The Moghul

Similarly, Prince Jadar was no more ingenious, and no less wronged, than Asaf Khan's son-in-law, the subsequent Moghul and builder of the Taj Mahal, Shah Jahan. Prince Jadar's strategies and intrigues, first with and then against Queen Janahara, resemble in many ways those of Shah Jahan as he struggled to thwart the ambitions of Nur Jahan. The Shahbandar and the opium-sotted governor of Surat also had counterparts in real individuals, as did Jadar's beloved Mumtaz, his younger brother Prince Allaudin, Princess Layla, Malik Ambar, and Inayat Latif. The Sufi mystic Samad was re-created from the real-life poet Sarmad, who was admired by Shah Jahan and who was executed by a later Moghul for precisely the reasons given in the story. Of the Portuguese, Father Alvarez Sarmento was drawn in some part from the learned Father Jerome Xavier. It should be noted that the unofficial actions of the early Jesuits in India are remembered today primarily through the perceptions of English travelers, all of whom were all staunchly anti-Catholic. The role of Portuguese Jesuits in the preceding story was faithful in spirit to the English reports, although today these may seem mildly paranoid in their fear and suspicion.

    Of the English characters, only Huyghen and Roger Symmes are beholden to single, recognizable individuals: being Jan van Linschoten and Ralph Fitch, respectively. Brian Hawksworth is largely a fictional composite, whose experiences recall in part those of William Hawkins (in India from 1608 to 1613) and in part those of other seventeenth-century European adventurers. His defeat of the four Portuguese galleons was only a slight dramatization of historic victories by severely outnumbered English frigates off Surat in 1612 and 1614 commanded by English captains Thomas Best and Nicholas Downton, both sailing for the early East India Company. Hawksworth's mercurial relationship with the Moghul and his experiences at the Moghul’s court were re-created in part from the letters and diaries of William Hawkins and those of his successor, Sir Thomas Roe. As did Brian Hawksworth, William Hawkins adopted the Indian style of life in dress and diet, much to the astonishment of his European contemporaries. Brian Hawksworth's love affair with Shirin was suggested by William Hawkins' marriage to an Indian women of noble descent, possibly a member of the Moghul’s court, on the encouragement of Jahangir, who suspected the Jesuits of attempting to poison him and wanted his food monitored. Hawkins' wife later journeyed to London, where she caused the East India Company considerable disruption over their responsibilities toward her, and eventually she returned to India.
    Although most of the early Englishmen in India resembled our George Elkington far more than they did Brian Hawksworth, there was one early traveler, Thomas Coryat, whose cultural and human sensibilities would not have clashed greatly with those of Brian Hawksworth at the end of his story.
    The sudden appearance of the bubonic plague in India was taken from the court history of the Moghul Jahangir. Similarly, the capture of the Moghul’s trading vessel by the Portuguese, intended to intimidate him and forestall an English trade agreement, and his retaliatory closure of Jesuit missions happened essentially as described. The Jesuits were allowed to reopen their missions a few years later, but the damage was done. There seems evidence that the Portuguese did conspire to assist the forces opposing the succession of Shah Jahan, whom they justifiably feared. The rebellion of Shah Jahan extended over several years, and did include at one point a stay on the Udaipur island of Jagmandir, where some historians now believe he first saw inlay work of the type that later became a distinguishing feature of his crowning creation, the Taj Mahal.
    For those who may wish to gain more familiarity with Moghul India, various sources can be recommended. Lively historical works on the Moghul period include Waldemar Hansen's classic panorama The Peacock Throne and the even more recent Cities of Mughul India by Gavin Hambly, to mention two of my favorites. For those still more curious, and adventurous, there are the original writings from the seventeenth century, which will require more digging but are decidedly worth the effort. Readers with access to a major library may be able to find reprinted editions of the diaries of several seventeenth-century English and European travelers in India.