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{{Redirect|Mughals||Mughal (disambiguation)}}
{{Redirect|Mughals||Mughal (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox former country
{{Infobox former country
|native_name = {{lang|fa|شاهان گورکانی}}<br />{{transl|fa|''Shāhān-e Gūrkānī''}}<br/>{{lang|ur|مغلیہ سلطنت}}
|native_name = {{lang|fa|شاهان گورکانی}}<br />{{transl|fa|''Shāhān-e Gūrkānī''}}<br/>{{lang|ur|مغلیہ سلطنت}}

|conventional_long_name = The Mughal Empire
|conventional_long_name = The Mughal Empire
|common_name = Mughal Empire
|common_name = Mughal Empire
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|event_start = First Battle of Panipat
|event_start = First Battle of Panipat
|date_start = 21 April
|date_start = 21 April
|event_end = Siege of Delhi
|event_end = Battle of Buxar
|date_end = 1857
|date_end = 22 November
|event1 = <!-- Optional: other events between "start" and "end" -->
|event1 = <!-- Optional: other events between "start" and "end" -->
|date_event1 =
|date_event1 =
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|flag_p6 =
|flag_p6 =
|image_p6 =
|image_p6 =
|s1 = Maratha Empire
|flag_s1 = Flag of the Maratha Empire.svg
|border_s1 = no
|image_s1 = <!-- Use: [[Image:Sin escudo.svg|20px|Image missing]] -->
|s2 = Durrani Empire
|s2 = Durrani Empire
|flag_s2 = Flag of the Emirate of Herat.svg
|flag_s2 = Flag of the Emirate of Herat.svg
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|s9 = Nawab of Awadh|Kingdom of Awadh
|s9 = Nawab of Awadh|Kingdom of Awadh
|flag_s9 = Flag of Awadh.svg
|flag_s9 = Flag of Awadh.svg
|s10 = Sultanate of Mysore
|s10 = Kingdom of Mysore
|flag_s10 = Flag of Mysore.svg
|flag_s10 = Flag of Mysore.svg
|s11 = Bharatpur State
|s11 = Bharatpur State
|flag_s11 = Flag of Bharatpur.svg
|flag_s11 = Flag of Bharatpur.svg
|s1 = Maratha Empire
|flag_s1 = Flag of the Maratha Empire.svg
|border_s1 = no
|image_s1 = <!-- Use: [[Image:Sin escudo.svg|20px|Image missing]] -->
|image_flag = Flag of the Mughal Empire.svg
|image_flag = Flag of the Mughal Empire.svg
|flag_border = no
|flag_border = no
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|symbol = <!-- Link target under symbol image. Default: Coat of arms of {{{common_name}}} -->
|symbol = <!-- Link target under symbol image. Default: Coat of arms of {{{common_name}}} -->
|symbol_type = <!-- Displayed text for link under symbol. Default "Coat of arms" -->
|symbol_type = <!-- Displayed text for link under symbol. Default "Coat of arms" -->
|image_map = File:Mughal Empire (orthographic projection).svg
|image_map = Mughal Ages.jpeg
|image_map_alt = Timeline of Mughal State 1526-1707
|image_map_caption = Mughal Empire in 1689 AD
|image_map_caption = Mughal Frontiers 1526–1707
|image_map2 = <!-- If second map is needed - does not appear by default -->
|image_map2_alt =
|image_map2_caption =
|capital = [[Agra]]; [[Fatehpur Sikri]]; [[Delhi]] <!-- [[Lahore]] was royal residence, not capital -->
|capital = [[Agra]]; [[Fatehpur Sikri]]; [[Delhi]] <!-- [[Lahore]] was royal residence, not capital -->
|capital_exile = <!-- If status="Exile" -->
|capital_exile = <!-- If status="Exile" -->
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|today = {{flag|Pakistan}}<br>{{flag|Bangladesh}}<br>{{flag|India}}<br>{{flag|Afghanistan}}
|today = {{flag|Pakistan}}<br>{{flag|Bangladesh}}<br>{{flag|India}}<br>{{flag|Afghanistan}}
}}
}}

