India, May 17 -- The common citizens of Lucknow can readily identify Hazratganj and buildings such as Noor Baksh Kothi (district magistrate's residence), Moti Mahal (venue for hosting weddings), Khurshid Manzil (La Martiniere Girls' College), Kothi Hayat Baksh (governor's residence) and Lal Baradari (Lalit Kala Academy), possibly along with the ruins of Dilkusha and Musa Bagh. However, not many would associate these landmarks with a mausoleum or 'maqbara' standing proud near Qaiserbagh. In fact, all of these are remnants of Sa'adat Ali Khan, the largely overlooked, sixth nawab of Awadh, whom we discuss in this column today. Sa'adat Ali was the second son of Shuja-ud-Daula, from a junior or 'khurd' begum. Despite attempts by story-tellers and heritage enthusiasts to create a narrative about her being a 'Rajput princess' called 'Chattar Kunwar', there is absolutely no historical evidence on her antecedents and she remains unnamed, being addressed as 'Janab-e-Alia', which is a honorific title and not a name. The circumstances of Sa'adat Ali's birth are apocryphal (with slight variations), in which his childless mother, on her way to Lucknow, dreamt of Lord Hanuman and had a temple constructed in his honour, which survives till this date in old Aliganj. Lucknow's famous 'Bada Mangal' festival originated from here, during which, devotees of Lord Hanuman, clad in red loin cloth would roll (not walk) on the parched road leading to the temple - an extreme form of 'angapradakshinam'. The elaborate 'bhandara' we see today, was initially a humble practice of providing sweetened water and 'boondi' to the devotees along the way, as the festival was observed every Tuesday during the torrid months of Jyeshtha (May - June). Sa'adat Ali was born on February 8, 1757, a Tuesday, hence called 'Mirza Mangli.' He accompanied his father during the Battle of Buxar, when he was merely seven years of age, and was appointed as notional governor of Khairabad (Sitapur) in 1767, when he was 10 years old. In 1774, he was made the nominal governor of the newly conquered territories of Rohilkhand. His education had been in good hands. Tafazzul Hussain 'Khan-e-Allama', a noted Islamic scholar, had been appointed as his tutor by Shuja-ud-Daula. Tafazzul, a British sympathizer, later acted behind the scenes to get Sa'adat anointed as Nawab of Awadh in 1798. Although Sa'adat was an intelligent and able administrator, he was not a warrior like his father. There are historical references on how Shuja wanted Sa'adat or 'Manglu' to succeed him, and so did Nawab Begum, Shuja's mother. But Bahu Begum, Shuja's principal begum, had her way and pushed through her son, Asaf-ud-Daula's candidature. This changed Sa'adat fortunes, and he generally stayed out of Asaf's way, preferring to reside in Benaras and frequently visiting Calcutta to establish personal contacts with successive governors general, although he was not quite welcome in European circles. Two interesting incidents concerning Sa'adat Ali's controversial presence at Calcutta will surely interest the reader. The first concerns a bet, wagered between him and the General of Fort William, that if Sa'adat Ali could leap across the moat surrounding Fort William on horseback, the fort would be his. Sa'adat Ali easily cleared the moat in one leap and demanded ownership of Fort William. This was denied by the British authorities since 'a bet on the property of others was illegal.' Nevertheless, a gate of the fort was kept locked and keys handed over to Sa'adat, for his exclusive use. Another incident was a riot, which occurred during a Moharram procession at Calcutta, causing disturbance to the proceedings of the court of Calcutta. The lordships ordered that the crowd be dispersed, but the latter went on a rampage, leading to looting, damaging the court premises and British officials getting physically assaulted. Sa'adat Ali's men had been seen in the crowd and it was assumed that it was he who had engineered the riot. Later, Warren Hastings intervened in the matter, stating that Sa'adat's men were actually trying to pacify the crowd and not instigating them. Sa'adat Ali administered Awadh for almost two decades. Considered to be a British supporter, he remained in constant conflict with them and once even offered to abdicate in favour of his son, Ghazi-ud-Din. Parsimonious by nature, he amassed a huge personal fortune and replenished the state coffers, which had been emptied by the previous regime. An amateur architect, he designed the Musa Bagh Kothi and cut a straight road from the Residency to Kothi Hayat Baksh, which was to be the nucleus of future Hazratganj. Several of his buildings no longer exist, like the Aine Wali Kothi, Kankar Wali Kothi, Dil Aram Kothi and pavilions across the Gomti, where the Nawab apparently sat in the evenings and enjoyed fishing. Sa'adat Ali's demise was preceded by the death of his cherished begum, Khurshid Zadi. Both lie interred in adjacent mausolea near Qaiserbagh, built by his son and successor, Ghazi-ud-Din Haider. Ironically, these tombs exemplify puristic Islamic architecture, in contrast to the buildings that the 'first westernised' Nawab erected during his lifetime, which were overtly European in architectural style. PC Sarkar, a former scientist, has authored several books on the forgotten heritage of Lucknow...