Ahmad Khan Bangash

Muhammad Ahmad Khan Bahadur Ghalib Jang or was a Mughal nobleman and Nawab of Farrukhabad from the Rohilla Afghan Bangash dynasty. He was the second son of Muhammad Khan Bangash, a powerful Mughal nobleman. He took part in the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761 against the Marathas led by Sadashivrao Bhau.

He was a close friend of Imad-ul-Mulk, the infamous Mughal wazir.

Early life Ahmad Khan Bangash was the second son of Ghazanfar Jang and the younger brother of Qaim Khan Bangash. His father Muhammad Khan Bangash was a powerful Mughal nobleman who ruled a large domain in what is now Uttar Pradesh, with his capital at Farrukhabad. Although his father Muhammad Khan, being a mere mercenary who was noted for his lack of Adab, was so illiterate that he did not understand a single word of either Persian or Pashto, Ahmad Khan was more accustomed to the Nawabi and Indo-Persian lifestyle of Delhi. He accompanied his father when it was required for him to translate from Persian.

After Muhammad Khan Bangash's death, his eldest son Kaim Khan Bangash inherited his domains. During the reign of his elder brother, Nawab Kaim Khan, he lived at the imperial Mughal capital of Delhi for some time. He returned to Farrukhabad and took a farming lease of five parganas, Sakrawah (a village) among others, from his brother Kaim Khan.

Accession Nawab Kaim Khan despised Safdar Jang, the ruler of Awadh because of the Awadh nawabs' troubled relations with his father Muhammad Khan Bangash. Due to the scheming of Safdar Jang, Kaim Khan, was killed in a battle at Badaun in 1749 against Dundi Khan of the Kingdom of Rohilkhand. Farrukhabad was formally annexed to Awadh and plundered. When Ahmad Khan Bangash met the army of Naval Rai, he was faced by the Rai's contingent of Barha Sayyids who had made Ahmad Khan's troops to flee from the battlefield. Disdaining to leave the place alive, Ahmad Khan practised the act of Utara or dismounting and had his soldiers tie their skirts of their heavy plaited coats (Jamaah) to fight to the death, cursing his men: "Have you brought me here only to see you run away".

Ahmad Khan then laid siege to Allahabad, which he was about to capture when Safdar Jang called in the Marathas under Malhar Rao Holkar and Jayappaji Rao Scindia, the Jats under Suraj Mal and the Rohillas under Nawab Saadullah Khan for help. He began spending most of his time at the imperial court in Delhi. According to J.L. Gommans, he lived a luxurious life there and "started to pilfer precious books and paintings from the imperial stores". In 1756, Ahmad Khan cultivated a close friendship with the Mughal nobleman Imad-ul-Mulk, who appointed Ahmad Khan as Amir-ul-Umara and Mir Bakhshi of the Mughal Empire on the dismissal of Najib-ud-Daula. In 1764, Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula requested the help of Ahmad Khan Bangash, Hafiz Rahmat Khan and other Indo-Afghan chiefs against the British East India Company, who had been rapidly advancing on Awadh after their victory at the Battle of Buxar. Ahmad Khan and the other chiefs all declined to help due to fear of the British.

The Marathas invaded Ahmad Khan's domains once again in 1769, and he defended his kingdom with great difficulty.

Personal life

Ahmad Khan's first wife was Dulhin Begum, through whom he had his sons Mahmud Khan and Rustan Khan. Mahmud Khan greatly assisted his father in the re-conquest of Farrukhabad from Awadh.

When one of Naval Rai's escorts tried to curse the men of Ahmad Khan in Pashto, they had heard his speech but did not understand its words, and required a translator to understand him.

Ahmad Khan married his fourth wife Khair-un-nissa around 1756. Khair-un-nissa was the adopted daughter of Yakut Khan, one of Ahmad Khan's slaves and reportedly a descendant of Khan Jahan Khan Lodi, the principal Afghan noble during the reign of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. Khair-un-nissa was sixteen when he married her; they had a son around 1757-1758, who was named Diler Himmat Khan. Later, Diler Himmat Khan succeeded him as Nawab of Farrukhabad.