How Many Wives Shah Jahan Had?

The fifth emperor of the Mughal dynasty in South Asia, Shah Jahan, married a lot of women in his lifetime. Initially, he was married to Akbarbadi Mahal and Kandahari Mahal, later in 1607 AD, he had been affianced with Arjumand Bano Begum. However, according to the official court chronicler Qazwini, he was truly and madly in love with Mumtaz Mahal. She was a companion, lover and trusted confidante he had in his lifetime, clearly Taj Mahal is an insignia of it. When he died, his burial was not fancy, he was just taken by two men in a boat to lay him beside Mumtaz. Let us together get to know how many wives Shah Jahan had.

S.No	Name of Wife	Period	Description
1.	Kandahari Begum	Married in 1609	A Safavid princess from Persia (Kandahar region)
2.	Manbhavati Baiji Lal Sahiba	Married before 1615	Princess from Jodhpur, niece of Jodha Bai
3.	Arjumand Banu Begum (Mumtaz Mahal)	Married in 1612	Shah Jahan’s beloved, the Taj Mahal built in her memory
4.	Izz-un-Nissa Begum (Akbarabadi Mahal)	Circa 1617–1620	Commissioned the Akbarabadi Mosque
5.	Fatehpuri Mahal	Circa 1640s	Fatehpuri Mosque was built in her honour in 1650
6.	Hasina Begum Sahiba	Married in 1617	Marriange occurred during a politically strategic period
7.	Muti Begum Sahiba	Date unknown	Widow of Mughal Mansabdar Jamal Khan; later married Shah Jahan

Shah Jahan and His Wives

These women were the wives of Shah Jahan.

Kandahari Mahal

Kandahari Begum was a born princess of the famous Safavid dynasty, the ruling dynasty of Iran (Persia), and one of its most significant ruling dynasties. Her father was Sultan Muzaffar Husain Mirza Safavi, a Persian noble from the Kandahar mountains.

Shrimati Manbhavathi Baiji Lal Sahiba 

Shah Jahan’s second wife was Princess Manbhavati Baiji Lal Sahiba of Jodhpur, a niece of Jodha Bai (Mother of Shah Jahan). She gave birth to a daughter in 1615. It was because of his father Jehangir who got him married at an early age to Manbhavathi Baiji Lal Sahiba. 

Mumtaz Mahal

Arjumand Banu Begum, also called Mumtaz Mahal was the third wife of Shah Jahan. The Taj Mahal in Agra which is often referred to as one of the wonders of the world signifies the love of Shah Jahan for Mumtaz Mahal (Persian: the exalted one of the palace). 

Akbarabadi Mahal

The fourth begum of Emperor Shah Jahan was Izz-un-Nissa Begum. She is popularly known by the title, Akbarabadi Mahal, and commissioned the Akbarabadi Mosque in Shahjahanabad. Less commonly, she is also referred to as Sirhindi Begum.

Fatehpuri Mahal Sahiba

Fatehpuri Mahal was the fifth wife of Shah Jahan. He built the Fatehpuri Mosque in 1650 in Chandni Chowk at Delhi aka Shahjahanbad, to show his love for his wife. She was also close to Shah Jahan and acted as a constant companion in his old age and prison life.

Qudsia Begum Sahiba

The sixth wife was Qudsia Begum, born Udham Bai and mother of emperor Ahmad Shah Bahadur. She was early born an administrator and served as de facto regent from 1748 to 1754. 

Hasina Begum Sahiba

Hasina Begum Sahiba married the royal Mughal emperor in 1617 and is known as the seventh wife. 

Muti Begum Sahiba

The royal emperor of the Mughal dynasty also married the widow of Jamal Khan, who was a Mansabdar of the Mughal Empire. 

So these were all the wives of ShaHadh Jahan. His love for architecture has made him one of the ideal emperors with great taste in design and interiors. 

Also Read- Who Killed Aurangzeb?

Which Mughal Emperor Had 300 Wives?

Akbar is the Mughal Emperor who is known to have had 300 wives. He reigned between 1556–1605. The exact count can vary. Akbar married to forge political alliances. As per scholarly and popular accounts he has 300 wives. Howveer, the exact count can vary.

Was Mumtaz Mahal Shah Jahan’s Fourth Wife?

No. Mumtaz Mahal (Arjumand Banu Begum) was the second wife of Shah Jahan. She was not his fourth wife. She was betrothed in 1607 and married Prince Khurram in May 1612. Between this time (betrothal and marriage), he married Princess Kandahari Begum in 1610. Thus, Arjumand became his second consort. His third wif,e Izz-un-Nissa Begum (Akbarabadi Mahal) joined the family in 1617 after Mumtaz Mahal.

7 Fascinating Facts About Shah Jahan

These are some interesting facts about Shah Jahan that you must know.

1. Shah Jahan was born as Mirza Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram on January 5, 1592, in Lahore (currently in Pakistan). He was the 3rd son of the Emperor Jahangir and Rajput princess Manmati.
2. He succeeded his father around 1628. Shah Jahan means the King of the World. His lifetime was the peak of Mughal culture and architecture.
3. He also commissioned the Red Fort in Delhi, the Shah Jahan Mosque in Thatta, and the Jama Masjid.
4. The Taj Mahal was built in 1631 after the death of his wife Mumtaz Mahal. It took more than 20,000 workers to build the same.
5. After he fell ill in 1657, he named his eldest son Mumtaz Mahal as his heir. This created a war of succession and ended with the victory of Aurangzeb and his deposition.
6. He was confined by his son Aurangzeb till he died in 1666. He spent his last days gazing out at the Taj Mahal. He was buried next to Mumtaz Mahal.
7. He led campaigns in the Deccan and against the Safavids for Kandahar. Thus, he rebelled against the Safavids for Kandahar and even established an army of 1 million troops.

Also Read- Who Is The Father Of Akbar?

Relevant Blogs

Who was Akbar’s Son?	Who Defeated Akbar?
How Many Wives Did Akbar Have?	Who Built Humayun Tomb?
How did Jahangir Die?	How Akbar Died?
Who Defeated Jahangir?	Where is the Tomb of Jahangir?
Who Wrote Humayun Nama?	Who Wrote Akbarnama?

FAQs

This was all about how many wives Shah Jahan had. If you want to know more about topics like this, then visit our general knowledge page! Alternatively, you can also read our blog on general knowledge for competitive exams!