Begum hazrat mahal history
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He is widely credited with the revival of Kathak, a classical Indian dance form. She was in charge of her army. The king of Nepal also agreed to send his army to help the British. She grew up to be a beautiful, intelligent girl and rose from being a khawasin to being a part of the royal Pari Khana (house of fairies).
In those days beauty could help you up to a certain point, but to stand out among the crowd of girls one had to be clever, creative and wise, especially in a harem full of women.
She said,”To eat pigs and drink wine, to bite greased cartridges and to mix pig’s fat with sweetmeats, to destroy Hindu and Musalman temples on pretence of making roads, to build churches, to send clergymen into the streets to preach the Christian religion, to institute English schools and pay people a monthly stipend for learning the English sciences, while places of worship of Hindus and Musalman are to this day entirely neglected; with all this how can people believe that religion will not be interfered with?”
She refused to surrender and escaped to Nepal, and she took her jewels and treasures along with her to live a dignified life in a new land.
At a tender age itself, she showed good talent in literature. Begum Hazrat Mahal refused to surrender and fled to Nepal. To one such offer she had replied, “Do not tell me about such things, I am fully aware what you have done with the children of Tipu Sultan and with Bahadur Shah Zafar until your type of people will prevail, Lakshmi Bai and Hazrat Mahal will take birth in this country.”
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Begum Hazrat Mahal was born in 1830 in Faizabad of Uttar Pradesh.
She remained in Lucknow, leading the armed resistance against British forces and declaring her son Birjis Qadr as the rightful ruler. Her actual name was Muhammadi Khanum. Her forces fought in many battles and held control over key areas. After her husband Nawab Wajid Ali Shah was exiled, she took charge of the rebellion, defending Lucknow and installing her son Birjis Qadr as the rightful ruler.
She refused all offers of a peace treaty and a pension. Her defiance made her a lasting symbol of strength, resistance, and leadership in Indian history.
Early Life
Born between 1820 and 1830, Muhammadi Khanum was the daughter of Gulam Hussain. Slowly the war of independence was crushed.
Begum Hazrat Mahal left with a relatively small army and had to flee from Lucknow. But, when Delhi, the prime center for the First War of Independence was captured, the British troops surrounded and attacked Lucknow in March 1859. ‘The Times’ in London stated, “The Begum of Awadh shows greater strategic sense and courage than all her generals put together.” High praise indeed.
Begum Hazrat Mahal died in exile in 1879.
Today, she is acknowledged as a vital symbol of resistance and female leadership in India’s struggle against colonial rule.
On 13 February 1856, the British troops imprisoned Wajid Ali Shah. There, she lived under restrictions and in relative poverty. Sharaf-ud-Doula was appointed as Chief Minister and Raja Jail Lal Sing as Collector. With each offer of a pardon and a pension, she sent a fitting reply.