Mohamed Ali Khan Walajan

Mohamed Ali Khan Walajan (7 July 1723-13 October 1795) was the Nawab of Arcot in India and an ally of the British East India Company.

Muhammad Ali was born to Anwaruddin Muhammed Khan, by his second wife, Nawab Fakhr un-nisa Begum Sahiba, a niece of Sayyid 'Ali Khan Safawi ul-Musawi, of Persia, sometime Naib suba of Trichonopoly on 7 July 1723 at Delhi.

Official name

His official name was "Amir ul Hind, Wala Jah, 'Umdat ul-Mulk, Asaf ud-Daula, Nawab Muhammad 'Ali Anwar ud-din Khan Bahadur, Zafar Jang, Sipah-Salar, Sahib us-Saif wal-qalam Mudabbir-i-Umur-i-'Alam Farzand-i-'Aziz-az Jan, Biradarbi Jan-barabar [Nawab Jannat Aramgah] , Subadar of the Carnatic".

Life

It was said of Mohamed Ali, that he could be courteous, immensely hospitable, always emulating English customs and manners, such as taking breakfast and tea, and sitting on chairs rather than cushions-he even held two investitures, bestowing the KB upon Sir John Lindsay and Sir Hector Munro, in 1771 and 1779, respectively. Fact|date=February 2007. Sir John Macpherson, writing to Lord Macartney in November 1781 declared, "I love the old man...mind me to my old Nabob. I have been sending him sheep and bags of rice by every ship. It is more than he did for me when I was fighting his battles." The Nawab was an ally of the British East India Company, but still harboured great ambitions of power in the South Indian arena, where Haidar Ali, the Marathas and the Nizam of Hyderabad were constant rivals. The Nawab could also be unpredictable and devious, and his breech of promise in failing to surrender Trichinapally to Haidar in 1751 was at the root of so many confrontations between Haidar and the British. When Haidar swept into the Carnatic towards Arcot on July 23, 1781, with a terrifying army estimated at 86-100,000 men, it was not Mohammed Ali, however but the British who provoked Haidar's wrath, after violating his territory to seize the western port of Mahé.

Mohamed Ali's dynasty could be considered as traitors to the freedom movement during that time in India. Though many other Indian kings and queens such a Haider Ali, Tipu Sultan, Rani of Jhansi, Tantiya Tope, etc. fought against British. Mohamed Ali on the other hand aligned with the British and also at many occasions opposing Haider Ali. Mohamed Ali did play an important role in enabling British Domination of South India for his own interests.

In fact, the Nawab had very little real independent power. For the defence of his territory, he paid the British 400,000 pagodas per annum (=£160,000) and 10 out of the 21 battalions of the Madras army were posted to garrison his forts. The British derived income from his jagirs (land grants). [The Tiger and The Thistle - Tipu Sultan and the Scots in India, [http://www.natgalscot.ac.uk/tipu/scots435.htm] ]

Death

He died from gangrene poisoning, at Madras on 13 October 1795. He was buried outside the gate of the Gunbad of Shah Chand Mastan, Trichinopoly.

Titles held

ee also

*Nawabs of Arcot

Notes