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Bahadur Shah I

Shah Alam Bahadur (reigned 1707-1712), circa 1675 Painting from LACMA
Birth name:	Bahadur Shah
Title:	Emperor of Mughal Empire
Birth:	October 14, 1643
Birthplace:	Burhanpur, India
Death:	February, 1712
Succeeded by:	Jahandar Shah
Marriage:	Nizam Bai
Children:	Azim-ush-Shan, son Jahandar Shah, son Rafi-ush-Shan, son Jahan Shah, son

Muazzam Bahadur Shah (Persian: بهادر شاه Bahādur Shāh; his name Bahādur means "brave"; October 14, 1643 – February 1712), also known as Shah Alam I was a Mughal emperor who briefly ruled India from 1707 to 1712.

Muazzam, the second son of the emperor Aurangzeb through the daughter of Raja Raju, was born in Burhanpur in 1643. In his father's lifetime, Muazzam was deputed governor of the northwest territories by Aurangzeb. His province included those parts of the Punjab where the Sikh faith was blosssoming. As governor, Muazzam relaxed the enforcement of Aurangzeb's severe edicts, and an uneasy calm prevailed in the province for a brief time. In fact, he maintained a friendly relationship with the last Sikh spiritual leader, Guru Gobind Singh. When Muazzam was challenging his brothers for the Mughal throne, Guru Gobind provided military assistance and spiritual guidance to the liberal prince.

After Aurangzeb's death, Muazzam Bahadur Shah took the throne. A war of succession began immediately after Aurangzeb died. One younger brother, Prince Azam Shah, proclaimed himself emperor and marched towards Delhi, where he unsuccessfully fought Bahadur Shah and died after a nominal reign of three months. Another brother, Muhammad Kam Baksh, was killed in 1709.

Aurangzeb had imposed Sharia law within his kingdom with harsh enforcement of strict edicts. This led to increased militancy by many constituencies including the Marathas, the Sikhs and the Rajputs. Thus, rebellion was rife at the time of Aurangzeb's death and Bahadur Shah inherited a very unstable polity. A more moderate man than his father, Bahadur Shah sought to improve relations with the militant constituencies of the rapidly crumbling kingdom. However, he could do little to mitigate the damage already done by his father. Indeed, Bahadur Shah's shortcomings — his lack of military skills and leadership qualities — added to the problems of the empire. After his short reign of less than five years, the Mughal Empire entered a long decline, attributable both to his ineptness and to his father's geographical overextension and religious bigotry. Historians of his time had recorded him to be a learned man and that he possessed a mild temper and was dignified.

Bahadur Shah died on February 27, 1712 in Lahore while making alterations to the Shalimar Gardens. He was succeeded by his son Jahandar Shah.

• Shah Alam II