Mansur Ali Khan

Last Nawab of Bengal who fought for cultural preservation against colonial assimilation

Mansur Ali Khan (1830-1884), known as Nawab Nazim of Bengal, resisted British cultural eradication through:

• Preserving Mughal miniature painting traditions
• Establishing Calcutta's first Urdu printing press
• Protecting over 200 classical musicians

His commissioned manuscripts became masterpieces of Indo-Islamic art. Despite losing political power, he maintained court rituals that kept Bengali traditions alive. The Nawab's patronage enabled the survival of thumri music and kathak dance forms.

Visit the Hazarduari Palace Museum to see his preserved cultural artifacts. Recent exhibitions at London's Victoria & Albert Museum have reignited interest in his cultural resistance.