Atgah Khan's Tomb
The Tomb of Atgah Khan is situated on the north-eastern end of the Dargah of Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia and north of Nizamuddin Village.
Shams ud-Din Muhammad nicknamed as 'Ataga Khan' sometimes spelled as 'Atgah Khan' and popularly known by the name of Khan-e-Kalan was an important Wakil, confidante, advisor and Minister of the Imperial Courts of Emperor Akbar. He was married to Ji Ji Anga who was one of the wet nurses of Emperor Akbar and was in fact appointed as the Minister in November 1561 which was not taken very well by Maham Anga (Emperor Akbar's most favoured wet nurse).
Shams ud-Din Muhammad was the son of Mir Yar Muhammad of Ghazni who was a simple farmer. He began his career as a soldier in the Army of Kamran Mirza. One day, Shams ud-Din rescued Emperor Humayun (Akbar's father) from drowning in the Ganges River who then took him as one of his personal employees and his wife as one of Akbar's wet nurses as a reward. Humayun also conferred Shams ud-Din Muhammad with the name of 'Atgah' which means 'Foster Father' and his wife as 'Anagah' which means 'Foster Mother' and made their biological son named Mirza Aziz as 'Kokah' or the 'Foster Brother' of Akbar. Later, Shams ud-Din Muhammad 'Atgah' was also awarded with the title of 'Khan' and hence he came to be known as 'Atgah Khan'.
On the fateful day of 16th May 1562, Adham Khan along with a few hooligans charged into the Diwan-E-Aam (Hall of Audience) in Agra Red Fort and murdered Atgah Khan in the courtyard. Akbar was so enraged with this act that he ordered Adham Khan's death. Adham Khan died instantly after he was literally thrown down twice from the ramparts of Agra Fort by Akbar's royal guards.
Emperor Akbar ordered Mirza Aziz to have a massive Tomb constructed in memory of Ataga Khan who was Akbar's most loyal and beloved servant. The Tomb was completed sometime towards the end of 1566 AD and beginning of 1567 AD as mentioned in one of the inscriptions embedded on the Southern entrance door of the Tomb which reads 974 AH or 1566-1567.
The Tomb of Ataga Khan sits today on the northern border of the Nizamuddin Village within a walled enclosure. It was designed in the typical Mughal style by Ustab Khuda Quli and the calligraphy work was furnished by Baqi Muhammad from Bukhara. The Interior walls of the Tomb is inlaid with painted plasterwork of which a few sections are worn out but still reveals the excellent artistry work done on them even today while the exterior walls of the Tomb are decorated with red sandstone and colourful tiles can be seen overlaid on its western wall. The outer wall also depict inscriptions reflecting the way Ataga Khan died which were carefully chosen from the verses of the Holy Book of Quran and engraved on the white marble slabs. This method was a common practice by Mughal Kings to honour the martyrdom of their servants and is a known fact mentioned by numerous Mughal Historians.
The Tomb of Atgah Khan is accessible with no entry fee; however, though it is not a mandate but you can donate a few rupees to the families living before the Tomb area who can present you with relevant information about the Tomb and its historical background as well as receive their good wishes and blessings too.