162 
W. Irvine — The Later Mughals (1707-1803). 
[No. 2, 
was already a distinguished soldier and provincial governor, even in 
‘Alamglr’s reign. Hitherto, however, he had been overshadowed by his 
father, Grhaziu-d-dln Khan, Firuz Jang, who had died only two years 
before this time, and by his cousin, a much older man, Muhammad Amin 
Khan, Cm, Bahadur. But on Nizamu-l-mulk’s appointment in 1125 H. 
(1713) to the six siibahs of the Dakhiu, he rose to a position of pre¬ 
eminence, which he never for one moment lost till his death in 1161 H. 
(1748), thirty-five years afterwards. 
As stated a few pages back, when speaking of Muhammad Amin 
Khan, the family of Nizamu-l-mulk came from Samarqand. His great 
grand-father was ‘Alam Shaikh, son of Allahdad, son of ‘Abdu-r- 
rahman, Shaikh ‘Azizan. 1 They are said to have come originally from 
Sahrward. Khwaja ‘Abid, son of ‘Alam Shaikh, moved to Bukhara, 
where be was first of all Qazi, then Shaikhu-l-islam. A year or two 
before ‘ Alamgir ascended the throne (1066-7 H., 1655-6), he passed 
through India on his way to Mecca. He returned at the time when 
‘Alamgir was about to start from the Dakhin to seize his father’s 
tbrone. ‘Alamgir accepted his services and gave him a high command. 
He filled various offices, such as that of $adarat-i-kull , or superin¬ 
tendent of endowments, governor of Ajmer, then of Multan. In the 
twenty-fourth year (1091-2 H., 1680-1) he fell into disgrace, but was 
soon pardoned and again given the $adarat-i-kull. A year afterwards 
he was sent to the Dakhin, and then in the twenty-ninth year (1096-7 H., 
1684-5), he became governor of Zafarabad Bidar. He continued to 
serve with distinction in the Dakhin, until on the 24th Rabi‘ I. 1098 H. 
(30th January, 1687), at the siege of Gulkandah, he was shot in the 
arm and died of the wound. In the twenty-third year (1690-1) he had 
received the title of Qilic Khan. He had five sons, the two youngest 
of whom died comparatively early in life without rising very high. 
The second and third sons, Mu‘izzu-d-daulab, Hamid Klian, and Nasiru- 
d-daulah, ‘Abdu-r-rahim Khan, were men of some fame and distinction. 
1 The table (furnished by the present Nizam) in J. D. B. Gribble’s “History of 
the Deccan,” I, 380, gives the same steps in the genealogy thus :— 
Nizamu-l-mulk, Asaf Jah, 
I 
Firuz Jang 
. I 
Mir ‘Abid (Qilic Khan), 
I 
Khwaja Mir Isma'il 
I 
Khwaja ‘Azizan (Aluna) 
Mhd ‘Alam Shaikh, Sadiqi ‘Ulvi, 
and so on, back to Muhammad, son of Abu Bakr, in the 33rd generation. 
