Some Amazing Facts About the Mughal Dynasty

Mughal Dynasty which is also known as Mogul, Arabic Mongolian, or Muslim dynasty of Turkish-Mongolian origin who ruled most of northern India from the early sixteenth century until the mid-eighteenth century. After that time, it continued to exist as a considerably reduced entity and increasingly impotent until the mid-nineteenth century. The Mughal dynasty was notable for its effective government which ruled for more than two centuries in much of India, for the ability of its rulers, who through seven generations maintained a record of unusual talent, and for their administrative organization. Another distinction was the intent of the Moguls, who were Muslims, to integrate Hindus and Muslims into a united Indian state.

The dynasty was founded by a Turkish prince of Chagatai named Bābur (who reigned in 1526-30), descendant of the conqueror of Turkic, Timur (Tamerlane) on the part of his father and Chagatai, second son of the Mongol ruler Genghis Khan, on the part of his mother. Expelled from his ancestral domain in Central Asia, Bābur went to India to satisfy his appetite for conquest. From his base in Kabul (Afghanistan) he was able to control the Punjab region, and in 1526 he defeated the forces of Sultan Ibrāhīm Lodī of Delhi at the First Battle of Panipat. The following year, he surpassed the Rajput confederation under Rana Sanga of Mewar, and in 1529 he defeated the Afghans of what are now the eastern states of Uttar Pradeshand Bihar. Upon his death in 1530, he controlled all of northern India from the Indus River in the west to Bihar in the east and from the Himalayas to the south to Gwalior.

Bābur's son, Humāyūn (who reigned 1530-40 and 1555-56) lost control of the empire to the Afghan rebels, but the son of Humāyūn, Akbar (who reigned 1556-1605) defeated the Hindu usurper Hemu in the Second Battle of Panipat (1556) and thus restored the Dynasty in Hindustan. The greatest of the Mughal emperors and an extremely capable ruler, Akbar restored and consolidated the Mughal Empire. Through incessant war, he was able to annex all of the north and part of central India but adopted conciliatory policies towards his Hindu subjects and tried to recruit them into his armies and government services. The political, administrative and military structures that he created to govern the empire were the main factor behind his continued survival for another century and a half. Upon the death of Akbar in 1605, the empire extended from Afghanistan to the Bay of Bengal and south to what is now the state of Gujarat and the northern region of Deccan (Peninsular India).

The son of Akbar, Jahāngīr (who reigned between 1605 and 277) continued with his father's administrative system and his tolerant policy towards Hinduism and, therefore, proved to be a very successful ruler. His son, Shah Jahān (who reigned in 1628-58), had an insatiable passion for construction, and under his rule the Taj Mahal of Agra and the Jāmi' Masjid (Grand Mosque) of Delhi were erected, among other monuments. His reign marked the cultural zenith of the Mughal government, but his military expeditions led the empire to the brink of bankruptcy. The tolerant and enlightened government of Jahāngīr contrasted sharply with the Muslim religious fanaticism displayed by its more orthodox successor, Aurangzeb (who reigned 1658-1707). Aurangzeb annexed the deccanic Muslim kingdoms of Vijayapura (Bijapur) and Golconda and, therefore, took the empire to its maximum extent, but its political and religious intolerance laid the seeds of its decline. He excluded the Hindus from public office and destroyed their schools and temples, while their persecution of the Punjab Sikhs converted that sect against the Muslim government and provoked rebellions among the Rajputs, Sikhs and Marathas. The heavy taxes he applied impoverished the agricultural population constantly, and a constant decline in the quality of the Mughal government corresponded to a corresponding economic decline. When Aurangzeb died in 1707, he had failed to crush the Deccan Marathas, and his authority was disputed in all his domains.

By: Preeti Narula

Content: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mughal-dynasty