Friday, September 17, 2010

Mughal emperors

The Mughal era is the era of the Mughal Empire in India, which took place from the sixteenth century, to a point in the early eighteenth century, when the power of the Mughal emperors' decline. He finished several generations of conflicts between rival warlords.

Bahadur Shah II
First monarchBabur
Last monarchBahadur Shah II
StyleHis Imperial Majesty
Official residenceAgra Fort
Monarchy startedApril 21, 1526
Monarchy endedJune 20, 1858

The Mughal Empire

India in the 16th century had many many unpopular rulers, Muslims and Hindus, with the absence of joint bodies or institutions of law.external developments have played an important role in the birth of 'Mughal empire. The circumnavigation of Africa Portuguese Vasco da Gama in 1498 allowed Europeans to challenge control of Arab trade routes from Europe to Asia. In Central Asia and Afghanistan, changes in power pushed Babur of Ferghana (now in Uzbekistan) southward, first to Kabul and then to India. The Mughal Empire lasted more than three centuries. The Mughal Empire was one of largest centralized states in premodern history and was the forerunner of the British Empire.

The title of the greatest Mughal emperors of the six major receiving different answers to the present Pakistan and India. Favor Babur the pioneer and others his grandson, Shah Jahan (r. 1628-1658), builder of the Taj Mahal and other magnificent buildings. The other two were prominent Akbar rulers (r. 1556-1605) and Aurangzeb (r. 1658-1707). Both rulers expanded the empire and administrators were very capable. However, Akbar was known for its religious tolerance and genius Administrative Officer, ruler Aurangzeb was a zealous and fierce proselytism orthodox Islam throughout the heterodox Indian landscape.

The Taj Mahal - the most famous structure in India built during Mughal Era

Zahir ud-Din Mohammad (Babur)

Pioneer to the Mughals (Babur) was born February 15, 1483 and died December 25, 1530, claiming descent from both Chengiz Khan and Tamerlane, Babur was known for his love of beauty, and its military capacity. Babur concentrated on gaining control of northwestern India India.He was invited by Daulat Khan Lodi and Rana Sanga, who wanted to end dynasty.He defeated Ibrahim Lodi Lodi in 1526, the first battle of Panipat, a town north of Delhi .Babur then turned to the task of convincing his followers to be central in India and of overcoming other contenders for power, particularly the Rajputs and the Afghans. He succeeded in both compartments, but died soon after in 1530.

Babur held the record of his life turkish Chagatai, a language spoken in the world and turkish-Mongol Tamerlane all the time.Baburnama is one of the greatest examples of sustained narrative prose Chagatai turkish. Akbar's regent, Bairam Khan, one of Turkey's eastern Anatolia and Azerbaijani origin, whose father and grandfather had joined Babur service. Bayram Khan wrote poems in Persian and Tamerlane. His son, Abdul-Rahim Khankhanan Timur was fluent in Hindi, and Persian and composed in three languages. Using the text itself Babur, translated into Persian Baburnama. Timur The original was last seen in the imperial library at some point between 1628 and 1638 during the reign of Jahangir.



Babur's son Humayun favorite took the reins of 'empire after his father died of illness at the age of forty years. In 1539, Humayun and Sher Khan, met in the Jungle fight between Varanasi and uhuiiuiioijiPatna. Humayun barely escaped with their lives and the following year in 1540, its army of 40,000 lost to the Afghan army of 15,000 of Sher Khan. A popular Afghan Pakhtun General Khul Marwat Khan "was the military leader Sher Shah Suri. This was the first military adventure of Khul Khan Marwat and soon becomes a nightmare for Mughal.

Sher Khan's army under the command of Khan Marwat Khul become the monarch in London under the name of Sher Shah Suri and ruled from 1540 to 1545. Sher Shah Suri consolidated his reign as Punjab Bengal (in Bengal after the first Ala-ud-Din Khilji did more than two centuries earlier). It 'was credited with having organized and managed the government and military for the future Mughal kings used as their models. He added that the fort of Delhi (supposed site of Indraprastha), started by Humayun, and is now called the Purana Qila (Old Fort). The mosque Qila-I-Kuhn inside the fortress is a masterpiece of the period, but only parts have survived.

The charred remains of Sher Shah were taken to a tomb in Sahas, midway between Varanasi and Gaya. Although rarely visited, a future great Mughal builders like Akbar Jahangir and Shah Jahan emulator architecture of this tomb. The palace is huge, three stories as a mausoleum and fifty feet high. [A child] Sher Shah Islam Shah remained in power until 1553 and after his death the dynasty South lost much of its influence due to conflict and famine.

