
Asaf Jah IV- Nasir ad-Dawlah Mir Farqunda Ali Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi
Asaf Jah V- Afzal ad-Dawlah, Mir Tahniyath Ali Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi
Asaf Jah V was born on 11th October 1827. His reign saw many reforms during his reign.
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Asaf Jah VI- Mir Mahboob Ali Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi
Mir Mahbub Ali Khan, ascended the throne at the age of 2 years and 7 months. Salar Jung I acted as the regent and administrator until his death in 8th February 1883. He was famous for his lavish lifestyle, it was commonly known that he would never wear the same dress twice! A separate wing of the palace was his wardrobe which had a wide array of perfumes, walking sticks, coats etc. He was tutored in English. He was popular and respected among his people.
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Asaf Jah VII- Mir Osman Ali Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi Asaf
Mir Osman Ali Khan, ascended the throne on 29th August 1911 and his rule lasted up till 17th September 1948. He was called 'His Exalted Highness' and was a benevolent ruler who patronised education, science and development. He was the richest man in the world during his time and even now, he is the fifth richest in the world. During his 37 year rule, electricity, railroads and airways were introduced. Irrigation projects were also carried out.
Osman Ali Khan started his own bank- Hyderabad State Bank, presently the State bank of Hyderabad. Hyderbad had its own currency- Osmania Sikka, the only state to have so. He spent 11% of his budget on education. He made primary education compulsory for everyone and free for the poor. Major public buildings such as Osmania general hospital. Hyderabad high court, the State central library, Jubille hall, Hyderabad museum- now the State museum and the Nizmaia Observatory were establsihed during his reign. He made major donations to institutions across the world and the country. But Osman Ali Khan's role in Hyderabad's history does not end here. But the medieval era does. As we will see, Osman Ali Khan plays a very crucial role in the post independence era of India and Hyderabad's role in the Indian union. |