Awadh History

The Imperial Coronation of 1819: Awadh, the British and the Mughals
Author(s): Michael H. Fisher

Source: Modern Asian Studies, Vol. 19, No. 2 (1985), pp. 239-277
Published by: Cambridge University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/312155
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Modern Asian Studies, 19, 2 (1985), pp. 239-277. Printed in Great Britain.
The Imperial Coronation of 1 8 1 9:

Awadh, the British and the Mughals
MICHAEL H. FISHER
Western Washington University
His Majesty considering the assumption of the royal title an

era of his Government.
--J. Moncton
East India Company Resident to Awadh, 1818-1820
Awadh, the English East India Company, and the Mughals
THE interaction among the expanding British, the regional rulers of the
Gangetic plain, and Mughal Emperors stands central to Indian history
during the first halfofthe nineteenth century. Each of these three groups
determined to advance its own political and cultural values in the face of
the conflicting expectations and assumptions of the other two. The
English East India Company regarded itself as under the authority of
the British Parliament and the sovereignty of the British crown. At the
same time, the Company continued nominally to acknowledge the
sovereignty of the Mughal Emperor, at least in India. The various
regional rulers of north India, most prominently the rulers of the
province of Awadh, acted and apparently perceived themselves as de
facto independent of the Mughals while also symbolically submitted to
Mughal sovereignty. The Mughal Emperors, whose power to command
armies had faded to nothingness during the last half of the eighteenth
century, continued to pretend to absolute sovereignty over virtually all
of India until 1858. Each of these three groups wished to see the 1819
imperial coronation by the Awadh ruler as an overt proof of their own
cultural values and of their understanding of their relationships to the
others.
Research for this article was conducted in London and India between 1975 and 1982
with support from the Social Science Research Council, Fulbright-Hays, the American
Philosophical Society, and Western Washington University. The author is solely
responsible for its contents.
oo26-749X/85/o0804-0206$o2.oo ?1985 Cambridge University Press
239
240 MICHAEL H. FISHER
Awadh, on the north bank of the Ga

mid-eighteenth century as the most i
Empire. Economically, its some 24,00
population of some io,ooo,ooo, made it
north India. Strategically, it stood
Company, then expanding up the G
Mughal capital at Delhi. Politically, i
JNawab- WazTr, or Chief Minister, of
time, since his military defeat at the h
Nawab-Wazir also served as the Com
The 1819 coronation therefore enabled
what he perceived to be the Compan
submissive ties to the Mughal Empero
Awadh court-to express his own perce
place in the universe.
The East India Company simultaneous
sovereigns while at the same time it e
increasing areas of India virtually in
Company officials accepted the 1813
Parliament had asserted British sovere
by the Company. Nevertheless, the Co
sarily' exciting the possible alarm an
and people by openly proclaiming ei
revocation of Mughal sovereignty.'
ritually to enact its submission to M
order to shatter Mughal pretension
Company exposing itself to criticism, t
Awadh ruler as its cat's-paw publicly t
through the 1819 ceremony.
The Mughal Emperors had lost virtua
political power during the course of t
remained dejure sovereigns of India un
direct control or under the control of
their orders had, one by one, been cru
the Awadh Nawab-Wazirs or by on
themselves nominal subordinates of
1 Minutes of 18 November 1814, Bengal Secr

BSC] 18 November 1814, No. 19, Commonwe
2 William Edwards records his personal part
carried out, however, without the prior app
Reminiscences of a Bengal Civilian (London: Sm
THE IMPERIAL CORONATION OF 18I19 241
revenues no longer flowed into the imperial treasury. Indeed, the
Mughal Emperors had, since the middle of the eighteenth century, been
pensioners, dependent on the generosity ofa series of'guardians,' the last
of whom was the Company itself. The Mughal Emperors, however,
retained the explicit, albeit nominal, submission of each of the major
powers in India. The 1819 coronation by the Awadh ruler therefore
represented a challenge to the very identity of the Mughal Emperor.
While the Mughal Emperor was powerless to prevent this apostasy, he
nevertheless brought the full weight of his authority down against the
Awadh ruler. As we shall see, in the 1857 struggle to expel the British
from India, the Mughal Emperor's sovereignty was temporarily
restored over the province and ruler of Awadh. After the end of the
Indian 'Mutiny,' the last Mughal Emperor underwent trial, deposition,
and exile at the hands of the British, thus ending his even nominal claim
to sovereignty over India.
The Awadh coronation of 1819 thus held significant, yet disparate,
meaning for each of the three major actors in north India of the day.
Some later commentators, both Indian and European, have tried to
dismiss the event as signifying nothing more than the delusion of a
mental deficient misled by his British keepers.3 Until this article, the
ceremony and its significance have never been examined in depth. To
scholars interested in the political or cultural worlds of north India,
however, this imperial coronation presents a valuable opportunity to
examine not only the relationships among the British, the Mughals, and
the ruler of Awadh but also the often conflicting cultures of the three.
The negotiations preliminary to the ceremony showed the changing
perceptions the officials of the Company and of the Awadh court held of
themselves and of the other's role in India. The formulation of the
ceremony, created to transform a provincial governor into a sovereig
monarch, demonstrated the fundamental conceptions held by th
Awadh and other Indian courts concerning the sources and symbols o
sovereignty. The new relationships established by the coronation amo
the Mughals, the British, and the new Awadh Emperor elucidate their
relative positions. Finally, the reception accorded the event by th
people of Awadh and the rest of north India allows us to examine the
very nature and effects of such a ceremony.
3 E.g. 'Abd al-Halim Sh~rar, Guzishta Lakhn'i: Mashriqf Tammadun ka Akhrf JNamo
(Lucknow: Nasim Book Depot, 1965 reprint), pp. 50-4. H. C. Irwin, The Garden oflnd
or Chapters on Oudh History and Affairs, 2 vols (Lucknow: Pustak Kendra, I973 reprin
1:98.
The Awadh rulers as Mughal provincial governors
Little in the behavior of the hereditary governors of the province of

Awadh during the eighteenth century indicated that they would be the
first in India to deny Mughal sovereignty. The founder of the Awadh
dynasty, Sa'idat Khan, had earned his appointment as .si7bada~r

(governor) of Awadh in 1722 through loyal service to the Mughals on
the battlefield and in the administration. His successor had been
elevated to, and entrusted with, the post of Nawab-Wazir; this h

administrative office in the empire became hereditary, like the
norship of Awadh. Until Ghizi al-Din Haydar revoked more
century of loyalty and submission by his family in 1819, therefo
Awadh rulers remained among the most prominent the de jure
subordinates of the Mughal Emperors.
For the century prior to 1819, the Awadh rulers had--as the other
regional rulers of India would continue to do--conformed to all of the
necessary forms of submission to Mughal sovereignty. Certainly until
I780 and possibly after, the Awadh rulers carried outfarmans, or orders
issued by the Mughal Emperors.4 The coins struck by the Awadh
Nawabs, sikka, bore the name of the Mughal Emperor until 1818.5 The
Awadh rulers regularly presented nazr, or an offering from an inferior to
a superior, not only to the Emperor himself but to his relatives as well.
Each Nawab, through 1814, received from the Emperor a khil'at, or robe
of honor, to legitimize his tenure in Awadh.6 The Company's resident
stationed in Awadh, records the honor which Nawib Asaf al-Daula
(1775-97) paid to this symbol of the Emperor's approval:
[I] had the pleasure to attend his Excellency three miles out of camp to meet the
kilaat of the vizarat, with which he was cloathed on the spot in a tent pitched for
that purpose. The Vizier expressed more satisfaction on the occasion than ever I
saw him. He had the ceremony conducted with great state, and on receiving the
kilaat fired a royal salute.7
4 The Awadh rulers, for example, continued to implement land grants made by the
Mughal Emperor. E.g. Persian Ms 10696, Regional Archives, Allahabad. Asafuddaula
to Governor General, received 31 May 1780, India, Imperial Record Department,
Calendar ofPersian Correspondence, I2 vols (Calcutta: India, Imperial Record Department,
1911- ), 5:425.
5 Cf. No. I, Type A in C. J. Brown, 'The Coins of the Kings of Awadh,' Journal of the
Asiatic Society of Bengal, n.s. 8, no. 6, Numismatic Supplement (June 1912): 249-79.
6 Resident to Governor General, 13 July 1814, Bengal Political Consultations
[hereinafter cited as BPC] 28 July I814, Commonwealth Relations Office, London.
7 Resident to Council, 16 April 1776, Foreign Secret Consultations [hereinafter cited
as FSC] 29 April 1776, Commonwealth Relations Office, London.
THE IMPERIAL CORONATION OF 18 19 243
The final acknowledgement of the sovereignty of the Mughal E
the practice of mentioning his name in the khu.tba or sermon, e

that preached in the mosques on a Friday, also seems to ha
followed in Awadh. Thus, each of the formal expressions of subm
Mughal sovereignty was carefully carried out by the Awadh rule
Ghizi al-Din Haydar began to revoke each one of them a few ye
his reign.
In addition to these required rituals of submission to the Mughals, the
Awadh rulers also performed other acts signifying their subordination to
the Mughal imperial line. The revenues of Awadh appear to have been
regularly submitted, at least until 1752, long after the Mughal Emperor
could have enforced their payment. Even after the Awadh rulers had
been confined to their province by the conquering Company, they
continued to treat the Mughal imperial family with all due courtesy and
respect. The Emperor ShTih 'Alam II (1759-1806) had been so treated
while still only a prince dependent on the Awadh armies. Mughal
princesJawin Bakht, Sulaymin Shukiih, and Sikandar Shukiih were all
provided dignity and pensions by the Awadh ruler; the latter two
remained significant members of the Awadh court, as we shall see, well
into the nineteenth century.8
Foreign visitors recorded the attitude of submission and homage
accorded by the Awadh rulers to the Mughal imperial family. Viscount
Valentia observed in 18o3:
The Prince Mirza Soolimaun Shekoo... is the third son of [the Mughal
Emperor] ... he is allowed 6,oo000 Rupees per month by the Nawaub Vizier, a
sum which is fully adequate to supply his wants... The Prince keeps up as
much state as possible, and even treats the Nawaub as if he were on the throne of
Delhi in the fullness of power and the Vizier an actual slave. He received the
nazur from him whenever they meet on public occasion, without any
inclination of the head, or salam in return.9
The Governor General describes what he observed while visiting

Lucknow in I8I4:
The two brothers [Sulaymin Shukiih and Sikandar Shukfih] of the King of
Delhi resided in Lucknow, supported by an allowance granted partly by the
Honourable Company, partly by the Nabob Vizier. Notwithstanding their
partial dependence on the latter for subsistence, etiquette assigned to these
princes a decided pre-eminence; insomuch that when the Nabob Vizier met
8 Persian MS 84, Regional Archives, Allahabad.