Humayun was a fact astronomer.In died due to a sharp drop from the roof of the Palace Delhi Sher Shah in 1554. Thus, in India, Humayun ruled only ten years and died at the age of forty years, leaving then only thirteen years of Akbar, as his heir. As a tribute to his father, Ali Akbar built the tomb of Humayun in Delhi (completed in 1571), red sandstone, which was the forerunner of the future architecture of Mughal. Mother and wife of Akbar Humayun Hamida Banu Begum in person the construction of the tomb.
Humayun (1508-1556)


Prince Salim (b. 1569 Hindu Rajput princess from Amber), who would later be known as Emperor Jahangir showed signs of nervousness at the end of a long reign of his father Akbar. During the absence of the father of Agra, was king and became rebellious. Akbar was able to fight with him to the throne. Salim did not worry about your brother, aspirations to the throne. His two brothers, Murad and Daniyal, had both died early from alcoholism.

Jahangir started his era as a Mughal emperor after the death of Akbar in 1605. He considered his third son Prince Khurram (later Shah Jahan in 1592, born Manmati Hindu Rajput princess), his favorite. Frog Mewar and Prince Khurram had a purpose, which resulted in a treaty acceptable to both parties. Khurram was kept busy with several campaigns in Bengal and Kashmir. Jahangir said the victories of Khurram, AI Shah Jahan as his.

He also had unlimited sources of income largely due to a systematic organization of government from his father, Ali Akbar.The Mughal Empire reached its peak during Jahangir and Shah Jahan, the status of AS. Jahangir has built his famous gardens in Kashmir that daily administration has been delegated to quit aid.One such person was the wife of Jahangir Nur Jehan, who married in 1611. She was the widow of thirty years of one of his Afghan nobles. The father, born in Persian Itimad-UD-Daula became a minister and close adviser to the emperor. Nur Jahan much power, with her father and her brother Asaf Khan, who was a successful general, was the kingdom.

Jahangir had kept a diary, is used as your memories. Although not a soldier, Jahangir was a passionate patron of Mughal art and a passionate builder. Akbar has completed for the graves of five layers of Sikandra. Emperor was busy building Lahore, Allahabad and Agra. While the de facto emperor, Nur Jahan attended administrative details, Jahangir found solace in loitering in his gardens and enjoy art and nature.

The more obscure episode of his government may have been a leader in the provision of new format called peaceful religion Sikhism. Akbar saw the flowering of the new religion founded by Guru Nanak, with fascino.Una peaceful religion of Sikhism as a result, when militants Jahangir, grandson Aurangzeb murdered the ninth Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur. Jahangir died in 1627 of alcohol abuse and Prince Khurram (Shah Jahan), began to reign as emperor.

Shah Jahan

Prince Khurram, who later became known as Emperor Shah Jahan ascended the throne after a difficult struggle for succession.

With the wealth created by Akbar, the Mughal kingdom was probably the richest in the world. Prince Khurram gave himself the title of Shah Jahan, the King of the World "and this was the name that was immortalized by history. With your imagination and aspiration, Shah Jahan gained a reputation for excellence as an esthetician. He built the pavilion of white marble at the Shalamar Gardens in Srinagar and a white marble palace in Ajmer. He also built a tomb for his father, Jahangir in Lahore and built a great city Shahajanabad in Delhi but his imagination surpassed all Mughal glory in his most famous building Taj Mahal. Shahajanabad was that his daughter Jahan built the market called Chandni Chowk.

His beloved wife Arjuman Banu (son of Asaf Khan and niece of Nur Jahan) died while delivering their fourteenth child in 1631. The distraught emperor started building a monument to her the following year. The Taj Mahal, named for Arjuman Banu, who was called Mumtaz Mahal, became one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

The great Jama Masjid, built by him was the largest in India at that time. Renamed as Delhi after Shahjahanabad. The Red Fort made of red sandstone built during his reign around Jama Masjid around the same time, came to be regarded as the seat of power of India itself. The prime minister, addressed the nation from the ramparts of the fortress on Independence Day, at that age. Shah Jahan also built or renovated strong in Delhi and Agra. rooms of white marble which served as housing and other local public hearings are classic examples of Mughal architecture. Here, the fort of Agra, Shah Jahan would spend eight of his last years as a prisoner of his son, dragging Aurangzeb in the corridors of the building, looking away from the silhouette of his famous Taj Mahal, on the banks of the river Jamuna
Shah Jahan


Inaugurated the reign of Aurangzeb decline of the Mughals.Aurangzeb, in the second half of his long reign he assumed the title "Alamgir" or "Seizo world," was known for aggressively expanding the borders of the empire and for the implementation of orthodox Islam militant Sunni. During his reign the Mughal Empire reached its maximum size (the Bijapur and Golconda sultanate that had been reduced to vassaldom by Shah Jahan were formally annexed), although it is likely that their policies have also led to its dissolution. Still, there is the belief that his policy may have slowed the fall of the Empire, rather than run it. Although it was a great manager and a general strict budget rules and reduced the military security Mughal and luxury increased. Earth rather than cash became the usual means of remuneration of officials, and trends of the split in their great empire further weaken the central authorities.

