Last Nizam (9781742626109) (45 page)

‘Report of Princess B. K. Patiala to H. E. H. The Nizam of Hyderabad', 1991.

‘Report to H. E. H. Prince Jah, re. M. Y. Kalbarrie Insurance', 20 October 1996.

Sir Salar Jung's Visit to Europe, extracts from newspapers, May to September 1876.

Trust Deed (Jewellery Trust), 29 March 1951.

Interviews

India
Mansoor Ali, Bilkiz Alladin, Bhakhtiar Ansari, Vasant Kumar Bawa, Jayant Chowlera, Ghanshyam Das, Chandrakant Gir, Lalitha Gir, Moazzam Hussain, Shahid Hussain, Imdad Jah, Sadruddin Javeri, Scheherazade Javeri, Bashir Yar Jung, Habeeb Jung, Mujeeb Yar Jung, J. Kedareswari, Khairuddin, Aminuddin Khan, Aminuddin Khan, Ghulam Hyder Khan, Justice Sardar Ali Khan, Khudrat Ali Khan, Khusro Yar Khan, Mir Ayoob Ali Khan, Nawab Najaf Ali Khan, Rashid Ali Khan, Usha Bala Krishnan, Narendra Luther, Dr S. A. Mannan, Begum Meherunissa, Rahul Mehrotra, Mehmoob bin Mohammad, Basith Nawab, Rajendra Prasad, Lakshmi Devi Raj, Kishen Rao, Kumudini Ramdev Rao, Gade Venkat Reddy, Joan Reddy, Nandita Sen and Vijay Shankardass.

London
John Friedberger, David Michael and Perena Shryane.

Turkey
Esra Jah and His Exalted Highness, Mukarram Jah, The Nizam of Hyderabad.

Australia
Ron Allen, Cess Blood, Kevin Edwards, Peter Falconer, Bob Gregson, George Hobday, Ayoob Khan, Maurice Lyford, Ted McClintock, David Nuttal, Paul Palazzo, Callum Roscic, Louise Tilden, Neil Trudgen, David Weinman, Joyce Westrip and Gary White.

One of the seminal moments in researching this book came when the gracious Dr Aminuddin Khan, the chairman of the Nizam's Private Estate, broke the seal on the door of the bedroom where Osman Ali Khan spent his final years. The very private quarters of the Seventh Nizam of Hyderabad, untouched for decades and lit by a single light-bulb, were laid bare before me. The wooden bed with its thin mattress, a sooty spittoon strewn with cigarette butts and an old rolled-up rug were all testimony to the frugality of the richest man of his times.

Those privileged days spent plumbing the hidden depths of Nazari Bagh and other palaces in Hyderabad could not have been possible without the help of His Exalted Highness Mukarram Jah, the eight and last Nizam of Hyderabad. Letters of introduction led to many truly remarkable people. I am also indebted to Prince Jah for his hospitality and for agreeing to be interviewed on his extraordinary life. For arranging my meeting with Prince Jah I would like to thank David Michael in London, Esra Jah in Istanbul and Vijay Shankardass in New Delhi.

Dozens of people in India, the UK and Australia gave up their time to be interviewed. Apart from those few who wished to
remain anonymous, their names are listed in the bibliography. This book would have lacked many of its insights had it not been for the many entertaining and informative afternoons I spent in Hyderabad with Nawab Habeeb Jung, the Amir of Paigah, who together with his wife Shanaz virtually adopted me as part of their family and helped guide my research. I would particularly like to thank Mohammed Safiullah who was a walking encyclopaedia on Hyderabad and a rich source of articles, photographs, maps and memorabilia. My gratitude goes to Vikas and Umar Jain for permission to reproduce photographs from their invaluable Raja Deen Dayal archive. From the dusty shelves of his cramped studios, Shah Ali produced rare photos and shared tiger-hunting stories.

