Farrukhsiyar

Title & tenure

12th Mughal Emperor (1713–1719)

In office: 11 February 1713 – 28 February 1719

Predecessor:

Jahandar Shah

Successor:

Rafi ud-Darajat

Biography

Farrukhsiyar seized the throne from his uncle Jahandar Shah with the decisive military backing of the Sayyid brothers of Barha, Abdullah Khan and Hussain Ali Khan, who then dominated his court as "kingmakers" for the rest of his reign.

Achievements

• Granted the English East India Company a farman (imperial decree) in 1717 expanding its duty-free trading privileges in Bengal, a concession later seen as an important step toward British commercial dominance in India

Key events

• Took the throne in 1713 with the Sayyid brothers' military support
• Grew to resent and plot against the Sayyid brothers' dominance over his court
• Deposed, blinded and later killed by the Sayyid brothers in 1719 after his plots against them were discovered

Legacy

Farrukhsiyar's reign illustrates the Mughal emperor's declining real power during this period, reduced to a figurehead manipulated and ultimately destroyed by the nobles who had placed him on the throne.

How it ended

Deposed and blinded by the Sayyid brothers in February 1719, and killed in captivity shortly afterward.