Mugal Emperors

The whole doc is available only for registered users

Pages: 19
Word count: 4529
Category: Military

A limited time offer! Get a custom sample essay written according to your requirements urgent 3h delivery guaranteed

Monument to Babur in Andijan, Uzbekistan (paste the picture) Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur (February 14, 1483 – December 26, 1530; sometimes also spelt Baber or Babar) was a conqueror from Central Asia who, following a series of setbacks, finally succeeded in laying the basis for the Mughal dynasty in the Indian Subcontinent and became the first Mughal emperor. He was a direct descendant of Timurthrough his father, and a descendant also of Genghis Khan through his mother. Babur identified his lineage as Timurid and Chaghatay-Turkic. He was greatly influenced byPersian culture and this affected both his own actions and those of his successors, giving rise to a significant expansion of the Persianate ethos in the Indian subcontinent.[1]

Babur was born on February 23 [O.S. February 14] 1483[9] in the town of Andijan, in the Fergana Valley in contemporary Uzbekistan. He was the eldest son of Omar Sheykh Mirzā,[10] ruler of the Fergana Valley and his wife Qutlugh Nigar Khanum, daughter of Yunus Khan, the ruler of Moghulistan Babur was known for his love of beauty in addition to his military ability. Babur concentrated on gaining control of northwestern India.He was invited to India by Daulat Khan Lodi and Rana Sanga who wanted to end the Lodi dynasty. He defeated Ibrahim Lodi in 1526 at the First battle of Panipat, a town north ofDelhi. In 1527 he defeated Rana Sanga, rajput rulers and allies at khanua. Babur then turned to the tasks of persuading his Central Asian followers to stay on in India and of overcoming other contenders for power, mainly the Rajputs and the Afghans. He succeeded in both tasks but died shortly thereafter on 25 December 1530 in Agra.

He was later buried in Kabul. He died at the age of 47 on January 5 [O.S. 26 December 1530] 1531, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Humayun. Though he wished to be buried in his favourite garden in Kabul, a city he had always loved, he was first buried in amausoleum in the capital city of Agra.[citation needed] His remains were later moved to Bagh-e Babur (Babur Gardens) in Kabul, Afghanistan. The Persian inscription on his tomb there translates as “If there is a paradise on earth, it is this, it is this, it is this![40][page needed Babur wrote his memoirs and these form the main source for details of his life. They are known as the Baburnama and are considered the first true autobiography in Islamic literature Babur is popularly believed to have built Babri Mosque in Ayodhya It was destroyed in 1992 by a Hindu mob sparking off communal clashes around the country.[47] resulting in the killing of thousands of Muslims and Hindus.[48]

Babur’s favorite son Humayun took the reins of the empire after his father succumbed to disease at the young age of forty-seven. Humayun had two major rivals interested in acquiring his lands — Sultan Bahadur of Gujarat to the south west and Sher Shah Suri (Sher Khan) currently settled along the river Ganges in Bihar to the east. Humayun’s first campaign was to confront Sher Khan Suri.

Sher Shah Suri
Shortly after Humayun had marched on Gujarat, Sher Shah saw an opportunity to wrest control of Agra from the Mughals. He began to gather his army together hoping for a rapid and decisive siege of the Mughal capitalIn 1539, Humayun and Sher Khan met in battle in Chausa, between Varanasi and Patna. Humayun barely escaped with his own life and in the next year, in 1540, his army of 40,000 lost to the Afghan army of 15,000 of Sher Khan. A popular Pashtun Afghan General “Khulas Khan Marwat” was leading Sher Shah Suri’s Army. This was the first Military Adventure of Khulas Khan Marwat and he became soon, a nightmare for Mughals. Sher Khan’s Army under the command of Khulas Khan Marwat had now become the monarch in Delhi under the name Sher Shah Suriand ruled from 1540 to 1545.

