Shah Jahan

File:Manohar. Emperor Jahangir Weighs Prince Khurram. Page from Tuzuk-i Jahangiri. 1610-1615, British Museum, London.jpg {{C.}}1610-1615]]

He was born on 5 January 1592 in Lahore, present-day Pakistan, as the ninth child and third son of Prince Salim (later known as 'Jahangir' upon his accession) by his wife, Jagat Gosain, a Rathore Rajput Princess from Marwar.{{cite web |title=Shah Jahan |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Shah-Jahan |website=Encyclopædia Britannica |date=17 October 2023}}{{harvnb|Findly|1993|p=125}} The name Khurram ({{langx|fa|{{nq|خرم}}|lit=joyous}}) was chosen for the young prince by his grandfather, Emperor Akbar, with whom the young prince shared a close relationship. Jahangir stated that Akbar was very fond of Khurram and had often told him, "There is no comparison between him and your other sons. I consider him my true son."{{Cite book |last=Jahangir |author-link=Jahangir |translator-last=Thackston |translator-first=W. M. |year=1999 |title=The Jahangirnama: Memoirs of Jahangir, Emperor of India |url=https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/30/mode/1up |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=30 |isbn=0-19-512718-8}}

When Khurram was born, Akbar, considering him to be auspicious, insisted the prince be raised in his household rather than Salim's and was thus entrusted to the care of Ruqaiya Sultan Begum. Ruqaiya assumed the primary responsibility for raising Khurram{{harvnb|Eraly|2000|p=299}} and is noted to have raised Khurram affectionately. Jahangir noted in his memoirs that Ruqaiya had loved his son, Khurram, "a thousand times more than if he had been her own [son]."{{Cite book |last=Jahangir |author-link=Jahangir |translator-last=Thackston |translator-first=W. M. |year=1999 |title=The Jahangirnama: Memoirs of Jahangir, Emperor of India |url=https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/46/mode/1up |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=46 |isbn=0-19-512718-8}}

However, after the death of his grandfather Akbar in 1605, he returned to the care of his mother, Jagat Gosain whom he cared for and loved immensely. Although separated from her at birth, he had become devoted to her and had her addressed as Hazrat in court chronicles.{{Cite book |last=Kamboh |first=Muhammad Saleh |title=Amal I Salih |quote=During her stay at Fatehpur, the mother of Shah Jahan, Hazrat Bilqis Makani, a resident of Agra became ill. The treatment did not work. Finally, on 4th Jamadi-ul-Awal, she died and according to her will, she was buried at Dehra Bagh, near Noor Manzil.}}{{Cite book |last1=Perston |first1=Diana |title=A Teardrop on the Cheek of Time: The Story of the Taj Mahal |last2=Perston |first2=Micheal |quote=Although removed from his mother at birth, Shah Jahan had become devoted to her.}} On the death of Jagat Gosain in Akbarabad on 8 April 1619, he is recorded to be inconsolable by Jahangir and mourned for 21 days. For these three weeks of the mourning period, he attended no public meetings and subsisted on simple vegetarian meals. His consort Mumtaz Mahal personally supervised the distribution of food to the poor during this period. She led the recitation of the Quran every morning, and gave her husband many lessons on the substance of life and death, and begged him not to grieve.{{Cite book |last=Lal |first=Muni |title=Shah Jahan |publisher=Vikas Publishing House |year=1986 |pages=52}}

As a child, Khurram received a broad education befitting his status as a Mughal prince, which included martial training and exposure to a wide variety of cultural arts, such as poetry and music, most of which were inculcated, according to court chroniclers, by Jahangir. According to his chronicler Qazvini, prince Khurram was only familiar with a few Turki words and showed little interest in the study of the language as a child.{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.281500/page/n43/mode/2up?q=turki |title=History Of Shahjahan Of Dihli 1932 |author=Banarsi Prasad Saksena |publisher=Indian Press Limited |date=1932}} Khurram was attracted to Hindi literature since his childhood, and his Hindi letters were mentioned in his father's biography, Tuzuk-e-Jahangiri.{{ cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=AbpjAAAAMAAJ&q=shah+jahan+hindi+literature |title= Influence of Islam on Hindi Literature |author= Saiyada Asad Alī |year= 2000 |publisher= Idarah-i-Adabiyat-Delli |page= 48 }} In 1605, as Akbar lay on his deathbed, young Khurram remained by his bedside and refused to move even after his mother tried to retrieve him. Given the politically uncertain times immediately preceding Akbar's death, Khurram was in a fair amount of physical danger from political opponents of his father.{{harvnb|Prasad|1930|p=189}} "During his grandfather's last illness, he [Khurram] refused to leave the bedside surrounded by his enemies. Neither the advice of his father nor the entreaties of his mother could prevail on him to prefer the safety of his life to his last duty to the father." He was at last ordered to return to his quarters by the senior women of his grandfather's household, namely Salima Sultan Begum and his grandmother Mariam-uz-Zamani as Akbar's health deteriorated.{{harvnb|Nicoll|2009|p=49}}

In 1605, his father succeeded to the throne, after crushing a rebellion by Prince Khusrau. Khurram left Ruqaiya's care and returned to his mother's care.{{cite book|last=Faruqui|first=Munis D.|title=The Princes of the Mughal Empire, 1504–1719|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2012|isbn=978-1-107-02217-1|page=71}} As the third son, Khurram did not challenge the two major power blocs of the time, his father's and his half-brother's; thus, he enjoyed the benefits of imperial protection and luxury while being allowed to continue with his education and training. This relatively quiet and stable period of his life allowed Khurram to build his own support base in the Mughal court, which would be useful later on in his life.{{harvnb|Nicoll|2009|p=56}}

Jahangir assigned Khurram to guard the palace and treasury while he went to pursue Khusrau. He was later ordered to bring Mariam-uz-Zamani, his grandmother and Jahangir's harem to him.{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/60 61]}}

During Khusrau's second rebellion, Khurram's informants informed him that Fatehullah, Nuruddin and Muhammad Sharif gathered around 500 men at Khusrau's instigation and lay await for the Emperor. Khurram relayed this information to Jahangir who praised him.{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/84 84]}}

Jahangir had Khurram weighed against gold, silver and other wealth at his mansion at Orta.{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/80 81]}}

File:Jahangir and Prince Khurram Entertained by Nur Jahan.jpg with prince Khurram at Aram Bagh {{C.}} 1640-1650]]

