The Tomb of

Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

, the last influential

Mughal emperor The Mughal emperors ( fa, , Pādishāhān) were the supreme heads of state of the Mughal Empire on the Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the modern countries of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The Mughal rulers styled t ...

, is located in

Khuldabad Khuldabad () is a city (municipal council) and a Taluka of Aurangabad district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is known as the Valley of Saints, or the Abode of Eternity, because in the 14th century, several Sufi saints chose to reside h ...

, Aurangabad district,

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

, India. In notable contrast to other Mughal tombs, which are large monuments of Mughal architecture, including the

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...

, at his own direction Aurangzeb is buried in an unmarked grave at the complex of the

dargah A dargah ( fa, درگاه ''dargâh'' or ''dargah'', Turkish: ''dergâh'', Hindustani: ''dargah'' दरगाह درگاہ, bn, দরগাহ ''dorgah'') is a shrine or tomb built over the grave of a revered religious figure, often ...

or shrine of

Sheikh Zainuddin Sheikh Zainuddin or Shaikh Zain-al-Din ( bn, শেখ জয়নুদ্দীন fl. 1777–1782) was an artist of the East India Company period who moved from Patna to Calcutta and rose to prominence under European patronage in British Raj. ...

Background

Aurangzeb (4 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), the sixth

, ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for half a century until he died on 3 March 1707. According to his wish, he was buried near the dargah of Sheikh Zainuddin, a sufi who was also his "spiritual and religious teacher".

Location

The tomb is located in the city of Khuldabad, in the district of

Aurangabad Aurangabad ( is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a hilly upland terrain in the Deccan Traps, Aurangabad is th ...

, from

. It is located in the south-eastern corner of the complex of the dargah of Sheikh Zainuddin. Aurangzeb's Tomb (Khuldabad) 3

Description

Aurangzeb died in 1707 at

Ahmednagar Ahmednagar (), is a city located in the Ahmednagar district in the state of Maharashtra, India, about 120 km northeast of Pune and 114 km from Aurangabad. Ahmednagar takes its name from Ahmad Nizam Shah I, who founded the town in 1494 ...

. His body was then carried to Khuldabad after his son

Azam Shah Qutb-ud-Din Muhammad Azam (28 June 1653 – 20 June 1707), commonly known as Azam Shah, was briefly the Mughal emperor who reigned from 14 March 1707 to 20 June 1707. He was the third son of the sixth Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and his chief cons ...

and his daughter

Zeenat-un-Nissa Zinat-un-Nissa Begum ( fa, زینت النساء بیگم 5 October 1643 – 7 May 1721) was a Mughal princess and the second daughter of Emperor Aurangzeb and his chief consort, Dilras Banu Begum. Her father had conferred upon her the honorabl ...

arrived at their father's camp. There is a platform over the tomb made of red stone, less than three yards in length. There is also a "cavity" in the middle which measures a "few fingers". Inspired by the

grave A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as grave ...

of his sister

Jahanara Begum Jahanara Begum (23 March 1614 – 16 September 1681) was a Mughal princess and later the Padshah Begum of the Mughal Empire from 1631 to 1658 and again from 1668 until her death. She was the second and the eldest surviving child of Emperor Shah ...

, the tomb has been covered with soil on which herbs grow. After his burial, Aurangzeb was given the posthumous title of "Khuld-makan" ("he whose abode is in eternity").

Lord Curzon George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, (11 January 1859 – 20 March 1925), styled Lord Curzon of Kedleston between 1898 and 1911 and then Earl Curzon of Kedleston between 1911 and 1921, was a British Conservative statesman ...

later covered the site with marble and surrounded it with a "pierced marble screen". The tomb is roofed by "the vault of the sky". The gateway and the domed porch were added in 1760. It is said that Aurangzeb paid for his burial place by stitching caps during his last years and that it cost only 14 rupees and 12 annas. The tomb is "remarkably simple in keeping with Aurangzeb's own wishes". Aurangzeb's full name is written on a marble plate located in one of the corners of the tomb. The dargah also houses the tomb of the first

Nizam of Hyderabad The Nizams were the rulers of Hyderabad from the 18th through the 20th century. Nizam of Hyderabad (Niẓām ul-Mulk, also known as Asaf Jah) was the title of the monarch of the Hyderabad State ( divided between the state of Telangana, Mar ...

Asaf Jah I Mir Qamar-ud-din Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi (11 August 16711 June 1748) also known as Chin Qilich qamaruddin Khan, Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah and Nizam I, was the 1st Nizam of Hyderabad. He was married to the daughter of a Syed nobleman of Gulbarga. He ...

, his son

Nasir Jung Mir Ahmed Ali Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi, Nasir Jung, was the son of Nizam-ul-Mulk by his wife Saeed-un-nisa Begum. He was born 26 February 1712. He succeeded his father as the Nizam of Hyderabad State in 1748. He had taken up a title of ''Humay ...

, and those of Aurangzeb's son

Muhammad Azam Shah Qutb-ud-Din Muhammad Azam (28 June 1653 – 20 June 1707), commonly known as Azam Shah, was briefly the Mughal emperor who reigned from 14 March 1707 to 20 June 1707. He was the third son of the sixth Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and his chief cons ...

and his wife.

In literature

In her poetical illustration, ''The Tomb of Aurangzebe'',

Letitia Elizabeth Landon Letitia Elizabeth Landon (14 August 1802 – 15 October 1838) was an English poet and novelist, better known by her initials L.E.L. The writings of Landon are transitional between Romanticism and the Victorian Age. Her first major breakthrough ...

may have been confused by the engraving she was given (from a painting by

Samuel Prout Samuel Prout painted by John Jackson in 1831 Market Day by Samuel Prout A View in Nuremberg by Samuel Prout Utrecht Town Hall by Samuel Prout in 1841 Samuel Prout (; 17 September 1783 – 10 February 1852) was a British watercolourist, and ...

), as in it she justifies the construction of mighty tombs.

References

External links

{{commonscat, Aurangzeb's Tomb
Tomb of Aurangzeb.
Buildings and structures completed in 1707 Tombs in India Tourist attractions in Aurangabad, Maharashtra Mughal tombs Monuments and memorials in Maharashtra Buildings and structures in Aurangabad, Maharashtra 1707 establishments in India