It was established as one of the twelve original subahs (top-level imperial provinces) under 16th-century Mughal emperor Akbar and became a hereditary tributary polity around 1722, with Ayodhya as its initial capital and Saadat Ali Khan as its first Subadar Nawab and progenitor of a dynasty of Nawabs of Awadh (often styled Nawab Wazir al-Mamalik). The traditional capital of Awadh was Faizabad, but the capital was later moved to Lucknow, also the station of the British Resident, which now is the capital of Uttar Pradesh. Nepalgunj now is the capital of Province No. 5 of Nepal.
