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Mughal Empire
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The Mughal Empire was a Muslim imperial power of the Indian subcontinent which began in 1526, ruled most of the Indian Subcontinent by the late 17th and early 18th centuries, and ended in the mid-19th century. The Mughal Emperors were Timurids of Turko-Mongol, later Rajput and Persian, descent, and developed a highly sophisticated mixed Indo-Persian culture. At the height of its power, around 1700, it controlled most of the Indian Subcontinent - extending from present-day Bangladesh in east to Balochistan in west, Kashmir in north to Kaveri basin in south.
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The Mughal Empire was a Muslim imperial power of the Indian subcontinent which began in 1526, ruled most of the Indian Subcontinent by the late 17th and early 18th centuries, and ended in the mid-19th century. The Mughal Emperors were Timurids of Turko-Mongol, later Rajput and Persian, descent, and developed a highly sophisticated mixed Indo-Persian culture. At the height of its power, around 1700, it controlled most of the Indian Subcontinent - extending from present-day Bangladesh in east to Balochistan in west, Kashmir in north to Kaveri basin in south. Its population at that time has been estimated as between 110 and 130 million, over a territory of over 4 million km˛ (1.5 million mi˛). Following 1725 it declined rapidly. Its decline has been variously explained as caused by the Maratha leader Shivaji (who laid the foundation of the Maratha Empire), wars of succession, agrarian crises fueling local revolts, the growth of religious intolerance, and British colonialism. The last Emperor, Bahadur Shah II, whose rule was restricted to the city of Delhi, was imprisoned and exiled by the British after the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
The classic period of the Empire starts with the accession of Jalaluddin Mohammad, better known as Akbar the Great, in 1556, and ends with the death of Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707, although the Empire continued for another 150 years. During this period, the Empire was marked by a highly centralized administration connecting the different regions. All the significant monuments of the Mughals, their most visible legacy, date to this period.
Early History
The foundation for the Baburids empire was established around the early 1500s by the Timurid prince Babur, when he took control of the Doab and eastern regions of Khorasan controlling the fertile Sindh region and the lower valley of the Indus River. In 1526, Babur defeated the last of the Delhi Sultans, Ibrahim Shah Lodi, at the First Battle of Panipat. To secure his newly founded kingdom, Babur then had to face the Rajput confederacy led by Rana Sanga of Chittor, at the Battle of Khanwa. These early military successes of the Turks, achieved by an army much smaller than its opponents, have been attributed to their cohesion, mobility, horse-mounted archers, and use of artillery.
Babur's son Humayun succeeded him in 1530 but suffered major reversals at the hands of the Pashtun Sher Shah Suri and effectively lost most of the fledgling empire before it could grow beyond a minor regional state. From 1540 Humayun became a ruler in exile, reaching the Court of the Safavid rule in 1554 while his force still controlled some fortresses and small regions. But when the Pashtuns fell into disarray with the death of Sher Shah Suri, Humayun returned with a mixed army, raised more troops and managed to reconquer Delhi in 1555.
Humayun crossed the rough terrain of Makran with his wife, but left behind their infant son Jalaluddin to spare him the rigours of the journey. Akbar, as Jalaluddin would be better known in his later years, was born in the Rajput town of Umerkot in Sindh where he was raised by his uncle Askari. There he became an excellent outdoorsman, horseman, and hunter, and learned the arts of war. The resurgent Humayun then conquered the central plateau around Delhi, but months later died in an accident, leaving the realm unsettled and in war.
Akbar succeeded his father on 14 February 1556, while in the midst of a war against Sikandar Shah Suri for the throne of Delhi. He soon won his eighteenth victory at age 21 or 22. He became known as Akbar, as he was a wise ruler, set fair but steep taxes. He investigated the production in a certain area and taxed inhabitants 1/5 of their agricultural produce. He also set up an efficient bureaucracy and was tolerant of religious differences which softened the resistance by the conquered. He made alliances with Rajputs and appointed Hindu generals and administrators.