The '''Mughal Empire''' ({{lang-fa|شاهان گورکانی}} {{transl|fa|''Shāhān-e ''Gūrkānī''}}; {{Lang-ur|{{Nastaliq|مغلیہ سلطنت}}}}; self-designation: {{lang|fa|گوركانى}} {{transl|fa|''Gūrkānī''}}&nbsp;),&lrm;<ref name="Thackston">{{cite book|title=The [[Baburnama]]: Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor|publisher=[[Modern Library]]|isbn=978-0375761379|author=Zahir ud-Din Mohammad|authorlink=Babur|editor=Thackston, Wheeler M.|editor-link=Wheeler Thackston|location=New York|page=xlvi|date=September 10, 2002|quote=In India the dynasty always called itself {{transl|fa|Gurkani}}, after {{lang|chg-Latn|[[Timur|Temür]]}}'s title {{transl|fa|Gurkân}}, the Persianized form of the Mongolian {{lang|mn-Latn|''kürägän''}}, 'son-in-law,' a title he assumed after his marriage to a [[Genghisid]] princess.}}</ref><ref name="Balfour">{{cite book|last=Balfour|first=E.G.|authorlink=Edward Balfour|title=Encyclopaedia Asiatica: Comprising Indian-subcontinent, Eastern and Southern Asia|year=1976|publisher=Cosmo Publications|isbn=978-8170203254|location=New Delhi|at=S. 460, S. 488, S. 897}}</ref> or '''Mogul''' (also '''Moghul''') '''Empire''' ''in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the [[Indian Subcontinent]].<ref>[http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/southasia/History/Mughals/mughals.html "The Mughal Empire"]</ref> The [[Mughal emperors]] were descendants of the [[Timurids]] and [[Genghis Khan]]. The Mughal Empire began in 1526; at the height of their power in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, they controlled most of the Indian Subcontinent—extending from [[Bengal]] in the east to [[Balochistan (region)|Balochistan]] in the west, [[Kashmir]] in the north to the [[Kaveri]] basin in the south.''<ref>[http://sun.menloschool.org/~sportman/westernstudies/first/1718/2000/eblock/mughal/ menloschool.org]{{dead link|date=October 2010}}</ref>
The '''Mughal Empire''' ({{lang-fa|شاهان گورکانی}} {{transl|fa|''Shāhān-e ''Gūrkānī''}}; {{Lang-ur|{{Nastaliq|مغلیہ سلطنت}}}}; self-designation: {{lang|fa|گوركانى}} {{transl|fa|''Gūrkānī''}}&nbsp;),&lrm;<ref name="Thackston">{{cite book|title=The [[Baburnama]]: Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor|publisher=[[Modern Library]]|isbn=978-0375761379|author=Zahir ud-Din Mohammad|authorlink=Babur|editor=Thackston, Wheeler M.|editor-link=Wheeler Thackston|location=New York|page=xlvi|date=September 10, 2002|quote=In India the dynasty always called itself {{transl|fa|Gurkani}}, after {{lang|chg-Latn|[[Timur|Temür]]}}'s title {{transl|fa|Gurkân}}, the Persianized form of the Mongolian {{lang|mn-Latn|''kürägän''}}, 'son-in-law,' a title he assumed after his marriage to a [[Genghisid]] princess.}}</ref><ref name="Balfour">{{cite book|last=Balfour|first=E.G.|authorlink=Edward Balfour|title=Encyclopaedia Asiatica: Comprising Indian-subcontinent, Eastern and Southern Asia|year=1976|publisher=Cosmo Publications|isbn=978-8170203254|location=New Delhi|at=S. 460, S. 488, S. 897}}</ref> or '''Mogul''' (also '''Moghul''') '''Empire''' ''in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the [[Indian Subcontinent]].<ref>[http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/southasia/History/Mughals/mughals.html "The Mughal Empire"]</ref> The [[Mughal emperors]] were descendants of the [[Timurids]] and [[Genghis Khan]]. The Mughal Empire began in 1526; at the height of their power in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, they controlled most of the Indian Subcontinent—extending from [[Bengal]] in the east to [[Balochistan (region)|Balochistan]] in the west, [[Kashmir]] in the north to the [[Kaveri]] basin in the south.''<ref>[http://sun.menloschool.org/~sportman/westernstudies/first/1718/2000/eblock/mughal/ menloschool.org]{{dead link|date=October 2010}}</ref>
Its population at that time has been estimated as between 110 and 150 million, over a territory of more than 3.2 million square kilometres (1.2 million square miles).<ref name="Richards1993">{{cite book|last=Richards|first=John F.|title=The Mughal Empire|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0521251198|doi=10.2277/0521251192|editor1-first=Gordon|editor1-last=Johnson|editor1-link=Gordon Johnson (historian)|editor2-first=C. A.|editor2-last=Bayly|editor2-link=Christopher Alan Bayly|accessdate=14 October 2010|series=The New Cambridge history of India: 1.5|volume=I. The Mughals and their Contemporaries|location=Cambridge|pages=1, 190|date=March 26, 1993}}</ref>
Its population at that time has been estimated as between 110 and 150 million, over a territory of more than 3.2 million square kilometres (1.2 million square miles).<ref name="Richards1993">{{cite book|last=Richards|first=John F.|title=The Mughal Empire|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0521251198|doi=10.2277/0521251192|editor1-first=Gordon|editor1-last=Johnson|editor1-link=Gordon Johnson (historian)|editor2-first=C. A.|editor2-last=Bayly|editor2-link=Christopher Alan Bayly|accessdate=14 October 2010|series=The New Cambridge history of India: 1.5|volume=I. The Mughals and their Contemporaries|location=Cambridge|pages=1, 190|date=March 26, 1993}}</ref>
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Mughal influence can be seen in cultural contributions such as{{citation needed|date=April 2012}}:
Mughal influence can be seen in cultural contributions such as{{citation needed|date=April 2012}}:
*Centralised, imperialistic government which brought together many smaller kingdoms.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mughal Empire – MSN Encarta <!-- BOT GENERATED TITLE -->|url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761564252/mughal_empire.html|work=|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5kx6SG3s9|archivedate=2009-11-01|deadurl=yes}}</ref>
*Centralised, imperialistic government which brought together many smaller kingdoms.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mughal Empire – MSN Encarta <!-- BOT GENERATED TITLE -->|url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761564252/mughal_empire.html|work=|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5kx6SG3s9|archivedate=2009-11-01|deadurl=yes}}</ref>
*[[Persian art]] and culture amalgamated with [[Indian art]] and culture.<ref>[http://www.soas.ac.uk/
*[[Persian art]] and culture amalgamated with [[Indian art]] and culture.<ref>[http://www.soas.ac.uk/southasia/research/nilc/indopersian/ Indo-Persian Literature Conference: SOAS: North Indian Literary Culture (1450–1650)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
*New trade routes to [[Arab]] and [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] lands.
*The development of [[Mughlai cuisine]].<ref>[http://www.indianfoodforever.com/mughlai/ Mughlai Recipes, Mughlai Dishes – Cuisine, Mughlai Food<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
*Mughal Architecture found its way into local [[Indian architecture]], most conspicuously in the palaces built by [[Rajput]]s and [[Sikh]] rulers.
*Landscape gardening

