Mir Jafar

Mir Jafar Ali Khan
Shuja ul-Mulk, Hashim ud-Daula, Nawab Ja'afar 'Ali Khan Bahadur, Mahabat Jang, Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa
Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive, meeting with Mir Jafar after Plassey, by Francis Hayman
Reign	1757–1765
Full name	Mir Muhammed Jafar Ali Khan
Born	1691
Died	February 5, 1765
Predecessor	Siraj-ud-Daulah
Successor	Mir Qasim, Najimuddin Ali Khan

|ul-Mulk, Hashim ud-Daula, Nawab Ja'afar 'Ali Khan Bahadur, Mahabat Jang commonly known as Mir Jafar, second son of Sayyid Ahmad Najafi, (1691–February 5, 1765) was Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. He is also known by Indians as Gaddar-e-Abrar (which translates in English as 'The Traitor of Faith')^{[citation needed]} . He succeeded Siraj-Ud-Daulah as the eighth Nawab of Bengal, and the first of the Najafi dynasty after deceiving Nawab Siraj-Ud-Daulah and surrendering his army in battle field against Robert Clive. His rule is widely considered the start of British rule in India and was a key step in eventual British domination of the country. His greed of becoming Nawab of Bengal, led him to make a secret pact with Robert Clive and surrender & slaughter of Army of Bengal in Battle of Plassey, without fighting, which led to foundation of British rule in India. For this act of treachery, he has been infamously called Gaddar-e-Abrar. Gaddar means a traitor & Abrar means faith &f=false</ref>

However, Mir Jafar had higher ambitions. Arrogant in his position he took advantage of an Ali Vardi Khan weakened by a decade of fighting with Marathas to enter into a conspiracy with Ataullah (the faujdar of Rajmahal) to overthrow and murder the Nawab ^[1]. However, the conspiracy was unearthed and he was stripped of most of his powers. He returned to Murshidabad, where he regained the trust of the Nawab's grandson, Siraj-Ud-Daulah, and slowly returned to power and prominence.

The Nawab Years

After Siraj Ud Daulah’s defeat and subsequent execution, Mir Jafar achieved his long-pursued dream of gaining the throne, and was propped up by the British as puppet Nawab.Mir Jafar paid a sum of Rs.17,700,000 as compensation for the attack on Calcutta to the company and the traders of the city. In addition, he paid large sums as gifts or bribes to the officials of the company. Clive, for example received over two million rupees, Watts over one million^[1] Soon, however, he realised that British expectations were boundless and tried to wriggle out from under them; this time with the help of the Dutch. However, the British defeated the Dutch at the Battle of Chinsurah in November 1759 and retaliated by forcing him to abdicate in favor of his son-in-law Mir Qasim. However, Mir Qasim proved to be both able and independent, willing to live with but not bow to the British. The Company soon went to war with him, and he was eventually overthrown. Mir Jafar managed to regain the good graces of the British; he was again appointed Nawab in 1763 and held the position until his death in 1765.

Legacy

Mir Jafar probably was the last truly independent ruler of Bengal. After him the British ruled Bengal for next 200 years. Mir Jafar is widely reviled by the people of Bangladesh, India and Pakistan.^{[citation needed]} The word "mirjafar" in Bengali and the phrase "meer jafar" in Urdu, are used much as quisling is used in English, and Jaichand of Kannauj in Indian history. Allama Iqbal had written poetry on him, "Mir Jafar o bengal Mir sadiq o deccan nange deen, nange adam, nange watan" which mean Mir Jafar of Bengal and Mir Sadiq of Deccan are disgrace to the faith, disgrace to humanity, disgrace to the nation. Mir Jafar had set an example that an individuals greed can bring an entire nation to slavery and hardship. British with the help of Mir Jafar and Mir Sadiq were able to conquer Bengal and kingdom of Mysore(Sultanat-e-Khudaat). Nevertheless, after 200 years, when the British left the region, and upon the formation of Pakistan, Mir Jafar's direct descendent Iskandar Mirza, was appointed as the first president of Pakistan.^[2][3]

Preceded by Siraj ud-Daulah

Nawab of Bengal 1757–1760, 1763–1765

Succeeded by Mir Qasim, Najimuddin Ali Khan

See also

• Battle of Plassey
• List of rulers of Bengal
• History of Bengal
• History of Bangladesh
• History of India
• Siraj Ud Daulah
• Bengal
• Robert Clive
• Mir Jafar Awards
• Great Britain in the Seven Years War
• Benedict Arnold
• Malinche

References

• "Riyazu-s-salatin", A History of Bengal, Ghulam Husain Salim (translated from the Persian): viewable online at the Packard Humanities Institute
• The Banglapedia article on Mir Jafar

• Humayun, Mirza (2002). From Plassey to Pakistan. Washington D.C.: University Press of America; Revised edition (July 28, 2002). ISBN 0761823492. 

Notes

1. ^ "Riyazu-s-salatin", Ghulam Husain Salim - a reference to the appointment of Mohanlal can be found here
2. ^ "Seir Muaqherin", Ghulam Husain Tabatabai - a reference to the conspiracy can be found here

1. ^ Modern India by Dr.Bipin Chendra,a publication of National council of Educational Research and Training
2. ^ Iskandar Mirza, Ayub Khan, and October 1958, by Syed Badrul Ahsan, The New Age, Bangladesh, October 31, 2005.^{[dead link]}
3. ^ Murshidabad family information, Christopher Buyers, July 2005 - May 2006.^{[dead link]}

Persondata
Name	Jafar, Mir
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1691
Place of birth
Date of death	February 5, 1765
Place of death