Due to the long period of tensions between his father and his half-brother, Khusrau Mirza, Khurram began to drift closer to his father, and, over time, started to be considered the de facto heir-apparent by court chroniclers. This status was given official sanction when Jahangir granted the sarkar of Hissar-e-Feroza, which had traditionally been the fief of the heir-apparent, to Khurram in 1608.{{harvnb|Prasad|1930|p=190}} "Khusrau conspired, rebelled, and lost the favour of his father ... Of all the sons of Jahangir, Khurram was marked out to be the heir-apparent and successor ... In 1608 the assignment of the sarkar of Hissar Firoz to him proclaimed to the world that he was intended for the throne." After her marriage to Jahangir in the year 1611, Nur Jahan gradually became an active participant in all decisions made by Jahangir and gained extreme powers in administration, so much so that it was obvious to everyone both inside and outside that most of his decisions were actually hers. Slowly, while Jahangir became more indulgent in wine and opium, she was considered to be the actual power behind the throne. Her near and dear relatives acquired important positions in the Mughal court, termed the Nur Jahan junta by historians. Khurram was in constant conflict with his stepmother, Nur Jahan who favoured her son-in-law Shahryar Mirza for the succession to the Mughal throne over him. In the last years of Jahangir's life, Nur Jahan was in full power, and the emperor had left all the burden of governance on her. She tried to weaken Khurram's position in the Mughal court by sending him on campaigns far in Deccan, while ensuring several favours were being bestowed on her son-in-law. Khurram, after sensing the danger posed to his status as heir-apparent, rebelled against his father in 1622 but did not succeed and eventually lost the favour of his father. Several years before Jahangir's death in 1627, coins began to be struck containing Nur Jahan's name along with Jahangir's name; In fact, there were two prerogatives of sovereignty for the legitimacy of a Muslim monarchy (reading the Khutbah and the other being the right to mint coins). After the death of Jahangir in 1627, a struggle developed between Khurram and his half-brother, Shahryar Mirza for the succession to the Mughal throne. Khurram won the battle of succession and became the fifth Mughal Emperor. Nur Jahan was subsequently deprived of her imperial stature, authority, privileges, honors and economic grants and was put under house arrest on the orders of Khurram and led a quiet and comfortable life till her death.

{{ahnentafel|1. Shah Jahan I|2. Jahangir|3. Jagat Gosain|4. Akbar I|5. Mariam-uz-Zamani|6. Udai Singh I|7. Rajavat Kachawahi Manrang Devi|8. Humayun|9. Hamida Banu Begum|10. Bharmal|11. Champavati Solanki|12. Maldeo Rathore|13. Swarup Devi|collapsed=yes|align=center|boxstyle_1=background-color: #fcc;|boxstyle_2=background-color: #fb9;|boxstyle_3=background-color: #ffc;|boxstyle_4=background-color: #bfc;|14. Askaran|15. Indravati }}

{{More citations needed|section|date=February 2024}}

In 1607, Khurram became engaged to Arjumand Banu Begum (1593–1631), who is also known as Mumtaz Mahal (Persian {{Literal translation| The Exalted One of the Palace}}). They were about 14 and 15 when they were engaged, and five years later, they married. The young girl belonged to an illustrious Persian noble family that included Abu'l-Hasan Asaf Khan, who had been serving Mughal emperors since the reign of Akbar. The family's patriarch was Mirza Ghiyas Beg, who was also known by his title I'timād-ud-Daulah or "Pillar of the State". He had been Jahangir's finance minister, and his son, Asaf Khan – Arjumand Banu's father – played an important role in the Mughal court, eventually serving as Chief Minister. Her aunt Mehr-un-Nissa later became the Empress Nur Jahan, chief consort of Emperor Jahangir.{{harvnb|Nicoll|2009|p=66}}

The prince would have to wait five years before he was married in 1612 (1021 AH), on a date selected by the court astrologers as most conducive to ensuring a happy marriage. This was an unusually long engagement for the time. However, Shah Jahan first married a Persian Princess (name not known) entitled Kandahari Begum, the daughter of a great-grandson of the great Shah Ismail I of Persia, with whom he had a daughter, his first child.{{harvnb|Eraly|2000|p=300}}

File:Emperor Shah Jahan, 1628.jpg, Shah Shuja and Aurangzeb, and their maternal grandfather, Asaf Khan IV]]

In 1612, aged 20, Khurram married Mumtaz Mahal, on a date chosen by court astrologers. The marriage was a happy one, and Khurram remained devoted to her. They had fourteen children, out of whom seven survived into adulthood.

Though there was genuine love between the two, Arjumand Banu Begum was a politically astute woman and served as a crucial advisor and confidante to her husband.{{harvnb|Eraly|2000|p=379}} Later on, as empress, Mumtaz Mahal wielded immense power, such as being consulted by her husband in state matters, attending the council (shura or diwan), and being responsible for the imperial seal, which allowed her to review official documents in their final draft. Shah Jahan also gave her the right to issue her own orders (hukums) and make appointments to him. {{citation needed|date=May 2016}}

File:TajMahalbyAmalMongia.jpg, the burial place of Shah Jahan and his wife Mumtaz Mahal]]

Mumtaz Mahal died at the young age of 38 (7 June 1631), upon giving birth to Princess Gauhar Ara Begum in the city of Burhanpur, Deccan, of a postpartum haemorrhage, which caused considerable blood-loss after painful labor of thirty hours.{{cite journal |last=Kumar |first=Anant |date=January–June 2014 |title=Monument of Love or Symbol of Maternal Death: The Story Behind the Taj Mahal |url=http://www.casereportswomenshealth.com/article/S2214-9112(14)00003-4/pdf |journal=Case Reports in Women's Health |volume=1 |pages=4–7 |doi=10.1016/j.crwh.2014.07.001 |access-date=21 December 2015 |doi-access=free}} Contemporary historians note that Princess Jahanara, aged 17, was so distressed by her mother's pain that she started distributing gems to the poor, hoping for divine intervention, and Shah Jahan was noted as being "paralysed by grief" and weeping fits.{{harvnb|Nicoll|2009|p=177}} Her body was temporarily buried in a walled pleasure garden known as Zainabad, originally constructed by Shah Jahan's uncle Prince Daniyal along the Tapti River. Her death had a profound impact on Shah Jahan's personality and inspired the construction of the marvelous Taj Mahal, where she was later reburied.{{Cite web |title=The Taj Mahal Story |url=https://www.tajmahal.gov.in/taj-story.aspx |access-date=18 March 2024 |website=tajmahal.gov.in}}

Khurram had taken other wives, among whom were Kandahari Begum (m. 28 October 1610) and another Persian Princess Izz un-Nisa Begum (m. 2 September 1617), the daughters of Prince Muzaffar Husain Mirza Safawi and Shahnawaz Khan, son of Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana, respectively. But according to court chroniclers, these marriages were more out of political consideration, and they enjoyed only the status of being royal wives.{{citation needed|date=March 2015}}

