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Shahab-ud-din Muhammad Shah Jahan I (January 5, 1592 – January 22, 1666) was the emperor of the Mughal Empire in India from 1628 until 1658. The name Shah Jahan comes from Persian meaning "king of the world." He was the fifth Mughal ruler after Babur, Humayun, Akbar, and Jahangir. While young, he was a favorite of his legendary grandfather Akbar the Great. He is also called Shahjahan the Magnificent.
Shah Jahan in 1632
When news of Grantville reached the Mughal Empire two years after its appearance, Shah Jahan was already wary of the Europeans and their maritime struggles for control of international trade with the Empire. He immediately saw the value of the information coming from Grantville, and actually hoped to monopolize Up-timer technology for his empire. He dispatched a secret diplomatic expedition to Grantville, including Subadar Baram Khan and English-speaker Salim while under the guise of a hajj to Mecca.
Eventually he welcomes the USE delegation and offers them 50,000 silver coins and assigns emir Salim to act as intermediary. He comes to value the medical skills of the up timers and their Allies, as they healed his son Dara of an infection as well as guaranteed the successful birth of his grandson. After learning of how the English came to conquer the Indian subcontinent and mistreat its people up-time, Shah Jahan revoked the firman given to the English and ordered them to leave Surat within a month. Unfortunately the English were then attacked by people in the service of the Orthodox mullah Mullah Mohan.
In 1636, he is killed in a skirmish as collateral damage. His son Dara succeeds him as the next sultan and gives trade concessions to the USE. He seeks to further his ties with the USE by offering a military alliance.
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| Preceded by Jehangir |
Mughal Emperor 1627–1658 |
Succeeded by Aurangzeb |