‘India used to be a golden bird’ You must have also heard this from someone or the other. But who were the people whose immense wealth got India this title? The British had to come to India to plunder them. Countless people and immeasurable treasures are told. Today we will tell about one of these ‘Jagat Seth’, who had so much money that even the British used to borrow from him. By becoming a trader, not by becoming a ruler.
Actually ‘Jagat Seth’ is not a name, but a title, which was given to Fateh Chand by the Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah in 1723. After this the whole family became famous as ‘Jagat Seth Gharana’. The founder of this gharana is believed to be Seth Manik Chand. Manikchand was not only the cashier of Nawab Murshid Quli Khan, but the revenue of the province was also deposited with him.
Together they established the new capital of Bengal, Murshidabad. He had sent a rent of two crores to Aurangzeb instead of one crore thirty lakhs. After Manikchand, the reins of the family came in the hands of Fateh Chand, during whose time this family reached the heights.
How did Jagat Seth’s rich family become anonymous?
It was said about the Jagat Seth Gharana that if this family wanted, they could stop the flow of the Ganges by building a wall of gold and silver. This gharana earned maximum wealth during the time of Fatehchand. At that time his wealth was around £10,000,000, which would be close to £1000 billion today.
According to British government documents, he had more money than all the banks in England, with some reports even estimating that the British economy in the 1720s was smaller than the wealth of the Jagat Seths. But the rising sun also sets one day or the other.
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The reason for the end of this household was the betrayal by the British. Jagat Seth had given a huge loan to the British, but later the British clearly denied that Jagat Seth has any debt on the East India Company. It was a big blow to this household. Till 1912 AD, the Seths of this family continued to get some pension from the British side with the title of Jagat Seth. But later this pension also stopped.
Once upon a time, without the consent of the family, hardly any major decision is taken in India, in today’s era no one even knows them. Did you know this story of Jagat Seth’s ups and downs before this? Do let us know by writing.
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Source: hindi.thebetterindia.com
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