The Sieges of Golconda · 1656 and 1687 · Aurangzeb and the Qutb Shahi Sultanate · Mir Jumla Crisis · Eight-Month Siege of 1687 · Fall of Golconda Fort · Abul Hasan Qutb Shah
The political background dated to 1636, when Shah Jahan compelled Abdullah Qutb Shah to accept Mughal suzerainty and tributary obligations. Golconda remained internally independent, however, and the arrangement did not amount to direct Mughal annexation. The dispute surrounding the powerful minister Mir Jumla provided Aurangzeb with the immediate pretext for military intervention in 1656.
The final campaign began in 1687. After an extended siege lasting roughly eight months, Mughal troops entered Golconda Fort in September. Abul Hasan Qutb Shah, the last Qutb Shahi ruler, was captured and the sultanate was incorporated into the Mughal Empire.
In 1636, Mughal emperor Shah Jahan compelled Sultan Abdullah Qutb Shah to accept Mughal suzerainty and tributary obligations. Aurangzeb, then serving as Shah Jahan's viceroy in the Deccan, became a major advocate of stronger Mughal control over the remaining Deccan sultanates.
Mir Muhammad Sa'id Ardistani, better known as Mir Jumla, was a Persian-born merchant whose father was an oil merchant of Isfahan. Mir Jumla himself became a highly successful merchant, including through the diamond trade, and eventually rose to become chief minister of Golconda under Abdullah Qutb Shah.
Mir Jumla's growing wealth and political influence created tensions with Abdullah Qutb Shah. His son Muhammad Amin was imprisoned by the Golconda ruler, and Mir Jumla sought Mughal protection. Aurangzeb used the dispute as the immediate justification for military intervention.
After Shah Jahan authorized military pressure over the detention of Muhammad Amin and his family, Aurangzeb ordered his son Prince Muhammad Sultan to advance toward Golconda in January 1656. Abdullah Qutb Shah withdrew from Hyderabad to the fortified citadel of Golconda.
Aurangzeb subsequently arrived and began operations against the fort. The siege placed Abdullah Qutb Shah under severe pressure, while negotiations and diplomatic appeals continued. Golconda offered substantial gifts and compensation, including jewels, elephants and horses, in an effort to secure peace.
Shah Jahan ultimately ordered Aurangzeb to end the campaign. Aurangzeb withdrew from Golconda on 13 April 1656, and a settlement followed. The Qutb Shahi state therefore survived the 1656 crisis and remained outside direct Mughal administration.
After entering Mughal service, Mir Jumla presented Shah Jahan with a remarkable large diamond. Some later histories identify this stone with the Koh-i-Noor, but the identification is not certain. The safer historical formulation is that a major diamond associated with Mir Jumla entered the Mughal treasury in 1656 and was later associated with the Koh-i-Noor tradition.
The 1656 settlement allowed the Qutb Shahi Sultanate to continue its independent administration, although under Mughal suzerainty. The experience also encouraged the strengthening of Golconda's defenses.
Aurangzeb became Mughal emperor in 1658. His long-term objective of consolidating Mughal power throughout the Deccan eventually brought Golconda and Bijapur into direct conflict with the Mughal Empire.
Abul Hasan Qutb Shah succeeded Abdullah Qutb Shah in 1672 and became the seventh and last ruler of the Qutb Shahi dynasty. He ruled Golconda until the Mughal conquest of 1687.
After the Mughal conquest of Bijapur in 1686, Aurangzeb turned against Golconda. The Qutb Shahi state remained a wealthy and strategically important power, controlling productive territories, trade routes and access to the diamond-producing regions of the eastern Deccan.
In early 1687, Aurangzeb personally directed the Mughal campaign against Golconda Fort. The Mughal army established siege lines around the massive fortifications while the defenders under Abul Hasan resisted repeated attacks and bombardment.
Khwaja Abid Siddiqi, one of Aurangzeb's senior commanders and the father of Ghaziuddin Khan Firuz Jang, died during the campaign after suffering wounds in the fighting. He should not be confused with his son Ghaziuddin Khan Firuz Jang, who later became an important Mughal commander.
The siege continued for roughly eight months. Heavy monsoon rains, disease, supply difficulties and the strength of the fortifications complicated Mughal operations. Golconda's defenders repeatedly resisted direct assaults, forcing the Mughals to maintain prolonged siege operations.
According to the contemporary Ma'asir-i-Alamgiri, Mughal troops entered the fort during the night through a rear entrance after Sarandaz Khan, a former Mughal officer who had joined Abul Hasan's service, enabled their entry. The contemporary account describes this as an act of treachery.
Mughal forces reached the residence of Abul Hasan Qutb Shah and captured the last Qutb Shahi ruler. He was subsequently sent into captivity at Daulatabad, where he spent the remainder of his life.
The fall of Golconda brought the Qutb Shahi dynasty, which had ruled the kingdom since 1518, to an end. Its territories were incorporated into the Mughal Empire and organized as the Subah of Hyderabad.
- 1636: Shah Jahan imposes Mughal suzerainty and tributary obligations on Golconda.
- 1638: Mir Jumla rises to high office under Abdullah Qutb Shah.
- 1640s–1650s: Mir Jumla leads major Golconda campaigns in the Karnataka region.
- 1655: Relations between Mir Jumla and Abdullah Qutb Shah deteriorate; Muhammad Amin is imprisoned.
- January 1656: Prince Muhammad Sultan advances toward Golconda under Aurangzeb's direction.
- February 1656: Aurangzeb arrives and the Mughal siege operations intensify.
- 13 April 1656: Aurangzeb withdraws after Shah Jahan orders an end to the campaign.
- 1656: Mir Jumla enters Mughal service and presents Shah Jahan with a major diamond later associated by tradition with the Koh-i-Noor.