Although the land the Mughals once ruled has separated into what is now India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan, their influence can still be seen widely today. Tombs of the emperors are spread throughout India, Afghanistan,<ref>[http://www.afghanistan-photos.com/crbst_36.html The garden of Bagh-e Babur : Tomb of the Mughal emperor<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> and Pakistan. There are 16 million descendants spread throughout the Subcontinent and possibly the world.<ref>[http://www.twocircles.net/2009mar13/descendants_mughal_came_together_rehabilitate_mughal_dynasty.html Descendants of Mughal came together to rehabilitate the Mughal Dynasty | TwoCircles.net<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>{{verify credibility|date=October 2010}}

=== Urdu language ===
{{Main|Persian language in South Asia|Persian and Urdu}}
Although [[Persian language|Persian]] was the dominant and "official" language of the empire, the language of the elite later evolved into a form known as [[Urdu language|Urdu]]. Highly Persianized and also influenced by Arabic and Turkic, the language was written in a type of [[Perso-Arabic script]] known as [[Nastaliq]], and with literary conventions and specialized vocabulary being retained from [[Persian language|Persian]], [[Arabic]] and [[Turkic languages|Turkic]]; the new dialect was eventually given its own name of Urdu. Compared with [[Hindi]], the Urdu language draws more vocabulary from Persian and Arabic (via Persian) and (to a much lesser degree) from Turkic languages where Hindi draws vocabulary from [[Sanskrit]] more heavily.<ref name="Sikmirza">{{cite web|url = http://www.geocities.com/sikmirza/arabic/hindustani.html| title = A Brief Hindi – Urdu FAQ|publisher = sikmirza|accessdate = 2008-05-20|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20071202103338/http://www.geocities.com/sikmirza/arabic/hindustani.html|archivedate=2007-12-02}}</ref> Modern [[Hindi]], which uses [[Sanskrit]]-based vocabulary along with Urdu loan words from Persian and Arabic, is [[mutually intelligible]] with [[Urdu]].<ref>[http://pakistaniat.com/2009/07/23/urdu-dictionary-project-is-under-threat/ Urdu Dictionary Project is Under Threat : ALL THINGS PAKISTAN<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Today, Urdu is the national language of [[Pakistan]] and also an important co-official language in [[India]].

=== Mughal society ===
{{Unreferenced section|date=November 2010}}
The Indian economy remained as prosperous under the Mughals as it was, because of the creation of a road system and a uniform currency, together with the unification of the country. [[Manufactured goods]] and peasant-grown [[cash crops]] were sold throughout the world. Key industries included shipbuilding (the Indian shipbuilding industry was as advanced as the European, and Indians sold ships to European firms), textiles, and steel. The Mughals maintained a small fleet, which merely carried pilgrims to Mecca, imported a few Arab horses in [[Surat]]. [[Debal]] in [[Sindh]] was mostly autonomous. The Mughals also maintained various river fleets of [[Dhows]], which transported soldiers over rivers and fought rebels. Among its admirals were [[Yahya Saleh]], [[Munnawar Khan]], and [[Muhammad Saleh Kamboh]]. The Mughals also protected the [[Siddis]] of [[Janjira]]. Its sailors were renowned and often voyaged to China and the East African Swahili Coast, together with some Mughal subjects carrying out private-sector trade. Cities and towns boomed under the Mughals; however, for the most part, they were military and political centres, not manufacturing or commerce centres. Only those guilds which produced goods for the bureaucracy made goods in the towns; most industry was based in rural areas. The Mughals also built [[Maktab]]s in every province under their authority, where youth were taught the [[Quran]] and [[Sharia|Islamic law]] such as the [[Fatawa-e-Alamgiri]] in their indigenous languages.

The nobility was a heterogeneous body; while it primarily consisted of Rajput aristocrats and foreigners from Muslim countries, people of all castes and nationalities could gain a title from the emperor. The middle class of openly affluent traders consisted of a few wealthy merchants living in the coastal towns; the bulk of the merchants pretended to be poor to avoid taxation. The bulk of the people were poor. The standard of living of the poor was as low as, or somewhat higher than, the standard of living of the Indian poor under the [[British Raj]]; whatever benefits the British brought with canals and modern industry were neutralized by rising population growth, high taxes, and the collapse of traditional industry in the nineteenth century.