Sher Shah Suri consolidated his kingdom from Punjab to Bengal (the first to enter Bengal after Ala-ud-din Khilji, more than two centuries earlier). He was credited with having organized and administered the government and military in such a way that future Mughal kings used it as their own models. He also added to the fort in Delhi (supposed site of Indraprastha), first started by Humayun, and now called the Purana Qila (Old Fort). The Masjid Qila-i-Kuhna inside the fort is a masterpiece of the period, though only parts of it have survived. The charred remains of Sher Shah were taken to a tomb at Sasaram (in present day Bihar), midway between Varanasi and Gaya. Although rarely visited, the future great Mughal builders like Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan emulated the architecture of this tomb. The massive palace-like mausoleum is three stories and fifty meters high.,[3]

Sher Shah Suri had died in 1545; his son and successor Islam Shah died too, in 1554. These two deaths left the dynasty reeling and disintegrating. Three rivals for the throne all marched on Delhi, while in many cities leaders tried to stake a claim for independence. This was a perfect opportunity for the Mughals to march back to India. The Mughal Emperor Humayun, gathered a vast army and attempted the challenging task of retaking the throne in Delhi. Humayun placed the army under the able leadership of Bairam Khan. This was a wise move given Humayun’s own record of military ineptitude, and turned out to be prescient, as Bairam was to prove himself a great tactician. Humayun embarked on a series of military campaigns aimed at extending his reign over areas to East and West India. Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi, India. (paste the picture)

Humayun was a keen astronomer, and in fact he died due to a fall from the rooftop of Sher Shah’s Delhi palace in 1556. Thus Humayun ruled in India barely for ten years and died at the age of forty-eight, leaving behind Akbar then only thirteen-year-old as his heir. As a tribute to his father, Akbar later built the Humayun’s tomb in Delhi (completed in 1571), from red sandstone, that would become the precursor of future Mughal architecture. Akbar’s mother and Humayun’s wife Hamida Banu Begum personally supervised the building of the tomb in his birthplace.

Akbar the Great (14 October 1542 – 27 October 1605),[2][3] was the third Mughal Emperor. He was of Timurid descent; the son of Emperor Humayun, and the grandson of the Mughal Emperor Zaheeruddin Muhammad Babur, the ruler who founded the Mughal dynasty in India. At the end of his reign in 1605 the Mughal empire covered most of northern and central India. He is most appreciated for having a liberal outlook on all faiths and beliefs and during his era, culture and art reached a zenith as compared to his predecessors.

Akbar’s system of central government was based on the system that had evolved since the Delhi Sultanate, but the functions of various departments were carefully reorganised by laying down detailed regulations for their functioning:[43] * The revenue department was headed by a wazir, responsible for all finances and management of jagir and inam lands. * The head of the military was called the mir bakshi, appointed from among the leading nobles of the court. The mir bakshi was in charge of intelligence gathering, and also made recommendations to the emperor for military appointments and promotions. * The mir saman was in charge of the imperial household, including the harems, and supervised the functioning of the court and royal bodyguard. * The judiciary was a separate organization headed by a chief qazi, who was also responsible for religious endowments. * Diwan-i-Khas – Hall of Private Audience,Fatehpur Sikri is a city and a municipal board in Agra district in the state of Uttar Pradesh,India. Built near the much older Sikri, the historical city of Fatehabad, as it was first named, was constructed by Akbar beginning in 1570, in honour of Sufi saint Shaikh Salim Chisti (paste the picture)

Akbar’s methods of administration reinforced his power against two possible sources of challenge—the Afghan-Turkish aristocracy and the traditional interpreters of Islamic law, the ulama. He created a ranked imperial service based on ability rather than birth, whose members were obliged to serve wherever required. They were remunerated with cash rather than land and were kept away from their inherited estates, thus centralizing the imperial power base and assuring its supremacy. The military and political functions of the imperial service were separate from those of revenue collection, which was supervised by the imperial treasury. This system of administration, known as the mansabdari, was based on loyal service and cash payments and was the backbone of the Mughal Empire; its effectiveness depended on personal loyalty to the emperor and his ability and willingness to choose, remunerate, and supervise.