Khurram is also recorded to have married his maternal half-cousin, a Rathore Rajput Princess Kunwari Leelavati Deiji, daughter of Kunwar Sakat/Sagat or Shakti Singh, son of Mota Raja Udai Singh and half brother of Raja Sur Singh of Marwar. The marriage took place at Jodhpur when Khurram was in rebellion against his father, emperor Jahangir.{{Cite book |title=The Mertiyo Rathors of Merta, Rajasthan |volume=II |pages=45}}

After Shah Jahan fell ill in 1658, his daughter Jahanara Begum had a significant influence in the Mughal administration.{{Cite journal |last=Koul |first=Ashish |date=January 2022 |title=Whom can a Muslim Woman Represent? Begum Jahanara Shah Nawaz and the politics of party building in late colonial India |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/modern-asian-studies/article/abs/whom-can-a-muslim-woman-represent-begum-jahanara-shah-nawaz-and-the-politics-of-party-building-in-late-colonial-india/BDAD313CDA4F70D60441BC47BCB6ADAC |journal=Modern Asian Studies |language=en |volume=56 |issue=1 |pages=96–141 |doi=10.1017/S0026749X20000578 |s2cid=233690931 |issn=0026-749X|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite journal |last=Bano |first=Shadab |year=2013 |title=Piety and Pricess Jahanara's Role in the Public Domain |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44158822 |journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume=74 |pages=245–250 |jstor=44158822 |issn=2249-1937}} As a result, several accusations of an incestual relationship between Shah Jahan and Jahanara were propagated.{{Citation |last=Banerjee |first=Rita |title=Women in India: The "Sati" and the Harem |date=7 July 2021 |work=India in Early Modern English Travel Writings |pages=173–208 |url=https://brill.com/display/book/9789004448261/BP000016.xml |access-date=12 February 2024 |publisher=Brill |language=en |isbn=978-90-04-44826-1}} Such accusations have been dismissed by modern historians as gossip, as no witness of an incident has been mentioned.

Historian K. S. Lal also dismisses such claims as rumors propagated by courtiers and mullahs. He cites Aurangzeb's confining of Jahanara in the Agra Fort with the Royal prisoner and the talk of the low people magnifying a rumor.{{Citation |title=The Charge of Incest |work=The Mughal Harem |pages=93–94 |year=1988 |editor-last1=Lal |editor-first1=Kishori Saran |url=https://archive.org/details/the-mughal-harem-by-kishori-saran-lal-z-lib.org/page/93/mode/2up |publisher=Adithya Prakashan}}

Several contemporary travelers have mentioned such accessions. Francois Bernier, a French physician, mentions rumors of an incestuous relationship being propagated in the Mughal Court.{{Citation |title=Begum Saheb |work=Travels in Mogul India |page=11 |year=1916 |editor-last1=Constable |editor-first1=Archibald |url=https://archive.org/details/travelsinmogulem00bernuoft/page/11/mode/1up?view=theater |publisher=Oxford University Press}} However, Bernier did not mention witnessing such a relationship.{{Citation |last=Manzar |first=Nishat |title=Looking Through European Eyes: Mughal State and Religious Freedom as Gleaned from The European Travellers' Accounts of the Seventeenth Century |date=31 March 2023 |work=Islam in India |pages=121–132 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003400202-9 |access-date=12 February 2024 |place=London |publisher=Routledge |doi=10.4324/9781003400202-9 |isbn=978-1-003-40020-2|url-access=subscription }} Niccolao Manucci, a Venetian traveler, dismisses such accusations by Bernier as gossip and "The talk of the Low People".{{citation |title=Begum Saheb |work=Storia Do Mogor Vol 1 |pages=216–217 |year=1907 |editor-last1=Irvine |editor-first1=William |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.529961/page/n335/mode/1up?view=theater |publisher=Oxford University press}}

File:Shirt of Mail and Plate MET DP219616.jpg

Prince Khurram showed extraordinary military talent. The first occasion for Khurram to test his military prowess was during the Mughal campaign against the Rajput state of Mewar, which had been a hostile force to the Mughals since Akbar's reign.{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/154 154]}}

After a year of a harsh war of attrition, Rana Amar Singh I surrendered conditionally to the Mughal forces and became a vassal state of the Mughal Empire as a result of Mughal expedition of Mewar.{{harvnb|Prasad|1930|p=239}} "Constant skirmishes were thinning the Rajput ranks ... [Amar Singh] offered to recognize Mughal supremacy ... Jahangir gladly and unreservedly accepted the terms." In 1615, Khurram presented Kunwar Karan Singh, Amar Singh's heir, to Jahangir. Khurram was sent to pay homage to his mother and stepmothers and was later awarded by Jahangir.{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/116 116]}} The same year, his mansab was increased from 12000/6000 to 15000/7000, to equal that of his brother Parvez's and was further increased to 20000/10000 in 1616.{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/175 175]}}{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/192 192]}}

File:The Submission of Maharana Amar Singh of Mewar to Prince Khurram (Shah Jahan).jpg of Mewar to Prince Khurram, Tuzk-e-Jahangiri.]]

In 1616, on Khurram's departure to Deccan, Jahangir awarded him the title Shah Sultan Khurram.{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/201 201]}}

In 1617, Khurram was directed to deal with the Lodis in the Deccan to secure the Empire's southern borders and to restore imperial control over the region. On his return in 1617, after successes in these campaigns, Khurram performed koronush before Jahangir, who called him to jharoka and rose from his seat to embrace him. Jahangir also granted him the title of Shah Jahan (Persian: "King of the World"),{{cite book |last1=Middleton |first1=John |title=World Monarchies and Dynasties |publisher=Routledge |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-317-45158-7 |page=451 |language=en}} and raised his military rank to 30000/20000 and allowed him a special throne in his Durbar, an unprecedented honor for a prince.{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/228 228-29]}} Edward S. Holden writes, "He was flattered by some, envied by others, loved by none."{{cite book |last=Holden |first=Edward S. |year=2004 |orig-year=First published 1895 |title=Mughal Emperors of Hindustan (1398–1707) |location=New Delhi, India |publisher=Asian Educational Service |pages=257 |isbn=978-81-206-1883-1}}

In 1618, Shah Jahan was given the first copy of Tuzk-e-Jahangiri by his father, who considered him "the first of all my sons in everything."{{Cite book |last=Emperor |first=Jahangir |title=The Jahangirnama |publisher=Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution and Oxford University Press |year=1999 |isbn=9780195127188 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/jahangirnamamemo00jaha/page/271 271]}}

{{Clear|left}}

File:Payag, Shah Jahan on Horseback, Folio from the Shah Jahan Album ca. 1630, Metmuseum.jpg