== Science and technology ==

=== Astronomy ===
While there appears to have been little concern for theoretical astronomy, Mughal astronomers continued to make advances in [[observational astronomy]] and produced nearly a hundred Zij treatises. [[Humayun]] built a personal observatory near [[Delhi]], while [[Jahangir]] and [[Shah Jahan]] were also intending to build observatories but were unable to do so. The instruments and observational techniques used at the Mughal observatories were mainly derived from the Islamic tradition.<ref name=Sharma>{{citation|title=Sawai Jai Singh and His Astronomy|first=Virendra Nath|last=Sharma|year=1995|publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] Publ.|isbn=8120812565|pages=8–9}}</ref><ref name=Baber>{{citation|title=The Science of Empire: Scientific Knowledge, Civilization, and Colonial Rule in India|first=Zaheer|last=Baber|year=1996|publisher=[[State University of New York Press]]|isbn=0791429199|pages=82–9}}</ref> In particular, one of the most remarkable astronomical instruments invented in Mughal India is the seamless celestial globe (see [[#Technology|Technology]] below).

=== Technology ===
{{See also|History of gunpowder#India|l1=History of gunpowder: India}}

[[Fathullah Shirazi]] (c. 1582), a [[Persian people|Persian]]-[[History of India|Indian]] [[polymath]] and mechanical engineer who worked for [[Akbar the Great]] in the Mughal Empire, developed a [[volley gun]].<ref name="Fathullah Shirazi">{{cite journal|last=Bag|first=A. K.|title=Fathullah Shirazi: Cannon, Multi-barrel Gun and Yarghu|journal=Indian Journal of History of Science|year=2005|volume=40|issue=3|pages=431–436|publisher=[[Indian National Science Academy]]|location=New Delhi|issn=0019-5235}}</ref>

Considered one of the most remarkable feats in [[metallurgy]], the [[Seam (metallurgy)|seamless]] [[globe]] was invented in [[Kashmir]] by Ali Kashmiri ibn Luqman in 998 AH (1589–90 CE), and twenty other such globes were later produced in [[Lahore]] and Kashmir during the Mughal Empire. Before they were rediscovered in the 1980s, it was believed by modern [[metallurgists]] to be technically impossible to produce metal globes without any [[Seam (metallurgy)|seams]], even with modern technology. Another famous series of seamless celestial globes was produced using a lost-wax casting method in the Mughal Empire in 1070 AH (1659–1960 CE) by [[Muhammad Salih Tahtawi]] with [[Arabic]] and [[Persian language|Persian]] inscriptions. It is considered a major feat in metallurgy. These Mughal metallurgists pioneered the method of [[wax]] [[casting]] while producing these seamless globes.<ref>{{citation|first=Emilie|last=Savage-Smith|title=Islamicate Celestial Globes: Their history, Construction, and Use|publisher=Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.|year=1985}}</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Weeks Edwin Lord An Open-Air Restaurant Lahore.jpg|The [[Bazaar]] outside the [[Wazir Khan Mosque]] in [[Lahore]].
File:Weeks Edwin Lord Royal Elephant.jpg|A [[Mughal]] [[War elephant]] guarding the gateway to the Grand Mosque in [[Mathura]].
File:Weeks Edwin Before A Mosque 1883.jpg|[[Muslim]]s entering a Grand Mosque in the Mughal Empire.
File:Street Scene in India.JPG|Mughal troopers purchase copper utensils in the [[Bazaar]].
</gallery>