9 George, Viscount Valentia, Voyages and Travels to India, Ceylon, the Red Sea, Abyssinia,
and Egypt in the Years 1802... 18o6, 3 vols (London: William Miller, 1809), p. I46.
either of them in the street, it was incu

riding should be made to kneel, in toke
Thus, the Awadh rulers accorded th

of respect through 1814.
While we have seen that the Awadh rulers adhered to the nominal
and symbolic forms of submission to the Mughal Emperors, they als
seem to have explored the possibilities that other imperial conte
offered. Certainly, they sought to advance their own interests within
Mughal Empire. Although they did not formally deny the Mugh
until 1819, they appear to have suggested alternatives throughout th
tenure in Awadh.
As early as 1739, on N~idir Shah's invasion of India, the first Awad

Nawab, Saidat Khan, is generally charged by historians with urgi
the invader to enter the Mughal imperial capital, an entrance followe
by a bloody sack of the city. Safdar Jang, the second Nawab, sen
generous cash payment with his application to Nadir Shah f
confirmation of his inheritance. Although the khil'at of office was iss
in the name of the Mughal Emperor, Safdir Jang knew he owed it
Nadir Shah.
Later, in 1753, as a maneuver to dominate the Mughal court, Safdir
Jang raised up and supported a putative great-grandson of the
Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb as a pretender to the throne." It sho
be noted that even in revolt the Awadh ruler did not deny the legitima
of the Mughal dynasty, only the right of the incumbent to represent
When another twist in the politics of the imperial court reconci
Safdair Jang and the Emperor, the rival raised up by the former wa
abandoned to obscurity.
The third Awadh Nawib, Shuja' al-Daula (1i754-75) also offered
exchange his position within the Mughal Empire for a more attractiv
one under the British monarch. The Governor General, Warren
Hastings (I 773-85) wrote: 'The late Nabob Sujah Dowla, who wanted
neither pride nor understanding, would have thought it an honour to be
called Vizier of the King of England, and offered at one time to coin
siccas in His Majesty's name.'12
1o Lord Hastings, 'Summary of Operations in India,' in Great Britain, Parliament,
Parliamentary Papers (Commons), 1831-32, vol. 8, 'Report of the Select Committee,'
Section 4: I Io.
1" Seid Gholam Hossein Khan, Seir Mutaqherin, trans. M. Raymond alias Haji
Mustafa, 4 vols (Calcutta: T. D. Chatterjee, 19o2), 3:332.
12 Shuja uddaula to King of England, I September II73, Calendar of Persian
Correspondence, 4:478. See George Robert Glieg, Memoirs of the Life ofthe Right Hon. Warren
Hastings, 3 vols (London: Richard Bentley, 1841), 2:332.
THE IMPERIAL CORONATION OF 1819 245
Upon his accession as the fourth Nawab, Asafal-Daula complied

the forms of submission to the Mughal Emperor by petition
confirmation of his inheritance. Asaf al-Daula, however, h
deputation haggle about the size of the peshkesh, or cash offer
would be presented to the Emperor. Only after these details wer
was the imperial khil'at of office bestowed on Asaf al-Daula.'
When called upon by the Emperor to go against his own in
however, Asaf al-Daula refused to reply at all rather than e
disobey his sovereign. In I784, the Awadh ruler received a s
from his Emperor to come to Delhi at the head of the Awadh a
restore imperial authority and then to administer the recon
Mughal Empire. Asaf al-Daula recognized that such an imper
raised a dangerous dilemma for him. Since he was essentially de
on the East India Company, he could hardly begin a military
reconquest of India on his own. At the same time, as nominal Wazir,
imperial first minister, to disobey his Emperor was a serious step, one he
was unwilling to take. In deep consternation, he appealed to the
Governor General to advise him
I can give no answer.., without your directions, so that I beg you wil
communicate your pleasure.., all my affairs depend on your person. Suc
Revolution is now happening that what has never yet occurred, is now on th
point of appearance... you must not regard the State of Affairs in the Roya
Presence as of little moment, for in a short time much consideration will b
required.., if you do not attend to these important matters, great inco
venience will ensue. 14
Rather than bring about the 'Revolution' he feared, Asaf al-Daula

avoided a confrontation by postponing any reply to the Emperor, a
tactic supported by the Company.
Some ten years later, the Emperor repeated his order to the
Nawab-Wazir, appealing to Asafal-Daula's sense ofduty and promising
great, albeit intangible, rewards:
It is therefore your duty to take care of [me] which will be Holy work during
your life and a great benefit to you after your death. If you cannot come yourself
send our son Mirza Solyman Shekoo with a proper army..,. where will be the
harm in it? In short this is the time to give assistance.15
13 BahSdur Singh, 'YSdgSr-i BahSduri,' Persian MS 225, Regional Archives,

Allahabad. Resident to Governor General, 7 May 1775, FSC 22 May 1775, no. 5.
Antoine Louis Henri Polier, Shah Allam II and His Court, ed. Pratul Chandra Gupta
(Calcutta: S. C. Sarkar, 947), PP. 42, 44-5.
14 Nawab Wazir to Governor General, 23 December I784, FSC 28 December I784.
15 Shuka of the Mughal Emperor given in translation, Resident to Governor General,
15 July I794, Home Miscellaneous Series, 447:279-82, Commonwealth Relations
Office, London.
Even at this repeated summons, Asafal-Daula

the issue and again he did not respond. Nor c
another of his nominal subordinates, the C
al-Daula to comply (or to send a Company a
Asafal-Daula therefore never broke his ties
that remained for his nephew Ghizi al-Din
I819. Nor did he observe more than the
financial requirements necessary to obtain and
within the Empire. Instead, he proved able to
Mughals at the status quo, giving him the fr
court and position without bringing on the '
While thus avoiding a break with their Emp
worked to build up their court as a cultural, i
of the Mughals. From the time of the sack o
the hands of Ahmad Shah AbdSli) poets and o
to Awadh by the generous patronage of t
notables who migrated from Delhi to Aw
eighteenth
Hasan, century
Mir, Soz, were the
and Mushaf.17 Urdu poets
The Lucknow schoolArzii, Z.h.ik,
of poetry was Saudi', Mir
fostered by the Awadh court and came to be regarded as an equal or
even superior to the Delhi school, at least by its proponents.
In addition, scholars of Persian literature, religion, music, and other
courtly arts, including some European painters and performers received
lavish patronage from the Awadh rulers. Public buildings and palaces
were constructed on a grand scale, particularly by Asafal-Daula in this
capital, Lucknow.'s Even the presence of Mughal imperial princes
added further glorification to the Awadh court where they received
refuge.
Beyond these traditional trappings assembled at their court, the
Awadh rulers also emphasized the distinctive Shi'fl character of their
16 Shuka of the Mughal Emperor to the Resident at the Wazir's court, given in
translation, 18 June I794, Home Miscellaneous Series, 447:283, Commonwealth
Relations Office, London. Prince Jehandar Shah to Governor General, 23 December
FSC 28 December I787.
'" For discussion of the Lucknow school see Bahidur Singh, fols 284b-86, Ahmed Ali,
The Golden Tradition: An Anthology of Urdu Poetry (New York: Columbia University Press,
1973), Ralph Russell and Khurshidul Islam, Three Mughal Poets: Mir, Sauda, Mir Hasan
(Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1968), and Muhammad Sadiq,
A History of Urdu Literature (Allahabad: Ram Narain Lal, 1940).
18 See Rosie Llewellyn-Jones, 'The City of Lucknow before I856,' in The City in South
Asia: Pre-Modern and Modern, ed. Kenneth Ballhatchet and John Harrison (London:
Centre of South Asian Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies, 1980), pp.
88-1 28.
court. Although by the eighteenth century in India the purity of

religious and ideological differences between the two major se
Islam seems to have been lost, the identification Shi'ite or Sunn
appear to have been significant, particularly for the former
minority in India. Throughout their rule, but particularly from
al-Daula on, Shi'i themes appear in the Awadh court. Asaf al-
established, and his successors continued to support, the office ofm
al' asr, or highest-authority-in-religious law of the age.19 Thi
distinctly Shi'i institution; the right of a subordinate of the
Mughal Emperor to recognize such an office is highly questio
Other expressions of their Shi'i tenets included the construct
Lucknow of a copy of the Najaf-i Ashraf (the tomb of 'All), the fu
of the Asafi canal at Karbali' (the major Shi'i center in Iraq), an
donation of substantial amounts of money to be distributed i
city.20 All these were designed to make Lucknow the major Shi'i c
in India.
Yet another equivocal policy was initiated under the sixth Nawaib
Sa'idat 'Ali Khan (I798-I814), who had been installed in Awadh by
the Company after having lived for more than twenty years under its
protection. When the Mughal Emperor Shah 'Alam died in 1806, coins
bearing his name continued to be issued by both the Awadh rulers and
the East India Company. Only specimen coins bearing the name and
titles of the new Mughal Emperor were struck for presentation to him.2
Nevertheless, when Sa'adat 'All Khan's title ofWazir was first bestowed
upon him by the Emperor, he '...expressed a wish to celebrate the
'9 For the significance of this office see Encyclopedia ofl Islam, 2d edn, s.v. 'idjtihid.'
20 E.g. Nawab Wazir to Resident, II September 1816, BPC, 20 February 1818.
Resident to Secretary to Government, Secret and Political, BPC 16 November 1827, no
I2.
21 Until 1189/1775, the coins struck by the Nawtibs had been made
mint; after that date, they were made in the Lucknow mint. As with th
the Company, their coins had been standardized from 120i/1786-87,
proper regnal year but rather all having the regnal year 26. Further, whi
as specimens to the Emperor continued to be inscribed in accordance
regnal year and titles, the coins circulated for public use continu
standardized pattern and did not carry the name of the new Empero
acceded in 1806. See C.J. Brown, 'The Coins ofAwadh,' Catalogue of the C
Museum, Calcutta, vol. 4 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, I928), pp. 1-60.
'Notes on the History of the East India Company Coins from 1753 to I83
Asiatic Society of Bengal 62, pt I (1893): 72. The East India Company cont
these coins to the Emperor until 1835. K. N. Pannikar, British Diplomacy
Study of the Delhi Residency, 18o3-1857 (New Delhi: Associated Publishing
141.
mark of royal distinction by some public act

have the Company forbid such an act of resp
Despite these various acts of uncertain loy
sovereignty of the Mughal Emperor, the A
al-Din H aydar did nothing overt to deny his
rulers, such as the Nizam of Hyderabad and
exhibited an equal degree of defacto indepe
HIaydar took the ultimate step and, repudi
Mughal Emperor over him, declared himse
'Emperor,' in his own right.23
The East India Company's Plans for Awadh
While it stands evident that the Awadh Nawabs consistently sought to

increase the prestige of their court, the initial impetus for the movement
that culminated in the 1819 coronation seems to have been provided by
the Governor General, Lord Hastings (1813-22). The Nawabs
remained hesitant to commit any decisive act without the backing of the
Company; this backing Lord Hastings provided. Although once
launched on this venture, the Awadh court followed a course dictated by
its own culture and orientation, the court responded initially to a
Company plan to weaken the Mughal Empire.
Lord Hastings arrived in India with little understanding of the role of
the Mughal Empire and with the outline of his own plan to create a new
political system already worked out in his mind. From the time he
disembarked to take up his new duties as Governor General and
Commander-in-Chief in October I813, Hastings had continually to
modify his plan in light of conditions hitherto unknown to him.
Nevertheless, his policies did much to reshape not only the role of the
East India Company in India but the entire Mughal Empire as well.
On his arrival in India, Hastings seemed to regard India as an
amorphous collection of unorganized groups of people vaguely con-
trolled by petty princes. He perceived no coordinating system and hence
nothing to rival the grand coalition he proposed to create in order to
ensure British rule. In the month of his arrival in India he wrote:
... there never has been a really national feeling among the people of this
country. The great mass of the natives have no consideration of pride or other
22 Resident to Governor General, 28 April I800oo, FSC 15 May I8oo, no. 6.
23 For a detailed study of a comparable event, see Wilfred Madelung, 'The
Assumption of the Title Shahanshah by the Buyids,' Journal of Near Eastern Studies 28, no.
2 (April 1969): 84-108.
sentiment as to who governs them, provided their superstitions and

vegetative comforts be not outraged. The smaller and more active comm
have no bond of union: Islamism itself having been prevented from beco
cement by the animosities and incessant hostilities which have raged be
the Moslem powers. An army, therefore collected out of those b
sovereignties, if it be in number and discipline superior to what a confed
those intrusive chiefs can bring into the field, must rule India.24
Hastings had to modify his plans but his intention continued to

