Hamida Banu Begum

Hamida Banu Begum ( 1527 – 29 August 1604), was the queen consort of the second Mughal emperor Humayun and the mother of his successor, the third Mughal emperor Akbar. She was bestowed the title of Mariam Makani, by her son, Akbar. She also bore the title of Padshah Begum during the reign of Akbar. Family Hamida Banu Begum was born 1527 to a family of Persian descent. Her father, Shaikh Ali Akbar Jami, a Shia, was a preceptor to Mughal prince Hindal Mirza, the youngest son of the first Mughal emperor, Babur. Ali Akbar Jami was also known as Mian Baba Dost, who belonged to the lineage of Ahmad Jami Zinda-fil. Hamida Banu's mother was Maah Afroz Begum, who married Ali Akbar Jami in Paat, Sindh. As suggested by her lineage, Hamida was a devout Muslim. Meeting with Humayun She met Humayun, as a fourteen-year-old girl and frequenting Mirza Hindal's household, at a banquet given by his mother, Dildar Begum (Babur's wife and Humayun's step-mother) in Alwar. Humayun was in exile after his exodus from Delhi, due to the armies of Sher Shah Suri, who had ambitions of restoring Afghan rule in Delhi. When negotiations for Humayun's marriage with Hamida Banu Begum were going on, both Hamida and Hindal bitterly opposed the marriage proposal, possibly because they were involved with each other. It seems probable that Hamida was in love with Hindal, though there is only circumstantial evidence for it. In her book the Humayun-nama, Hindal's sister and Hamida's close friend, Gulbadan Begum, pointed out that Hamida was frequently seen in her brother's palace during those days, and even in the palace of their mother, Dildar Begum.