In 1679, Aurangzeb restored payment hated Hindus. Coming after a series of other taxes and other discriminatory measures which Sunni Muslims this action out of necessity, incited rebellion among Hindus and other parts empire - Jat, Sikh, and Rajput forces in the north and the Deccan forces Marat. The emperor managed to end the rebellion in the north but at a high cost to agricultural productivity and the legitimacy of the Mughal government.Aurangzeb was forced to move his headquarters to Daulatabad in the Deccan to mount a costly campaign against the guerrillas led by Marat Shivaji, which lasted 26 years until his death in 1707 at the age of seventy-nine. 

In the half century that followed, effective control of Aurangzeb's successors weakened. The system gave rise to mansabdari Zamindari system in which high-ranking officials had the appearance of hereditary aristocracy, with powers to collect revenues. Delhi as a control waned, other contenders for power emerged and clashed, thus preparing the ground for eventual British takeover. 

The Mughal State reached its zenith under the leadership of Aurangzeb. Had 29.2 percent of the world's population under its banner (175 million to 600 million in 1700 AD) and was one of the richest countries in the world had ever seen, 24.5% of the world GDP (at 90 8 million dollars from 371 billion USD in 1700).

Aurangzeb, as his father before him, is remembered as an empire builders. The Badshah Masjid (Mosque of the People) in Lahore, was built in 1673 in their orders. Not only the biggest mosque ever built by a Mughal emperor, but was then the largest mosque in the world. He also built the Port Alamgiri Lahore Fort, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Moti Masjid Red Fort in Delhi was completed by him.
Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb

Later Mughals

When Aurangzeb died near the age of eighty years, there were seventeen legitimate claim to the throne, which included not only children but also their grandchildren and great-grandson. After the death of two brothers fought near Agra, on the battlefield, but fought his brother Dara Shikoh Aurangzeb. Prince Muazzam prevailed and killed his brother, Prince Azam Shah and assumed the title of Shah Alam Bahadur Shah I I.

Son Bahadur Shah Jahandar Shah succeeded after his death. In the Deccan Saiyid Husain Ali Khan colluded with Marat and attacked Delhi and using tricks and intrigues in quotation seized Farrukhsiyar Red [Fort necessary]. The emperor was blind and he was imprisoned and poisoned, stabbed to death until the appointment necessary. However, before dying, Farrukhsiyar had the dubious honor of helping the British to take a firm position in India, to sign the coveted Imperial Farman a directive that would seal the future acquisition of British India.

Maratas were attacking constantly Delhi. More consequential humiliation was the sacking of Delhi by Nadir Shah. A descendant of Timur, Nadir Shah was the throne of Persia and seized Kandahar and Kabul. Marched through Panjabi and was invited as guest by Muhammad Shah of Delhi (only because he had neither the will nor the resources to fight it). Within forty-eight hours, using a lame excuse, Nadir Shah ordered a general massacre of Delhi citizens and looted every bit 'of wealth they could extort from royalties, as citizens of Delhi. 

Nadir Shah remained in Delhi for 48 days and the value of millions of gold jewelry and coins. Even the imperial throne Bejeweled Peacock made during the reign of Shah Jahan was packed on elephants and brought to Persia. Another award, the diamond Koh-i Nur (diamond Humayun) passed into Persian. Later, an Afghan, Ahmad Shah began his raids in London for the sole purpose of looting the capital. In a series of attacks from 1748 until 1761, Abdali not only pillage and loot Delhi, has also cleaned Mathura, Kashmir and the Punjabi city. From the east, the British defeated the Nawab of Bengal and occupied the state of Bengal.
Bahadur Shah I

The attacks of Nadir Shah and repeated incursions of Abdali resulted in the rapid removal of the next two emperors Ahmad Shah and Alamgir II, until in 1759 Shah Alam II ascended the throne. His reign lasted several decades. However, he will preside over the loss of territory to the British. When the Nawab of Bengal lost to Robert Clive, Shah Alam II to recognize as Clive Diwan (court) and Bengal, fell into British hands permanently.