In the year 1578, the Mughal Emperor Akbar famously referred to himself as: “| Emperor of Islam, Emir of the Faithful, Shadow of God on earth, Abul Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar Badshah Ghazi (whose empire Allah perpetuate), is a most just, most wise, and a most God-fearing ruler.| ”| Silver coin of Akbar with inscriptions of theIslamic declaration of faith, the declaration reads: “There is none worthy of worship but God, andMuhammad is the messenger of God.”(paste the picture) his interaction with various religious theologians had convinced him that despite their differences, all religions had several good practices, which he sought to combine into a new religious movement known as Din-i-Ilahi

The Akbarnāma (Persian: اکبر نامہ‎), which literally means Book of Akbar, is a official biographical account of Akbar, the third Mughal Emperor (r. 1542–1605), written in Persian. It includes vivid and detailed descriptions of his life and times.[139] The work was commissioned by Akbar, and written by Abul Fazl, one of the Nine Jewels (Hindi:Navaratnas) of Akbar’s royal court. It is stated that the book took seven years to be completed and the original manuscripts contained a number of paintings supporting the texts, and all the paintings represented the Mughal school of painting, and work of masters of the imperial workshop, including Basawan, whose use of portraiture in its illustrations was an innovation inIndian art.[139] On 3 October 1605, Akbar fell ill with an attack ofdysentery, from which he never recovered. He is believed to have died on or about 27 October 1605, after which his body was buried at a mausoleum in Sikandra, Agra.[140] Akbar left behind a rich legacy both for the Mughal Empire as well as the Indian subcontinent in general. During his reign, the nature of the state changed to a secular and liberal one, with emphasis on cultural integration. He also introduced several far-sighted social reforms, including prohibiting sati, legalising widow remarriage and raising the age of marriage.

Several well known heritage sites were built during the reign of Akbar. The fort city of Fatehpur Sikri was used as the political capital of the Empire from 1571 to 1578. The numerous palaces and the grand entrances with intricate art work have been recognized as a world heritage site by UNESCO. Akbar also began construction of his own tomb at Sikandra near Agra in 1600 CE. Jahangir

4th Mughal Emperor
Reign| 15 October 1605 – 8 November 1627
(22 years, 24 days)|
Coronation| 24 October 1605, Agra|

Jahangir 20 September 1569 – 8 November 1627) was the ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1605 until his death. Prince Salim (b. 1569 son of Hindu Rajput princess from Amber), who would later be known as Emperor Jahangir showed signs of restlessness at the end of a long reign by his father Akbar His two brothers, Murad and Daniyal, had both died early from alcoholism. Jahangir began his era as a Mughal emperor after the death of Akbar in the year 1605. He considered his third son Prince Khurram (future Shah Jahan-born 1592 of Hindu Rajput princess Manmati), Heavy rupee of Jahangir (place the picture)

An aesthete, Jahangir decided to start his reign with a grand display of “Justice”, as he saw it. During his reign, there was a significant increase in the size of the Mughal Empire, half a dozen rebellions were crushed, prisoners of war were released, and the work of his father, Akbar, continued to flourish. Much like his father, Jahangir was dedicated to the expansion of Mughal held territory through conquest. Jahangir married the extremely beautiful and intelligent Mehr-ul-Nisa (better known by her subsequent title of Nur Jahan), in May 1611. She was the widow of Sher Afghan. She was witty, intelligent and beautiful, which was what attracted Jahangir to her. Nur Jahan (paste the picture)

The story of Nur Jahan occupies an important place in the history of Jahangir. She was the widow of a rebel officer, Sher Afghan, of Mughals. Nur Jahan had a piercing intelligence, a versatile temper and sound common sense. [1] She possessed great physical strength and courage. She was devoted to Jahangir and he forgot all about the world and entrusted all the work of the government to her.[3] The loss of Kandahar was due to Prince Khurram’s refusal to obey her orders. Nur Jahan’s Rupee coin (paste the picture)

Nur Jahan struck coins in her own name during the last years of Jahangir’s reign when he was taken ill.

