There have been many powerful women in history. The list includes Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, Queen Elizabeth I, Golda Meir, and Margaret Thatcher, to name but a few.
Many other strong female leaders have either been forgotten, removed, or ignored by historians. Take Nur Jahan, the wife of Nur-ud-din Muhammad Salim, more commonly known as Jahangir, the fourth Mughal emperor. She was more capable and intelligent than her husband, and soon became one of the most powerful and respected woman of her time. Some historians believe that she was the true ruler of the Mughal Empire—and the real power behind the throne.
Ruby Lal’s book, Empress: The Astonishing Reign of Nur Jahan, is an intriguing examination of a reign like few others. A professor of South Asian history at Emory University, Lal’s written extensively about the period related to Mughal. Her new book provides an important perspective on a once-revered empress lost in the sands of time.
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