Begum Zeenat Mahal was the wife of Emperor Bahadur Shah II

Bahadur Shah II

His Royal Highness Abu Zafar Sirajuddin Muhammad Bahadur Shah Zafar , also known as Bahadur Shah or Bahadur Shah II was the last of the Mughal emperors in India, as well as the last ruler of the Timurid Dynasty.He was the son of Akbar Shah II and Lalbai, who was a Hindu Rajput...

 and de facto Empress of the Mughal Empire

Mughal Empire

The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 on behalf of the Emperor. She married Bahadur Shah II in 1840 and bore him his favourite son, Mirza Jawan Bakht. She greatly influenced the Emperor, and after the death of Mirza Dara Bakht

Mirza Dara Bakht

Mirza Dara Bakht Miran Shah Bahadur was the eldest son of Emperor Bahadur Shah II and Crown Prince of the Mughal Empire from 1837 to 1849. He highly influenced his aged father's decisions and was favoured by every one at the court, including his charismatic but younger stepmother Begum Zeenat Mahal...

, the Crown Prince, she began contesting her son Mirza Jawan Bakht with Mirza Fath-ul-Mulk Bahadur

Mirza Fath-ul-Mulk Bahadur

His Royal Highness The Prince Mirza Fath-ul-Mulk Bahadur also known as Mirza Fakhru was the last Crown Prince of the Mughal Empire and a senior Prince of the Imperial Family of India, the...

, the Emperor's remaining eldest son. But due to the primogeniture

Primogeniture

Primogeniture is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings . Historically, the term implied male primogeniture, to the exclusion of females...

 policy of the British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, this was not accepted. After his death the British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

banned anyone from succeeding the Emperor in an attempt to dissolve the monarchy. During the events of 1857, she kept her son out of contact with the rebels in an attempt to secure the throne for him.