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Nahid Mirza

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Nahid Mirza
First Lady of Pakistan
Born
Nahid Amir Teymour

(1919-02-06)6 February 1919
Tehran, Iran
Died23 January 2019(2019-01-23) (aged 99)
London, United Kingdom
CitizenshipIran
Pakistan
Known forFirst Lady of Pakistan
SpouseIskandar Mirza

Nahid Iskander Mirza (6 February 1919 – 23 January 2019),[1] born Nahid Amirteymour (previously Nahid Afghamy), was an Iranian aristocrat who became the First Lady of Pakistan from 1956 to 1958.

She was also a close personal friend of Queen Soraya Esfandiary-Bakhtiary and Ava Gardner.[1] In addition, alongside her husband, President Iskander Mirza, she played a pivotal role in inaugurating Aga Khan IV's imamat in 1957, marking a momentous chapter in history.

First Lady of Pakistan

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As First Lady, Nahid Mirza accompanied her husband, President Iskander Mirza, on official visits to Iran, Turkey, Spain, and Portugal, while also hosting Russian and Chinese leaders in Pakistan.[2] She established a trust for blind children, created special centers, and played a major role in the establishment of the first state-level orphanage, Kashana.[2]

Personal life

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Nahid was the daughter of Amirteymour Kalali, and the granddaughter of Prince Mir 'Ali Mardan Shah, Nuzrat ol-Molk and his wife Ashraf us-Sultana Qajar.[2]

Nahid was first married to an Iranian Lieutenant Colonel Afghamy, a then military-attaché at the Iranian Embassy in Pakistan.[3] At the same time, Iskander Mirza was the secretary of the Defense Ministry in Pakistan.[3][4] During an event at the Russian embassy in Karachi, she met Iskandar Mirza for the first time.[1] In 1952, the Afghamys left Pakistan for Tehran again. And Nahid joined her daughter in London, who at the time was to enter a boarding school in the town.[1] In December 1953 she divorced Afghamy and in September 1954 she married Mirza[1] who had lost his wife and son in a plane crash.[3]

According to Pakistan Today, she played a major role in the resolution of the border dispute between Pakistan and Iran about Mirjaveh.[4]

Following the military coup in Pakistan in 1958, the Mirzas were exiled to London where they lived at South Kensington.[1] Iskander died in November 1969.[1] After Mirza's death, Nahid Mirza spent nearly 50 years longing for the love letters he had written to her before their marriage.[2] Despite efforts to retrieve them, she was informed that Muhammad Ayub Khan had destroyed all of Mirza's documents.[2] However, during a visit to Pakistan invited by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and her mother, Nusrat Bhutto, who shared Iranian descent with Nahid Mirza, she was presented with the letters.[2] To her disappointment, the envelopes were empty, bearing only the inscription, "Only yours, as long as there are breaths".[2]

Mirza's London flat was adorned with pictures of Iskander Mirza, reflecting her enduring love for him.[2] She was a great admirer of classical Persian poets, particularly Hafez, whose work she knew by heart and often recited.[2] An avid writer of Persian poetry herself, Nahid Mirza's home was always filled with guests who appreciated her cooking and conversation.[2]

Mirza died in London on 23 January 2019.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "OBITUARY: Nahid Iskandar Mirza, Iranian Who Became Pakistan's First Lady". KAYHAN LIFE. 14 February 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "کیا پاکستان کے پہلے مارشل لا کی وجہ ناہید مرزا تھیں؟" [Was Naheed Mirza the reason for Pakistan's first martial law?]. Independent Urdu. 8 March 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "First ladies Nusrat and Nahid were both Iranian-born". The News International.
  4. ^ a b "Ex-president Iskander Mirza's wife passes away in London". Pakistan Today.