== See also ==
* [[Mughal (tribe)]]
* [[Mughal architecture]], a style of architecture
* [[Mughal Army]], was the army of the Mughal Empire
* [[Mughal gardens]], a style of gardens
* [[Mughal cuisine]], a style of cooking
* [[Mughal painting]], a style of painting
* [[Mughal weapons]]
* [[Mughal-e-Azam]], an India film
* [[Mirza Mughal]], fifth son of [[Bahadur Shah II]], the last Mughal emperor
* [[History of India]]
* [[Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent]]
* [[Mongols]], one of several ethnic groups
* [[Turco-Persian]]/[[Turco-Mongol]]
* [[List of the Muslim Empires]]
* [[List of Sunni Muslim dynasties]]
* [[Islamic architecture]]
* [[Timurid dynasty]]
* [[Charlemagne to the Mughals]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
*{{cite book|last=Manucci|first=Niccolao|authorlink=Niccolao Manucci|coauthors= tr. from French by [[François Catrou]]|title=History of the Mogul dynasty in India, 1399–1657|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/historyofmoguldy00manurich#page/n5/mode/2up|year=1826|publisher=London : J.M. Richardson}}
* {{cite book|coauthors=Tr. by Major Charles Stewart |title=The Tezkereh al vakiat or Private Memoirs of the Moghul Emperor Humayun Written in the Persian language by Jouher A confidential domestic of His Majesty |url=http://www.archive.org/stream/tezkerehalvakiat00jawhuoft#page/n7/mode/2up|year=1832|publisher=John Murray, London}}
* Elliot, Sir H. M., Edited by Dowson, John. ''[[The History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians. The Muhammadan Period]]''; published by London Trubner Company 1867–1877. ([http://persian.packhum.org/persian/main?url=pf%3Ffile%3D80201010%26ct%3D0 Online Copy] at [[Packard Humanities Institute]] – [http://persian.packhum.org/persian/ Other Persian Texts in Translation; historical books: Author List and Title List])
*{{cite book|title=Invasions of India from Central Asia|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/invasionsofindia00londrich#page/n5/mode/2up|year=1879|publisher=London, R. Bentley and Son}}
*{{cite book|last=Hunter|first=William Wilson, Sir|authorlink=William Wilson Hunter|title=A Brief history of the Indian peoples|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/briefhistoryindi00hunt#page/n7/mode/2up|chapter= 10. The Mughal Dynasty, 1526–1761| year=1893| publisher=Oxford: Clarendon Press}}
*{{cite book|last=Adams|first= W. H. Davenport |title=Warriors of the Crescent|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/warriorsofcresce00adamuoft#page/n9/mode/2up|year=1893|publisher=London: Hutchinson}}
*{{cite book|last=Holden|first=Edward Singleton|authorlink=Edward Singleton Holden|title=The Mogul emperors of Hindustan, A.D. 1398- A.D. 1707|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/mogulemperorsofh00hold#page/n9/mode/2up|year=1895|publisher=New York : C. Scribner's Sons}}
*{{cite book|last=Malleson|first=G. B|title=Akbar and the rise of the Mughal empire|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/akbarriseofmugha00mallrich#page/n5/mode/2up|year=1896|publisher=Oxford : Clarendon Press}}
*{{cite book|last=Lane-Poole|first= Stanley|authorlink=Stanley Lane-Poole|title=History of India: From Mohammedan Conquest to the Reign of Akbar the Great (Vol. 3)|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/historyofindia03jackuoft#page/n9/mode/2up|year=1906|publisher=London, Grolier society}}
*{{cite book|last=Lane-Poole|first= Stanley|authorlink=Stanley Lane-Poole|title=History of India: From Reign of Akbar the Great to the Fall of Moghul Empire (Vol. 4)|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/historyofindia04jackuoft#page/n9/mode/2up|year=1906|publisher=London, Grolier society}}
* {{cite book|last=Manucci|first=Niccolao |authorlink=Niccolao Manucci|coauthors=tr. by William Irvine|title=Storia do Mogor; or, Mogul India 1653–1708, Vol. 1|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/storiadomogororm01manuuoft#page/n7/mode/2up|year=1907|publisher=London, J. Murray}}
* {{cite book|last=Manucci|first=Niccolao |authorlink=Niccolao Manucci|coauthors=tr. by William Irvine|title=Storia do Mogor; or, Mogul India 1653–1708, Vol. 2|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/storiadomogororm02manuuoft#page/n7/mode/2up|year=1907|publisher=London, J. Murray}}
* {{cite book|last=Manucci|first=Niccolao |authorlink=Niccolao Manucci|coauthors=tr. by William Irvine|title=Storia do Mogor; or, Mogul India 1653–1708, Vol. 3|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/storiadomogororm03manuuoft#page/n9/mode/2up|year=1907|publisher=London, J. Murray}}
*{{cite book|last=Owen|first=Sidney J|title=The Fall of the Mogul Empire|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/fallofmogulempir00owenuoft#page/n5/mode/2up|year=1912|publisher=London, J. Murray}}
* {{cite book|last=Burgess|first=James |title=The Chronology of Modern India for Four Hundred Years from the Close of the Fifteenth Century, A.D. 1494–1894.|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/chronologyofmode00burg#page/n5/mode/2up|year=1913|publisher=John Grant, Edinburgh}}
*{{cite book|last=Irvine|first=William |title=Later Mughals, Vol. 1, 1707–1720|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/latermughals01irviuoft#page/n3/mode/2up|year=1922|publisher=London, Luzac & Co.}}
*{{cite book|last=Irvine|first=William |title=Later Mughals, Vol. 2, 1719–1739|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/latermughals02irviuoft#page/n3/mode/2up|year=1922|publisher=London, Luzac & Co.}}
*{{Cite book|last=Bernier|first= Francois |authorlink=François Bernier|title=Travels in the Mogul Empire, A.D. 1656–1668 |url=http://www.archive.org/stream/travelsinmogulem00bernuoft#page/ii/mode/2up|year=1891|publisher=Archibald Constable, London}}
* Preston, Diana and Michael; Taj Mahal: Passion and Genius at the Heart of the Moghul Empire; Walker & Company; ISBN 0802716733.
* [http://www.ggdc.net/Maddison/articles/moghul_2.pdf The Moghul Economy and Society; Chapter 2 of Class Structure and Economic Growth: India & Pakistan since the Moghuls]; By Maddison (1971)