'rule India.'
Following their repudiation of Governor General Wellesley's

(1797-1805) forward policies, the Court of Directors of the Company
had laid out a new course of restraint, for reasons of economy and to
avoid any military entanglements with the other rulers of India. Their
policy had, for the most part, been followed resulting in a status quo from
I8o6. In 1815, the new Governor General, Hastings, summarized his
critical view of Company policy:
We do not, in fact, at present, possess any complete system, but parts of two very
incongruous systems and most of the inconveniences we experience are
occasioned by the discordancy of the two.
Our first plan was to avoid meddling with the native powers. The second was
to control them all, and we have since partially to revert to the first having
taken half of the powers of India under our protection, and made the other half
our enemies.25
To improve this situation, Hastings tried to impleme

which he outlined in his private journal on 6 Februar
Our object ought to be, to render the British Government para
if not declaredly so. We should hold the other States as vassal
though not in name; not precisely as they stood in the Mogul
possessed of perfect internal sovereignty, and only boun
guarantee and protection of their possessions by the British G
the pledge of the two great feudal duties.
First, they should support it with all their forces on any ca
should submit their mutual differences to the head of the co
government) ... Were this made palatable to a few States, as p
might, the abrogation of treaties with the Powers who refuse
arrangement would soon work upon their apprehensions in a
bring them at last within the pale of the compact. The comp
system, which must exclude of any pretension to pre-eminen
Delhi, demands time and favourable coincidences.26
24 Francis Rawdon-Hastings, The Private Journal of the Marques
Marchioness of Bute, 2 vols (London: Saunders and Otley, 1858)
25 Minutes of I December 1815, Home Miscellaneous Series, vo
wealth Relations Office, London.
26 Hastings, Journal, 1:30o.
In Hastings' mind, therefore, the p

required the demotion of the Mugha
Hastings' awareness of the role of
developed during his first tour of
Hastings saw the self-interest of the I
that would secure them within his pro
have brought home to him quite fi
traditional authority of the Mughals h
before he had regarded India as clay t
tour he perceived the archaic but still
destroyed before he could implement h
There is, however, in India a principle

thorough conviction of interest, or even t
acknowledged public interests are held b
what they call their 'hoonnut' [Himiyat?] o
consideration can induce them to faulter
these were the professed, though antiq
Timour [the Mughals]. The sovereign of
Mogul Empire. It must be obvious that, sh
the subversion of the British establishme
absurdly extravagant a hope as the succ
reduce Britain's strength by depriving her
be the purpose, and the projected course fo
some powerful sentiment in India against
any forecasting enemy can have imagined
the restoration of efficient rule to the ho
would have been a call on the fealty of th
vizier of the empire, the claim upon him w
an ostensibly Mohamedan cause. To brea
injurious to us, appeared to me of the hig
Awadh thus appeared the key to shatt

securing India to the Company.
Hastings' response to the threat pose
fragment it without making the Com
His first step was to try to diminish t
the notion of the paramountship in
'... nothing has kept up the floatin
imperial family but our gratuitous an
pretentions.'28 These 'exhibitions' cons
mance of the same symbolic affirmatio
27 Hastings, 'Summary,' p. I IO0.

28 Hastings, Journal, i: 171-2.
seen the Nawibs practicing; the Company, however, did not form
revoke Mughal sovereignty until 1858.
Hastings' second step in undermining the Mughals was to encourag
other regional rulers to abrogate their bonds to the Emperor, even if
Company was not itself ready to do so. Among others, the Gaekwar
Baroda, the Raja of Sattarah, and the Nizam of Hyderabad were,
the Nawib of Awadh, urged to declare themselves independ
sovereigns. The ruler of Awadh, however, was Hastings' prime ta
and was certainly the only one to follow his advice. Hastings' choice
the Awadh Nawab apparently stemmed from the prominence of
office of Wazir in the imperial hierarchy, the complete milita
dependence of Awadh on the Company, its relative isolation (s
rounded on three sides by Company territory and on the fourth by
foothills of Nepal), and by the Awadh court's own cultural inclinatio
The crucial incident that seems to have resolved Hastings in his pl
to level the various rulers of India, particularly the Mughal Empero
under Company paramountcy, was his failure to achieve equal st
with the Emperor during the 1814-I5 tour. Indian historians repo
When the Governor General... came to Shihjehtintibd [Delhi], it
decided that if the Emperor, Muhummad Akbar Shah, were to offer h
chair in his court, then he would visit the Emperor. At this time a man ca
Kora Shlih was the manager of the Emperor's affairs. He and others
convinced the Emperor to agree to this but when the Emperor's mother tau
and reproached him severely for agreeing, the Emperor finally refused to a
to it. The Governor General then held a great durbar on the bank oftheJu
in a large tent and all the nobles, rajas, and jagirdars attended and the
presented nazrs. The Governor General then came to Farruckhitb~id but he
upset that despite the Company's total occupation of India and despite the
that it gives the crown, and whomever it pleases it can enthrone on the seat
government, despite all this, the Emperor did not submit to it because of
false pride and haughtiness.
Thus the Governor General began to make plans that by the power of hi
government he might make some wellborn and important noble in India in
an Emperor in order to teach the Mughal Emperor a lesson... Af
considering the matter, he decided that no family could compare with tha
the Wazirs of Awadh in the glory they had acquired and in their heredita
prestige.
Hastings' own account of the incident confirms that the Mughal

Emperor's refusal to accord him equality lay at the heart of his
frustration.
29 Kamil al-Din Haydar, Tarikh-i Awadh, 2 vols (Lucknow: Nevil Kishore Piress,
I907), 1:243. (My translation.)
The King (of Delhi) had been carryi

[Metcalfe] to obtain that I should visit
same answer,-namely, that I had expre
my personal attentions to His Majesty;
was restrained from so doing by the k
acquiescence in a ceremonial which was
of the British possessions. This depende
could never be acknowledged by me. Th
as to the particular form in which his su
was to be asserted; but at length, after
more or less of the distinctions to be sho
resistance was to the admission of any
His Majesty at length gave up the hope
Regardless of whether the Emperor

disappointed at the failure of the me
the understanding each held about t
The Emperor could not compel the
submission. The Governor Genera
concede equality. In consequence,
Awadh Nawab-Wazir to reduce the
The Awadh court and the East In
support and encouragement from ea
repudiation
dar of ambassador,
had sent an Mughal sovereignty.
Mufti KhalilNawab-Wazir Gh~izi
al-Din Khan, to al-Din
Calcutta in .Hay-
order to further his ambitions for his own advancement even before
Hastings' trip to Delhi.3' On the Governor General's part, he instructe

the Company's Resident stationed in Lucknow to encourage any mo
toward independence from the Mughals that the Awadh Nawab might
make.32
Not content with indirect means, Hastings himself travelled to
Lucknow to urge the Nawtb on. Seeing Ghazi al-Din Haydar give
ceremonial deference to one of the Mughal princes residing in Lucknow,
Hastings reports that he
... caught at the opportunity of saying to the Nabob Vizier, that to continue
such demonstrations of inferiority must rest with himself alone: for the British
Government did not require the manifestation of such submission to the Delhi
30 Hastings, Journal, i: i7o-I.

31 Muhammad Alhmad 'Ali, Muraqqa'-i Awadh (title page missing, 1912), pp. 42-3.
Interviews with Dr Taqi Ahmad in Lucknow and Aligarh in April, October, and
December 1976 have established the contents of this ambassador's coded communica-
tions with the Awadh court.
32Governor General to Court of Directors, 15 August 1814, Political Letter,
Commonwealth Relations Office, London.
THE IMPERIAL CORONATION OF I819 253
family, and had itself dropped from these servile forms with which it had
hithertofore unbecomingly complied. Having reason to think that this
instigation would work upon the Nabob Vizier's reflection, I directed the
resident to watch and encourage any apparent disposition in that prince to
emancipate himself. The mode which would naturally suggest itself to the
Nabob Vizier, as being the only one sufficient to account satisfactorily to India
at large for his rejection of future prostration to the house of Timour, was his
assumption of the kingly title. It was likely that he would distantly sound the
resident on the subject; I therefore instructed the latter that were any
supposition of the sort hypothetically thrown out, he should seize it and bring it
immediately to a distinct understanding, intimating his persuasion that the
British Government would readily recognize such a title, if assumed by the
sovereign of Oude, provided it made no change in the relations and
formulations between the two states. . The expected procedure soon took
place.33
Thus, the Company provided explicit support for the Nawib's

ambitions. The penultimate sentence, however, reveals an assumption
held by Hastings but not shared by the Awadh ruler. The former saw
Awadh's withdrawal from the Mughal Empire as the necessary first step
in the creation of a Company dominated coalition. The latter, however,
regarded it as tantamount to the assumption of imperial rank by himself.
Even as Ghizi
coronation, al-Din HI.aydar
the Company's Calcuttabegan toand
Council move
the cautiously toward his
Court of Directors
debated among themselves the wisdom of Hastings' plans and the
magnitude of the changes he had instigated. Although they finally
agreed to let Hastings carry on with his policies, they seem to have tried
to protect themselves, at least as far as Awadh was concerned.
Immediately after the 1819 coronation, the Company issued a procla-
mation in Persian, disclaiming all responsibility for the act and placing
whatever
alone. 34 blame might be due squarely on Ghizi al-Din H.aydar
Ghizi al-Din Ijaydar and the Imperial Coronation

Cognizant of the significance of the step he was about to undertake,
Ghizi al-Din Haydar moved gradually, testing each stage before he
proceeded to the next for its effect both on the Company and on the
others in the Mughal Empire. Apprehensive that he misjudge the
indirectly stated will of the Company by moving too fast or slowly, he
33 Hastings, 'Summary,' p. IIO.