Jahangir’s Mausoleum in Shahdara, Lahore (p t p)
Jahangir was responsible for ending a century long struggle with the state of Mewar. The campaign against the Rajputs was pushed so extensively that the latter were made to submit and that too with a great loss of life and property. Jahangir also thought of capturingKangra Fort, which Akbar had failed to do. Consequently a siege was laid, which lasted for fourteen months, and the fort was taken in 1620. The district of Kistwar, in the state of Kashmir, was also conquered. He was trying to restore it by visiting Kashmir and Kabul. He went from Kabul to Kashmir but returned to Lahore on account of a severe cold. Jahangir died on the way back from Kashmir near Sarai Saadabad in 1627. To preserve his body, the entrails were removed and buried in the Chingus Fort, Kashmir. The body was then transferred to Lahore to be buried in Shahdara Bagh, a suburb of Lahore, Punjab. He was succeeded by his third son, Prince Khurram who took the title of Shah Jahan. Jahangir’s elegant mausoleum is located in the Shahdara locale of Lahore and is a popular tourist attraction in Lahore. A well decorated manuscript of theQuran, made during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir.(p t p)

Shahjehan, was the emperor of the Mughal Empire in South Asia from 1628 until 1658. The name Shah Jahan comes from Persian, meaning “Ruler of Everywhere”. He was the fifth Mughal emperor At a young age, he was chosen as successor to the Mughal throne after the death of Emperor Jahangir. He succeeded to the throne upon his father’s death in 1627. He is considered to be one of the greatest Mughals, and his reign has been called the Golden Age of the Mughals and one of the most prosperous ages of Indian civilization. Like Akbar, he was eager to expand his vast empire. In 1658, he fell ill and was confined by his sonEmperor Aurangzeb in the Agra Fort until his death in 1666.

The Shalimar Gardens, comprising over four-hundred fountains, were built by the Mughal emperor (PTP) The Taj Mahal is the most notable example ofIslamic architecture in South Asia it was constructed according to the commands of the famous Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan.(PTP) The imperial Pearl Mosque of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. (PTP) Jama Masjid, Delhi one of the largest mosques in the Mughal Empire was completed during the reign of Shah Jahan.(PTP) The period of his reign was the golden age of Mughal architecture. Shahanshah Shah Jahan erected many splendid monuments, the most famous of which is the legendary Taj Mahal at Agra, built in 1632-1648 as a tomb for his beloved wife, Empress Mumtaz Mahal.

The Moti Masjid, Agra and many other buildings in Agra, the Red Fort and the Jama Masjidin Delhi, mosques in Lahore, extensions to Lahore Fort and a mosque in Thatta also commemorate him. The famous Takht-e-Taus or the Peacock Throne, said to be worth millions of dollars by modern estimates, also dates from his reign. He was also the founder of the new imperial capital called Shahjahanabad, now known as Old Delhi. Other important buildings of Shah Jahan’s rule were the Diwan-i-Am and Diwan-i-Khas in the Red Fort Complex in Delhi and the Moti Masjid in the Lahore Fort. Shah Jahan is also believed to have had the most refined of the tastes in the arts and architecture, and is credited with having commissioned about 777 gardens in Kashmir, his favourite summer residence. A few of these gardens survive, attracting thousands of tourists every year.

Mumtaz Mahal (P T P)
In 1607, Shah Jahan, was betrothed to Arjumand Banu Begum who was just 14 years old at the time. She was also the niece of the famous queen of Jehangir-Nur Mahal. She would become the unquestioned love of his life. Mumtaz Mahal had 14 children

Mumtaz Mahal was utterly devoted—she was his constant companion and trusted confidante and their relationship was intense. She is portrayed by Shah Jahan’s chroniclers as the perfect wife with no aspirations to political power. Mumtaz died in Burhanpur in 1631, while giving birth to their fourteenth child, a healthy baby girl. She had been accompanying her husband while he was fighting a campaign in the Deccan Plateau. Her body was temporarily buried at Burhanpur in a walled pleasure garden known as Zainabad originally constructed by Shah Jahan’s uncle Daniyal on the bank of the Tapti River. Shah Jahan’s coins

In January 1666, Shah Jahan fell ill with strangury and dysentery. Confined to bed, he became progressively weaker until, on 22 January, After reciting the Islamic declaration of faith (Laa ilaaha illa l-laah) and verses from the Quran, he one of the greatest of the Mughal Emperors died. the body was washed in accordance with Islamic rites, taken by river in a sandalwood coffin to the Taj Mahal and was interred there next to the body of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal.