Inheritance in the Mughal Empire was not always determined through primogeniture, but also by princely sons competing to achieve military successes and consolidating their power at court. This often led to rebellions and wars of succession. As a result, a complex political climate surrounded the Mughal court in Shah Jahan's formative years. In 1611 his father married Nur Jahan, the widowed daughter of a Persian noble. She rapidly became an important member of Jahangir's court and, together with her brother Asaf Khan, wielded considerable influence. Arjumand was Asaf Khan's daughter, and her marriage to Khurram consolidated Nur Jahan and Asaf Khan's positions in court.{{citation needed|date=May 2025}}

Court intrigues, however, including Nur Jahan's decision to have her daughter from her first marriage wed Prince Khurram's youngest brother Shahzada Shahryar, and her support for his claim to the throne led to much internal division. Prince Khurram resented the influence Nur Jahan held over his father and was angered at having to play second fiddle to her favourite Shahryar, his half-brother and her son-in-law. When the Persians besieged Kandahar, Nur Jahan was at the helm of the affairs. She ordered Prince Khurram to march to Kandahar, but he refused. As a result of Prince Khurram's refusal to obey Nur Jahan's orders, Kandahar was lost to the Persians after a forty-five-day siege. Prince Khurram feared that in his absence, Nur Jahan would attempt to poison his father against him and convince Jahangir to name Shahryar the heir in his place. This fear brought Prince Khurram to rebel against his father rather than fight against the Persians.{{citation needed|date=May 2025}}

In 1622, Prince Khurram raised an army and marched against his father.{{cite book |author=Satish Chandra |title=History of Medieval India (800–1700) |url=https://archive.org/details/history-of-medieval-india-800-1700_202303/page/279/mode/1up |year=2007 |publisher=Orient BlackSwan |isbn=978-81-250-3226-7 |page=279}} He was defeated at Bilochpur in March 1623. Later he took refuge in Udaipur Mewar with Maharana Karan Singh II. He was first lodged in Delwada Ki Haveli and subsequently shifted to Jagmandir Palace on his request. Prince Khurram exchanged his turban with the Maharana and that turban is still preserved in Pratap Museum, Udaipur (R V Somani 1976). It is believed that the mosaic work of Jagmandir inspired him to use mosaic work in the Taj Mahal of Agra. In November 1623, he found safe asylum in Bengal Subah after he was driven from Agra and the Deccan. He advanced through Midnapur and Burdwan. At Akbarnagar, he defeated and killed the then Subahdar of Bengal, Ibrahim Khan Fath-i-Jang, on 20 April 1624.{{cite Banglapedia |article=Ibrahim Khan Fath-i-Jang |author=Muazzam Hussain Khan}} He entered Dhaka and "all the elephants, horses, and 4,000,000 rupees in specie belonging to the Government were delivered to him". After a short stay he then moved to Patna.{{Cite book |last=Hossain |first=Syud |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5OJAAQAAMAAJ |title=Echoes from Old Dacca |date=1909 |publisher=Edinburgh Press |language=en |page=6}} His rebellion did not succeed in the end, and he was forced to submit unconditionally after he was defeated near Allahabad. Although the prince was forgiven for his errors in 1626, tensions between Nur Jahan and her stepson continued to grow beneath the surface.

Upon the death of Jahangir in 1627, the wazir Asaf Khan, who had long been a quiet partisan of Prince Khurram, acted with unexpected forcefulness and determination to forestall his sister's plans to place Prince Shahryar on the throne. He put Nur Jahan in close confinement. He obtained control of Prince Khurram's three sons, who were under her charge. Asaf Khan also managed palace intrigues to ensure Prince Khurram's succession to the throne.{{harvnb|Richards|1993|p=117}} Prince Khurram succeeded to the Mughal throne as Abu ud-Muzaffar Shihab ud-Din Mohammad Sahib ud-Quiran ud-Thani Shah Jahan Padshah Ghazi (Urdu: شهاب الدین محمد خرم), or Shah Jahan.{{harvnb|Nicoll|2009|p=157}}

His regnal name is divided into various parts. Shihab ud-Din, meaning "Star of the Faith", Sahib al-Quiran ud-Thani, meaning "Second Lord of the Happy Conjunction of Jupiter and Venus". Shah Jahan, meaning "King of the World", alluding to his pride in his Timurid roots and his ambitions. More epithets showed his secular and religious duties. He was also titled Hazrat Shahenshah ("His Imperial Majesty"), Hazrat-i-Khilafat-Panahi ("His Majesty the Refuge of the Caliphate"), Hazrat Zill-i-Ilahi ("His Majesty the Shadow of God").{{Cite book |last=ʻInāyat Khān |first=approximately 1627-1670 or 1671 |url=http://archive.org/details/shahjahannamaofi0000inay |title=The Shah Jahan nama of 'Inayat Khan : an abridged history of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, compiled by his royal librarian : the nineteenth-century manuscript translation of A.R. Fuller (British Library, add. 30,777) |date=1990 |publisher=Delhi ; New York : Oxford University Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-19-562489-2}}

His first act as ruler was to execute his chief rivals and imprison his stepmother, Nur Jahan. Upon Shah Jahan's orders, several executions took place on 23 January 1628. Those put to death included his brother Shahryar; his nephews Dawar and Garshasp, sons of Shah Jahan's previously executed brother Prince Khusrau; and his cousins Tahmuras and Hoshang, sons of the late Prince Daniyal Mirza.{{cite book |last=Elliot |first=H. M. |author-link=Henry Miers Elliot |year=1867–1877 |title=The History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians |volume=VI |url=http://persian.packhum.org/persian/main?url=pf%3Ffile%3D80201016%26ct%3D165%26rqs%3D115%26rqs%3D116%26rqs%3D225%26rqs%3D226%26rqs%3D232%26rqs%3D249%26rqs%3D250%26rqs%3D351%26rqs%3D352%26rqs%3D456%26rqs%3D457%26rqs%3D640%26rqs%3D641%26rqs%3D681%26rqs%3D682 |location=London |publisher=Trübner and Co.}}{{harvnb|Findly|1993|pp=275–282, 284}}

This allowed Shah Jahan to rule his empire without contention.

File:Darbar of Shah Jahan, Page from the Windsor Padshahnama, ca. 1657, The Royal Library, Windsor Castle.jpg, from the Windsor Padshahnama, c. 1657]]

File:Cha Jehan the Great Mogul.jpg

File:Red Fort - The marble jharokha.jpg Shah Jahan of India, Red Fort, Delhi]]

Evidence from the reign of Shah Jahan states that in 1648 the army consisted of 911,400 infantry, musketeers, and artillery men, and 185,000 Sowars commanded by princes and nobles.