34 Quoted in KamMl al-Din Haydar, Tarikh-i Awadh, 1:244.
fully
reported: felt the insecurity of h
One day
Fatah 'AlI His
KhanExcellency
for some the NawSb
advice in theWazir Ghizl
matter al-Din
[of the I.aydar asked
coronation] saying,Captain
'What do you think about this affair?' At first, the Captain begged to be excused
from answering, but when the PSdshtih pressed him further, he replied, 'You
know what evil things are already said about your family in Delhi. After this it
will be even worse.' The PSdshih responded, 'I thought you were an intelligent
man. Listen, I have brothers. If they make a deal with the British Government
for something I hold out against, I will lose the Wazirat as well. Thus, I have to
accept this perforce although I understand full well what you mean.'35
While Ghizi al-Din HIaydar may have had qualms about overthrowing
his family's long-standing adherence to the Mughal Empire and about
exposing himself to the charge of usurpation of sovereignty, the weight of
the evidence shows that he and his court were eager to gain the dignity
and honor that such an act would bring. He and his courtiers jealously
demanded every trapping and perquisite they believed to attach to the
title of Pgdshih.36 They later suspended relations with the Company,
albeit temporarily, rather than submit to the lesser expectations held by
the British. There is nothing to indicate that any of the Padshihs who
ruled Awadh up to its annexation in i856 were anything but pleased
with his status or wished to withdraw his imperial claims. On the
contrary, various commentators remark on the pride with which Ghizi
al-Din IHaydar and his successors held the title Pidshih.37
Ghizi al-Din Haydar's first major overt act towards his declaration of
sovereignty independent from the Mughals was to strike and then to
present to the Resident (for approval prior to release) a coin of a new
pattern dated I234/18 18. This solid declaration of his new status bore
the name of the (late) Mughal Emperor, Shih 'Alam as before but it also
included the ambiguous phrase dar al-amdrat or 'seat of command,
authority, power, rule, or sovereignty,' referring to Lucknow. On the
35 Hastings, 'Summary,' p. I Io. Governor General to Court of Directors, 15 August

1814, Political Letter, Commonwealth Relations Office, London. Kamil al-Din
IHaydar, Tarikh-i Awadh, 1:244. (My translation.)
36 The title Padshmh means sovereign emperor. The 'iTn-i Akbari glosses the title as:
Pad, meaning stability and possession, Shah meaning origin or lord, thus 'Lord or origin
of stability and possession.' Abu '1-Fazl 'Allami, The A'Zn-iAkbari, trans. H. B. Blockman,
ed. D. C. Phillott (Calcutta: Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1927), p. 2. An early
nineteenth-century author wrote extensively about the necessary attributes of a
Pidshih: justice, politics, vigor, munificence and bravery, supported by pomp, dignity,
and bearing. Sayyid Aq EIHasan, Ihsdn al- Tawdrikh, 3 vols (Lucknow: Jangbahaduri
Press, 1863-65), 3:568-79.
37 ShJrar Guzishta Lakhna'i, pp. 87-8.
reverse Such
arms.38 was devices
a dramatic
were innovation:
not found on Ghazi al-Dineven
coins issued HI.aydar's
by the lac
Mughals. Kamil al-Din IHIaydar reports that the Governor General h
sent a 'heraldic device' to Ghazi al-Din HIaydar, consisting of t
rampant tigers bearing a banner.39 Between the tigers, the Awadh r
placed two fish-the usual emblem of his family-bearing a crown
utilized this coat of arms on his coins. The Resident approved the c
and they were released to the people of Awadh, apparently the
official intimation to them that their ruler intended to exalt himself.40
In April 1819, only a few months later, at a breakfast commemorating
his birthday
specimens Ghazi coin.
of another al-Din HI.aydar
The Residentpresented thepattern:
described the Resident'on with
one
side His Excellency's arms, and on the reverse a Persian couplet, in
which his Excellency's name is substituted for that of the late King of
Delhi, which has been suppressed in the new currency.41 In addition,
instead of dating the coin with the Mughal Emperor's standardized
regnal year, it was dated from the year of Ghizi al-Din Haydar's own
accession to Awadh.
Explaining
... as his motivation,
rulers of former Ghazi
times have been al-DintoH.aydar
ambitious writes:
exalt their name and
reputation, so also I have petitioned the First Great Cause that in my reign such
an event should occur as would perpetuate my name in the page of time. With
this view it is now my wish that coin should be issued in my name, since coin
ought to be in the name of that person who is not without power and authority
in his own dominions and with what propriety then it be current in the name of
a king who has long passed away. Such a circumstance indeed was never known
in the world but in the instance now averted to and it is in itself preposterous (lit.
unseemly).42
Assured at the time by the Resident and later by the Governor General
that his coin met their entire approbation, Ghazi al-Din IHaydar had a
hundred-and-one gun salute fired to celebrate the event and advanced
his claims to sovereignty, apparently based on a tripartite argument.43
38 No. I, Type A in Brown, 'Coins of the Kings of Awadh,' p. 257. Each successive
Awadh Padshih designed a more elaborate coat of arms along the same pattern. E.g.
Persian MSS I62, i66-8, National Archives of India, New Delhi.
39 KamJl al-Din Haydar, Tarikh-i Awadh, 1:244.
40 Resident to Governor General, 16 November 1819, BPC 20 November i8I9.
41 Resident to Secretary to Government, 7 April 1819, BPC 24 April 1819, no. 57.
This is probably No. 2, Type B in Brown, 'Coins of the Kings of Awadh,' p. 257.
42 Nawab Wazir to Governor General, received 22 April 1819, BPC 7 August 1819.
King of Oudh to Resident, 30 June 1825, BPC 14 October 1825, no. 13.
43 Resident to Secretary to Government, 7 April 1819, BPC 24 April 1819, no. 59.
Governor General to Nawab Wazir, I August 1819, BPC 7 August I8I9. Resident to
Secretary to Government, 27 August 1819, BPC 25 September 1819.
First, sovereignty had once been possessed by

historians asserted that Ghaizi al-Din Hayd
line from Qari Yisuf, son of Qara Muhamm
man),"" who ruled from western Iran in the f
tracing his line through Sa'idat Khain, the
descended from Imam Muisa al-Kazim (745
Shi'i Imam.45 Since the twelve Imams were b
been chosen by God to be the spiritual in
Muhammad, this genealogy was in no way
Mughals, who traced themselves to Ghangi
Second, like the Mughals, the Awadh family
Shahs of Iran.46 Thus, just as the Mughals claimed sovereignty
independent of the Safawids whose aid they had sought to help
re-establish themselves in India, the Awadh rulers could claim indepen-
dence from the Mughals with equal validity. Since the dynasty had, in
fact, governed Awadh for nearly a century, cutting off Mughal
sovereignty only rectified an inconsistency between its defacto and dejure
status.
Third, the Awadh rulers emphasized their Shi'i identity in con

with the Sunni Mughals. For the Shi'i party in Islam, the true suc
to the leadership of the community of Muhammad went to
son-in-law, foster brother and cousin, 'All, and then through the
For them, the only true rulers were those who recognized this l
succession and were in accord with the will of the Imams. Most S
in contrast, trace the legitimate succession through the khul
caliphs, the first three of whom the Shi'ites regard as usurpers. Th
sect denied the right of the other to rule and Ghizi al-Din HI
claim put him in the Shi'i camp, as had been the Safawids.
Further, the understanding of the locus of authority differed s
cantly between the two sects. For the Sunnis, it rested in the umm
community through the doctrine of ijma' or consensus.47 This m
analogous to the Mughal conception that their sovereignty rested
44 HJshim 'Al Rizwi, 'Mir'it al-Bilid,' Persian MS 2551, Regional Ar
Allahabad, fols. I44a and b. Amir 'All Khan, Wazfr N\ima (Cawnpur: Nizam
1876), p. 28. Kunwar Durgi Prasid, Bostdn-i Awadh (Sandila: Queens Press,
413?
45 EI, s.v. 'Mfisa al KJzim.' The Safawids also claimed descent from this Im
46Najam al-Ghani, Tarikh-i Awadh, 5 vols (Lucknow: Nevil Kishore
4: 141-I42. See F. W. Buckler, 'The Political Theory of the Indian Mutiny,' Tra
of the Royal Historical Society, 4th Series, 5 (1922):71-10oo. Muhammad Haidar, T
Rashidi, trans. E. Denison Ross, ed. Ney Elias (London: S. Low, Marston and C
1898), pp. 238, 246-7.
47 EI, s.v. 'umma.'
their house as a corporate entity. Several Mughal Emperors

deposed during the course of their rule but each new Empero
recruited from the Mughal royal family. For Twelver Shi 'ites, au
lay with the Imams whom God distinguished from other men. Wh
the Sunnis, for example, further religious interpretation was no
possible-the gate of ijtihad, or interpretation, was closed-be
there was no longer any one sufficiently qualified interpreter, the
recognized the authority of the Mujtahid to continue the practic
we have seen, Asaf al-Daula recognized a Mujtahid of the Age
'Ali, and the successors of both maintained the tradition. The role
Mujtahid in the coronation would be central.
The structure and composition of the Awadh Coronation o
demand careful analysis, particularly because of three distinct fe
First, there was no immediate precedent that the coronation cou
modelled upon. The ruling family of Awadh had never before cla
status above that of an official under the Mughals. Thus Ghaizi a
HIaydar and his court had to create the ceremony for the occasio
format and symbols they chose, therefore, exhibit their conscio
unconscious image of how a Pidshah looked, behaved, and abo
was created. Their statements are articulated in the accounts of th
and subsequent coronations and annual anniversaries.
Second,
from Ghizitraditions
the several al-Din H.aydar's coronation
represented at his court.displayed elements
Each element was drawn
apparently designed to appeal to a particular audience which recog-
nized the legitimacy of that symbol. Since the ruler and many of his
courtiers had strong backgrounds in the Mughal world, elements from
that tradition dominated. The Shi'i emphasis of the court also stands out
strongly as does the European influence of the Company and the
European courtiers in Awadh service. Finally, the numerous Awadh
officials who belonged to Hindu scribal jitis contributed their under-
standing of symbols of sovereignty. All these were combined into the
coronation of 1819 and its successors. Remarkable for its absence was
any element, or audience, specific to the region ofAwadh. Ghizi al-DTn
.Haydar
or made
populace noaudience
in his apparentoreffort
domainto
andincorporate Awadh,even
did not undertake its alandholders
token royal progress through the region. An imperial ruler, sovereign
over the 'Age,' his relationship to the province was perceived as a result
of the accidents of history, primarily in the form of the East India
Company.
48 Ibid., s.v. 'idjtih~id.'
Finally, the Awadh coronation differs from

al-Din Haydar relied on a ceremony to enhan
to legitimize political gains already achiev
universal sovereignty came at a time of shrin
best, he could hope only to maintain his defact
once denying Mughal sovereignty and asserti
almost exclusively on the ceremony of corona
with the past. Many in the province and else
his symbols, unsupported by strong politi
provincial landholders and inhabitants of Aw
the audience or addressed by recognized sym
the entire incident. Thus, the ceremony prove
of independence from the Mughals and a pro
primarily within the Awadh court which aut
which supported it.
Once Ghizi
coronation, andal-Din .Haydar
the lengthy andof
testing his
thecou
att
been pushed as far as possible, the preparatio
were begun. Since this was the first ceremony
the dynasty, each bit of regalia seems to hav
occasion. By studying each in detail, a sync
forms and expressions of sovereignty cons
Lucknow court can be undertaken.
As we have seen, the coins issued by the Awadh ruler were apparently
regarded as one of the most fundamental means of publicizing his
pretensions. Circulated far beyond his own territories, these coins spread
his name and titles everywhere they passed. Acceptance of these coins
was tantamount to acceptance of the titles they bore; coins were known
to be rejected because the claims they carried were unacceptable to the
recipient.49 The coins that were to be released by the Awadh Padshih
after his coronation were designed by two Saksena Kiyasthas (Hindus),
Raushan Lail and Jam'iyat Riy, who had left their homes in Shahjehan-
pur in Rohillkund and come to Lucknow to find service under the
Awadh rulers in their mint.s5 Like so many others, they seem to have
been of the service elite employed in the Mughal Empire and its
49 In 1840, for example, the Awadh PJdshih refused to accept at face value any coins
but his own. Resident to Accountant, N.W. Provinces, n.d., IPC 22 June 1840, no. 130.
Later the British rejected coins that they suspected had been issued by Birjis Qadr, the
leader of the 'mutineers' in Awadh. T. D. Forsyth, Secretary to Chief Commissioner,
Lucknow, circular of 7 January 1859, no. 1/27 of 1859, U.P. State Archives, Lucknow,
Board of Revenue, file 2273.
50 Najm al-Ghani, 4: 141.
THE IMPERIAL CORONATION OF I 8 I 9 259
successors. The symbols they expressed on the coins reflected those
traditions rather than any peculiar to the Awadh region. Specifically,
these coins advanced Ghazi al-Din IHI aydar's claims by now calling
Lucknow
empire, the dar
reign, al-saltanat,
kingdom, or royal in
or principality) residence (from
place of da'r salt.natThey
al-amarat. meaning
were dated from the coronation about to take place."' Further, a
coronation medal was prepared for distribution to the principal
participants in the ceremony. It bore verses praying:
May the royal life last a thousand years,
Remaining a thousand years in the Grace of God.52
Some ten to twenty million rupees (equivalent to one or two million

