Rafi-ud-Darajat (1719) – GK

Mughal Emperor Rafi-ud-Darajat

Important Points and General Knowledge of Mughal Emperor Rafi-ud-Darajat for various competitive government job examinations and UPSC prelims.

1. Rafi-ud-Darajat was born on 1 December 1699.
2. He was the Eleventh Mughal emperor.
3. Rafi-ud-Darajat was the Predecessor of Farrukhsiyar.
4. His father was Rafi-ush-Shan and his grandfather was Bahadur Shah I.
5. 1719: The Sayyid brothers killed Farukshiar. Maharaja Ajit Singh and the Marathas helped in this case.
6. 1719: Syed brothers placed Rafi-ud-Darajat on the throne. For that, the Sayyid brothers (Abdullah Khan and Hussain Ali Khan), were known as the “Kingmakers”.
7. So he was a puppet ruler to the Sayyid brothers.
8. His reign was fully politically unstable.
9. His Successor was (his elder brother) Rafi-ud-Daulah ( also known as Shah Jahan II).
10. Rafi-ud-Darajat’s uncle Nekusiyar believed he was more qualified for the king post. Nekusiyar took the Mughal throne in the Agra Fort. Sayyid brothers and Rafi-ud-Darajat punished and captured him, but were respectfully imprisoned at the Salimgarh Fort.
11. His reign was very short only from February 28 to June 4, 1719.
12. Rafi-ud-Darajat died within 4 months (three months and six days) after becoming the king either of tuberculosis or was murdered. Some people believe that the Sayyid brothers poisoned him.
13. His body was buried at Mehrauli in Delhi near the tomb of Khawaja Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki (Sufi saint).

Extra Info: the killing of Mughal king Farukshiar by the Sayyid brothers was the first incident in the history of the Mughal Empire – a Wazir assassinated a Mughal Emperor.