AP World HistoryPOD #13 – Mings, Qings & Mughals

Mughal Empire

Class Discussion Notes

Bulliet et. al. – “The Mughal Empire, 1526-1761”, pp. 545-547

Mughal Challenge

“What distinguished the Indian empire of the Mughal sultans from the empires of the Ottomans and Safavids was the fact that India was a land of Hindus ruled by a Muslim minority. Muslim dominion in India was the result of repeated military campaigns from the early eleventh century onward, and the Mughals had to contend with the Hindus’ long-standing resentment of the destruction of their culture by Muslims. Thus, the challenge facing the Mughals was not just conquering and organizing a large territorial state, but also finding a formula for Hindu-Muslim coexistence.” (Bulliet, p. 545)

Babur

Founder of the Mughal Empire Muslim descendant of both Timur and

Genghis Khan Invaded India from Central Asia and

defeated the last Muslim sultan of Delhi in 1526

Akbar

Grandson of Babur Established a strong central administration

with a capital at Agra and later Delhi All but the southern tip of India fell under

Mughal rule

Mansabdars

Granted land revenues to military officers and government officials in return for service

Entitled their holders to revenue assignments – revenue grants were not considered hereditary and the central government kept careful track of their issuance

Mughal Trade

Trade economy was based on the sale of cotton cloth Foreign trade was centered around the port of Surat in

the northwest Surat doubled as a point of embarkation for Muslim

pilgrims making the hajj to Mecca Mughals had no navy or merchant ships and relied on

the Europeans as an ally whose naval support could be enlisted as necessary in return for trading privileges (similar to to the approach of the Safavids)

Rajputs

70% of the mansabdars (land grant holders) appointed under Akbar were Muslim soldiers born outside of India, while 15% were Hindus

The Rajputs were Hindu warriors from the north Akbar married a Pajput princess, signaling a

desire for Muslim-Hindu reconciliation The birth of a son in 1569 ensured that all future

rulers would have both Hindu and Muslim ancestry

Religious Law

Legal disputes between two Hindus, decisions would be made according to village custom or Hindu law as interpreted by Hindu scholars

Legal disputes between two Muslims would be settled by shari’a

Akbar was the legal court of last resort

Divine Faith

Established by Akbar Incorporated Muslim, Hindu, Zoroastrian,

Sikh and Christian beliefs Akbar also adopted many Sufi ideas which

were used in the religious rituals of his court

Sack of Delhi

In 1793 Nadir Shah, a warlord who had seized power in Iran after the fall of the Safavids, invaded the Mughal capital and carried off to Iran the “peacock throne”

While the empire survived this raid in name until 1857, they were finished as a legitimate power

Fragmentation

The Mughals were unable to stop the fragmentation of the empire as many new regional powers and princely state began to emerge

Religious communities were freed from intolerance enjoyed new opportunities for expression

With the decline of the Mughals, Europeans became more influential in the region