Hyderabad State

Hyderabad State, known also as the Nizamate of Hyderabad, was a princely state in south-central India's Deccan region, with its capital at Hyderabad city. Today, its territory is split among the Indian states of Telangana, the Kalyana-Karnataka area of Karnataka, and the Marathwada region of Maharashtra. From 1724 to 1948, it was ruled by the Nizam, who began as a Mughal viceroy in the Deccan. The state also fell under Maratha Empire protection until that empire was overthrown in 1818, and it was among the first princely states to accept British paramountcy by signing a subsidiary alliance.

Mulki

The state's inhabitants, regardless of ethnic background, are called "Mulki" (countryman), a term still used. The ruler was also titled Nizam-ul-Mulk (Nizam of the country). During the British Raj's final years, the dynasty declared itself an independent monarchy.

After the Partition of India, Hyderabad signed a standstill agreement with the new dominion of India, keeping all prior arrangements except for the stationing of Indian troops. Its location within the Indian Union and its diverse cultural heritage led to India's invasion and annexation in 1948. Subsequently, the seventh Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan, signed an instrument of accession, joining India.

Early history and Maratha suzerainty

The state was founded by Mir Qamar-ud-din Khan, Mughal governor of the Deccan from 1713 to 1721. In 1724, after the Battle of Shakar Kheda, he resumed rule from the Mughal provincial capital of Aurangabad, taking the title Asaf Jah (granted by Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah). His other title, Nizam ul-Mulk, became the position's name, "Nizam of Hyderabad." By his rule's end, the Nizam was independent of the Mughals and had founded the Asaf Jahi dynasty.

As Mughal power declined, the Maratha Empire rose in the Deccan. The Nizam faced many Maratha invasions in the 1720s, leading to regular Chauth (tax) payments to them. Major battles—Palkhed, Rakshasbhuvan, and Kharda—were all lost by the Nizam. After Shahu I conquered the Deccan and imposed Chauth, the Nizam remained a Maratha tributary in practice, making Hyderabad a Maratha protectorate.

In 1763, the Nizam moved the capital to Hyderabad city. From 1778, a British East India Company (EIC) resident and EIC soldiers were stationed in his domains. In 1795, the Nizam lost some territories to the Marathas, mainly Berar.

Gains from Mysore as a British ally were ceded to the EIC to cover the cost of its garrison. By 1818, after the Company overthrew the Maratha Empire in the Third Anglo-Maratha War, Maratha protection of Hyderabad was swiftly replaced by the Company's subsidiary alliance. The Peshwa, who held all suzerain lands, was removed from his suzerainty over Hyderabad and replaced with a viceroy.

In 1768, the Nizam signed the Treaty of Masulipatnam, ceding the Northern Circars to the British. In 1779, the Nizam, Marathas, and Hyder Ali of Mysore allied against the British.

British suzerainty

The British defeated the alliance, and in 1788 the Nizam had to cede Guntur. Further treaties followed, most notably the Subsidiary Alliance, which transferred most power to the British. Gradually, all coastal areas were lost, and Hyderabad became landlocked.

In 1798, Nizam ʿĀlī Khan (Asaf Jah II) was forced into an agreement placing Hyderabad under British protection, becoming the first Indian prince to do so. (Consequently, the Hyderabad ruler received a 23-gun salute during British India.) The British Indian government retained the right to intervene in cases of misrule. Under Asaf Jah II, Hyderabad was a British ally in the second and third Maratha Wars (1803–05, 1817–19) and the Anglo-Mysore wars, and remained loyal during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

His son, Asaf Jah III Mir Akbar Ali Khan (Sikandar Jah), ruled from 1803 to 1829. During his reign, a British cantonment was built in Hyderabad and named Secunderabad in his honor. The British Residency at Koti was also built then by British Resident James Achilles Kirkpatrick. Sikandar Jah was succeeded by Asaf Jah IV (1829–1857), then by his son Asaf Jah V.

Asaf Jah V's reign (1857–1869) saw reforms by his Prime Minister Salar Jung I. Before this, administration was irregular and unsystematic, with duties held by the Diwan (Prime Minister), leading to widespread corruption. In 1867, the state was divided into five divisions and seventeen districts, with subedars (governors) for divisions and talukdars and tehsildars for districts.

Judicial, public works, medical, educational, municipal, and police departments were reorganized. In 1868, sadr-i-mahrams (Assistant Ministers) were appointed for Judicial, Revenue, Police, and Miscellaneous Departments. Later, Asaf Jah VI succeeded.