pounds Sterling) were authorized for the construction of the parapher-
nalia necessary for the ceremony itself, under the charge of the Hindu
moneylender and official Shaih Bihari Lal.5" The most prominent items
built for the ceremony were a throne, masnad, surmounted by a canopy
or umbrella, chatr. This sovereign seat can be found as an integral
element in royal installations throughout much of Asia and was
certainly recognized in all parts of India. Several times, Mughal
imperial troops marched out to crush pretenders who raised such a royal
throne and umbrella, such as the rebel Prince Jahaingir, because none
but a sovereign could possess them.54
A detailed description of the throne constructed by the Awadh court
can be compiled from several sources:
The throne is a flat surface, about two yards square, raised two feet from the
floor.., which was composed of massy gold, richly embellished with a
profusion of diamonds, pearls, emeralds, rubies and other precious gems... so
that it scintillated like the sky full of stars, and a cushion of red velvet lay upon
the throne.., upon three sides of it is a railing.., and over which was
extended the royal umbrella, formed of golden tissue superbly adorned with
jewels. The throne was overspread by a canopy of costly fabric, exquisitely
embroidered with pearls, intermixed with precious stones, and supported by
four pillars of gold studded with gems of various colors... [the canopy] was
some forty yards long and twenty yards wide."55
5' No. 3, Type D in Brown, 'Coins of the Kings,' p. 258.

52 Sir Richard Burn, 'The Coronation Medal of the First King of Oudh,' Journal of the
Numismatic Society of India 3, pt 2 (December 1941): 113-14-.
53 Najm al-Ghani, 4: 144. KamSil al-Din Haydar, Tari~kh-i Awadh, I: 245.
54 Khan Bahadur Pirzada Muhammad Husain, 'The Coronation of Muhammadan
Sovereigns,' Journal of the Panjab Historical Society 2 (19I 2): I42.Jalaluddin, 'Sultan Salim
(Jahangir) as a Rebel King,' Islamic Culture 47, no. 2 (April 1973):121-5.
55 Mrs Meer Hassan Ali, Observations on the Mussulmauns of India, 2 vols (London:
Parbury Allen, 1832), I : 268-9. Resident to Secretary to Government, 20 October 1819,
BPC 20 November 1819, no. 98. Najm al-Ghani, 4: 144.
The detailed richness of the throne an

was intended to display the wealth an
perhaps to rival the Peacock Throne
carried off by Nadir Shah after his 1
If the throne and umbrella seem to
and Indian patterns, the crown desig
have been of European inspiration
headgear was found in most royal cou
used by Ghazi al-Din Haydar app
innovation not only in its shape but
western Asia, appearing bare-hea
indication of humility and there w
their turbans at the foot of their supe
to remove someone else's headgear
Ghazi al-Din Haydar's introduction
India seems to have been a consciou
European tradition and context.
appearing in court without the
itself-was accepted as part of the cos
The crown and robes used in the
origins. The former is universally d
truth was not a royal crown of India o
European type.., formed almost ex
magne on a pack ofcards.57 While it i
from the model suggested, a serie
employed as an artist by Ghizi al-Din
of arms, crown and coronation robes
used in addition to fanciful headgea
claims to have obtained the actual c
Archer comments that the new Pad
of that of the Garter.. .'58. Thus,
56 The use of a regular crown or coronation
unknown in Islamic tradition. EI, s.v. 'tadj.
s7 Sh~rar Guzishta Lakhn'ii, pp. 305-6. Dr
Continental India (Edinburgh: William F. K
Archaeology, Loan Exhibit of Antiquities: Corona
the Principal Exhibits (Calcutta: Archaeological
32, figures i-3.J. G. A. Baird (ed.), Private Lett
William Blackwood, 191 I ), p. 169.
58 Robert Home, 'Album', and Robert Sm
Hindustan, 1828-1833', vol. 2, fol. 603, Orien
Museum, London. Major [Edward C.] Archer,
Himalayan Mountains, 2 vols (London: Richa
accouterments combined traditional Mughal court dress wit

liarly European elements.
Having drawn upon such diverse origins for the pattern
symbolic forms of his regalia for the coronation ceremony, Gha
HIaydar set the date for the eighteenth of Zi al-Hijja, '1235
ninth of October 1819, a Saturday. This day is significant to
because on that day, at Ghadir al-Khumm, a depression located
between Mecca and Medina, the Prophet Muhammad paused during
his last pilgrimage. The Shi'ites believe that he then revealed to his
assembled companions that 'Ali, triply related to him, was to be the first
Imam and his true political successor.59 Ghizi al-Din IHIaydar appar-
ently chose this day to emphasize the identification he sought as the true,
Shi'i sovereign and the Sunni, and therefore illegitimate, nature of the
sovereignty of the Mughals.
All the necessary preparations having been accomplished, Ghaizi
al-Din Haydar assembled all the people he seems to have regarded as
important to his coronation-or at least those of them he could induce to
come (the Mughal princes, as we shall see, were considered important
but could not be made to attend). Invited and present as audience were
the members of Ghizi al-Din IHaydar's family; especially prominent
were the Heir and Ghizi al-Din Haydar's brother. The Mujtahid and
the Minister headed the contingent of notables and officials of the
Awadh court, including some Europeans in the service of the Awadh
ruler. The Resident led a large contingent of East India Company
civilians and officers, the most prominent being Major-General Dyson
Marshall, commanding in Cawnpur. Finally there were the various
European travellers who happened to be in Lucknow at the time and an
unknown number of locals referred to in the accounts as the general
audience. It seems that the latter was remarkably deficient in notable
people who lived outside of the capital: large landholders, Ta'alluqdfirs,
and Rajas in whom the Awadh rulers consistently showed little interest
except at revenue collection time.
The most important male members of the assemblage described
above then mounted some four or five hundred elephants, decked out
lavishly for the occasion, and processed through the principal streets of
the capital, between the serried ranks of Awadh and East India
Company troops, to the Dar-gith of Hazrat 'Abb~is, one of the sons of
'Ali. This is one of the most significant Shi'i shrines in Lucknow and is
alleged to contain relics from the battle of Karbali'. Ghizi al-Din
59 EI, s.v. 'Ghadir ul Khumm.'
IHaydar, the Heir, and the Reside

building. The Awadh ruler perfor
apparently alone in the inner shrine,
himself, and the procession returned
the Farah-Bakhsh palace for a publ
The slight concern given by the
inhabitants of Awadh, and even of Lucknow, is clear. The sole
involvement of the population in the coronation ceremony was limited
to witnessing this single excursion from the palace complex, itself
intended less to display the new Pidshih to the people even of the
capital-he had not even been made into a Pidshah yet-than simply to
get to the Dar-gih and back. The 'public breakfast' seems to have
included only those who took part in the procession, and would take part
in the coronation, and those of their women who could appear in
'public.' For the people outside of the capital, the only consequences of
the coronation were a new style coin, a levy for the ceremony's expenses,
and a proclamation to the lower level officials of the administration of
their ruler's new dignities. Apparently not considered part of his
audience or particularly of his domain, the people of Awadh did not
figure significantly in Ghazi al-Din Haydar's coronation ceremony. He
undertook no royal procession and thus did little to reintegrate Awadh
around himself. Instead, his claimed domain may have included the
entire world, but he primarily asserted his new symbols and rank in the
context of his own court.
Since the ceremony about to take place was to elevate Ghizi al-Din
Haydar to a status higher than he had hitherto enjoyed, he demanded
certain additional marks of respect be shown to him, even before the
actual ceremony had taken place. It was '... arranged that no
Palankeens or Umbrellas should be admitted into the inner court of the
Palace, with the exception of the Resident, in whose favour that form
was dispensed with in compliment to the British Government'.6o
Further, Ghaizi al-Din Haydar refused to walk about but was rather
borne by a 'Chair of state' from the breakfast chamber to the Darbir in
the Bira-dari palace while the Resident and the Heir escorted him on
foot.
On their arrival, the various people proceeded to their assigned

stations in the hall and Ghazi al-Din Haydar withdrew to an adjacent
room to engage in private prayer and to be robed for the coronation.
Finally:
60 Resident to Secretary to Government, 12 October 1819, BPC 20 November 1819,
no. 98.
THE IMPERIAL CORONATION OF I 8 19 263
His Excellency came forth from the apartment preceded by the Minister
MootumudooDowlah bearing the crown, and by an officer of the household
carrying the sword of state, and attended also by the high priest [the Mujtahid]
to the foot of the throne.
His Excellency having ascended the lower steps of the throne, the Minister
passed the crown.., into the hands of the priest who placed it on His
Excellency's head, His Excellency then turning toward me [the Resident],
embraced me in the most cordial manner, and immediately mounted the
throne...
The act of assuming the crown was accompanied by a discharge of i o

from each of the parks of artillery and a royal salute was fired from the
Brigade of guns stationed at the Residency, while all the troops presented
and the band played God Save the King... The King being now enth
the high priest proclaimed his royal dignity by the titles [Abfi al-Muza
Mu 'iss al-Din, Shih-i Zaman, Ghizl al-Din IHIaydar, Pidshih-i Ghizi m
Father of the Victorious, Glorifying the Faith, Lord of the Age, his
Emperor of the Warriors of the Faith] and at the conclusion of that solem
large quantities of small pieces of gold and silver made in imitation of f
together with jewels and precious stones were showered around the thr
repeated at intervals agreeable to Eastern Etiquette as a dispensation
royal bounty and favor..,. although they were separately of little worth
collective value must have been considerable.61
It appears from this detailed account that the two central actors in the
coronation were the Mujtahid and Ghazi al-Din HIaydar himself. The
former, in placing the crown on Ghazi al-Din Haydar's head and
proclaiming his titles would have been regarded by Shi'ites as acting as
the highest interpreter of the will of God and as the spiritual leader of the
Shii community. The latter, by embracing the Resident before
mounting the throne, attempted to demonstrate the Company's very
necessary support for the coronation while at the same time elevating
himself above the rest of the court, including the Resident. The
hundred-and-one gun salute and the anthem 'God Save the King' were
obvious borrowings from the British but the symbolic distribution of
royal bounty (nisar) appears to have Central Asian roots. Thus, the
Awadh court pieced together diverse symbols in an attempt to express
most
Noweffectively
transformedthe sovereignty
into a Padshmh,Ghizi
Ghazial-Din
al-Din.Haydar assumed.
Haydar set about
establishing the hierarchy of relations he would maintain with the
various people and representatives present in his Darbar. First, their
assigned position in the hall ranked them relative to the P~dshah and to
each other. On the right of the throne and seated were those second only
in rank to Ghazi al-Din Haydar himself: the Heir and the Resident. On
61 Ibid.
the left of the throne and seated was Major-

