Mumtaz Mahal
Mumtaz Mahal, 1631, Mughal princess. Originally named Arjumand Banu Begum, see was the daughter of Asaf Khan, the brother of Nur Jahan. She was married in 1612 to Jahangir’s son Prince Khurram when he was 20, and was given the title of Mumtaz Mahal (`Ornament of the Palace’). Prince Khurram succeeded Jahangir as emperor in 1628, under the title Shahjahan. Both husband and wife were very devoted to each other and she bore him 14 children. She died in child birth in June 1631 at Burhanpur. The body was brought to Agra and the distraught emperor built the great Taj Mahal as a tomb for her. All the four sons of Shah Jahan who contested the throne in 1658 were her off springs, as also the two daughters, Jahanara who supported Dara, and Roshanara who supported Aurangzeb. She is often referred to as ‘The Lady of the Taj’.
