Qutlugh Nigar Khanum
| Qutlugh Nigar Khanum | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queen consort of Ferghana Valley | |||||
| Tenure | 1475 - 1492 | ||||
| Died | June 1505 | ||||
| Spouse | Umar Shaikh Mirza II | ||||
| Issue | Khanzada Begum Babur, Mughal Emperor |
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| House | House of Borjigin (by birth) House of Timur (by marriage) |
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| Father | Yunus Khan | ||||
| Mother | Aisan Daulat Begum | ||||
| Religion | Islam | ||||
Qutlugh Nigar Khanum (also spelled Kutlak Nigar Khanum; d. 1505) was the first wife and chief consort of Umar Shaikh Mirza II, the King of Ferghana Valley. She was born a princess of the Chagatai Khanate as a daughter of Yunus Khan, the Great Khan of Moghulistan and his chief consort Aisan Daulat Begum.
She was also the mother of Emperor Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire of India as well as its first Emperor.
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Early life
Qutlugh Nigar Khanum was born a princess of the Chagatai Khanate as the second daughter of Yunus Khan, the Great Khan of Moghulistan and his chief consort Aisan Daulat Begum.[1] Her paternal grandfather was Uwais Khan, the Moghul Khan of Mughalistan and her father's predecessor.
Qutlugh was a direct descendant of Genghis Khan, the founder and Great Khan (Emperor) of the Mongol Empire through her father's side. Being the daughter of a Khan, Qutlugh held the title of "Khanum" ("daughter of a Khan or princess") by birth.
All of Qutlugh's siblings became her sister-in-laws since her elder sister, Mihr Nigar Khanum, married Sultan Ahmed Mirza, the eldest son of Qutlugh's father-in-law, Abu Sa'id Mirza. Her younger sister was Khub Nigar Khanum, who married Sultan Mahmud Mirza.[2]
Marriage
Qutlugh married Prince Umar Shaikh, the fourth son of Abu Sa'id Mirza, the Emperor of the Timurid Empire in 1475. She was his first wife and chief consort. Before his death, her father-in-law had divided his empire between his sons and Umar was given to rule Ferghana Valley in today's Uzbekistan. Here, at Andizhan, she gave birth to Umar's eldest son, Prince Babur on 14 February, 1483.[3] Babur went on to become the founder of the Mughal Empire of India and was the first Mughal Emperor.
Qutlugh also gave birth to Umar's eldest daughter, Princess Khanzada Begum who was five years older than Babur and was born sometime in 1478. Qutlugh, being a Mongol princess, was well educated. With the untimely death of her husband, when her son Babur was only ten, Qutlugh and her mother Aisan Begum raised him themselves.[4] She accompanied her son during most of his guerrilla expeditions and throne-less times.[4]
Death
Qutlugh Nigar had fever for six days and died in June of 1505, five or six months after Babur conquered Kabul. She, therefore, did not live to see her son become Mughal Emperor. She was buried in New Year's Garden. Babur paid 1,000 coined misqal to his kinsmen, the owners of the garden, and laid her there.
