Nawab Sultan Jahan Begum (1858-1930)

Nawab Sultan Jahan Begum was a ruler par excellence in the history of the Bhopal state. She ascended the throne at the age of six under the regency of her mother. To say that she spent her entire life in the service of the state, would then, not be a hyperbole. She was officially recognized as the Begum of Bhopal after her mother’s death in 1901. The Begum made education, especially education for girls her priority. Through a series of reforms in military, taxation and public works, she built the very core of the princely state.



Her greatest legacy, though, is the institution of the famed Aligarh Muslim University. She was the Founding Chancellor of the institute and is till date the only female to hold the post. She was also a pioneer in the field of Public Health advocating vaccinations and inoculations, improving the sanitation and hygiene of the state. This came at a time when both education and medical care were not considered vital topics of consideration. A true visionary, she authored biographies and books on education and health.



A ruler who struck a fine balance between popularity and efficiency, the Begum of Bhopal has left an indelible mark in the emancipation of women in Indian history.

The Begum of Bhopal stepped down from her position as the ruler in favour of her only surviving child, Hamidullah Khan in 1926. She ruled for 25 glorious years of a just and prosperous rule, marked by great strides in education, health, public works and taxation. It was an end of an era as she breathed her last on 12 May 1930.