Jahanara Begum
Jahanara Begum, 1613-83, Mughal princess. One of the most remarkable women in Mughal history, she was the eldest child of Emperor Shahjahan and Mumtaz Mahal, and the eldest sister of the ill-fated Dara Shukoh, and Aurangzeb. She was born at Ajmer, during the Udaipur campaign of her father, and was educated wrier the tutorship of a woman-scholar, Sati-un-Nissa. After the death of her mother in June 1631, she became the chief controller of the palace affairs and remained so for 27 years. Both father and daughter were closely attached to each other, and when she was badly burnt in an accident on 26 April 1644 she was carefully nursed by the Emperor himself. She was also very deeply attached to Dara Shukoli ; though she had also interceded on behalf of Aurangzeb with her father. A rivalry and developed between Jahanara and her younger sister Roshanara who hated Dara Shukoh. She did her best to secure peace between her brothers during the illness of Shahjahan (1657-58) but the war of succession could not be averted. She pleaded with Aurangzeb for the life of Dara, and for better terms for her father (June 10) but her sister, Roshanara, was crying for his blood and Aurangzeb remained adamant. She also suffered eight years of disgrace and captivity with her father in the Agra Fort, and looked after him with great devotion during his old age and sickness till his death in 1666. She was later restored to favour with Aurangzeb (October 1666) and moved from Agra to Delhi, and came to exercise considerable influence over him. She never married and was buried in an open grave in the shrine of Nizam-ud-Din i‘ Aulia at Delhi.
She was also a writer and poet of note, and belonged to the Qadiriya order of Sufis.
