THE MUGHAL EMPIRETHE MUGHAL EMPIRE1526 - 18571526 - 1857

• Essential Question: What factors play a role in the rise and fall of empires?

• Learning Objectives:• Assess the strengths and weaknesses of the Mughal

leaders empire.• Explain how leaders can positively and negatively

impact and empire/country.

Learning ObjectivesLearning Objectives

BABUR: 1526-1530BABUR: 1526-1530

He founded the empire in 1526 when he defeated a Delhi sultan

His army of 12,000 defeated the Sultan’s 100,000 men

Moguls were descendants of the Mongols, Turks, Iranians and Afghans

BABUR: 1526-1530BABUR: 1526-1530

Educated warriorFond of poetryCreated Persian gardens wherever

he conquered, missed cool climate of his homeland (see painting)

Ruled North India from 1526-30Died before the his administrative

skills in consolidating the empire were tested.

Empire passed to his son Humayan

BABUR: 1526-1530BABUR: 1526-1530

He had to fight to keep order in his society

After his victory at Kanwaha on March 10, 1527 he became the absolute ruler of North India

He spent the rest of his life trying to organize his empire and build his capital, Agra

He died on 12/26/1530

Humayun: Humayun: (1531-1540 and 1555-(1531-1540 and 1555-1556)1556)

Alternated between great energy and indolence

Lost his empire to a rival, had to flee to the Safavid empire (Persia/Iran) for help

His son, Akbar, was born during exile◦ Akbar was left behind with

mother and guardian

With help of the Safavids, Humayun regained the empire in 1555

Shortly thereafter he fell down stairs of his observatory, probably under the influence of either opium or alcohol, and died (1556)

In the words of one chronicler he: “stumbled out of this life much as he had stumbled through it”

Humayun’s Tomb

AKBAR: 1556-1605AKBAR: 1556-1605

He was Babur’s grandson and took the throne at 13

He spent most of his reign making and changing administrative policies

Added many new territories to the empire and built the largest army in Mughal history

Akbar Restrains Hawa'i, an Enraged

Elephant by Basawan with Chitra c. 1590

AKBAR: 1556-1605AKBAR: 1556-1605He was one of the first Mogul rulers to

effectively rule the diverse ethnic make-up of the empire

Akbar, a Muslim, appointed Hindus to high ranking positions

He encouraged intermarriage

He accepted all religions and sects (religious tolerance)

Jahangir: Jahangir: 1605-16271605-1627

Often drunken and cruel, his later years found him often incapacitated by opium and alcohol abuse

Married a 34 year-old Persian widow he renamed Nur Jahan (“Light of the World”)◦ She would become one of the

strongest personalities of the Mughal period

Painting commissioned by Akbar celebrating the birth of Jahangir

Jahangir: Jahangir: 1605-16271605-1627

Nur Jahan was the de facto ruler of the Mogul empire for the last half of Jahangir’s reign (due to his indolence and inebriation)◦ She schemed to get her relatives

in positions of power

Replaced by his son Prince Khurram, who he renamed Shah Jahan (“Emperor of the World”)

SHAH JAHAN: 1627-1658SHAH JAHAN: 1627-1658

Prince Khurram took the throne at 35 and took the name to Shah Jahan (“Emperor of the World”)

He spent most of his time trying to expand south

SHAH JAHAN: 1627-1658SHAH JAHAN: 1627-1658

He was a competent commander with a strict sense of justice

During his rule he built palaces, mosques and gardens

The best known structure is the Taj Mahal

When he became sick his sons fought for control of the empire

SHAH JAHANSHAH JAHANEventually his son Aurangzeb captured

the throne and imprisoned his father at Fort Agra because he supported Dara Shukoh (an older son)

Although it sounds harsh, most Mughal rulers killed their fathers upon succession

TAJ MAHALTAJ MAHAL

Shah Jahan built the mausoleum for his wife Mumtaz Mahal in Agra

It took 23 years to complete

It is constructed of materials from India and all over Asia

What did Mumtaz Mahal* look like?What did Mumtaz Mahal* look like?

According to art historian Milo Beach, "There are paintings that are labeled 'Mumtaz Mahal,' but they are simply generalized depictions of a Mughal beauty. There's virtually no contemporary account of her, because none of the historians would have had contact with her. . . Under Mohammed's law of "purdah," the law of the veil, women were obliged to hide their faces from public view. The only women depicted in paintings were court dancers and entertainers; it was taboo to paint royal women. . . Royal women were kept in seclusion, but that has nothing to do with the power they held. They clearly were extremely powerful. Shah Jahan's father, Jahangir, married a woman named Nur Jahan who was really the person who ran the empire for the second half of Jahangir's reign, when he became addicted to opium and alcohol. He barely functioned as an emperor, and she ran the country."

*Birth Name: Arjumand Banu Begum

TAJ MAHALTAJ MAHALThe structure is 1900’ x 1000’There is a lot of Persian influenceWhile imprisoned Shah Jahan could see

the Taj from his windowLegend claims that Shah Jahan had the

eyes of the architect gouged out so nothing as beautiful could be created again

When he died he was buried next to his wife

The Taj Mahal from a window at Fort Agra

Aurangzeb: Aurangzeb: (Ruled 1658 - 1707)(Ruled 1658 - 1707)

In 1657, Shah Jahan fell seriously ill, triggering the succession battle among his sons

The more tolerant and scholarly son Dara Shikoh was defeated by Aurangzeb, a more pious Muslim

Shah Jahan recovered, but it was too late for Aurangzeb to back down◦ He had Shah Jahan imprisoned and the head of Dara

Shikoh sent to him in jail

◦ Shah Jahan lived out his life looking at the Taj Mahal from his prison window

Aurangzeb killed all his brothers and any other collateral male relatives deemed a threat

Aurangzeb Takes Shah Jahan PrisonerAurangzeb Takes Shah Jahan Prisoner

Mughal Expansion Under AurangzebMughal Expansion Under Aurangzeb

Aurangzeb also known as Alamgir (“World Conqueror”)

Aurangzeb launched military campaigns that eventually added most of the Deccan and South India to the empire

The cost of these expeditions would later weaken the empire

Cost of Aurangzeb’s Deccan Cost of Aurangzeb’s Deccan CampaignsCampaigns

Causalities: approximately 100,000 lives per year for the last several decades of his attacks, often the result of capturing a Maratha fort one week, losing it the next, then recapturing it.

A moving capital city of tents: 30 miles in circumference, over 250 bazaars, 500,000 camp followers, 50,000 camels, and 30,000 elephants, all of whom had to be fed

The Deccan was stripped of its wealth famine and bubonic plague took even more lives among civilians

The anger of Hindus was raised against this Muslim king as a result of his cruelty to non-believers◦ Ex. the Maratha ruler Sambhaji was captured, tortured, and butchered to

death

Nearing 90, Aurangzeb finally withdrew in 1705, reading and copying the Qur’an in preparation for his death ◦ He confessed to his son, “I came alone, and I go as a stranger. I do not know

who I am, nor what I have been doing. I have sinned terribly, and I do not know what punishment awaits me.”

End of Mughal EmpireEnd of Mughal Empire

While at the beginning of the eighteenth century the Mughal empire looked strong, it was beginning to decline and decay

Weak rulers, regional and factional rivalries, and foreign invasion all eventually brought the empire to an end

The incursions of the Europeans, especially the British and the French, were setting the stage for the next period of Indian history (division and British conquest)

Last emperor sent into exile by British following Great Mutiny of 1857