His cultural and political initial steps have been described as a type of the Timurid Renaissance, in which he built historical and political bonds with his Timurid heritage, mainly via his numerous unsuccessful military campaigns on his ancestral region of Balkh. In various forms, Shah Jahan appropriated his Timurid background and grafted it onto his imperial legacy.{{cite book |year=2012 |editor1-last=Ohlander |editor1-first=Erik |editor2-last=Curry |editor2-first=John |title=Sufism and Society: Arrangements of the Mystical in the Muslim World, 1200–1800 |publisher=Routledge |page=141 |isbn=9781138789357}}

During his reign, the Marwari horse was introduced, becoming Shah Jahan's favorite, and various Mughal cannons were mass-produced in the Jaigarh Fort. Under his rule, the empire became a huge military machine, and the nobles and their contingents multiplied almost fourfold, as did the demands for more revenue from their citizens. But due to his measures in the financial and commercial fields, it was a period of general stability{{snd}}the administration was centralized and court affairs systematized.

The Mughal Empire continued to expand moderately during his reign, as his sons commanded large armies on different fronts. India at the time was a rich center of the arts, crafts and architecture, and some of the best of the architects, artisans, craftsmen, painters and writers of the world resided in Shah Jahan's empire. According to economist Angus Maddison, Mughal-era India's share of global gross domestic product (GDP) grew from 22.7% in 1600 to 24.4% in 1700, surpassing China to become the world's largest.{{cite book |last=Maddison |first=Angus |author-link=Angus Maddison |year=2006 |title=The World Economy Volumes 1–2 |publisher=Development Center of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development |page=639 |doi=10.1787/456125276116 |isbn=9264022619}}{{cite magazine |last=Matthews |first=Chris |date=5 October 2014 |title=The 5 most dominant economic empires of all time |url=http://fortune.com/2014/10/05/most-powerful-economic-empires-of-all-time/ |magazine=Fortune |access-date=18 August 2016}} E. Dewick and Murray Titus, quoting Badshahnama, write that 76 temples in Benares were demolished on Shah Jahan's orders.{{cite book |last1=Titus |first1=Murray T |last2=Dewick |first2=E.C. |title=Indian Islam |year=1979 |location=Delhi |publisher=Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers |page=24 |isbn=978-8170690962}}

{{Main|Deccan famine of 1630–32}}

A famine broke out in 1630–32 in Deccan, Gujarat and Khandesh as a result of three main crop failures.{{cite journal |last1=Ó Gráda |first1=Cormac |author-link=Cormac Ó Gráda |date=March 2007 |title=Making Famine History |journal=Journal of Economic Literature |volume=45 |issue=1 |pages=5–38 |jstor=27646746 |quote=Well-known famines associated with back-to-back harvest failures include ... the Deccan famine of 1630–32 |doi=10.1257/jel.45.1.5 |hdl=10197/492 |s2cid=54763671 |hdl-access=free}} Two million people died of starvation; grocers sold dogs' flesh and mixed powdered bones with flour. It is reported that parents ate their own children. Some villages were completely destroyed, their streets filled with human corpses. In response to the devastation, Shah Jahan set up langar (free kitchens) for the victims of the famine.{{cite book |last1=Mahajan |first1=Vidya Dhar |date=1971 |orig-year=First published in 1961 |title=Mughal Rule in India |edition=10th |location=Delhi |publisher=S. Chand |pages=148–149 |oclc=182638309}}

In 1632, Shah Jahan captured the fortress at Daulatabad, Maharashtra and imprisoned Husein Shah of the Nizam Shahi Kingdom of Ahmednagar. Golconda submitted in 1635 and then Bijapur in 1636. Shah Jahan appointed Aurangzeb as Viceroy of the Deccan, consisting of Khandesh, Berar, Telangana, and Daulatabad. During his viceroyalty, Aurangzeb conquered Baglana where he defeated Baharji, the Raja.{{sfn|Richards|1993}}{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UWdDAAAAYAAJ&q=Baglana |title=Maharashtra State Gazetteers: Nasik |date=1975 |publisher=Director of Government Printing, Stationery and Publications, Maharashtra State |pages=87 |language=en}}{{Cite book |last=Quddusi |first=Mohd Ilyas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_jpuAAAAMAAJ&q=Aurangzeb+Baglana |title=Khandesh Under the Mughals, 1601-1724 A.D.: Mainly Based on Persian Sources |date=2002 |publisher=Islamic Wonders Bureau |isbn=978-81-87763-21-5 |pages=40 |language=en}}{{Cite book |last=Faruqui |first=Munis D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZlEhAwAAQBAJ&dq=Aurangzeb+Baglana&pg=PA105 |title=The Princes of the Mughal Empire, 1504–1719 |date=27 August 2012 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-139-53675-2 |pages=105 |language=en}} The small Maratha kingdom of Baglana straddled the main route from Surat and the western ports to Burhanpur in the Deccan, and had been subservient to one Muslim ruler or another for centuries. In 1637, however, Shah Jahan decided on complete annexation.{{sfn|Richards|1993}}{{Cite book |last=Syed |first=Anees Jahan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6XoBAAAAMAAJ&q=Aurangzeb+Baglana |title=Aurangzeb in Mǔntakhab-ǎl Lubab̄ [Muntakhab Allubab, Engl., Ausz.] By Anees Jahan Syed |date=1977 |publisher=Somaiya Publications |pages=21 |language=en}} Baharji, who had commanded the Baglana forces, died soon after the conquest. His son converted to Islam and received the title of Daulatmand Khan.{{sfn|Richards|1993}}{{Cite book |last=Quddusi |first=Mohd Ilyas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_jpuAAAAMAAJ&q=Aurangzeb+Baglana |title=Khandesh Under the Mughals, 1601-1724 A.D.: Mainly Based on Persian Sources |date=2002 |publisher=Islamic Wonders Bureau |isbn=978-81-87763-21-5 |language=en}}

Aurangzeb then defeated Golconda in 1656, and then Bijapur in 1657.{{harvnb|Sen|2013|pp=170–171}}

A rebellion of the Sikhs led by Guru Hargobind took place, and, in response, Shah Jahan ordered their destruction. Guru Hargobind defeated the Mughal's army in the Battle of Amritsar, Battle of Kartarpur, Battle of Rohilla, and the Battle of Lahira.

File:Shah-Jahan hunting lions at Burhanpur (July 1630).jpgs at Burhanpur, present-day Madhya Pradesh, from 1630]]

Shah Jahan and his sons captured the city of Kandahar in 1638 from the Safavids, prompting the retaliation of the Persians led by their ruler Abbas II of Persia, who recaptured it in 1649. The Mughal armies were unable to recapture it despite repeated sieges during the Mughal–Safavid War.{{harvnb|Sen|2013|pp=169–170}} Shah Jahan also expanded the Mughal Empire to the west beyond the Khyber Pass to Ghazna and Kandahar.

