Nawabs of Baroda

Long before the Gaekwads of Baroda became famous, The Mughals established their base in Baroda, it was ruled by the Babi Nawabs as the Governer/Officers of the State under the Mughal Empire.

The Nawab Family of Baroda are basically the distant decendents of the Holy Prophet.During 1500 AD, the descendants of Hazrat Imam Husain, the grandson of the Holy Prophet, migrated from Arabia to Herat. The first descendant who arrived in India from Herat was Sayed Abdullah.

The fifth descendant from Sayed Abdullah i.e. Quazi (Kazi) Sayed Nuruddin Husain-Khan was the founder of the Nawab Family of Baroda. He was employed in the Court of Delhi, and was honoured with the title of Nawab Bahadur, and made Khan (also called Chief), as well as Quazi(Kazi) by the Emperor of Delhi. Like his ancestors, he too was a literary genius and his Persian MSS are still preserved in the British Museum and elsewhere.

In 1780 A.D. while Quazi Sayed Nuruddin Husain-Khan was on his way proceeding for pilgrimage to Mecca, the British employed him at Surat. In 1789 he was deputed along with an English officer as Native Agent in the Peshwa’s Court at Poona. His services were also appreciated by Anand Rao Gaekwad, the Maharaja of Baroda, who made Quazi Sayed Nuruddin’s sons the ‘Nawabs of Baroda’.

The area Pratapgunj, besides The Maharaja Sayajirao University, was the property of the Nawabs. In the early years of the Baroda state, Pratapgunj was full of trees, land for cattle grazing & a specially constructed Kabristan. It is also said that there was also a large residential bungalow with gardens around. But no more information is found about it as of now.

Quazi Sayed Nuruddin Husain-Khan died in 1799 CE. This makes the Pratapgunj burial site 222 years old as of 2019. The grave of Nawab Saiyyid Sadr-ud-Din Husain Khan, a descendant of Nawab Saiyyid-ud-Din Husain Khan Saheb Bahadur can also be found at Pratapgunj.

It is sad to say that not a lot is known about these “Nawabs of Baroda” and to see the neglected state of this cemetery that is as important a part of Baroda’s history as the Gaekwads or the Akota Bronzes.

Partial Source: Edge of a fringe