to the right of the Resident progressively dis
the P~dshah's brother, his near relatives, dist
and finally the principal ministers of the co
Marshall were the official Europeans, and
peans. Standing facing the throne were the o
officials of the Awadh administration, courtie
Awadh ruler.
Next Ghizi
personally al-Din .Haydar
integrative followed
bonds between the Mughal
himself pattern
and those of f
of his court
administration, through the graduated exchange of nazr and khil'a
The Heir Apparent now arose and presented to his Royal Father a nuz
IoI gold mohurs in his own name and a tusuddok [alms or charity
distributed by the Plidshth] of 25,000 Rupees on the part of his mother
Padshah Begum, and was invested in the Presence with an honorary dress
highest description that could be conferred.
His Majesty's brother, the principal members of the court, and the Euro
Gentlemen attached to his Majesty's family severally presented nuzza
were likewise invested with khillauts.62
Both the nazr and the khil'at were specific in quantity and quality to the
rank of the person involved. Since the khil'at was, in theory, a garment
actually worn by the Padshah, the very personal nature of the link
between them can be appreciated.63 Further, the gradations in the
number and quality of the items included served to rank the recipient:
The honorary dresses having been thus distributed, the customary presents
were offered to me [the Resident] as his Lordship's [the Governor General's]
representative and particularly pressed upon my acceptance, but as I deemed it
impossible to depart from the established practice at this court, I declined them
in the usual manner.64
The reasons for this practice of declining presents seem to have been two:
the prevention of the nefarious financial transactions between the
servants of the Company and the Indian rulers that had characterized
its early days, and the fear that such presents might be regarded as
khil'ats thus indicating a subordinate status for the Company. The
Resident continues his account of the coronation ceremony:
On taking leave at the foot of the throne, I was presented with a garland and
attr [perfume] from the hands of His Majesty and was conducted from the
62 Ibid.
63F. W. Buckler, 'The Oriental Despot,' Anglican Theological Review Io
(I927-28):238-49.
64 Resident to Secretary to Government, i2 October 1819, BPC 20 November 1819,
no. 98.
THE IMPERIAL CORONATION OF I8I9 265
Royal Presence into a separate apartment by the Heir Apparent. Major
General Sir Dyson Marshall and all the officers and ladies retired at the same
time, bowing to the throne as they passed, and joined the Heir Apparent and
myself in the antichamber where they received complimentary presents which
had been prepared for them agreeably to their respective ranks and were
dismissed with attr by the hands of the Heir Apparent.
The ceremony was concluded with a discharge of three volleys of musquetry
from each of the Battalions of British troops, and bands playing between each
volley.65
The Awadh court thus combined elements from the various traditions
it contained in order to create a coronation ceremony that would elevate
Ghizi al-Din Haydar to the status of Padshah: chosen by God to be
above all the other men in India. The ceremony, its paraphernalia, and
the new forms of deference to be shown to him were all devised by th
ruler and his courtiers to conform to their own notions of sovereignty
and its symbolic expressions. The Shi'f traditions of the ruler and his
Minister, the traditions of his mainly Kayastha officials, the traditions of
his European retainers and of the Company, all in reference to the
Mughal traditions (themselves a broad combination of central and
South Asian elements) can each be identified as contributing some part
to the ceremony. The resultant redefinition of the status of the Awadh
ruler clearly pleased him and his immediate attendants but it did no
suit the understanding of his position held by the Company or the vast
majority of the inhabitants of Awadh or the remainder of the Mughal
Empire. In the years following the coronation, the role claimed for
himself by the new Padshah was challenged by those outside his court.
Even the Company, which had initially urged his elevation, had actively
supported his early expressions of enhanced authority and had lent the
vital presence of the Resident and its troops in Awadh-paid for in
perpetuity by the ruler in I8ol through a cession of territory to the
Company-for the ceremonials, dramatically altered its stance.
Quickly, then, the discordance between the Awadh Padshah's pro-
claimed status and his political position led to further redefinition of his
role and significant change in the coronation ritual itself.
The Awadh P~dshih and the World
Ghizi al-Din Haydar's efforts to redefine his universe and reorder his
relationships to those within and without his capital met with only
65 Ibid.
partial success. Those who had not par

included as part of the audience had yet to formalize any new
relationship to the Awadh Padshah. Even those who had symbolically
recognized his new status, notably the East India Company, began to
demand further modification in the ruler's position and links to them.
Thus, the ruler's status and its symbolic expression had to undergo
reinterpretation almost from the moment the ceremony concluded.
Most prominent among those who had not attended the ceremony or
given their approval to it were the members of the Mughal imperial
court in Delhi. As a body they responded to Ghizi al-Din HIaydar's
apostasy and pretensions with 'undisguised indignation' and a 'sense of
outrage'.66 Out of'considerations ofdelicacy toward His Majesty Akber
Shah' the British tried to weed out the new coins issued by the Awadh
Padshih from among those they submitted to the Mughal imperial
treasury.67 Since for many years all comnmunications between the two
rulers had been through the medium of the East India Company, there
were few if any occasions when a question of precedence arose. Hastings
thus seems to have accomplished his object of preventing any possible
cooperation between them-at least until the 'mutiny' of I857. While
the Mughal court simply refused to recognize the Awadh ruler's claims,
it 'could only vent its anger in pasquinades upon the Vizier's arrogated
dignity.'68 The Awadh Pidshahs, on their part, simply ranked
themselves ahead of the Mughals at the top of their published lists of the
rulers of India.69
For the Mughal imperial family living in Lucknow on pensions from
the Awadh ruler, the question of recognition of Ghizi al-Din HIaydar's
new status was more difficult. The new Padshah and the Company seem
to have exerted every pressure they could bring to bear on the Mughal
Prince Sulayman Shukih and his relatives to force them to accept Ghazi
al-Din Haydar as an equal after so many years of treating him as an
inferior. When Sulayman Shukih was finally made to agree to a
meeting in his home, he conceded grudging and brusque equality,
terminating the meeting as quickly as etiquette allowed.70 Ghzi al-Din
.Haydar continued to press for further signs of equality and eventually

66 Hastings, 'Summary,' p. I I. Archer, Tours, I: 21.
67 Resident to Secretary to Government, I6 November I819, BPC 20 November
I819.
68 Archer, Tours, 1: 21.
69 Sayyid KamBl al-Din Haydar, Lucknow Almanac for the Year 1849 (Lucknow: H.M.
Press, I849), p. 46.
To Kamil al-Din Haydar, Tarikh-i Awadh, I:245-6.
prevailed upon the Mughal prince to give his daughter in marriage t
the Awadh Heir about which the Mughal later complained:
But since..,. the rulers of Lucknow have with the permission and approbatio
of the British Government assumed the imperial style and character, I hav
been subjected to great indignation on the one side from the British Residen
this [Lucknow] court..,. and on the other side from the Ruler of this place, w
treats me with disrespect and wanton insult... I was compelled to give
daughter in marriage to his son, the present King of Oudh.7'
On their part, the prominent landholders, Ta'alluqdirs, and Rajas o

the region of Awadh did not seem to regard themselves as integr
involved in the Lucknow court, nor did they appear to be particularl
welcome
new titles there. Ghazitoal-Din
do not seem .Haydar's
have had coronation
a great impact ceremony
outside and his
of his capital.
The various landholders generally appear to have respected his new
dignities, particularly in their missives to him, but his functional
relationship with them does not appear to have changed. He still
represented legitimate sovereign authority over Awadh; whether he did
so in the name of the Mughal Emperor or in his own seems to have made
little difference to those living in the Awadh countryside. European
travellers agree that:
The vassals of the Vizier, though they held themselves his immediate subjects
resisted his claim to raise the umbrella of royalty over his head, knowing that he
himself was only a vassal of the King [the Mughal-Emperor]; neither did they
omit to ridicule his presumptuous pretentions, by persisting to refuse the title
Padshah . ..
... in reply to any questions respecting him, the answer invariably was 'th
Nawaub'.. .72
Najm al-Ghlini writes that following the coronation mos

landholders of the region around Lucknow sent in nazrs of co
tion to the new Padshah but that a few 'shortsighted ones' stre
their forts and went into rebellion.73 It is not clear, however
rebellions were in response to Ghazi al-Din Haydar's disloya
Mughal Emperor, or were merely the perennial rebellions und
to escape the revenue collectors.
Other Indian rulers varied in their response to GhSzi al-Din
assertion of imperium. The Nizam of Hyderabad criticized
7 Mirza Soleman Shookoh letter received 3 July 1828, BPC I August 1
72 Reginald Heber, Narrative of a Journey through the Upper Provinces oflndiaf
to Bombay, 1824 to 1825, 2 vols (Philadelphia: Carey, Lea and Carey, 1
Charles A. Elliott, Chronicles of Oonao, A District of Oudh (Allahabad: Allaha
Press, 1862), p. I23. Archer, Tours, 1:21.
73 Najm al-Ghani, 4: 146.
disloyalty to his true sovereign.'4

Nizaim but a few attempted to sen
the new Pidsh~ih on his coronation
Bahidur of Chukarry (in Bundelk
'memorial or address to a superio
muhurs, together with assorted gi
Apparently apprehensive that th
coalition to rival their own, the B
Biji Bahidur but also the local Com
matter more subtly instead of for
late relations among its subordi
Rampur, the direct dependent o
prohibited from tendering his naz
The East India Company thus stri
all its subordinate allies from eac
form the sole channel of comm
Emperor had regularly been pre
communication with the British Ki
same restriction on the new Pad
however, sent letters of friendshi
Calcutta in the care of trusted me
an elaborate golden bedcurtain, emb
sword that Nawib Asaf al-Daula ha
jewel-set hilt, a very valuable sword b
and sword boxes covered with thous
These gifts and messages reached t

responded with:
an answer of friendship... with a perf
proper titles, phrases and forms of ad
are in every way the complete master
A horse was sent from the English roy
74 Resident Hyderabad [Russell] to Go

January I820, no. 13.
75 Arzdasht from Raja Bijy Bahadur of
Oudh, BPC 3 February 1821, no. 5.
76 Deputy Secretary to Government t
Bundelkund, 3 February 1821, BPC 3 Fe
7 Resident to Secretary to Government
22.
78 King of Delhi to King of England, 17 March I821, BPC 17 March 1

