Āzād Bilgrāmī, Ghulām ʻAlī ibn Nūḥ, 1704–1786آزاد، سيد غلام علي,
Persian Manuscripts
<p style='text-align: justify;'> A complete copy of the <i>Khizānah-ʼi ʻĀmirah</i> (Royal Treasury), originally composed by Ghulām ʻAlī ibn Nūḥ Āzād Bilgrāmī (1704–1786) in 1176 AH (1762–63 CE) in Aurangabad, then capital of the Princely State of Hyderabad, shortly after his friend and patron Niẓām al-Mulk ‘Alī Khān Āṣaf Jāh II (r. 1762–1803) ascended the throne. </p><p style='text-align: justify;'> A major poet and author of several historical and biographical accounts, in this work he relates the lives of some 135 Persian poets with selections of their oeuvre, recounts the history of the Āsaf Jahi dynasty up to his patron, and also covers the reigns of Aḥmad Shāh Durranī (r. 1747–1772) and the Maratha empire. Since he lived during many of these events and relates vivid eyewitness accounts, historians deem it a reliable source on 18th-century South Asia.</p>