A multitude of influences has shaped the character of the city in the last 400 years. Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, a ruler of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, was the founder of Hyderabad City. In the year 1591, when the Moon was in the constellation of Leo, Jupiter in its own abode and all celestial planets favourably placed, he laid the foundation of a new city which he called Bhagyanagar after his beloved q
ueen ‘Bhagmati’. Bhagmati embraced Islam and took the name Hyder Mahal and consequently Bhagynagar was renamed Hyderabad after her. By the mid-17th century, politics in the Deccan were ready for yet another tectonic shift. Mughal prince Aurangzeb spent most of his time in the Deccan fighting local Hindu and Muslim kingdoms to establish and enforce Mughal Sovereignty. After the death of Shah Jahan in 1666, Aurangzeb consolidated his power in Delhi as Emperor and returned to the south. He spent most of his imperial reign in military camps in the Deccan, in an almost desperate campaign to expand the empire beyond the greatest extent it had reached under Akbar. The biggest prize in his eyes was the rich city of Hyderabad, protected by the reportedly impregnable fort of Golconda. Aurangzeb with his brave commanders Khwaja Abid Siddiqi (Qulich Khan)s/o Shaikh Mir Ismail Siddiqi and Qaziuddin Siddiqi (Feroze Jung) father and son laid siege to Golconda in 1686. Golconda held fast under months of siege, and Aurangzeb had to retreat in frustration. Aurangzeb returned in 1687 and laid siege for 9 months camping in the Fateh Maidan ("victory field," now the Lal Bahadur Stadium). Khwaja Abid Siddiqi (Qulich Khan) died in these war and was buried at Kismatpur near Attapur Hyderabad. Local legend has it that the fortress held on, but the gates were opened at night by a saboteur Abdullah Khan Pani who was bribed by Aurangzeb. Sultan Abul Hassan Tana Shah, the seventh king of the dynasty, was taken prisoner. Aurangzeb's efforts would turn out largely in vain, with Hyderabad remaining in Mughal hands for less than four decades. For a few decades, Hyderabad declined, and its vibrant diamond trade was all but destroyed. Aurangzeb's attention moved away quickly to other parts of the Deccan, with the Marathas slowly but steadily gaining ground against the Mughals. With the emaciation of the Mughal Empire after Aurangzeb's death in 1707, the Mughal-appointed governors of Hyderabad gained more autonomy from Delhi. In 1724,Chin Qulich Khan Asaf Jah I Mir Qamaruddin Siddiqi son of Qaziuddin Siddiqi and grandson of Khwaja Abid siddiqi (Qulich Khan), who was granted the title Nizam-ul-Mulk ("governor of the country") by the Mughal emperor, defeated a rival official to establish control over Hyderabad. Thus began the Asaf Jahi dynasty that would rule Hyderabad until a year after India's independence from Britain. Asaf Jah's successors ruled as Nizams of Hyderabad. The rule of the seven Nizams saw the growth of Hyderabad both culturally and economically. Hyderabad became the formal capital of the kingdom and Golconda, the former capital, was all but abandoned. Survey work on Nagarjuna Sagar had also begun during this time.
