History often hides its most poignant tales in the journeys of those forced away from their homeland. A similar story is that of Queen Malika Kishwar, the mother of Wajid Ali Shah, the last Nawab of Awadh who rests not in Lucknow, the city she cherished, but beneath Parisian soil.
When the British annexed Awadh on the grounds of misgovernance in 1856, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah was deposed and sent to Calcutta under strict surveillance of the Company.
All his powers were stripped off and he was barred from having any real responsibilities. Malika Kishwar, heartbroken at the injustice done to her son and Awadh, decided to take her plea and grievance directly to Queen Victoria, the all-in-all of the Company.
Defying convention, she embarked on a long journey to England, accompanied by attendants and relatives, hoping to reverse the annexation.
An Indian Queen in London
Her presence in London was striking: an Indian queen in flowing Awadhi attire walking into the very heart of the Empire. However, despite her efforts and dramatic appeals, her plea was ignored. Denied justice, Malika Kishwar began her return journey, weakened in body but still unbent in spirit.
It was in Paris, during this voyage, that her health gave way. She passed away there in 1858, far from Lucknow, and was laid to rest at the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.
While her son built a ‘miniature Lucknow’ during his exile at Calcutta, she herself had to stay back far away, as a part of Europe’s historical landscape.
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