Hyderabad State - Early History

Early History

The Nizam of Hyderabad was earlier the Mughal Viceroy of the Deccan. However, with the decline of the Mughals the Deccan attained independence, though the first Nizam continued to owe allegiance to the Mughal Emperor. The Deccan territories were thus the last survivors of the Mughal empire, along with the Princely state of Awadh (in North India). These territories soon came to be known as the 'Nizam's Dominions', which (in the year 1760) included areas from south of Maharashtra to the southern end of Tamil Nadu, encompassing vast territories in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The southern territories (now part of Tamil Nadu and southern Andhra Pradesh) were ruled by the Nawab of the Carnatic, who accepted the suzerainty of the Nizam. The regions in and around Mysore however, were administered by Hyder Ali and did not owe any allegiance to the Nizam.

With the Mughal empire in disarray, this was a time when the French and British were competing for supremacy in the Indian sub-continent. The French exercised considerable influence in the Deccan from their stronghold of Pondicherry. In fact, the Nizam had a French regent stationed at Hyderabad in the later years of the 18th century as an important adviser, and there remains to this day street of Hyderabad city named Troop Bazaar where the French originally had their Military Barracks. The Nizam's dominions were at their greatest territorial extent at the time of the first Nizam, Nizam-ul-mulk, Asaf Jah-I. After his death however, their arose a succession struggle, with the British and French supporting competing factions. This resulted in a period of internal instability as two Nizams (Nasir Jung and Muzaffar Jung) ruled in rapid succession, both being assassinated by rival factions. The combined duration of their rule was just four years. The fourth Nizam, Mir Ali Salabat Jung, came to the throne on French instigation and his rule prevailed for 12 years. This period marked the height of French influence in the Nizam's dominions. He was followed by Ali Khan Asaf Jah II who added the territories of Aurangabad, Bidar and Sholapur in various battles with the Marathas. Though Asaf Jah-II ruled for over 50 years, Nizam's dominions lost considerable power and more importantly, land to both the British and the French due to infighting and debts owed to the foreign powers. The territory of Northern Circars (present day coastal Andhra Pradesh) was ceded to the French as a gift 'for perpetuity', while the Carnatic regions were annexed by the British, French and Hyder Ali. The Nizam was criticized for failing to form an alliance with Hyder Ali of the Kingdom of Mysore, a move which could have countered the increasing influence of the British in the Deccan. In this time, with the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte at Waterloo, the British also replaced the French as the supreme colonial power in the Indian sub-continent. The British also fought a war with Mysore which increased its clout in the Deccan and, by 1800, Nizam's dominions came into a state of near-suzerainty under the British.