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Mughal Empire}}
*[http://www.valleyswat.net/literature/papers/MUGHULS_AND_SWAT.pdf Mughals and Swat]
*[http://www.mughalindia.co.uk/index.html Mughal India] an interactive experience from the [[British Museum]]
*[http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/history/mughalempire_1.shtml The Mughal Empire] from [[BBC]]
*[http://www.i3pep.org/archives/2005/04/12/mughal-empire/ Mughal Empire]
*[http://www.islamicarchitecture.org/dynasties/mughals.html The Great Mughals]
*[http://www.mughalgardens.org/html/home.html Gardens of the Mughal Empire]
*''Indo-Iranian Socio-Cultural Relations at Past, Present and Future'', by M.Reza Pourjafar, Ali
* A. Taghvaee, in [http://www.webjournal.unior.it/ ''Web Journal on Cultural Patrimony'' (Fabio Maniscalco ed.)], vol. 1, January–June 2006
*[http://www.paradoxplace.com/Insights/Civilizations/Mughals/Mughals.htm Adrian Fletcher's Paradoxplace — PHOTOS — Great Mughal Emperors of India]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/1566398.stm A Mughal diamond on BBC]
*[http://www.chiefacoins.com/Database/Countries/Mughal.htm Some Mughal coins with brief history]

{{Mughal Empire}}
{{Empires}}
{{Iran topics}}

[[Category:History of Iran]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1526]]
[[Category:Mughal Empire| ]]
[[Category:1857 disestablishments]]
[[Category:Muslim dynasties]]
[[Category:Post-medieval history of Pakistan]]
[[Category:History of medieval India]]
[[Category:Historical Turkic states]]

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[[ar:إمبراطورية مغول الهند]]
[[az:Babur İmperiyası]]
[[bn:মুঘল সাম্রাজ্য]]
[[bg:Моголска империя]]
[[bs:Mogulsko carstvo]]
[[br:Impalaeriezh Voghol]]
[[ca:Imperi Mogol]]
[[cs:Mughalská říše]]
[[cy:Ymerodraeth y Mughal]]
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[[es:Imperio mogol]]
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[[fa:گورکانیان]]
[[fr:Empire moghol]]
[[gu:મુઘલ યુગ]]
[[ko:무굴 제국]]
[[hy:Մեծ Մողոլների կայսրություն]]
[[hi:मुग़ल साम्राज्य]]
[[hr:Mogulsko Carstvo]]
[[id:Kesultanan Mughal]]
[[is:Mógúlveldið]]
[[it:Moghul]]
[[he:האימפריה המוגולית]]
[[ka:მოგოლების იმპერია]]
[[kn:ಮೊಘಲ್ ಸಾಮ್ರಾಜ್ಯ]]
[[kk:Ұлы моғолдар империясы]]
[[lt:Mogolų imperija]]
[[li:Mughalriek]]
[[hu:Mogul Birodalom]]
[[ml:മുഗൾ സാമ്രാജ്യം]]
[[mr:मुघल साम्राज्य]]
[[ms:Empayar Mughal]]
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[[ja:ムガル帝国]]
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[[pnb:مغلیہ سلطنت]]
[[ps:د مغولو پاچايي]]
[[pl:Wielcy Mogołowie]]
[[pt:Império Mogol]]
[[ro:Imperiul Mogul]]
[[ru:Империя Великих Моголов]]
[[sa:मुगलसाम्राज्‍यम्]]
[[simple:Mughal Empire]]
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[[sl:Mogulski imperij]]
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[[ta:முகலாயப் பேரரசு]]
[[te:మొఘల్ సామ్రాజ్యం]]
[[th:จักรวรรดิโมกุล]]
[[tr:Babür İmparatorluğu]]
[[uk:Імперія Великих Моголів]]
[[ur:مغلیہ سلطنت]]
[[vi:Đế quốc Mogul]]
[[fiu-vro:Mogulidõ impeerium]]
[[zh:莫卧儿帝国]]

Revision as of 00:38, 13 May 2012

The Mughal Empire
شاهان گورکانی
Shāhān-e Gūrkānī
مغلیہ سلطنت
1526–1857
Flag of the Mughal Empire
Timeline of Mughal State 1526-1707
Mughal Frontiers 1526–1707
CapitalAgra; Fatehpur Sikri; Delhi
Common languagesPersian (initially also Chagatai Turkic; later also Hindustani)
GovernmentAbsolute monarchy, unitary state
with federal structure
Emperor 
• 1526–1530
Babur
• 1530–1539, 1555–1556
Humayun
• 1556–1605
Akbar
• 1605–1627
Jahangir
• 1628–1658
Shah Jahan
• 1658–1707
Aurangzeb
Historical eraEarly modern
• First Battle of Panipat
21 April 1526
• Battle of Buxar
22 November 1857
Area
17003,200,000 km2 (1,200,000 sq mi)
Population
• 1700
150,000,000
CurrencyRupee
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Timurid dynasty
Delhi Sultanate
Suri dynasty
Adil Shahi dynasty
Sultanate of Bengal
Deccan Sultanates
Maratha Empire
Durrani Empire
Hotaki dynasty
British Raj
Hyderabad State
Nawab of Carnatic
Nawab of Bengal
Nawab of Awadh
Kingdom of Mysore
Bharatpur State
Today part of Pakistan
 Bangladesh
 India
 Afghanistan
Population source:[1]

