The compilation of these The Mughal Empire Notes makes students exam preparation simpler and organised.
The Mughal Dynasty
History is never complete without the mention of the Mughal Dynasty. Do you know what really attributed to the popularity of the Mughals? Right from Babur to Aurangzeb every Mughal ruler had a major contribution to history. Moreover, some of the notable events of history took place because of the Mughals. So, here we’ll discuss all such notable events along with the rise and fall of the Mughal Empire.
The Mughal Dynasty
In the middle age, there existed a very popular Mughal Dynasty that was the empire of the Mughals. By the 16th century, the Mughals expanded their kingdom from Agra and Delhi. In the 17th century, almost all the subcontinent were controlled by them. The legacy of the Mughals still stands unparalleled.
Who were the Mughals?
The Mughals were the descendants of two great lineages of rulers. From their father’s side, they were the descendants of Timur while on their mother’s side they were the descendants of Genghis Khan.
Mughal Military Campaigns
In the year 1526, the first Mughal Emperor, Babur, defeated Ibrahim Lodi in the Battle of Panipat and went on to capture Delhi. In 1555, Delhi was captured back by Humayun. After Humayun, Akbar came into power and we went on to capture Chittoor (1568), Ranthambore (1569), Gujarat, Bihar, Bengal, Kashmir, Berar Khandesh, etc. (1585-1605).
The role of Akbar is significant in the popularity of the Mughal Dynasty. When the rule of Akbar came to an end, Jahangir came to power and he took against Sikhs and Ahoms. Shah Jahan captured Ahmadnagar and Bijapur and Aurangzeb waged a long battle in the Deccan.
Mughal Traditions of Succession
The Mughals never followed the then common rule of primogeniture. As per primogeniture, it was the oldest son who inherited his father’s estate. They rather followed the custom of coparcenary inheritance. In the coparcenary inheritance, there was a division of inheritance amongst all the sons.
Relation of the Mughals with the other rulers
It was the common habit of the Mughals to campaign against all the rulers who did not accept their authority. However, with the popularity of the Mughals, many rulers voluntarily such as Rajputs. Mughals gave jagirs and mansab that helped them in expanding their territories. The primary source of income for the Mughal rulers was the tax that they charged on the produce of the peasantry.
Policies Prevalent During Akbar’s Rule
Some of the notable policies listed out by Akbar were:
- Brahmanas, Jesuit priests were Roman Catholics and Zoroastrians.
- The works of the Akbar can be found in the book Akbarnama which is written by Abul Fazal.
- The nobles of Akbar commanded large armies. They had access to large amounts of revenue.
- During the time Akbar was at Fatehpur Sikri, he started a discussion on religion with the ulemas. This is when Akbar went on to divide his kingdom into different provinces known as the subas which were governed by a Subedar.
- All the discussions of the Akbar happened in the ibadat khana.
Example:
Question:
What were the central provinces under the control of the Mughal Dynasty?
Answer:
The central provinces under the control of the Mughals were Delhi, Sindh, Kabul, Mewar, Marwar, Gujarat, Bihar, Bengal, Orissa, and Deccan.