The Mughal Empire and Historical Reputation

                The Mughal Empire and Historical Reputation     

The Mughal's were Muslim's who created an empire in India 

that held power for roughly 200 years between the early 16th and early 18th centuries 

Although, technically the Mughal empire didn't come to an end until after the Indian Rebellion against the British in 1857

Now the Mughals weren't the first Muslim's in India, those would have been merchant's, and they weren't even the first Muslim's to rule a significant part's of India and that honor goes to the Delhi Sultanate which began in 1206 in northern India

But the Delhi sultanate didn't last very long, and it was replaced by a bunch of regional kingdom's, and one of them, the Lodi Sultanate had the misfortune of falling to the founder of the Mughal dynasty, Babur in 1526.

TIMUR

ZAHIR-UD-DIN MUHAMMAD BABUR

                

HIST-ERIC!  -  Zahir Baburst open the first Mughal Dynasty

So the Mughal Empire is really important in India's cultural history. I mean the Taj Mahal was built during this time.

In Architecture and painting, we see a blending of Indian and Persian styles that demonstrate how cosmopolitan the Empire was.

TAJ MAHAL

Beautiful Painting

But probably the most important aspect of the Mughal's at least as far as the contemporary world is concerned, is that they consolidated Muslim rule over much of India and they're largely the reason that today there are so many Indian's who are also Muslim's.

And the Mughals were also a really interesting example of how to build and maintain an Empire. All right, Let's go to the Thought bubble

Muslims were a small minority ruling class vastly outnumbered by Hindu's, and like many Empires, they relied on military power and pursued expansionist policies.

Like most of the Mughal rulers, especially Akbar and Aurangzeb spent a considerable amount of time trying to extend Mughal control over the entire Indian Subcontinent. And they created a pretty effective empire. They were able to incorporate Indian princes into the ruling class while still retaining top positions for Muslims. 

 

Mughals extended their kingdom in 16th to 18th centuries

They reorganized the bureaucracy and instituted an effective tax collection system, which was important because the empire was of course very expensive to run-as empire always are.

              "THIS MEANT THAT IT WAS IMPORTANT TO MAKE ACCURATE TAX                  ASSESSMENT'S AND TAXES WERE USUALLY COLLECTED BY LOCAL LEADERS CALL ZAMINDAR"

Working village people

ZAMINDAR'S Collecting Taxes

Taxes had to be paid in cash, and this contributed to the growing commercialization of the Mughal empire. Reliance on zamindar's, who were important men in their communities, meant that the empire could collect revenue without being too disruptive to local village life.

And although almost all of the revenue came from taxes on agriculture, the Mughals also taxed trade. Another way that the Mughals were a typical empire is that their rulers engaged in building projects to enhance their prestige. 

The government decided to collect taxes directly from each peasant and not through the zamindars. The law also said that the zamindars would be the owners of their own seer land but would no longer have any right to the peasants' lands. The peasants were made the owners of their own land.

As Muslims, many of their building projects were mosques, but the Mughals also built fort's and, most spectacularly, mausoleum.

Most history classes that mention the Mughal's focus on the contrast between Akbar and Aurangzeb, Akbar comes off as a good ruler, and Aurangzeb is painted as the guy who ruined the empire.

 

AURANGZEB

ABU'L-FATH JALAL UD-DIN MUHAMMAD AKBAR

The typically positive historian's view of Akbar who ruled from 1556 until 1605, can be summed up in this quote from Asher and Talbot's India before Europe

             "THOUGH HIS REFORMS OF ADMINISTRATION AND TAXATION AKBAR CREATED A SOUND AND ENDURING FOUNDATION FOR MUGHAL GOVERNANCE WHILE HIS TOLERANT ATTITUDE AND INCLUSIVE POLICIES TOWARD HINDU'S AND JAINS HELPED CREATE A STATE THAT WAS MORE INDIAN IN CHARACTER"