Prinsip to Ochterlony, Io March I821, BPC Io March I821, no. 74.
79 Muhammad Ahmad 'All, p. 45.
thousands, together with a golden saddle, a gold embroidered saddlecl
pair of gilded pistol holsters, many gilded guns, and many thousand rupees
Cooperating with the Company, however, the English King sent th

things to Lucknow through their agency. Soon closing off th
connection between its subordinate and its sovereign, the Com
blocked all future attempts by Awadh to communicate directly with
English crown.
In the relationship between the Company and Ghgizi al-Din Hayd
neither party was able fully to satisfy its expectations. The Compa
had insisted that the coronation must in no way alter the relations
between it and the Awadh ruler. On the other hand, it expected
coronation to change the relationship between the Mughal Emp
and the new PidshiTh in the most fundamental ways. Faced with G
al-Din Haydar's demands, based on his expectations of the results o
coronation and their continuing financial debts to him, the Com
officials at first made concessions but continued to press for furth
modification of the coronation ceremony and the status of Pidshai
order to bring these into greater accord with their own values. Ind
they are said to have issued a disclaimer in Persian, publicly circula
in Lucknow, that disavowed any responsibility for the Awadh coro
tion.s
The Awadh court, as we have already seen, assumed that certain
perquisites would naturally accompany Ghaizi al-Din Haydar's new
status as Padshih. The first area of conflict between their expectations
and those of the Company related to the titles that had been proclaimed
at the coronation: Father of the Victorious, Honored of the Faith, Lord
of the Age, Emperor of the Warriors of the Faith. The Governor General
immediately objected to these titles on two grounds: they were more
presumptuous than the Company could allow, and they imitated too
closely those of the Mughal Emperors. He writes:
It is thence necessary to furnish you [the Resident] with a precise explanation of
the principle on which the royalty of the Ruler of Oude is acknowledged by the
British Government.
This principle is that Royal Titles and Dignities very properly accord with
the extensive sovereignty and large revenues actually exercised and enjoyed by
the Ruler of that country . .. there is no expression in these titles which in any
degree limits the assumed Royalty of the Rulers of Oude to their own
dominions.
The boundless comprehensiveness of the literal interpretations of 'Shah i
80so Ibid.
81 Kaml al-Din Ilaydar, Tarikh-i Awadh, quotes this Persian proclamation, 1:244.
Zummun, Padshah i Ghazee'... the abs

regarded the Kings of Dihlee, from its h
days-when a childish bombast characterized rule. But in the present
enlightened age the assumption of it would appear discreditably silly if it were
understood to have no meaning, would appear an injurious defiance to the
other Powers if it were understood really to purport what it expressed.82
Written after the titles had already been proclaimed, this letter
assumes that Ghizi al-Din Haydar should naturally have regarded
himself as a petty prince of a territorial state. Even though he had
approved the coins that Ghizi al-Din Haydar had submitted to him
bearing the first of the titles that the Governor General objected to, the
Resident was ordered to advise the new Pidshih to drop both of the
objectionable titles and to substitute for them only 'Pidshaih of Awadh.'
The Governor General continues his objections to the titles: At the same time, it
is undesirable that the British Government should be supposed to concur in the
elevation of a rival King of India, in opposition to the King of Dihlee inasmuch
as the procedure might be misinterpreted into a wanton oppression of a
dignified tho' unfortunate Family. Onto that account it is much to be regretted
that so exact an imitation of the forms and titles of the court of Dihlee has been
adapted at Lucknow as is calculated to produce the impression that a special
competition has been intended.83
The Company had intended only to level all the rulers of India,
including the Mughal Emperor, as kings under their paramountcy.
Instead of deflating one Pidshih, by supporting the coronation the
Governor General seems to have felt himself now plagued by two.
These sudden objections, coming even in his letter of congratulations
from the Governor General, seem to have struck Ghizi al-Din Haydar
into bewildered anxiety. As we have seen, he appears to have tried to
forestall just such an occurrence by checking with the Company prior to
each new step rather than have to retreat from his assertions after they
had already been made public. Now the Governor General was telling
him to withdraw two of his titles after they had been broadcast on coins,
medals and seals, and had been given authority by the Mujtahid. He
and his court had been acting in full accord with the traditions they
adhered to: his titles reflected the appropriate degree of dignity due him
in his new status. In his reply to the Governor General's objections,
Ghizi al-Din HIaydar recounts the history of his steps to imperium and
then goes on to explain to the Governor General the principle on which
he based his royalty and chose his titles:
82 Secretary to Government to Resident, 20 November 1819, BPC 20 November
I819, no. 59.
83 Ibid.
THE IMPERIAL CORONATION OF 18 19 27I
Nor can it be unknown to your Lordship that the words which the Pr
annex to the title of King, such as the King of the Time [Shih-i Zaman], c
not be assumed in a literal sense by any one but the Monarch whose em
should extend over the habitable globe, nor even to him, could the Epithe
strictly applied in its fullest signification-Such terms therefore are m
figurative whether the Prince assuming them reign over large or s
kingdoms, and accordingly other contemporaneous potentates have n
made any objections as may be seen by reference to the history of their re
Even in these later times Zumaun Shah the King of Caubal (as well as othe
who have possessed a few Provinces only yielding a small revenue) st
himself the King of the Time and the ruler of Toorkistaun and Persia too
umbrage at it. By the words Juhann (world) Zumaun (time) and others of
similar import nothing more is meant than the portion of territory which
Prince may actually possess. Nay, to descend still lower, Amarahs (nobles)
received from their sovereigns titles such as KhaunJuhaun (Lord of the Wo
Khaun Dauran (Lord of the Age) Khaun Zamaun (Lord of the Age) K
Alam (Lord of the Earth) from which it is evident that these words were
intended to be taken in their literal sense. When this subject therefore is ri
considered it will appear that in assuming such titles no innovation has ta
place but on the contrary, this practice has invariably prevailed. Moreove
examination of seals, furmauns, and titles, it will be evident that the name o
particular country over which the Prince reigns is not taken as part of his
and titles... I trust that your Lordship will follow the dictates of friendshi
honor with respect to the retention of the word Zumaun.
As to the word 'Ghazee' since it is part of my proper name..,. and since
literal significance of words forming titles of Royalty is absolutely merged,
particularly this word is never understood in its primitive meaning but is m
used as synonymous with Behader (hero) there does not appear to be
objection to its repetition...84
Ghizi al-Din Haydar's argument is that he is not a territorial r

but rather a Paidshih who happens to be situated in and limit
Awadh. Just as the Mughal founder in India, Baibur, was of royal s
even before he established himself in India, so too Ghizi al-Din Ilay
perceived himself as of the status of Pidshih rather than as the ru
the Awadh region. On his coins, Ghizi al-Din Haydar never referred
the kingdom ofAwadh, only to the suiba or province ofAwadh and t
capital as the seat of the saltfinat, neither confining his status to t
delimited area. This is not to assert that he had expansionist dream
only to point out that he apparently felt that the coronation
confirmed him at a new status not in a regionally oriented kingdom
In his choice of precedents quoted above, Ghazi al-Din HIaydar loo
to Kabul and to the proximate Middle East rather than to Ind
appears that he saw himself in the traditions of Islamic sovereignty,
84 King of Oudh to Governor General, 29 March I820, BPC 22 April I820, n
Indian. As to the Governor Genera

imitating the Mughals, Ghazi al-Din H
were simply the most recent express
both. He continues: 'After my assum
help citing and imitating the House o
themselves were not the authors of all the customs, but have often
continued former practices.'8s
His final argument is that, had he known that the Governor General's
views on these titles were going to be hostile, he would have certainly
discussed them before publicizing them but, once proclaimed, to
withdraw them would be degrading for him and for his British allies as
well.86 At last, after prolonged negotiation, both sides had to com-
promise. The Company permitted Shah-i Zaman to remain and Ghazi
al-Din Haydar permitted himself to be addressed as the Padshah of
Awadh in all official correspondence with the Company or with foreign
parties, but within Awadh he continued to use all his proclaimed
titles."87
The conflict between the variant perceptions of the dignities appro-
priate to the Awadh Padshmhs continued throughout the remainder of
their tenure. When Nasir al-Din Haydar ascended the throne, he
dropped the controversial Shah-i Zaman and substituting Shah-i
Jahin, or Lord of the World, in its place, only to have the Governor
General object and order the restitution of the Shth-i Zaman that had
been objected to under Ghazi al-Din Haydar.88 At least as late as 1842,
the assertions by the Padshahs were being vetoed by the Governors
General of successive generations.89 Beyond the titles of the Padshahs
themselves, the same pattern of assertion and objection encompassed the
enhanced titles given to the PadshTh's wives, the departments of the
administration and to the members of his court.90
For Ghazi al-Din Haydar and his court, the sequence was inexorable:
The first efforts were made by the issue of coinage, and as no coinage was issued
in the name of any sovereign without his possessing a throne and the name of
85 King of Oudh to Resident, 30 June 1825, BPC 14 October 1825, no. 13.
86 King of Oudh to Governor General, 29 March I820, BPC 22 April I820, no. 22.
87 Secretary to Government to Resident, 22 April 1820, BPC 22 April I820, no. 25.
King of Oudh to Governor General, 28 July 1820, BPC 12 August 1820, no. 19.
88 Resident to Secretary to Government 22 October 1827, BPC 2 November 1827, no.
19. Secretary to Government to Resident, 2 November 1827, BPC 2 November 1827, no.
41.
89 Resident to Political Secretary to Government of India, 18 May I842, India
Political Consultations 15IJune 1847, no. 37, Commonwealth Relations Office, London.
90 Resident to Governor General, 20 October I827, BPC i6 November I827, no. 15.
Najm al-Ghani, p. 146.
Royalty, it was necessary to obtain this also with its appurtenances, an

account the officers of the Honorable Company acknowledged it
principle when any measure is recognized, every thing that has any co
with it must also be undoubtedly acknowledged though all its part mig
particularized.91
In accordance with this principle, the Pidshih's Minister receive

and more appropriate titles: (i) Nawab (meaning 'Deputy
honorific plural), (2) Madar al Mah/mm ('Minister'), (3) 'Umdat
('Pillar of the Nobility'), (4) Farzand-i Anjamand ('Rare Son'),
Wafra-ddr ('Sincere Friend'), (6) Mu'tamadal-Daula ('Trust of the
(7) Mukhtar al-Mulk ('Chosen of the Nation'), (8) Bahadur ('H
.aygham
Chief'), (I I)Jang
Fidw7 ('Lion
Shiih-i in Battle'),
Zaman Ghdsz (io) Sipzh
al-Din Saldr
HIaydar ('Commander-in-
('Faithful Servant
of the Lord of the Age Ghazi al-Din Haydar'). This was too much for the
Governor General who demanded that the titles be withdrawn as
inappropriate for the scale of the Awadh court and so imitative of
Mughals as to insult all and sundry.92
Ghazi al-Din HIaydar responded with a defence of the titles and h
right to give them. He argued that he was compelled by tradition a
the precedents he honored and shared with the Mughals to award t
particular titles:93
It is well known that since the Creation of the World, when fate gave the r
[sic] of Government to Sovereigns, there has been a person to conduct the
of the State; But where the Sovereign is not called 'King' his Minister is c
'Naib' but when a Sovereign is designated 'King' his Minister is titled 'Wuz
No King has ever been without a Wuzeer though he might be the sovereig
ever so small a tract of land, like the ancient Kings in the neighbo
countries of Hindoostan such as Cashmere, Malwah, Sind, etc.
It is also requisite that the Minister should have some distinction i
address and title above the other nobles of the State. . . At all events all
Monarchs have possessed the power of elevating the titles of their subjects.
He then explains the rationale for the choice of the titles he bestowed.
He breaks them down into five distinct categories with the further
provision that the rules of phraseology be observed: First, there were
those titles regarded as normal for members of the court, chosen
appropriate to the recipient's status and seniority (here titles numbered
I, 3, 4, 8, 9). Second, there were titles specific to the function held by the
noble (2). Third, some titles were appropriate to the office of Wazir (6,
9' King of Oudh to Resident, 3o0 June 1825, BPC 14 October 1825, no. 13.
92 Resident to King of Oudh, 26 May 1825, BPC 14 October 1825, no. I2.
93 King of Oudh to Resident, 30 June 1825, BPC io October I825, no. 13.
7) while, fourth, some were optional

titles expressed the special relation
concerned and his sovereign (I I). Fur
titles, such as Shuji' (Valiant) and
superiority to those he had awarded
intricate and fully developed system o
not seem to have pressed his objectio
The other major area of conflict b
Company concerned the protocol to
IHaydar and the Resident. The latt
former of altering established usages
... for on the occasion of my first visit a
coronation, His Majesty allowed me to be
Muhulsera to meet His Majesty... on m
me to the usual place of separation, [he]
where he presented the atter and gave m
The Resident suspected this innovat

