 He was a grandson of Mirza Jahan Shah (1795-1846) and was named after an ancestor, Mirza Zahiruddin Muhammad Babur, the first Mughal Emperor (1483-1530).Many members of the formerly ruling families were exiled eastwards towards Bengal such as the family of Tipu Sultan and Wajid Ali Shah, the rulers of Mysore and Awadh.The Delhi Imperial family was exiled eastwards to Burma.