HISTORY OF THE MUGHUL EMPIRE
The Mughal Empire, (Persian language: مغل بادشاۿ) was an empire that at its greatest
territorial extent ruled parts of Afghanistan, Balochistan and most of the
Indian Subcontinent between 1526 and 1857. The empire was founded by the Mongol
leader Babur in 1526, when he defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of
the Afghan Lodi Sultans at the First Battle of Panipat, where they
used gunpowder for the first time in India. The Mughal Empire is known as a
“gunpowder empire.” The word "Mughal" is the Indo-Aryan version of
"Mongol." Babur was a descendant of Chingis Khan. The Mughals
retained aspects of Mongol culture well into the sixteenth century, such as the
arrangement of tents around the royal camp during military maneuvers. The
religion of Mughals was Islam.
Under Akbar the Great, the empire grew considerably,
and continued to expand until the end of Aurangzeb's rule. Jahangir, the
son of Akbar, ruled the empire between 1605 and 1627. When Shah Jahan,
Jehangir's son, became emperor in October 1627, the empire was large and
wealthy enough to be considered one of the greatest empires in the world at
that time. It was Shah Jahan who commissioned the building that represents the
pinnacle of Mughal architectural achievement, the Taj Mahal, between 1630
and 1653. Sponsors of art and of learning, the Mughals left a rich heritage of
buildings, paintings and literature. Their beautiful gardens (jahanara)
representing a taste of heaven on earth, and the sanctity of nature which in
the Qur'an praises God (Q34: 10), remain an impressive part of their
heritage.
After Aurangzeb died in 1707, the empire started a
slow and steady decline in actual power, although it maintained all the
trappings of power in the Indian subcontinent for another 150 years. In 1739 it
was defeated by the army of the Persian shah, Nadir Shah (1688-1747). In 1756
Ahmad Shah (1747-1772) of Afghanistan looted Delhi. Complacent in their
military superiority, the Mughals failed to modernize their technology. While
no Indians could challenge their cannon, outsiders could. Increasingly, the Mughal emperors grew less interested in good governance and more interested in
maintaining their lavish lifestyle and expensive court. Hence, the emperors up
to Aurangzeb are called the “greater,” after him the “lesser.” This is very
similar to the pattern that emerged in the Ottoman Empire, where the
rulers grew increasingly disinterested in good governance and repeated the
pattern of their predecessors, the Afghan Lodi Sultans.
Maintaining the Mughal lifestyle meant higher taxes, from
which the taxpayers derived no benefit. Little money was invested
in agricultural or technological development. Economic prosperity was
regarded as a threat to the security of the state, and so was discouraged (the
more wealthy people could purchase arms and rebel). Local governors took
advantage of this to virtually declare independence from the center, soon aided
and abetted by the British and French. Under an initial treaty
with the Mughals in 1616, the British first built factories; by 1765 in the
Treaty of Allahabad they acquired tax raising and administrative power in
Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, after which the Mughal emperor became their puppet.
They dissolved the empire in 1857, having already gained control of substantial
territory in India, winning the competition against the French
and Dutch. At times, the Mughals experimented in establishing good
inter-religious relations with the non-Hindu majority, employing Hindus in
senior posts. At other times, religious zealousness resulted in the destruction
of temples and of Hindu images and in the imposition of harsh taxes.
The positive aspect of their legacy still contributes to interfaith harmony in
India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, but the negative aspect fuels
inter-community (communitarian) hatred and even violence. Lessons can be
learned from the Mughal legacy on how to govern multi-racial, multi-religious
societies.
Religion
The Mughal ruling class was Muslim, although many of
the subjects of the empire were Hindu and also Sikh.
When Babur first founded the empire, he did not emphasize his
religion, but rather his Mongol heritage. Under Akbar, the court
abolished the jizya, the tax on non-Muslims, and abandoned use of the
lunar Muslim calendar in favor of a solar calendar more useful for agriculture.
One of Akbar's most unusual ideas regarding religion was Din-i-Ilahi (“Godism”
in English), which was an eclectic mix of Hinduism, Islam, and
Christianity. He enjoyed good relations with the emerging Sikh community, and
it was proclaimed the state religion until his death. These actions were later
retracted by Aurangzeb, known for his zealotry. Aurangzeb
imposed Sharia law, which he codified, re-imposed the jizya, and
as had Babur, destroyed temples in order to build mosques. He is known to have
treated non-Muslims harshly.
Under Aurangzeb, Mughal court life changed dramatically.
According to his interpretation, Islam did not allow music, so he banished
court musicians, dancers, and singers. Further, based on Muslim precepts
forbidding images, he stopped the production of representational artwork,
including the miniature paintings for which the Mughals are renowned.
The Mughal Emperors persecuted several of the Sikh Gurus,
and Jehangir executed the fifth Guru. Even the Taj Mahal is reputedly built on
a sacred Hindu site, although this is disputed. At times, popular Sufi teachers
such as attracted Hindu and Muslim disciples while some Hindu gurus were also
popular among Muslims. Many Sufi shrines are still visited by Hindus as well as
Muslims.
The Mughals tended to regard themselves as rulers by divine
right, rather than as subject to Islamic law. Thus, they did not afford
religious scholars much authority. Although they recognized the Ottoman claim
to the title of caliph, they saw the Ottomans as just another Muslim
empire like themselves, especially as they shared a similar pedigree. Whether
the earlier policies of harmonizing religions were merely pragmatic or stemmed
from a more inclusive understanding of Islam is debatable. Certainly, such Sufi
teachers as Kabir (1414-1518) who flourished at an earlier period had
represented a 'peace to all' type of Islam that was attractive to many people
in the subcontinent. He taught that all people are members of one family and he
drew equally on Muslim and Hindu devotional traditions. The reversal of the
early policy would eventually result in the partition of India based on the
“two-nation theory,” which believed that Muslims and Hindus were two nations
and could not peacefully co-exist.
Political Economy
The Mughals used the mansabdar system to generate
land revenue. The emperor would grant revenue rights to a mansabdar in
exchange for promises of soldiers in wartime. The greater the size of the land
the emperor granted, the greater the number of soldiers the mansabdar or Zamindars had
to promise. The mansab was both revocable and non-hereditary; this
gave the center a fairly large degree of control over the mansabdars. As a
result of increasingly heavy taxation (initially the Mughals had not
overtaxed), revolt was encouraged as local people objected to the amount of
money spent on the lavish Mughal court. Initially, this also encouraged
economic development, establishing a strong system of banking and credit, and
issuing paper money. Increasingly, however, they bled the country of its wealth
to feed their lifestyle. Ignoring development, they failed to keep pace with
the developments of the rest of the world, including those of weapon
technology.
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