For guiding me through the collections at Chowmahalla palace and providing valuable insights into the Nizam's jewellery collection and other aspects of Hyderabad's history I am grateful to Deepthi Sasidharan. Bhakhtiar Ansari, G. Kishen Rao and Rahul Mehrotra deserve special mention for their fine work restoring the Chowmahalla palace. At Haziq and Mohi, Abid quenched my thirst with cold drinks while sourcing obscure titles from the stacks in his extraordinary bookshop. Scheherazade Javeri was very generous with her time. Najamunissa Begum and Nandita Sen provided invaluable introductions. In Perth, Richard Howell guided me to a wealth of sources, David Weinman entertained me with tales of his time with Jah, while Helen Black put people and events into perspective.

For their friendship and practical help as well as a memorable evening watching the monsoon breaking over Golconda fort, I would like to thank Savitri Choudhuri and Vikram Chhatwal. My thanks also go to Juhee Ahmed, Tony Chapman, Sayyid Ahmed and Mohammed Jafer for sharing contacts and arranging a brief but unforgettable stay at the venerable Nizam Club. Vasant Kumar Bawa and his wife Shanti opened up their house
and library for me. My driver Siddiq was remarkable for guiding his ancient Ambassador through Hyderabad's chaotic traffic with the agility of a gazelle.

For their generous hospitality I would like to thank Divya and Xavier Pilkington and David and Elke Bourchier in Perth; Callam and Belinda Roscic at Murchison House Station; Emma Tarlo and Deni Vidal in London; Aman and Christine Rai and Bindu Batra in New Delhi; and Uma and Gerson da Cunha in Bombay.

The task of researching this book was made easier by the always helpful staff at the Oriental and India Office Collections at the British Library, the Archive Municipale in Nice, the Andhra Pradesh State Archives in Hyderabad, the National Archives of India in New Delhi, the Battye Library in Perth and the National Library in Canberra.

Extracts from the following books are reproduced with permission. Lord Birkenhead,
Walter Monckton: The Life of Viscount Monckton of Brenchley
, with permission of Weidenfeld and Nicholson, an imprint of the Orion Publishing Group Ltd, London; William Dalrymple,
White Mughals and The Age of Kali
, Harper-Collins Publishers Ltd; John Lord,
The Maharajahs
, The Random House Group; Philip Playford,
Carpet of Silver
, with permission of University of Western Australia Press.

This book would not have been possible without the financial and organisational backing of Asialink at the University of Melbourne, the Australia Council for the Arts and the Australia–India Council. I would particularly like to thank Amanda Lawrence and Nikki Anderson of Asialink for their patience, Ivor Indyk for believing in the project, and the always efficient Asha Lele Das at the Australian High Commission in New Delhi. Susan Farrow at Travbiz in Sydney showed unflinching forbearance in arranging and constantly updating a complicated travel schedule.

Tom Gilliatt, my editor at Pan Macmillan, was an excellent
guide and mentor for my first foray in the publishing world, and Brianne Tunnicliffe was a meticulous editor. My agent at Curtis Brown, Fiona Inglis, and her assistant, Pippa Masson, were incredibly supportive. Bem le Hunte and her husband Jan were wonderful for sharing ideas and offering advice. I would also like to thank my Editor-in-Chief at
The Australian
, Chris Mitchell, for seeing the wisdom in allowing me to have time off.

I am indebted in more ways than I can ever describe to my wife Niki, who coaxed me into writing this book and then paid the price by having to juggle children, schools and her own projects while I immersed myself in travel, research and writing. Her support never faltered and her enthusiasm after reading the manuscript gave me the strength to finish the task. This book is in many ways also hers. Finally I would like to thank my parents, George and Alexandra, for their encouragement, and my children, Adele, Alexander, Jonathon and Nicolas, for putting up with a sometimes moody and often exhausted father.