The Mughal Empire (Persian: شاهان گورکانی Shāhān-e Gūrkānī; Urdu: مغلیہ سلطنت; self-designation: گوركانى Gūrkānī ),‎[2][3] or Mogul (also Moghul) Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent.[4] The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids and Genghis Khan. The Mughal Empire began in 1526; at the height of their power in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, they controlled most of the Indian Subcontinent—extending from Bengal in the east to Balochistan in the west, Kashmir in the north to the Kaveri basin in the south.[5] Its population at that time has been estimated as between 110 and 150 million, over a territory of more than 3.2 million square kilometres (1.2 million square miles).[1]

The "classic period" of the empire started in 1556 with the accession of Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar, better known as Akbar the Great. Under the rule of Akbar the Great, India enjoyed much cultural and economic progress as well as religious harmony. The Mughals also forged a strategic alliance with several Hindu Rajput kingdoms. Some Rajput kingdoms continued to pose a significant threat to Mughal dominance of northwestern India, but they were subdued by Akbar.[6][7] The reign of Shah Jahan, the fifth emperor, was the golden age of Mughal architecture. He erected many splendid monuments, the most famous of which is the legendary Taj Mahal at Agra, as well as Pearl Mosque, the Red Fort, Jama Masjid (Mosque) and Lahore Fort. The Mughal Empire reached the zenith of its territorial expansion during the reign of Aurangzeb. During his lifetime, victories in the south expanded the Mughal Empire to more than 1.25 million square miles, ruling over more than 150 million subjects, nearly 1/4th of the world's population.[1][8]

By the late 17th century, Hindu Maratha Empire had emerged as formidable foes of the Mughals, resulting in War of 27 years between both the forces. Following the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, the empire started its gradual decline,[9] weakened by wars of succession, agrarian crises fueling local revolts, the growth of religious intolerance, the rise of the Maratha. After 27 years of war with the Marathas, Mughals lost all of their territory in the Deccan region.[10] In 1737, Maratha forces sacked Delhi, following their victory against the Mughals in the First Battle of Delhi. In 1739, a weakened Mughal Empire lost the Battle of Karnal, following which the victorious forces of Nader Shah invaded and looted Delhi, carrying away many treasures, including the Peacock Throne.[11] A treaty signed in 1752 made Marathas the protector of the Mughal throne at Delhi.[12][13]. The last Emperor, Bahadur Shah II, whose rule was restricted to the city of Delhi, was imprisoned and exiled by the British after the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

The name Mughal is derived from the original homelands of the Timurids, the Central Asian steppes once conquered by Genghis Khan and hence known as Moghulistan, "Land of Mongols". Although early Mughals spoke the Chagatai language and maintained some Turko-Mongol practices, they became essentially Persianized[14] and transferred the Persian literary and high culture[14] to India, thus forming the base for the Indo-Persian culture and the Spread of Islam in South Asia.[14][15]

Early history

A dagger from the Mughal Empire with hilt in jade, gold, rubies and emeralds. Blade of damascened steel inlaid with gold.

Zahir ud-din Muhammad Babur learned about the riches of Hindustan and conquest of it by his ancestor, Timur, in 1503 at Dikh-Kat, a place in the Transoxiana region. At that time, he was roaming as a wanderer after losing his principality, Farghana. In his memoirs he wrote that after he had acquired Kabulistan in 1504, he desired to regain the territories in Hindustan held once by Turks. He started his exploratory raids from September 1519 when he visited the Indo-Afghan borders to suppress the rising by Yusufzai tribes. He undertook similar raids up to 1524 and had established his base camp at Peshawar. Finally in 1526 in his fifth attempt, Babur defeated the last of the Delhi Sultans, Ibrahim Shah Lodi, at the First Battle of Panipat. To secure his newly founded kingdom, Babur then had to face the formidable Rajput Rana Sanga of Chittor, at the Battle of Khanwa. Rana Sanga offered stiff resistance but was defeated

Babur's son Humayun succeeded him in 1530, but suffered reversals at the hands of the Pashtun Sher Shah Suri and lost most of the fledgling empire before it could grow beyond a minor regional state. From 1540 Humayun became ruler in exile, reaching the court of the Safavid rule in 1554 while his force still controlled some fortresses and small regions. During 1553–1556, the Hindu king, Hemu Vikramaditya acceded to the throne of Delhi by defeating forces of Mughal Emperor Akbar at Agra and Delhi. However, the Mughals reestablished their rule after Akbar's army defeated Hemu during the Second Battle of Panipat.

Humayun crossed the rough terrain of the Makran with his wife until their son Akbar was born in the fortress of Umarkot in Sind. The resurgent Humayun then conquered the central plateau around Delhi, but months later died in an accident, leaving the realm unsettled and in war.

Akbar succeeded his father on 14 February 1556. He became known as Akbar, as he was a wise ruler, setting high but fair taxes. He was a more inclusive in his approach to the non-Muslim subjects of the Empire. He investigated the production in a certain area and taxed inhabitants one-fifth of their agricultural produce. He also set up an efficient bureaucracy and was tolerant of religious differences which softened the resistance by the locals. He made alliances with Rajputs and appointed native generals and administrators. Later in life, he devised his own brand of syncretic philosophy based on tolerance.