Abul Muzaffar Muhiu ‘d-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb
he was the sixthMughal Emperor, whose reign lasted for 49 years, from 1658 until his death in 1707.[2][3] (4 November [O.S. 25 October] 1618 – 3 March [O.S. 20 February] 1707), is more popularly known as Aurangzeb, Aurangzeb, who was given the title “Alamgir” or “world-seizer,” by his father During his reign, the Mughal empire reached its greatest extent (the Bijapur and Golconda Sultanates which had been reduced to vassalage by Shah Jahan were formally annexed). In 1679, Aurangzeb enforced the jizyah tax on Non-Muslims like Zakāt tax was enforced on Muslims. This action by the emperor, incited rebellion among Hindus and others in many parts of the empire notably the Jats, Sikhs, and Rajputs forces in the north andMaratha forces in the Deccan. The emperor managed to crush the rebellions in the north. Aurangzeb was compelled to move his headquarters to Aurangabad in the Deccan to mount a costly campaign against Maratha guerrilla fighters led by Shivaji and his successors, which lasted twenty-six years until he died in 1707 at the age of eighty-nine.

17th century Badshahi Masjid built by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in Lahore(PTP) The Badshahi Masjid (Imperial Mosque) in Lahore was constructed in 1673 on his orders. It was not only the largest mosque ever built by a Mughal emperor but was at that point the largest mosque in the world. He also constructed the Alamgiri Gate of the Lahore Fort, which is today a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Moti Masjid inside Delhi’s Red Fort was also finalized by him. He is also known for his fanatic view of Islam, due to which he razed many Hindu Temples. The Kashi Vishwanath Temple of Kashi/Varanasi, Kesava Deo Templeof Mathura were some of the most famous temples he raze. He was of the view that royal treasury does not belong to king but common man. He did not use any of the royal treasury for him and his family. In fact, he used to write holy qur’an and earn money and his wife used to weave caps and copies of the holy quran to support his earnings. Aurangzeb’s tomb inKhuldabad, in 1890s (PTP)

He died in Ahmednagar on Friday, 20 February 1707 at the age of 88, His modest open-air grave in Khuldabad expresses his deep devotion to his Islamic beliefs. The tomb lies in Khuldabad (Aurangabad, Maharashtra) After Aurangzeb’s death, his son Bahadur Shah I took the throne.

Coins Gallery
His coins had the name of the mint city and the year of issue on one face, and, the following couplet on other
Shivaji
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
1st Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire
Coronation
6 June 1674
Reign
1674–1680 CE
Born| 19 February 1630[3][4]
Shivneri Fort, near Pune, India|
Died| 3 April 1680
Raigad Fort|
Religion| Hinduism|

Shivaji Bhosale ([ʃiʋaˑɟiˑ bʱoˑs(ə)leˑ]; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), with the royal titleChhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was a Maratha sovereign who founded the Maratha Empire,[5][6] which, at its peak, covered much of the Indian subcontinent, encompassing a territory of over 2.8 million km².[7] He created an independent Maratha kingdom with Raigad as its capital.[6] He was crowned asChhatrapati (“sovereign”) of the Maratha empire in 1674.[5][6] He established a competent and progressive civil rule with the help of a well-regulated and disciplined military and well-structured administrative organizations. He also innovated rules of military engagement, pioneering the “Shiva sutra” or ganimi kava (guerrilla tactics), which leveraged strategic factors like geography, speed, surprise and focused pinpoint attacks to defeat his larger and more powerful enemies [10][11][12]He revived ancient Hindu political tradition & court conventions, and promoted Marathi and Sanskrit in court and administration usage. He is well known for his strong religious and warrior code of ethics and exemplary character.[13][14] He was recognized as a great national hero during the Indian Independence movement.[15] Shivaji’s birthplace on Shivneri Fort.(PTP)