Abdulhamid II
117
,
135

Abid, Albert
96
,
98

Ahmed, Sir Sultan
189

Ahmed, Zahir
195
,
241
,
242
,
248
,
272

AIDS
283
–
4
,
310
,
313

Alam, Mir
47
,
49
,
50
,
57
,
78

Ali, Haider
35
–
9
,
50

Ali, Mansoor
221

Ali, Mir Laik
160
,
176
–
8
,
189
,
191
,
192
,
195
,
196
,
198

Ali, Shaukat
139
,
145
,
150

Alladin, Bilkees
224

Allen, Ron
264

Amat-uz-Zehra
111
,
112

Ansari, Habeeb
289

Archduke Ferdinand
102

Arkide, Ayesha 318 Asaf Jahi dynasty
14
,
19
,
32
,
33
,
95
,
122
,
133
,
204

abolition of princely privileges
245
–
6

battle for succession
23
–
31

Eighth Nizam
see
Jah, Mukarram

European intervention
24
–
9

Faqir
's blessing/curse
229

Fifth Nizam
see
ud-Daula, Afzal

financial problems
60
–
79
,
86
–
7
,
102
,
104
,
286
–
92

First Nizam
see
ul-Mulk, Nizam

Fourth Nizam
see
ud-Daula, Nasir

Indian Independence, effect
205
–
8
,
218

personal wealth
122
,
161
,
206
,
237
–
8
,
288
–
91
,
298
–
305

Second Nizam
see
Khan, Nizam Ali

Seventh Nizam
see
Khan, Osman Ali

Sixth Nizam
see
Khan, Mahboob Ali

sovereignty of Nizam
15

Third Nizam
see
Jah, Sikander

Asafiya Kothi
183

Aurangzeb, Emperor
1
,
3
–
12
,
22
,
27
,
251
,
267
,
289

Australia

Havelock House
263
,
276
–
8
,
281
–
3
,
308
,
313
–
5
,
320
,
321

Jah's first visit
251
–
2

Majeed mine
264
,
308
,
312

Murchison House Station
250
–
78
,
283
,
289
,
298
,
312
–
3
,
315
,
318
,
320
,
322
,
326
–
7
,
333

Babur, Emperor
2

Bakar, Abu (First Caliph)
3
,
154
,
258

Balasubramanian, Rajapalan
290

Banque Indosuez
289
–
90
,
309
,
314

Barr, David
104
,
105

Barton, William
128
–
31
,
142
,
144

Bay, Hussein Nakib
150

Beare, Mara
318
,
319

Beg, Hamid
202
,
203
,
215

Begum, Bakshi
44

Begum, Rahat
107

Bella Vista palace
151
,
155
,
211

Benichou, Lucien
144

Bentinck, Lord
66

Berar
5
,
69
,
73
,
76
,
77
,
81
,
84
,
88
,
91
,
106
,
124
–
5
,
127
,
132
,
138
,
164

Bhonsle
39

Birgin, Esra
223
–
4
,
230
,
236
,
237
,
240
,
247
,
259
,
268
,
272
,
275
,
276
,
331
,
332
,
334

Birkenhead, Lord
124
,
199

Blood, Cess
259
,
327

Bonaparte, Napoleon
46
,
48
,
49

Bond, Alan
270
,
271
,
277
,
308

Boularas, Jamila
314
–
5

Briggs, Henry George
4
,
9
,
21
,
65

British
10
,
24
–
39

invasion of Hyderabad
36
–
7

Paramountcy principle
72
,
82
,
84
,
110
,
126
,
179

Raj
84
,
155

Residency at Hyderabad
53
–
4
,
63
,
83

sovereignty in India
125
–
6

support for during WWI
118
,
121

takeover of Oudh
80

treaties with Nizam
34
,
36
–
8
,
40
,
43
–
8
,
50
–
1
,
57
,
76
–
8
,
84
,
125

war for control of Hyderabad
24
–
32

Brown, Mark
282
–
5

Burke, Brian
270

Burton, Capt Richard
74

Caliphate
136
,
149

abolition of
137
–
9

Mukarram Jah as successor
138
,
154
,
334

Cambridge University
215
–
6

Campbell-Johnson, Alan
192
,
193

Chamber of Princes
126
–
7

Chaney, John
284
–
5

Chaudhuri, Major Gen J.N.
198
,
204

Chavan, Y.B.
239
,
244
,
323

Chelmsford, Lord
121

Chinese border war 1962
226
–
7

Chiraan palace
223
,
278
,
325
,
326
,
333

Chowlera, Jayant
295
,
302
–
4

Chowmahalla palace
95
,
207
,
234
–
5
,
249
,
290
,
299
,
310
,
318
,
324
–
5
,
330
–
2