In 1806, the son of Shah Akbar Shah Alam II to join the much diminished empire of the Mongols and ruled until 1837. The son of Bahadur Shah Zafar was the last emperor of the Mongols of the English before he was deposed in 1858 and the Mughal dynasty is officially over. During the Indian Rebellion of 1857, Bahadur Shah II was forced to stand with the revolt, which had the power to influence the outcome of events. The mutiny had cheated his British sponsors and now the emperor nor the troops of the competition. I had no choice but to join the winning side. However, the success of the revolt was quickly canceled and octogenarian (was eighty-two years) was fired from his empire and deposed in 1858. The emperor was then exiled to Rangoon in Burma, where he died forgotten in 1862.

Bahadur Shah II, The last Mughal emperor

Friday, September 10, 2010

Influence on the Indian Subcontinent

An important contribution to the Indian subcontinent was the original Mughal architecture. Many monuments were built by Muslim Emperor Shahjahan especially during the Mughal period, including the UNESCO world heritage Taj Mahal, which is known to be one of the best examples of Mughal architecture. Other World Heritage Sites include Humayun's Tomb, Fatehpur Sikri, Red Fort, Agra Fort and Lahore fort.

The palaces, tombs and forts built by the dynasty is now in New Delhi, Aurangabad, Fatehpur Sikri, Agra, Jaipur, Lahore, Kabul, Sheikhupura and many other cities in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. with a few souvenirs from Central Asia, Babur descendants absorbed traits and habits of the Indian subcontinent and became more or less naturalized.

 The Mughal period would be the first to witness the fusion of Indian, Iranian and Central Asian customs and traditions.

Mughal influence you can see the cultural contributions, such as

  • centralized imperial government, which brought together many smaller kingdoms.
  • Persian art and culture amalgamated with native art and culture.
  • new trade routes to Arab and Turkish lands.
  • The development of Mughlai cuisine.
  • Mughal architecture found its way into the local Indian architecture, most visible in the palaces built by Rajput rulers and Sikhs.
  • Landscape gardening

Even if the soil already Mughal ruled out in what is now India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan affect their you can still see a lot. Emperors' tombs are scattered throughout India, Afghanistan and Pakistan. There are 16 million descendants scattered across the subcontinent and perhaps the world.

Mughal Technology


Mughal Astronomy

The 16th and 17th centuries saw a synthesis between Islamic astronomy and astronomy Indian, Islamic, where they were combined observation techniques and computational tools with Hindus. We still do not seem to be little interest in theoretical astronomy, Muslims and Hindus in India, astronomers have continued to make progress in observational astronomy and produced hundreds of treaties Zij. Humayun built a personal observatory near Delhi, while Jahangir and Shah Jahan were intending to build observatories but were unable to do so. The instruments and observation techniques used in observatories Mughal were mainly derived from Islamic tradition and computational techniques of the Hindu tradition. [20] [21] In particular, one of the most remarkable astronomical instruments invented in Mughal India is the perfect celestial globe

Mughal Society

The Indian economy was so prosperous that in the Mughal period, through the creation of a road system and a steady currency, together with the unification of the country. manufactures and farmers grew crops have been sold worldwide. Major shipbuilding companies included (the shipbuilding industry in India was as advanced as European, ships and the Indians sold to European firms), textiles and steel. The Mughals maintained a small fleet, which only carried pilgrims to Mecca, some Arabian horses imported to Surat. Debal in Sindh has been largely autonomous. 

The Mughal also held various fleets Dhow River, carrying soldiers fought along rivers and pirates. Among his admirals were Munnawar Khan and Muhammad Saleh Kamboh. The Mughal also protects the Siddi of Janja. The sailors were famous and often traveled to China and East Africa Swahili Coast, along with some implementation issues of trade Mughal private sector. Cities and towns grew up under the Mongols, however, for the most part, were not political and military centers, manufacturing or commercial centers. 

Only those alumni that goods produced bureaucracy made goods in the cities, most industry was based in rural areas. The Mughal maktabs also built in each province under its authority, where children were taught the Koran and Islamic law (like the fatwa-e-Alamgiri) in indigenous languages, which later became a very strong religious institution in South Asia .

The nobility was a heterogeneous body, and mainly consisted of Rajput aristocrats and foreigners from Muslim countries, people of all castes and nationalities can obtain a title of Emperor. The middle class of wealthy merchants openly consisted of a few wealthy merchants living in coastal cities, most traders pretend to be poor to avoid taxation. 

Most people are poor. The standard of living of the poor is lower or slightly higher standard of living of poor Indians under the British Raj, which benefits the British brought with canals and modern industry were offset by population growth, high taxes, and the collapse of traditional industry in the nineteenth century.