Shivaji was born in the hill-fort of Shivneri, near the Junnar city in Pune district. On the auspicious second day of the bright half of Vaishakh, in the year 1549 of Shaka era (1627 A.D.) Shivaji with Jijamata.(PTP)

Shivaji was extremely devoted to his mother Jijabai, who was deeply religious. This religious environment had a profound influence on Shivaji, and he carefully studied the two great Hindu epics,Ramayana and Mahabharata. The morality and spiritual messages of the epics made a great impression on him. Throughout his life he was deeply interested in religious teachings, and sought the company of Hindu and Sufi (an esoteric Muslim sect) saints throughout his life.[19] The organization of Shivaji’s administration was composed of eight ministers orpradhaanas:[12]:438 * Peshwa – Mukhya (main) Pradhan, next to the king, for supervising and governing under king’s orders in his absence. The king’s orders bore the Peshwa’s seal. * Mazumdar – An auditor to take care of income and expenditure checks, keep the king informed of finances and sign districts-level accounts. * Navis or Waqia Mantri – to record daily activities of the royal family and to serve as master of ceremony. * Sur Navis or Sachiv – to oversee the king’s correspondence to ensure letter and style adherence to wishes of the king and check accounts of palace and Parganas. * Sumant or Dabir – for foreign affairs and to receive ambassadors. * Senapati or Sar-naubat – To keep troops ready and the king fully informed. * Panditrao – to promote learning, spirituality and settle religious disputes. * Nyayadhish – the highest judicial authority.

Shivaji demonstrated great skill in creating his military organisation, which lasted till the demise of the Maratha empire. He was one of the pioneers of commando actions, then known as ganimi kava.[48] His Mavala army’s war cry was Har Har Mahadev (“Hail Lord Our God”, Harand Mahadev being common names of Shiva).[9] Shivaji was responsible for many significant changes in military organization: * A standing army belonging to the state, called paga.

* All war horses belonged to the state; responsibility for their upkeep rested on the Sovereign. * Creation of part time soldiers from peasants who worked for eight months in their fields and supported four months in war for which they were paid. * Highly mobile and light infantry and cavalry excelling in commando tactics. * The introduction of a centralized intelligence department; Bahirjee Naik was the foremost spy who provided Shivaji with enemy information in all of Shivaji’s campaigns. * A potent and effective navy.

* Introduction of field craft, such as guerrilla warfare, commando actions, and swift flanking attacks. * Innovation of weapons and firepower, innovative use of traditional weapons like the tiger claw (vaghnakh) and vita. * Militarisation of large swathes of society, across all classes, with the entire peasant population of settlements and villages near forts actively involved in their defence.[9]

Shivaji died on 2 April 1680,[46] on the eve of Hanuman Jayanti. In a span of 50 years he started from a jagir and ended with a vast empire streching from hilly terrains to southern plain. After Shivaji’s unexpected death in April 1680 his eldest son Sambhaji took power after being challenged by his stepmother Soyarabai. Meanwhile, emperor Aurangzeb’s son had a falling out with his father and joined forces with Sambhaji, thereafter Aurangzeb personally lead his vast imperial army to attack and completely destroy the Maratha threat once and for all. He threw the full might of the Mughal empire toward this goal and for a while it seemed that he would achieve his objective. Statue of Shivaji at Raigad Fort(PTP)

After Shivaji died, his widow Soyarabai Mohite started making plans with various ministers of the administration to replace her stepson Sambhaji with her son Raja Ram as the heir to the kingdom. On 21 April 1680, the ten-year old Raja Ram was installed in the throne. The news reached Sambhaji who was imprisoned in Panhala. On 27 April, he took possession of the fort after killing the commander and on 18 June, he acquired control of Raigarh. Sambhaji formally ascended the throne on 20 July, putting Soyarabai and Raja Ram in prison.

Mugal Emperors

Related Topics