The Jagat Seth family, originating from Murshidabad, Bengal, was a prominent banking and money lending dynasty during the Mughal era, known for their vast wealth and influence. They played a significant role in political events, including financing the rise of Nawab Alivardi Khan and conspiring against Siraj ud-Daulah, leading to their decline after the Battle of Plassey. Today, their former residence is a museum showcasing their historical artifacts and contributions.

1. Jagat Seth family
The Jagat Seth family was a wealthy merchant, banker and money lender family from Murshidabad in Bengal[2]
during
the time of the Nawabs of Bengal.[3][4]
History
The house was founded by Jain[5]
Hiranand Shah from Nagaur,[6]
Rajasthan,[1]
who came to Patna in 1652.[7]
In 1707,
Manikchand helped Prince Farrukhsiyar financially to become the Mughal Emperor. In award, Farrukhsiyar conferred the
title of Jagat Seth on Manik Chand,[6]
the head of the family, meaning "banker or merchant of the world".[5]
This
indicates the favour the family had gained at the Mughal court.[8]
Roben Orme, the official historian of the British East India Company described Jagat Seth as the greatest banker and
money changer known in the world at that time.[9]
The historian Ghulam Hussain Khan believed that "their wealth was
such that there is no mentioning it without seeming to exaggerate and to deal in extravagant fables".[5]
They built up
their business towards the last quarter of the 17th century and by the 18th century, it was perhaps the largest banking
house in the country. In the 1750s, their entire wealth was estimated to be 14 crores.[vague][2]
Jagat Seth was extremely
influential in financial matters in Bengal and had a monopoly of minting coins there.[8][5]
The Nawabs of Bengal such as Murshid Quli Khan used the credit networks of the Jagat Seth family to pay annual tribute
to the Mughal Emperors in Delhi.[5]
Alivardi Khan came to the throne of Bengal in a military coup financed and planned
by the Jagat Seths.[5]
According to William Dalrymple, they could "make or break anyone in Bengal, including the ruler,
and their political instincts were sharp as their financial ones".[5]
Once a local businessman named Kantu borrowed
money from Jagat Seth Fateh Chand and was interested in the purchase of silk. However, he failed to return the money.
Indian businessmen refused to deal with the East India Company unless Kantu returned the money to Fateh Chand. This
shows the great respect the local businessmen had for the Jagat Seths.[7]
Fateh Chand suffered a great loss
in Delhi during Nader Shah's sack of the city in 1740, but he was able to continue his business.[7]
He died on 2 December
1744.[7]
The Jagat Seths were the most prominent moneylenders to the East India Company.[10]
Conspiracy against Siraj ud-Daulah[edit]
Siraj ud-Daulah, the new Nawab of Bengal, alienated figures important to the interest of his state- including Jagat Seth.
The Nawab demanded a lavish tribute of 30 million rupees from the banker. Of course, Jagat Seth refused, and a
result, Siraj ud-Daulah hit him.[8][5]
The Jagat Seth was[5]
a co-conspirator of Robert Clive[4]
against Siraj ud-Daulah, along
with other alienated figures, among them prominent being- Mir Jafar, Krishnachandra Roy, Omichund, Ray Durlabh &
other leading men.[11][12]
The Jagat Seth and other wealthy bankers funded the British for the conspiracy.[3]
Any members of the conspiracy group had no intention to found British rule in India, instead they were just concerned
about their political futures.[13]
Decline
After the Battle of Plassey, Mir Qasim became the new Nawab. He organised the killing of several member of the family
including Jagat Seth Mehtab Chand and his cousin Swarup Chand, in 1763, and threw their bodies off the ramparts
off Munger Fort.[6][4]
Mahtab Chand's son, Kushal Chand, was granted the title of Jagat Seth, but with the transfer of the
treasury and mint to Kolkata by the British, the need of a private banker at Murshidabad was vastly diminished.[1]
Kushal Chand was only 18 years old when he became the Seth. He lacked his father Mehtab Chand's political shrewdness
and was a spendthrift. Thus the fortunes of the Jagat Seths began declining. Govindchand, the next Seth, died in 1864,

2. succeeded by Gopal Chand and Gulab Chand respectively. By then, the fortunes of the family had declined by a
considerable amount.[6]
Museum
The house of the Jagat Seths, complete with a secret tunnel as well as an underground chamber, where illegal trade
plans were hatched, has been converted into museum. House of Jagat Seth Museum was established in 1980. It is
privately managed. It contains personal possessions of the Jagat Seth family including coins of the bygone era, muslin
and other extravagant clothes, Banarasi sarees embroidered with gold and silver threads.
According to the Archaeological Survey of India the house, temple and ruins associated with the memory of Jagat Seth's
house at Mahimapur are State Protected Monuments (Item no S-WB-94).