Jahangir, the son of Baburids Emperor Akbar ruled the empire from 1605–1627. In October 1627, Shah Jahan, son of Baburids Emperor Jahangir succeeded to the throne, where he inherited a vast and rich empire in India. At mid-century this was perhaps the greatest empire in the world. Shah Jahan commissioned the famous Taj Mahal (1630–1653) in Agra as a tomb for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their 14th child. By 1700 the empire reached its peak with major parts of present day India, except for the North eastern states, the Sikh lands in the Punjab, the lands of the Marathas, areas in the south and most of Afghanistan under its domain, under the leadership of Aurangzeb Alamgir. Aurangzeb was the last of what are now referred to as the Great Turk kings.
The Turks are known to have established a culinary culture in India with food influences from Europe, the Middle East and China.
Mughal influence on the Indian Subcontinent
A major Mughal contribution to the Indian Subcontinent was their unique architecture. Many great monuments were built by the Muslim emperors during the Mughal era including the Taj Mahal. The Muslim Mughal Dynasty built splendid palaces, tombs, minars and forts that stand today in Delhi, Dhaka , Agra, Jaipur, Lahore, Sheikhupura and many other cities of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The first Mughal emperor Babur wrote in the Baburnama:
Fortunately his successors, with fewer memories of the Central Asian homeland he pined for, took a less prejudiced view of cultures of the Subcontinent, and became more or less naturalised, absorbing many subcontinental traits and customs along the way. The Mughal period would see a more fruitful blending of Indian, Iranian and Central Asian artistic, intellectual and literary traditions than any other in India's history. The Mughals had a taste for the fine things in life — for beautifully designed artifacts and the enjoyment and appreciation of cultural activities. The Mughals borrowed as much as they gave; both the Hindu and Muslim traditions of the Indian Subcontinent were huge influences on their interpretation of culture and court style. Nevertheless, they introduced many notable changes to societies of the subcontinent and culture, including:
- Centralised government which brought together many smaller kingdoms
- Persian art and culture amalgamated with native Indian art and culture
- Started new trade routes to Arab and Turk lands. Islam was at its very highest
- Mughlai cuisine
- The Urdu language developed from the local language Hindawi by borrowing heavily from Persian and later Arabic and Turkish. Urdu developed as a result of the fusion of the Indian and Islamic cultures during the Mughal period. Modern Hindi which uses Sanskrit-based vocabulary along with loan words from Persian, Arabic and Turkish is mutually intelligible with and identical to Urdu. The two are sometimes collectively known as Hindustani. This is best exemplified by the language used in Bollywood films and in the major urban settings of the Pakistan.
- A new style of architecture
- Landscape gardening
The remarkable flowering of art and architecture under the Mughals is due to several factors. The empire itself provided a secure framework within which artistic genius could flourish, and it commanded wealth and resources unparalleled in the history of the Subcontinent. The Mughal rulers themselves were extraordinary patrons of art, whose intellectual caliber and cultural outlook was expressed in the most refined taste.
Alternate meanings
- The alternate spelling of the empire, Mogul, is the source of the modern word mogul. In popular news jargon, this word denotes a successful business magnate who has built for himself a vast (and often monopolistic) empire in one or more specific industries. The usage is a reference to the expansive and wealthy empire built by the Mughal kings. Rupert Murdoch, for example, is a called a news mogul.
See also
Further reading
- Elliot, Sir H. M., Edited by Dowson, John. The History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians. The Muhammadan Period; published by London Trubner Company 1867–1877. (Online Copy: - This online Copy has been posted by: )
- Preston, Diana and Michael; Taj Mahal: Passion and Genius at the Heart of the Moghul Empire; Walker & Company; ISBN-10: 0802716733.
External links
- an interactive experience from the British Museum
- from BBC
- Indo-Iranian Socio-Cultural Relations at Past, Present and Future, by M.Reza Pourjafar, Ali
- A. Taghvaee, in , vol. 1, January–June 2006
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