Shah Alam died in 1806 and was succeeded by his son, Akbar. He was king only in name and was the head of the royal establishment in the Red Fort of Delhi. The British by this time had consolidated their powers and had established a strong foothold in India. The Mughal king was treated as a pensioner of the East India Company and had little authority. Akbar, however, did try to get some of the privileges, which the British had accorded at the time of British conquest of Delhi, by sending Ram Mohan Roy as his envoy to England. Ram Mohan Roy submitted a draft memorial on the behalf of Akbar, but nothing came out of the mission as he died soon afterwards. Akbar died in 1837 and was succeeded by his son, Bahadur Shah Zafar, who was destined to be the last Mughal emperor to rule India.
This article was last updated on Sunday, June 01, 2003
