Nizam of Hyderabad Asaf Jah VII, 2 Photos, 1936

Nizam of Hyderabad Asaf Jah VII, 2 Photos, 1936

Two old press photos of the Nizam of Hyderabad, Asaf Jah VII; one is from 1936 and the other from 1967. Hyderabad was founded in 1591 by King Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah of the Qutb Shahi dynasty. Hyderabad was built along with the Charminar, which was planned as the central grid of the city. Hyderabad was India’s biggest and richest princely state. Its rulers, known as the Nizams, belonged to the Asaf Jahi dynasty, founded in 1724 by Nizam-ul-Mulk. He first came to Hyderabad as the Mughal Governor of the Deccan.

Then established his independence as Mughal power in Delhi declined. The Nizam’s fabulous wealth derived largely from their legendary hoard of emeralds and their diamond mines near Golconda. At one time, the Nizam of Hyderabad, Asaf Jah VII (or Osman Ali Khan), was the richest man in the world. He had appeared on the 1937 Time Magazine cover during that time as the richest man in the world. After India’s independence in 1947, the Nizam resisted joining the Indian Union. However, riots broke out and the Indian Army’s action to restore order finally led to this Princely State’s accession to India.

Did you know- Time magazine stated that the Nizam’s daily pay was $5000, jewels worth 150,000,000, gold bars 250,000,000, and total capital of 1,400, 000,000.