{{Main|Mughal Central Asia Campaign}}

Shah Jahan launched an invasion of Central Asia from 1646 to 1647 against the Khanate of Bukhara. With a total army of 75,000, Shah Jahan and his sons Aurangzeb and Murad Bakhsh temporarily occupied the territories of Balkh and Badakhshan. However, they retreated from the fruitless lands, and Balkh and Badakhshan returned to Bukharan control.{{Cite web |url=https://www.peepultree.world/livehistoryindia/story/religious-places-/balkh-campaign |title=Balkh Campaign: An Indian Army in Central Asia |first=Ranvijay Singh |last=Hada |date=18 August 2020 |website=PeepulTree}}

Shah Jahan sent an embassy to the Ottoman court in 1637. Led by Mir Zarif, it reached Sultan Murad IV the following year, while he was encamped in Baghdad. Zarif presented him with fine gifts and a letter that encouraged an alliance against Safavid Persia. The Sultan sent a return embassy led by Arsalan Agha. Shah Jahan received the ambassador in June 1640.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}

While he was encamped in Baghdad, Murad IV is known to have met ambassadors of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, Mir Zarif and Mir Baraka, who presented 1000 pieces of finely embroidered cloth and even armor. Murad IV gave them the finest weapons, saddles and Kaftans and ordered his forces to accompany the Mughals to the port of Basra, where they set sail to Thatta and finally Surat. They exchanged lavish presents, but Shah Jahan was displeased with Sultan Murad's return letter, the tone of which he found discourteous. Sultan Murad's successor, Sultan Ibrahim, sent Shah Jahan another letter encouraging him to wage war against the Persians, but there is no record of a reply.{{cite book |last=Farooqi |first=Naimur Rahman |year=1989 |title=Mughal-Ottoman Relations: A Study of Political & Diplomatic Relations Between Mughal India and the Ottoman Empire, 1556–1748 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uB1uAAAAMAAJ |publisher=Idarah-i Adabiyat-i Delli |pages=26–30 |oclc=20894584}}

Shah Jahan gave orders in 1631 to Qasim Khan, the Mughal viceroy of Bengal, to drive out the Portuguese from their trading post at Port Hoogly. The post was heavily armed with cannons, battleships, fortified walls, and other instruments of war.{{cite book |last=Ikram |first=S. M. |author-link=S. M. Ikram |year=1964 |title=Muslim Civilization in India |url=http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00islamlinks/ikram/part2_14.html |publisher=Columbia University Press |pages=175–188 |isbn=978-0231025805 |via=Frances W. Pritchett}} The Portuguese were accused of trafficking by high Mughal officials, and due to commercial competition, the Mughal-controlled port of Saptagram began to slump. Shah Jahan was particularly outraged by the activities of Jesuits in that region, notably when they were accused of abducting peasants. On 25 September 1632, the Mughal Army raised imperial banners and gained control over the Bandel region, and the garrison was punished.{{cite book |first1=William J. |last1=Duiker |first2=Jackson J. |last2=Spielvogel |year=2006 |title=World History: From 1500 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZWTBUX10gaQC&pg=PA431 |publisher=Cengage Learning |pages=431, 475 |isbn=978-0495050544}} On 23 December 1635, Shah Jahan issued a farman ordering the Agra Church to be demolished. The Church was occupied by the Portuguese Jesuits. However, the Emperor allowed the Jesuits to conduct their religious ceremonies in privacy. He also banned the Jesuits from preaching their religion and making converts from both Hindus and Muslims.{{Citation |work=The Religious policy of the Mughal Emperors |editor-last1=Sharma |editor-first1=Ram |year=1962 |publisher=Asian publishing house |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.278323/page/n113/mode/1up |pages=104–105 |title=Shah Jahan}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.asnad.org/en/document/356/ |title=Asnad.org Digital Persian Archives: Detail view document 356 |website=asnad.org}} Though in the decree, he also granted 777 bighas of rent-free land to the Augustinian Fathers and the Christian community in Bandel, currently in West Bengal, shaping its Portuguese heritage for times to come.{{Cite web |date=2024-07-05 |title=Why Bengal owes much of its food and language to the Portuguese |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/research/why-bengal-owes-much-of-its-food-and-language-to-the-portuguese-9434047/ |access-date=2024-07-05 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}

The Kolis of Gujarat rebelled against the rule of Shah Jahan. In 1622, Shah Jahan sent Raja Vikramjit, the Governor of Gujarat, to subdue the Kolis of Ahmedabad.{{Cite book |last=Behera |first=Maguni Charan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rVS9DwAAQBAJ |title=Tribal Studies in India: Perspectives of History, Archaeology and Culture |publisher=Springer Nature |year=2019 |isbn=978-9813290266 |location=New Delhi, India |pages=46 |language=en}} Between 1632 and 1635, four viceroys were appointed in an effort to manage the Koli's activities. The Kolis of Kankrej in North Gujarat committed excesses, and the Jam of Nawanagar refused to pay tribute to Shah Jahan. Soon, Ázam Khán was appointed in an effort to subdue the Kolis and bring order to the province. Ázam Khán marched against Koli rebels. When Ázam Khán reached Sidhpur, the local merchants complained bitterly of the outrages of one Kánji, a Chunvalia Koli, who had been especially daring in plundering merchandise and committing highway robberies. Ázam Khán, anxious to start with a show of vigour before proceeding to Áhmedábád, marched against Kánji, who fled to the village of Bhádar near Kheralu, sixty miles north-east of Áhmedábád. Ázam Khán pursued him so hotly that Kánji surrendered, handed over his plunder, and guaranteed that he would not only cease to commit robberies but also pay an annual tribute of Rupees 10,000. Ázam Khán then built two fortified posts in the Koli's territory, naming one Ázamábád after himself, and the other Khalílábád after his son. Additionally, he forced the surrender of the Jam of Nawanagar.{{cite book |last=Campbell |first=James Macnabb |author-link=James Macnabb Campbell |title=History of Gujarát |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/files/54652/54652-h/54652-h.htm |series=Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency |volume=I(II) |year=1896 |publisher=The Government Central Press |chapter=Chapter III. Mughal Viceroys. (A.D. 1573–1758) |page=279}} {{PD-notice}} The next viceroy, Ísa Tarkhán, carried out financial reforms. In 1644, the Mughal prince Aurangzeb was appointed as the viceroy, who then proceeded to become engaged in religious disputes, such as the destruction of a Jain temple in Ahmedabad. Due to these disputes, he was replaced by Shaista Khan who failed to subdue Kolis. Subsequently, prince Murad Bakhsh was appointed as the viceroy in 1654. He restored order and defeated the Koli rebels.{{Cite web |last1=Indraji |first1=Bhagvánlál |last2=Watson |first2=John Whaley |last3=Baines |first3=Jervoise Athelstane |last4=Ashburner |first4=L. R. |title=History of Gujarát |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/54652/54652-h/54652-h.htm |access-date=16 October 2022 |via=Project Gutenberg |pages=278–283 |language=en}}

File:Govardhan. Shah Jahan and Dara Shikoh ca. 1638. Victoria and Albert Museum.jpg.]]

