commander
Abdus Samad Khan Bahadur being received by Jahandar Shah Jahandar Shah was crowned on 29 March, 1712. His accession was not well-supported in the empire, and he was viewed as an illegitimate ruler. Hence, upon his coronation, Jahandar Shah moved to consolidate his authority by rewarding and promoting his supporters. He departed from previous Mughal succession practices by severely punishing the nobles who had supported his brothers in the succession, with several of them being executed. He also let the bodies of the defeated princes rot in the open for several days before their entombment, unlike previous emperors who had insisted on a proper burial. With Jahandar Shah's accession, Zulfiqar Khan assumed the post of
wazir. Due to Jahandar Shah's complete dependence on him, and the circumstances of his accession to the throne, effective power was wielded not by the emperor but by Zulfiqar Khan himself. This was the first occurrence in Mughal history that absolute power over the empire was wielded by an outsider to the dynasty. As the effective ruler during Jahandar Shah's reign, Zulfiqar Khan sought to establish amicable relationships with the
Rajputs,
Sikhs, and
Marathas, and bring back peace in the empire. However, the empire's finances were deteriorating, continuing a trend that had begun with Jahandar Shah's predecessors, which decreased the empire's military effectiveness. The excessive power enjoyed by Zulfiqar Khan caused Jahandar Shah to conspire against him, creating political chaos. During his reign, Jahandar Shah married his beloved
Lal Kunwar, she became his favoured wife, and subsequently her family gained unprecedent power and status. Jahandar Shah also indulged in feasts and entertainments. Contemporary chroniclers and later historians have pointed out such aspects of the emperor's personal life, and the cruelty meted to his opponents, as reasons behind the turbulence of his reign. However, recent scholars highlight other factors; Munis Faruqui emphasizes his political weakness as a prince, which set him up for failure as a ruler. Abhishek Kaicker notes that nobles had themselves became more self-interested around the time of Jahandar Shah's accession, and that the "cruelty" of his reign was their defense for siding with
Farrukhsiyar, who deposed Jahandar Shah.
Deposition Jahandar Shah's accession invited the challenge of his nephew Farrukhsiyar, the son of Azim-ush-Shan, who was based in Bengal. With little independent resources, he unsuccessfully attempted to find backing for his bid. He eventually found powerful support in the
Sayyid brothers,
Husain Ali Khan and
Abdullah Khan, administrators of Azim-ush-Shan who had been removed from their postings by Jahandar Shah. With their resources and political connections, Farrukhsiyar assembled a rebel army and advanced on the throne. The underpaid imperial army was defeated in battle near
Agra in early 1713. ==Death==