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❦Mirza Khizr Sultan
Mughal prince associated with the Delhi phase of the 1857 uprising
Mirza Khizr Sultan, one of Bahadur Shah Zafar's sons, was part of the Mughal royal wartime circle in Delhi through the 1857 rebellion. He remained in the city during the four-month siege and was present when British forces retook Delhi in September 1857. He surrendered to British officer William Hodson alongside Mirza Mughal and Mirza Abu Bakr. On 22 September 1857, Hodson executed all three at Khooni Darwaza — the Bloody Gate — shooting them in the street. The killings, carried out after formal surrender, drew criticism in British correspondence at the time.
Biography
Context
In the context of Delhi and nearby North Indian theatres during the 1857-1858 anti-colonial uprising against East India Company rule., Mirza Khizr Sultan is recognized as Mughal prince associated with the Delhi phase of the 1857 uprising. Mirza Khizr Sultan, one of Bahadur Shah Zafar's sons, was part of the Mughal royal wartime circle in Delhi through the 1857 rebellion. He remained in the city during the four-month siege and was present when British forces retook Delhi in September 1857. He surrendered to British officer William Hodson alongside Mirza Mughal and Mirza Abu Bakr. On 22 September 1857, Hodson executed all three at Khooni Darwaza — the Bloody Gate — shooting them in the street. The killings, carried out after formal surrender, drew criticism in British correspondence at the time.
Contribution
Mirza Khizr Sultan, one of Bahadur Shah Zafar's sons, was part of the Mughal royal wartime circle in Delhi through the 1857 rebellion. He remained in the city during the four-month siege and was present when British forces retook Delhi in September 1857. He surrendered to British officer William Hodson alongside Mirza Mughal and Mirza Abu Bakr. On 22 September 1857, Hodson executed all three at Khooni Darwaza — the Bloody Gate — shooting them in the street. The killings, carried out after formal surrender, drew criticism in British correspondence at the time.
Impact
The execution of Mirza Khizr Sultan at Khooni Darwaza alongside Mirza Mughal and Mirza Abu Bakr became a noted episode in the history of British reprisals after the fall of Delhi. Hodson's decision to shoot the surrendered princes drew contemporary comment even from within British military circles. In 1857 historiography, Mirza Khizr Sultan is remembered as part of the Mughal wartime leadership circle whose elimination ended organized royal resistance in Delhi.