When Shah Jahan became ill in 1658, Dara Shikoh (Mumtaz Mahal's eldest son) assumed the role of regent in his father's stead, which swiftly incurred the animosity of his brothers.{{cite book |last1=Gonzalez |first1=Valerie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LharCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA116 |title=Aesthetic Hybridity in Mughal Painting, 1526–1658 |publisher=Routledge |year=2016 |isbn=978-1317184874 |page=116 |language=en}} Upon learning of his assumption of the regency, his younger brothers, Shuja, Viceroy of Bengal, and Murad Baksh, Viceroy of Gujarat, declared their independence and marched upon Agra in order to claim their riches. Aurangzeb, the third son, gathered a well-trained army and became its chief commander. He faced Dara's army near Agra and defeated him during the Battle of Samugarh.{{harvnb|Richards|1993|p=158}} Although Shah Jahan fully recovered from his illness, Aurangzeb declared him incompetent to rule and put him under house arrest in Agra Fort.

Jahanara Begum Sahib, Mumtaz Mahal's eldest surviving daughter, voluntarily shared his 8-year confinement and nursed him in his dotage. In January 1666, Shah Jahan fell ill. Confined to bed, he became progressively weaker until, on 22 January, he commended the ladies of the imperial court, particularly his consort of later years Akbarabadi Mahal, to the care of Jahanara. After reciting the Kal'ma (Laa ilaaha ill allah) and verses from the Quran, Shah Jahan died, aged 74.

File:The Emperor Shah Jahan recumbent Wellcome V0046338.jpg

Shah Jahan's chaplain Sayyid Muhammad Qanauji and Kazi Qurban of Agra came to the fort, moved his body to a nearby hall, washed it, enshrouded it, and put it in a coffin of sandalwood.

Princess Jahanara had planned a state funeral, which was to include a procession with Shah Jahan's body carried by eminent nobles followed by the notable citizens of Agra and officials scattering coins for the poor and needy. Aurangzeb refused to accommodate such ostentation. The body was taken to the Taj Mahal and was interred there next to the body of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal.{{cite web |last1=ASI |first1=India |title=Taj Mahal |url=http://asi.nic.in/agra-taj-mahal/ |website=asi.nic.in |publisher=Archeological Survey of India |access-date=8 December 2018}}

File:Tombs-in-crypt.jpg

File:Shahjahan's Seal.jpg

Shah Jahan left behind a grand legacy of structures constructed during his reign. He was one of the greatest patrons of Mughal architecture.{{harvnb|Asher|2003|p=169}} His reign ushered in the golden age of Mughal architecture.{{cite book |last1=Mehta |first1=Jaswant Lal |title=Advanced Study in the History of Medieval India |publisher=Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd |year=1984 |isbn=978-8120710153 |edition=2nd |volume=II |page=59 |language=en |oclc=1008395679 |orig-year=First published 1981}} His most famous building was the Taj Mahal, which he built out of love for his wife, the empress Mumtaz Mahal. His relationship with Mumtaz Mahal has been heavily adapted into Indian art, literature and cinema. Shah Jahan personally owned the royal treasury, and several precious stones, such as the Kohinoor.

Its structure was drawn with great care, and architects from all over the world were called for this purpose. The building took twenty years to complete and was constructed from white marble underlaid with brick. Upon his death, his son Aurangzeb had him interred in it next to Mumtaz Mahal. Among other constructions from his reign are the Red Fort, also called the Delhi Fort or Lal Qila in Urdu, large sections of Agra Fort, the Jama Masjid, the Wazir Khan Mosque, the Moti Masjid, the Shalimar Gardens, sections of the Lahore Fort, the Mahabat Khan Mosque in Peshawar, the Mini Qutub Minar{{cite news |title=A Qutub Minar that not many knew even existed |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/a-qutub-minar-that-not-many-knew-even-existed/articleshow/64640198.cms |newspaper=The Times of India |access-date=21 September 2018}} in Hastsal, the Jahangir mausoleum{{snd}}his father's tomb, the construction of which was overseen by his stepmother Nur Jahan and the Shahjahan Mosque. He also had the Peacock Throne, Takht e Taus, made to celebrate his rule. Shah Jahan also placed profound verses of the Quran on his masterpieces of architecture.{{Cite web |title=Callingraphy |url=https://www.tajmahal.gov.in/calligraphy.aspx |access-date=18 March 2024 |website=tajmahal.gov.in}}

The Shah Jahan Mosque in Thatta, Sindh province of Pakistan (100 km / 60 miles from Karachi) was built during the reign of Shah Jahan in 1647. The mosque is built with red bricks with blue coloured glaze tiles, probably imported from another Sindh's town of Hala. The mosque has overall 93 domes, and it is the world's largest mosque having such a number of domes. It has been built keeping acoustics in mind. A person speaking inside one end of the dome can be heard at the other end when the speech exceeds 100 decibels. It has been on the tentative UNESCO World Heritage List since 1993.[https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/1286/ Shah Jahan Mosque] UNESCO World Heritage Centre Retrieved 10 February 2011

File:Ghulam Ali Khan 003b.jpg|Red Fort

File:Naulakha_Pavilion_in_Lahore_Fort.jpg|The elegant Naulakha Pavilion at the Lahore Fort was built during the reign of Shah Jahan.

File:Weeks Edwin Gate Of The Fortress At Agra India.jpg|Agra Fort

File:Weeks Edwin The Return Of The Imperial Court From The Great Mosque At Delhi.jpg|Shah Jahan and the Mughal Army return after attending a congregation in the Jama Masjid, Delhi.

File:Wazir_khan_mosque_entry.jpg|Lahore's Wazir Khan Mosque is considered to be the most ornate Mughal-era mosque.{{cite book |last=Dani |first=A. H. |date=2003 |chapter=The Architecture of the Mughal Empire (North-Western Regions) |editor-last1=Adle |editor-first1=Chahryar |editor-last2=Habib |editor-first2=Irfan |editor2-link=Irfan Habib |title=History of Civilizations of Central Asia |volume=V |chapter-url=http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001302/130205e.pdf |publisher=UNESCO |page=524 |isbn=978-9231038761}}

File:Vasily Vereshchagin - Pearl Mosque, Delhi.jpg|Moti Masjid (Red Fort)

File:Taj Mahal finial-1.jpg|Finial, Tamga of the Mughal Empire (combining a crescent and a spear pendant with the word Allah).

https://lonelyplanetwpnews.imgix.net/2019/06/taj-mahal.jpg {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407135044/https://lonelyplanetwpnews.imgix.net/2019/06/taj-mahal.jpg |date=7 April 2022 }}, Taj Mahal of the Mughal Empire an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1632 by Shah Jahan

Shah Jahan continued striking coins in three metals: gold (mohur), silver (rupee) and copper (dam). His pre-accession coins bear the name Khurram.