Churchill, Winston
184
,
195
,
197
,
201

Clerk, Capt Claude
89
,
93

Clive, Robert
27
,
32

Collins, Col John
62
,
63

Communist Party
193
,
194

Compton, Herbert
44

Congress Party
165
,
179
180
,
245

Cooper, Elizabeth
108

Corfield, Sir Conrad
124
,
146
,
188

Cornwallis, Lord
40
–
3

Cotton, Sidney
190
–
3
,
196
,
197

Cripps, Stafford
178

Crofton, R.M.
166
,
167

Crozier, Jean
257
,
289

Curzon, Lord
105
,
106
,
124
,
125

Dalai Lama
226

Dalhousie, Lord
68
,
72
,
73
,
75
,
76
,
78

Dalrymple, Lt Col James
49

Das, Ghahshyam
294
,
295

Das, S.R.
170

Davidson, Capt Cuthbert
77
,
79
,
81
,
82
,
83
,
86

Dayal, Raja Deen
99
,
164
,
221

de Boigne, Benoit
26
,
44

de Bussy, Charles
28
,
31
,
32

de St Lubin, Chevalier
38

de Thevenot, Jean
296

Deccan
5
–
20
,
37
,
78
,
82
,
251
,
295

conquest of
5
–
10

culture
103

diamond mines
5
,
15
,
295
–
8

division of
15
–
16

exiles from Delhi to
19

Nizam as Viceroy of
14
,
23
,
31

Delhi

Meerut rebellion
81

ransack of
18

diamonds

Asaf Jahi jewels
122
,
161
,
206
,
237
–
8
,
298
–
305
,
332

cutting business in Bombay
243

Deccan mines
5
,
15
,
295
–
8

Great Mughal diamond
2

Imperial (Jacob) diamond
97
–
9
,
209
,
294
,
299
,
304

Koh-i-Noor
2
,
19
,
74

Nizam diamond
74

pawning by Nizam
74
–
6

Vithaldas
293
–
4

Dighton, Henry
74
–
6

Dolmabahce palace
136
,
137

Doon School
169
–
75

Dowding, J.F.
93

Dupleix, Joseph
25
,
27
,
28
,
29
,
30
,
31

Durand, Mortimer
112

Durrushehvar, Princess
77
,
140
,
145
,
147
–
57
,
159
,
164
,
166
–
73
,
181
,
185
,
199
–
203
,
208
,
215
,
223
,
227
,
231
,
241
,
247
,
275
,
330

East India Company
24
,
27
,
31
,
33
–
40
,
43
,
51
,
55
,
61
,
78

Eden Gardens
115

Egerton, Brian
112
,
113

El Edroos, General
190
,
191

Elgin, Lord
112

Ellenborough, Lord
69

Falaknuma palace
99
–
100
,
107
,
206
,
207
,
277
,
290
,
298
,
299
,
320
,
325
,
330
,
331

Falconer, Peter
257
,
258

Farrukhsiyar, Emperor
12
,
13

Fauzia, Fatima
290
,
301

First Nizam
see
Nizam ul-Mulk (First Nizam)

Fitzpatrick, Denis
97
,
98

Foot, Arthur
171
–
4

Forbes, Peter
281
–
4

Fraser, Capt James
68
–
72
,
74
–
6
,
79

Fraser, Stuart
118

French in India
24
–
32
,
39

disbanding of forces
48
–
9

Pune
42
,
45

war for control of Hyderabad
24
–
32

French Riveria
133
–
4

Galahari, Abdul Wahab
301

Gandhi, Indira
226
,
239
,
245
,
248

Gandhi, Mahatma
139
,
165

George, Lloyd
135

Ghazi-ud-Din
31

Gir, Chandrakant
224
,
248

Gir, Lalitha
224

Giri, V.V.
246

Glancy, Reginald
116
,
157
,
159

Golconda
1
–
3
,
6
–
8
,
70
,
207
,
251

Goldberg, Yosse
274
,
276

Gough, Hugh
141

Government of India Act 1937
164

Grant Duff, James
26
,
31

Great Mughal diamond
2

Green, Jeremy
265
,
266
,
267

Gregson, Bob
321
,
322