The new Padshih asserted the necessity for '... the introduc-
tion.., of some additional forms which the respect due to the Royal
Dignity renders indispensable and the neglect of which would expose me
to the blame and censure of everyone far and near.'95 We have already
seen that he prohibited the use of umbrellas and palanquins in his
presence and to this were added other regulations designed to enhance
his dignity. For example, hookas were also prohibited in his presence
and he refused to climb stairs, demanding he be carried.96 This latter
provision demanded a change in the etiquette of his visits to the
Residency. During the negotiations that ensued, each side pressed for
advantages and increased prestige for itself. Finally, the Resident wrote
to his superiors in Calcutta that a settlement had been reached that he
was assured by his associates gained points for the Company:
The impression which has been produced on the minds of others by the change
has been opposite of what His Majesty expected, as His Majesty notwithstand-
ing his being carried up the stair [of the Residency], agreeable to his wish, is
generally considered to have lost rather than gained in dignity, following
94 Resident to Secretary to Government, 6 May 1820, BPC 22 April 1820, no. 23.
95 King of Oudh to Governor General, 29 May 1820, BPC 22 April 1820, no. 22.
96 H. H. Spry, Modern India with Illustrations of the Resources and Capabilities of Hindustan,
2 vols (London: Whittaker, I837), I: 228. Resident to Governor General, 19 May 1929,
BPC 22 April 1820, no. 24. Further, Ghizi al-Din ;Iaydar specified an entirely new set of
Persian terms and forms of address to be substituted for those hitherto current in
correspondence between himself and the Company. Resident to Persian Secretary to
Government, 17 July 1820, BPC 12 August 1820, no. 18.
instead of accompanying me up the stairs, and by taking leave at the he

stairs instead of requiring me to conduct him down.97
While further details of the continuing negotiations and inte

between the Company and the Awadh P~dshihs would not ad
it is necessary to examine the dramatic and fundamental change
relationship that took place on the fourth annual anniversary a
initial coronation ceremony. For the three years following t
coronation, the anniversary ceremony appears to have follo
original pattern. With the arrival of a new Resident, Mord
Ricketts, however, the center of the coronation changed as the R
interposed himself between the Mujtahid and the Pidsh~ih; 'I [R
had the honour to put on [Ghizi al-Din Haydar] the crown and
of state when His Majesty ascended the throne.'"9 No reason is g
this fundamental redefinition of the relationship between the R
the Resident but one assumes that the new Resident simply for
Ruler to give way. Since the Resident continued to play thi
legitimizing role in place of the Mujtahid, the Company acqu
another hold over the Awadh ruler. Residents from this point
their central role in the coronation and its anniversaries to pres
P~idshth into conformity with Company policies.
The Conclusion of the Awadh Imperial Claims
Even as Ghizi al-Din IHaydar and his courtiers advanced and sou
solidify his imperial pretensions, their control over the pr
Awadh and their significance in north India were diminishing.
efforts to transform a regional governor into the Pidshih of t
they created a ceremony which drew upon the symbols they
effective. Designed ad hoc, this ceremony represented the percep
the court itself as to the nature and expressions of sovereignty.
to that court, and unsupported by political authority of suffic
tojustify the universal pretensions to others, however, these sym
this ceremony do not seem to have had the intended effect
outside the world of the court.
The Mughal Emperor, who used many of the same symbols and had
even less defacto political power, could not prevent the ceremony nor
9 Resident to Secretary to Government, 19 May 1820, BPC 22 April 1820, no. 24.
98 Resident to Secretary to Government, 26 August 1823, BPC 12 September 1823,
no. 2I.
could he totally negate it. By rejecting his s

Mughal authority, the Mughal Emperor could t
quo.Just as he had with the East India Company
confrontation with the Awadh ruler in a test o
Company's plan of fragmenting the Empire prov
Empire remaining loyal to the Mughals, at
traditional authority of the Mughals persisted.
the last of the Awadh rulers returned to submis
four decades after the attempted defection of t
Empire, the mass of the people of north India co
legitimacy of the Mughal and followed his no
the British.
Within Awadh, as well, the people do not seem to have been involved
in or affected by the coronation of their ruler. The symbols utilized in the
ceremony did not strike the populace as sufficiently powerful to revoke
the long-standing traditions of the Mughal. The culture centered on the
Awadh ruler did not exert adequate influence over them to require their
recognition of its redefinition. They continued, much as before, to
accept the ruler's right to collect revenues and wield administrative
authority through his agents but they did not alter their understanding
of the universe in light of his pretensions.
The East India Company itself, despite its initial support for Ghizi
al-Din Haydar's moves toward independent sovereignty, continued its
extension of its influence over Awadh. Since the Awadh court's claims
did not fit the Company's perception of the practical realities of the
situation, the Resident forced a fundamental change in the source of the
Awadh ruler's authority and the statement of his status. The incorpora-
tion of a crown into the coronation met with approval since that was
'natural' for princes, but the use of a Mujtahid and the grand and
universal titles of the ruler were soon rejected by the Company.
The patterns developed under Ghizi al-Din IHaydar continued
during the reigns of his successors. The increasing involvement of the
Resident in the affairs of state were grudgingly recognized by the later
Awadh PidshSihs even as they clung to their imperial titles and
ceremonies. The 1819 coronation thus marks the fullest extension of the
Awadh ruler's political claims even while it coincided with the
continuing deterioration of his political condition.
In 1856, the East India Company determined to terminate what it
perceived to be the anachronism of the imperial rule of the Awadh
Pidshihs by the annexation of the province. The Company deposed
and exiled the last Awadh P~idshih and appointed the current resident
as Chief Commissioner charged with its direct administration. Th
dislocation and resentment generated in Awadh and elsewhere in north
India from this annexation contributed greatly to the outbreak of the
'mutiny' of 1857.
Much to the astonishment of the Company's officials, the Mugh
Emperor emerged during the 'mutiny' as the prime legitimizer of the
Indian cause. The Mughal's name headed orders throughout north
India directing the expulsion of the Company. The Mughal Emperor
authority was restored by the Indian 'mutineers' over Awadh as well.
Repudiating the imperial pretensions of his ancestors, Birjis Qadr, a
young son of the last Awadh Pidshlih proclaimed himself not an
independent ruler but rather the siibadSir of the Mughal Emperor. He i
reported to have sent an ambassador to the Mughal court bearing
petitions for confirmation as provincial governor. In return, he
apparently received a farman ordering him to rule in Awadh as th
Mughal governor and bestowing upon him the office of Wazir of t
Empire.99 Birjis Qadr further seems to have struck and issued coins of
the type that pre-dated Ghizi al-Din Haydar's alterations. These bo
the name of the late Mughal Emperor and the date 1229/1813-14.1
For Birjis Qadr--guided by his mother-and the courtiers of Awad
who supported him, the traditions of the Mughal Empire thus we
regarded as stronger than the imperial pretensions of the Awadh
P~idshahs. The Awadh court apparently believed that its restored rule
over Awadh would be legitimated more effectively by an appeal to the
Mughal Emperor than by recourse to the four decade old imperi
assertions of his predecessors in the Awadh court. The vast majority o
the inhabitants of Awadh seem to have concurred. Only with th
expulsion of Birjis Qadr and his supporters by the Company were thes
renewed Mughal imperial assertions finally ended. The British went on
to build their own imperial coronation ceremonies and system of
sovereignty over India which lasted until I947.
99 A. C. Bose, Hazrat WajidAli Shah, King ofOudh (n.p.: A. C. Bose, n.d.), p. 3o. KamMl
al-Din IHaydar, Qaysar al-Tawiarkh, 2 vols (Lucknow: Nevil Kishore, 1879), 2:223-
100 T. D. Forsyth, Secretary of Chief Commissioner, Lucknow, circular of 7 Januar
1859, no. 1/2- of I859, U.P. State Archives, Lucknow, Board of Revenue, General, f
2273. S. Martin, Deputy Commissioner, Lucknow, letter no. 189 of 1858, quoted
Richard Burn, 'The Machlidar Subah Awadh Coins,' Journal of the Asiatic Society o
Bengal 32, numismatic supplement (1922): I-2n.

Awadh History

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Awadh History

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The Imperial Coronation of 1819: Awadh, the British and the Mughals

Author(s): Michael H. Fisher

The Imperial Coronation of 1 8 1 9:

Western Washington University

His Majesty considering the assumption of the royal title an

Awadh, the English East India Company, and the Mughals

oo26-749X/85/o0804-0206$o2.oo ?1985 Cambridge University Press

Awadh, on the north bank of the Ga

1 Minutes of 18 November 1814, Bengal Secr

The Awadh rulers as Mughal provincial governors

Little in the behavior of the hereditary governors of the province of

dynasty, Sa'idat Khan, had earned his appointment as .si7bada~r

elevated to, and entrusted with, the post of Nawab-Wazir; this h

The final acknowledgement of the sovereignty of the Mughal E

the practice of mentioning his name in the khu.tba or sermon, e

The Governor General describes what he observed while visiting

8 Persian MS 84, Regional Archives, Allahabad.

either of them in the street, it was incu

Thus, the Awadh rulers accorded th

As early as 1739, on N~idir Shah's invasion of India, the first Awad

Upon his accession as the fourth Nawab, Asafal-Daula complied

Rather than bring about the 'Revolution' he feared, Asaf al-Daula

13 BahSdur Singh, 'YSdgSr-i BahSduri,' Persian MS 225, Regional Archives,

Even at this repeated summons, Asafal-Daula

court. Although by the eighteenth century in India the purity of

mark of royal distinction by some public act

The East India Company's Plans for Awadh

While it stands evident that the Awadh Nawabs consistently sought to

sentiment as to who governs them, provided their superstitions and

Hastings had to modify his plans but his intention continued to

Following their repudiation of Governor General Wellesley's

To improve this situation, Hastings tried to impleme

In Hastings' mind, therefore, the p

There is, however, in India a principle

Awadh thus appeared the key to shatt

27 Hastings, 'Summary,' p. I IO0.

Hastings' own account of the incident confirms that the Mughal

The King (of Delhi) had been carryi

Regardless of whether the Emperor

Hastings' trip to Delhi.3' On the Governor General's part, he instructe

30 Hastings, Journal, i: i7o-I.

Thus, the Company provided explicit support for the Nawib's

Ghizi al-Din Ijaydar and the Imperial Coronation

33 Hastings, 'Summary,' p. IIO.

35 Hastings, 'Summary,' p. I Io. Governor General to Court of Directors, 15 August

In April 1819, only a few months later, at a breakfast commemorating

First, sovereignty had once been possessed by

Third, the Awadh rulers emphasized their Shi'i identity in con

their house as a corporate entity. Several Mughal Emperors

48 Ibid., s.v. 'idjtih~id.'

Finally, the Awadh coronation differs from

Some ten to twenty million rupees (equivalent to one or two million

5' No. 3, Type D in Brown, 'Coins of the Kings,' p. 258.

The detailed richness of the throne an

accouterments combined traditional Mughal court dress wit

59 EI, s.v. 'Ghadir ul Khumm.'

IHaydar, the Heir, and the Reside

On their arrival, the various people proceeded to their assigned

The act of assuming the crown was accompanied by a discharge of i o

the left of the throne and seated was Major-

The Awadh P~dshih and the World

partial success. Those who had not par

.Haydar continued to press for further signs of equality and eventually