File:Shah Jahan, Gold Mohur, Akbarabad, 10.88g, AH 1052, RY 15, Quatrefoil type.jpg|Gold Mohur from Akbarabad (Agra)

File:Silver rupee coin of Shah Jahan, from Patna mint.jpg|Silver rupee coin of Shah Jahan, from Patna.

File:Shah Jahan Dam Daryakot.jpg|Copper Dam from Daryakot mint

File:Shah Jahan Rupee.jpg|Silver Rupee from Multan

File:Silver Rupee of Mughal emperor Shahjahan, struck in Tatta, 1044 AD.jpg|Silver Rupee of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, struck in Tatta, 1044 AH (1635 AD).

File:Silver Rupee coin of Shah Jahan, struck in Patna mint, 1135 AH, 1635 AD, Regnal Year 8.jpg|Silver Rupee coin of Shah Jahan, struck in Patna mint, 1044 AH, 1635 AD, Regnal Year 8.

{{Infobox royal styles

| royal name = Shah Jahan

| image = "Rosette Bearing the Names and Titles of Shah Jahan", Folio from the Shah Jahan Album MET DT458.jpg

| caption = Rosette bearing the names and titles of Shah Jahan

| size =

| dipstyle = Shahanshah

| offstyle = His Imperial Majesty

| altstyle = Alam Pana

}}

{{Hidden top|title=Children of Shah Jahan|titlestyle=text-align:center; background: #CCDDCC; border:1px solid black}}

{{more citations needed|section|date=January 2021}}

{{hidden bottom}}

[[File:Inscription from a well at Makrana.jpg|thumb|centre|Shah Jahan

inscription from a well at Makrana, Rajasthan{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/epigraphiaindica00newd/page/n60/mode/1up |title=Epigraphia Indica. Arabic and Persian supplement (in continuation of the series Epigraphia Indo-Moslemica) |date=2011 |publisher=Archaeological Survey of India |others=Public Resource}}]]

The inscription from Makrana, Nagaur District, dating back to 1651 AD, mentions Mirza Ali Baig, who was likely a local governor under Shah Jahan's rule.{{Cite book |url=http://archive.org/details/dli.ministry.09791 |title=Archaeology progress report of the A.S.I., Western Circle |publisher=Central Archeological Library |pages=40 |quote=Under management of Mirza Ali Baig. As the date A.H. 1061 is equivalent to A.D. 1650, the 25th year must refer to Shah Jahan's reign, Mirza Ali Baig must have been his local governor.}} It describes a notice he posted on a step-well, prohibiting low-caste individuals from using the well alongside higher-caste people.{{Cite book |last=A. Ghosh |first=(Director General of Archaeology in India) |url=http://archive.org/details/aclcpl00000583a1363 |title=Indian Archaeology 1962-63, A Review |publisher=Government of India Press, Faridabad |date=22 December 1965 |pages=60 |quote=INSCRIPTIONS OF THE MUGHALS, DISTRICTS JAIPUR, NAGAUR AND TONK.—Of the inscriptions of Shah Jahan, the one from Makrana, District Nagaur, records a notice put up on a step-well in А.Н. 1061 (A.D. 1651) by Mirza Ali Baig prohibiting the low-caste people from drawing water from the well along with the people of higher caste.}}

• Shah Jahan II
• Shah Jahan III
• Wine cup of Shah Jahan
• Shahjehan, 1946 Indian film about the emperor

{{notelist}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{cite book |last=Asher |first=Catherine Ella Blanshard |year=2003 |orig-year=1992 |title=Architecture of Mughal India |series=The New Cambridge History of India |volume=I: 4 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=368 |isbn=978-0521267281}}
• {{cite book |last=Eraly |first=Abraham |author-link=Abraham Eraly |year=2000 |title=Emperors of the Peacock Throne: The Saga of the Great Mughals |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=04ellRQx4nMC&pg=PA379 |publisher=Penguin Books India |isbn=978-0141001432}}
• {{cite book |last=Findly |first=Ellison Banks |year=1993 |title=Nur Jahan: Empress of Mughal India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ugxFjVDk3I8C&pg=PA282 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0195360608}}
• {{cite book |last=Koch |first=Ebba |author-link=Ebba Koch |year=2006 |title=The Complete Taj Mahal: And the Riverfront Gardens of Agra |url=https://archive.org/details/completetajmahal0000koch |url-access=registration |location=London |publisher=Thames & Hudson Ltd |isbn=978-0500342091}}
• {{cite book |last=Nicoll |first=Fergus |author-link=Fergus Nicoll |year=2009 |title=Shah Jahan: The Rise and Fall of the Mughal Emperor |location=London |publisher=Haus |isbn=978-1906598181}}
• {{cite book |last=Prasad |first=Beni |year=1930 |orig-year=1922 |title=History of Jahangir |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.281009 |edition=2nd |location=Allahabad |publisher=The Indian Press}}
• {{cite book |last1=Richards |first1=John F. |author-link=John F. Richards |year=1993 |title=The Mughal Empire |series=The New Cambridge History of India |volume=V |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0521566032}}
• {{cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra |year=2013 |title=Textbook of Medieval Indian History |publisher=Primus Books |isbn=978-9380607344}}

{{Wikiquote}}

{{commons category|Shah Jahan I}}

• [http://thecmsindia.org/art.html#shah_jehan Shah Jehan in Christian Art]
• [http://www.twocircles.net/2008jul29/shah_jahans_353rd_death_anniversary_observed_taj_mahal.html Shah Jahan's 353rd death anniversary observed at Taj Mahal at TwoCircles.net]
• [http://www.boloji.com/history/013.htm History of Islam in India at IndiaNest.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060618125100/http://boloji.com/history/013.htm |date=18 June 2006 }}
• [http://www.zeno.ru/showgallery.php?cat=3286 Shah Jahan's Coin Database]
• [http://tajmahalfacts.com/shah-jahan.html Shah Jahan]

{{s-start}}

{{s-hou|Timurid dynasty||5 January 1592||22 January 1666}}

{{s-reg|}}

{{s-bef|before=Jahangir}}

{{s-ttl|title=Mughal Emperor|years=1627–1658}}

{{s-aft|after=Aurangzeb}}

{{s-end}}

{{Mughal Empire}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Taj Mahal

Category:Emperors of the Mughal Empire

Category:1592 births

Category:1666 deaths

Category:People from Agra

Category:17th-century Indian monarchs

Category:17th-century Indian Muslims

Category:Agra

Category:History books about the 17th century

Category:People from Lahore

Category:Subahdars of Gujarat

Category:17th-century Mughal Empire people

Category:Delhi

Category:Rebel princes