Husain (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: حُسین,

romanized Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

: Ḥusaīn, lit. 'handsome'; Persian pronunciation: u.ˈsajn, born Ḥusaīn Shāh Chak (

: حُسین شاہ چَک,

Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, their language People with the name * Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...

: حُسین شاہ ژَھک) was the second Chak Sultan. He succeeded his brother Ghazi Shah Chak after Ghazi abdicated the throne in Husain's favour in 1563. Husain was the 20th

Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...

Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

and ruled Kashmir until 1570. He served as a general under his father Hussain Khan and then under his elder brother Ghazi Shah. Husain gradually increased his power throughout the

Valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers ...

and extended his realm in the hill states of

Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi Ri ...

, Kishtwar and Rajauri. He adopted policies that were politically, culturally and economically beneficial. Ruling through a centralised system, he made his cabinet of ministers follow strict rules. To establish peace in his Sultanate, he constituted peaceful relationships with foreign authorities. He held co-operative and contributive talks with his subjects. Husain is regarded as the foremost monarch of the Chak dynasty.

Historiography

The majority of the sources are found in ''Tarikh i Kashmir IV'' (History of Kashmir), completed in 1620-21 by Haidar Malik Chadurah, a medieval author and an administrator of Kashmir. Information regarding the Chak rulers including Husain are found in Mughal books like '' Akbarnama'', ''Ain i Akbari'' and ''Tuzk i Jahangiri''. Other works include ''Tarikh i Kashmir I'', completed in 1579 by Sayyid Ali while ''Tarikh i Kashmir II'' was written in 1590 by an unknown author. ''Tarikh i Kashmir III'' was completed during the times of

Jahangir Nur-ud-Din Muhammad Salim (30 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was the fourth Mughal Emperor, who ruled from 1605 until he died in 1627. He was named after the Indian Sufi saint, Salim Chishti. Ear ...

. It presents a contemporary version of the rest of the books. ''Baharistan i Shahi'' ("Spring Orchard of the Royalty"), the finest of Medieval Kashmiri literature on the Sultanate, was written in 1614 as a Persian chronicle of medieval Kashmir. Other histories of Kashmir such as ''Tarikh i Hassan'', ''Waqiat i Kashmir'' and ''Tazkira Mashaikhin i Kashmir'' are eighteenth and nineteenth century abridgements of the above works.

Coinage

Nasiru'd-Din Muhammad Husain Padshah Ghazi was engraved on a coin with 6.03g weight and dimensions 15 x 16 mm. This coin has a bold style that is unusual in the coinage series of the Kashmir Sultanate.

Family tree

References

{{Reflist Year of birth missing 1571 deaths History of Kashmir * Sultans of Kashmir