Murtaza Nizam Shah II ( 1580–1610) was the Sultan of Ahmadnagar from 1600 to 1610. His rule was dominated by the powerful regent

Malik Ambar Malik Ambar (1548 – 13 May 1626) was a Siddi military leader and prime minister who became a kingmaker and de facto ruler of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate in the Deccan region of India. Born in the Adal Sultunate, in present-day Ethiopia, Mali ...

, under whom he was an effective

puppet ruler A puppet ruler is a person who has a title indicating possession of political power, but who, in reality, is either loyal to or controlled by outside individuals or forces. Such outside power can be exercised by a foreign government, in which case ...

Life

Born 1580, he was originally given the name Ali at birth. His father Shah Ali was a younger son of

Burhan Nizam Shah I Burhan Nizam Shah I ( fa, ) was ruler of the Ahmednagar Sultanate, in Central India. He ascended the throne on the death of his father Ahmad Nizam Shah I in 1508 or 1510 when he was seven years old. He died in 1553 and was succeeded by Hussai ...

(r.1509–1553) by Bibi Mariam, a daughter of

Yusuf Adil Shah Yusuf Adil Shah (1450–1510), referred as Adil Khan or Hidalcão by the Portuguese, was the founder of the Adil Shahi dynasty that ruled the Sultanate of Bijapur for nearly two centuries. As the founder of the newly formed Bijapur dynasty (as th ...

, the Sultan of

Bijapur Bijapur, officially known as Vijayapura, is the district headquarters of Bijapur district of the Karnataka state of India. It is also the headquarters for Bijapur Taluk. Bijapur city is well known for its historical monuments of architectural ...

. Following the fall of Chand Bibi in 1600, the former sultan, Bahadur Nizam Shah, was captured and imprisoned by the Mughal prince

Daniyal Daniyal ( ar, دانيال) was a Palestinian village in the Ramle Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War on July 10, 1948, by the Yiftach Brigade under the first phase of Operation Dani. It was located 5 km eas ...

. The military commander

chose to use this power vacuum to strengthen his own position. Aware of his limited resources at that time, he sought out a member of the ruling family to use as a unifying symbol among the populace. Though all the royal children had been taken captive by the Mughals, Malik Ambar discovered the twenty-year-old Ali residing in

Paranda Paranda is a town with a municipal council in the Osmanabad district of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the headquarters town for the Paranda Tehsil. History The city is located around an ancient Paranda Fort and is also an area of m ...

. Though Ali's father Shah Ali was still alive at that point, at eighty years old, he was viewed as a less preferable potential monarch in comparison to his son. Malik Ambar approached

Ibrahim Adil Shah II Ibrahim Adil Shah II (1570 – 12 September 1627) was king of the Sultanate of Bijapur and a member of the Adil Shahi dynasty. Under his reign the dynasty had its greatest period as he extended its frontier as far south as Mysore. He was ...

, with whom the younger prince had taken refuge in

, to ask for permission for Ali to accept the crown. However, Shah Ali was hesitant to give his own approval to the proposal, mistrustful of the commander's promises of safety for his son. To inspire confidence in the old prince, Malik Ambar offered to give own his daughter in marriage to Ali. Shah Ali agreed and the young prince married the daughter in an elaborate ceremony, before being raised to the throne with the name Murtaza Nizam Shah II. Malik Ambar, under his new official position as prime minister and regent, made Paranda the new capital and did much to restore stability to the kingdom. However, over the years the sultan began to chafe under the regency. When a truce was established between Ahmadnagar and the Mughals, Murtaza became offended by the development. He endorsed a rival of Malik Ambar, Raju Daccani, which resulted in a lengthy war between the two nobles. Murtaza continued to intrigue and form factions against Malik Ambar, instigating a number of rebellions against him. Ambar grew frustrated with the Sultan's duplicity and sought the advice of Ibrahim Adil Shah II, who disapproved of having Murtaza deposed. Ibrahim intervened on behalf of the Sultan and restored relations between the two for a time. However, in 1610 another, more serious quarrel occurred when Murtaza's

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 ...

wife from an earlier marriage became embroiled in a verbal altercation with Malik Ambar's daughter. The former referred to her co-wife as a slave-girl to the Sultan, and the regent himself as a rebel. Ambar's daughter complained to her father, who in anger had both Murtaza and the wife poisoned by his secretary. Murtaza's five-year-old son, who was either his child by the Persian wife or by Malik Ambar's daughter, was subsequently enthroned under the name Burhan Nizam Shah III.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nizam Shah II, Murtaza Ahmadnagar Sultanate Sultans 17th-century Indian monarchs 1610 deaths