Mughal Empire

Mughal Empire (Persian: mgul Shahan and Mughal, Urdu: Mughal Empire, its name: Gurkan),or Mongolian (the Mongols) use of the former British Empire, an Islamic power in India subcontinent, which began in 1526 that a large part of the government, attacked by the Indian Maharaja with late 17 and 18 to build coalitions, and ends in the middle of the 19th century, all South Asian governments.

The Mughal emperors were descendants of Timur, and at the height of his power in 1700, they controlled most of the Indian subcontinent - which comes from Bengal in the east to the west of Baluchistan, Kashmir, north of the Kaveri basin of the South.Its population was then estimated between 110 and 130 million in a territory of over 4,000,000 km2 (1.5 million square miles).

The "classic period" of the empire began in 1556 with the accession of Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar, also known as Akbar the Great. It ends with the death of Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707, although the dynasty continues for 150 years. During this period the Empire was characterized by a strongly centralized administration connecting the different regions. All the most important monuments of mughal, his most visible legacy, date from this period was characterized by the expansion of Persian cultural influence in the Indian subcontinent, with brilliant literary, artistic and architectural results.

Following the 1725 Empire declined rapidly weakened by wars of succession, agrarian crises supply local revolts, the growth of religious intolerance, the rise of Marathi, Durrani, Sikh and empires, and British colonialism. The last king, Bahadur Shah Zafar II, the area was limited to the city of Delhi, was imprisoned and exiled by the British after the Indian uprising of 1857.

The name derives from the country of origin of Timur mughal steppes of Central Asia, once conquered by Genghis Khan, then Moghulistan known as "Land of the Mongols. Mughal still early to speak Mongolian Chagatai, Turkish, and practices are essentially maintained Persianized.They moved the Persian literature and culture,India, forming the basis of Indo-Persian culture.

Early History Of Mughal

Mohammad Zahir Uddin Babar conquered India and its ancestor, Timur Dikhi - Tansoxiana Kat in a house in 1503 by Lang learned money. Then, after losing their first Fergana wandered as a passenger. Wrote in his cell) after receiving in Kabul in 1514 (which indigenous lands, once held by the Turks to regain desired. From September 1519 research Raid began when he visited India and Afghanistan have a common border for abolished by increasing Yusufzai tribe. I'd like to attack and create the base camp in 1524 held in Peshawar.

In 1526, Babur defeated the last of the Delhi Sultans, Ibrahim Shah Lodi, at the first battle of Panipat. To protect your newly founded kingdom, Babur then had to face the formidable Rajput Rana Sanga of Chittor, at the Battle of Khanwa. Rana Sanga offered strong resistance but was defeated.

son of Babur, Humayun happened in 1530, but suffered setbacks at the hands of the Pashtun Sher Shah Suri and lost most of the new empire before it could grow beyond a minor regional state. In 1540 Humayun became leader in exile, reaching the court of the Safavid state in 1554, while its strength 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. The resurgent Humayun, then conquered the central plateau around Delhi, but months later died in an accident, leaving the kingdom unstable and war.

Akbar succeeded his father 14 February 1556, while in the middle of a war against Sikandar Shah Suri for the throne of Delhi. He has just won his eighteenth victory at age 21 or 22. It became known as Akbar, as he was a wise ruler, set fair rates, but high. Born into a Hindu Rajput.

It 'was a more inclusive in their approach to non-Muslim subjects of the empire. He studied the production of a given area and tax residents a fifth of its agricultural production. He also created an efficient bureaucracy and was tolerant of religious differences which softened the resistance by residents.

He made alliances with Rajput Hindu-General and appointed administrators. Later, he created his own brand of religion based on tolerance, and inspired by the vision of Hinduism and Islam. After his death, this religion has not become popular, but is still remembered for his noble intentions of bringing people and minds together.

Jahangir, son of Emperor Akbar ruled the empire from 1605 to 1627. In October 1627, Shah Jahan, son of Emperor Jahangir succeeded to the throne, he inherited a vast and powerful empire. Earlier this century, was perhaps the greatest empire the world. Shah Jahan commissioned the famous Taj Mahal (1630-1653), in Agra, built by architect Ustad Ahmad Persian Lahauri as a tomb for the wife of Shah Jahan Mumtaz Mahal died giving birth to her son 14.

In 1700 the empire reached its zenith under the leadership of Aurangzeb Alamgir with important parts of this India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, most under his rule. Aurangzeb was the last of what are now called the Great Moghul king, able to live peacefully texts.