- 1672: Abul Hasan Qutb Shah becomes the last Qutb Shahi ruler.
- 1686: Aurangzeb conquers Bijapur.
- Early 1687: Aurangzeb begins the final Mughal campaign against Golconda.
- 1687: The siege continues for roughly eight months amid heavy fighting, monsoon conditions and supply difficulties.
- 21/22 September 1687: Mughal troops enter Golconda Fort through an entrance opened with the assistance of Sarandaz Khan.
- September 1687: Abul Hasan Qutb Shah is captured and Golconda is annexed by the Mughal Empire.
- After 1687: The former Qutb Shahi territories are administered as the Mughal Subah of Hyderabad.
Key Figures
- Aurangzeb: Mughal emperor who directed the final conquest of Golconda in 1687 and had earlier led the 1656 campaign as Shah Jahan's son and Deccan viceroy.
- Shah Jahan: Mughal emperor who imposed suzerainty on Golconda in 1636 and ordered Aurangzeb to withdraw from the 1656 campaign.
- Abdullah Qutb Shah: Sixth Qutb Shahi ruler and the sultan who faced the Mughal campaign of 1656.
- Abul Hasan Qutb Shah: Seventh and last Qutb Shahi ruler, captured after the fall of Golconda in 1687.
- Mir Jumla: Persian-born merchant and former chief minister of Golconda who entered Mughal service after his dispute with Abdullah Qutb Shah.
- Muhammad Amin: Mir Jumla's son whose imprisonment became the immediate pretext for Aurangzeb's 1656 intervention.
- Prince Muhammad Sultan: Aurangzeb's son who led the initial Mughal advance toward Golconda in 1656.
- Khwaja Abid Siddiqi: Senior Mughal commander who died during the 1687 campaign.
- Ghaziuddin Khan Firuz Jang: Son of Khwaja Abid and an important Mughal noble and commander; later the father of Qamar-ud-din Khan, the first Nizam of Hyderabad.
- Sarandaz Khan: Former Mughal officer serving Abul Hasan who, according to the contemporary Mughal chronicle, enabled Mughal troops to enter the fort in September 1687.
Places Associated with the Sieges
Golconda Fort: The principal fortified capital and the site of the decisive Mughal siege of 1687.
Hyderabad: The Qutb Shahi capital that was occupied and plundered during the 1656 Mughal advance.
Aurangabad: Major Mughal Deccan headquarters and the place from which the 1656 campaign was directed.
Bijapur: The neighboring Deccan sultanate conquered by Aurangzeb in 1686 before the final campaign against Golconda.
Daulatabad: The fortress where Abul Hasan Qutb Shah was held in captivity after the fall of Golconda.
Golconda and the Koh-i-Noor Tradition
The connection between Golconda, Mir Jumla and the Koh-i-Noor is historically important but should be stated cautiously. Contemporary evidence confirms that Mir Jumla presented Shah Jahan with a very large diamond after entering Mughal service in 1656. Some later historical accounts identify this stone with the Koh-i-Noor, while modern scholarship notes that the identification cannot be established with complete certainty.
Golconda's wider association with the international diamond trade is nevertheless well established. The region was home to important diamond-producing areas, and its wealth was one of the factors that made the Deccan sultanate strategically and economically significant.
Legacy of the Sieges
- End of Qutb Shahi Rule: The conquest of 1687 ended the Qutb Shahi dynasty's rule over Golconda.
- Mughal Expansion: Golconda became part of the Mughal Empire, completing Aurangzeb's conquest of the two major remaining Deccan sultanates.
- Subah of Hyderabad: The former Qutb Shahi territories were incorporated into the Mughal administrative system.
- Diamond Trade: The conquest brought the resources and commercial networks of Golconda under Mughal control.
- Long-Term Deccan History: Mughal control of the region lasted only until the empire's decline in the early eighteenth century, after which the Asaf Jahi state emerged under Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah I.
Frequently Asked Questions
The two major Mughal campaigns against Golconda discussed here occurred in 1656 and 1687. The first ended without annexation; the second resulted in the fall of the Qutb Shahi Sultanate.
The final siege lasted approximately eight months, from early 1687 until the Mughal entry into Golconda Fort in September.
Abul Hasan Qutb Shah, also known as Tana Shah, was the seventh and last ruler of the Qutb Shahi dynasty.
The contemporary Ma'asir-i-Alamgiri identifies Sarandaz Khan as the officer whose assistance enabled Mughal troops to enter through a rear entrance. Some later traditions give other names, so the account should not be presented as universally uncontested.
No. Mir Jumla died in 1663. His role belongs to the earlier Mughal–Golconda crisis of 1656 and must not be connected directly to Aurangzeb's final conquest in 1687.
Mir Jumla definitely presented Shah Jahan with a remarkable large diamond in 1656. The identification of that stone with the Koh-i-Noor is a longstanding historical tradition, but it is not certain enough to state as an undisputed fact.
- Saqi Musta'id Khan — Ma'asir-i-Alamgiri, contemporary chronicle of Aurangzeb's reign.
- Jadunath Sarkar — History of Aurangzib, five volumes.
- J. F. Richards — The Mughal Empire and studies of the Deccan and Hyderabad Karnatik.
- M. A. Nayeem — The Heritage of the Qutb Shahi Kingdom.
- Encyclopaedia Iranica — “Koh-i-Noor,” for the documented and disputed history of the diamond.
- Richard M. Eaton — Studies of the Deccan and the history of Golconda.
- William Irvine — Later Mughals.
- François Bernier — Travels in the Mogul Empire, an important later European account of the Mughal court and Deccan.
The fall of Golconda in 1687 marked the end of the Qutb Shahi Sultanate and a major turning point in the political history of the Deccan.