Jahangir, son of Emperor Akbar, ruled the empire from 1605–1627. In October 1627, Shah Jahan, son of Emperor Jahangir succeeded to the throne, where he inherited a vast and rich empire. At mid-century this was perhaps the greatest empire in the world. Shah Jahan commissioned the famous Taj Mahal (1630–1653) in Agra which was built by the Persian architect Ustad Ahmad Lahauri as a tomb for Shah Jahan's wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their 14th child. By late 17th century, the empire reached its peak under the leadership of Aurangzeb Alamgir with major parts of present day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and most of Afghanistan.

Mughal dynasty

A panorama in 12 folds showing the procession of the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah II to celebrate the feast of the Eid ul-Fitr in 1843.
Genealogy of the Mughal Dynasty
Sikh and Maratha states gained territory after the Mughal empire's decline. Map showing territories in 1700 and 1792

The Mughal Empire was the dominant power in the Indian subcontinent between the mid-16th century and the early 18th century. Founded in 1526, it officially survived until 1858, when it was supplanted by the British Raj. The dynasty is sometimes referred to as the Timurid dynasty as Babur was descended from Timur.

The Mughal dynasty was founded when Babur, hailing from Ferghana (Modern Uzbekistan), invaded parts of northern India and defeated Ibrahim Shah Lodhi, the ruler of Delhi, at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526. The Mughal Empire superseded the Delhi Sultanate as rulers of northern India. In time, the state thus founded by Babur far exceeded the bounds of the Delhi Sultanate, eventually encompassing a major portion of India and earning the appellation of Empire. A brief interregnum (1540–1555) during the reign of Babur's son, Humayun, saw the rise of the Afghan Suri Dynasty under Sher Shah Suri, a competent and efficient ruler in his own right. However, Sher Shah's untimely death and the military incompetence of his successors enabled Humayun to regain his throne in 1555. However, Humayun died a few months later, and was succeeded by his son, the 13-year-old Akbar the Great.


The greatest portions of Mughal expansion was accomplished during the reign of Akbar (1556–1605). The empire was maintained as the dominant force of the present-day Indian subcontinent for a hundred years further by his successors Jahangir, Shah Jahan, and Aurangzeb. The first six emperors, who enjoyed power both de jure and de facto, are usually referred to by just one name, a title adopted upon his accession by each emperor. The relevant title is bolded in the list below.

Akbar the Great initiated certain important policies, such as religious liberalism (abolition of the jizya tax), inclusion of natives in the affairs of the empire, and political alliance/marriage with the Rajputs, that were innovative for his milieu; he also adopted some policies of Sher Shah Suri, such as the division of the empire into sarkar raj, in his administration of the empire. These policies, which undoubtedly served to maintain the power and stability of the empire, were preserved by his two immediate successors but were discarded by Emperor Aurangzeb who spent nearly his entire career expanding his realm, beyond the Urdu Belt, into the Deccan and South India, Assam in the east; this venture provoked resistance from the Marathas, Sikhs, Jats and Ahoms.

Decline

After Emperor Aurangzeb's death in 1707, the empire fell into succession crisis. Barring Muhammad Shah, none of the Mughal emperors could hold on to power for a decade. In the 18th century, the Empire suffered the depredations of invaders like Nadir Shah of Persia and Ahmed Shah Abdali of Afghanistan, who repeatedly sacked Delhi, the Mughal capital. Most of the empire's territories in India passed to the Marathas, Nawabs, and Nizams by c. 1750. The Mughal Emperors lost effective power in favor of the British after the Battle of Buxar in 1764.[16] In 1804, the ineffective Shah Alam II formally accepted the protection of the British East India Company. The company had already begun to refer to the weakened emperor as "King of Delhi", rather than "Emperor of India". The once glorious and mighty Mughal army was disbanded in 1805 by the British; only the guards of the Red Fort were spared to serve with the King of Delhi, which avoided the uncomfortable implication that British sovereignty was outranked by the Indian monarch. Nonetheless, for a few decades afterward the British East India Company continued to rule the areas under its control as the nominal servants of the emperor and in his name. After the Revolt of 1857, even these courtesies were disposed. The rebels declared their allegiance to Shah Alam's descendant, Bahadur Shah II which led to a protracted Siege of Delhi, after which the victorious British abolished the institution altogether with transfer of authority to the British crown. The last Mughal emperor was deposed and exiled to Burma, where he died in 1862.

List of Mughal emperors

Mughal architecture
The Taj Mahal in Agra, India built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan
Complex Arabesque inlays at the Mughal Agra Fort
Lalbagh Fort, constructed in the mid 17th century in Dhaka during the reign of Aurangzeb
The Alamgiri Gate is the main entrance to the Lahore Fort built during the reign of Aurangzeb

Certain important particulars regarding the Mughal emperors is tabulated below:

Emperor Birth Reign Period Death Notes
Zaheeruddin Muhammad Babur Feb 23, 1483 1526–1530 Dec 26, 1530 Founder of the Mughal Dynasty.
Nasiruddin Muhammad Humayun Mar 6, 1508 1530–1540 Jan 1556 Reign interrupted by Suri Dynasty. Youth and inexperience at ascension led to his being regarded as a less effective ruler than usurper, Sher Shah Suri.
Sher Shah Suri 1472 1540–1545 May 1545 Deposed Humayun and led the Suri Dynasty.
Islam Shah Suri c.1500 1545–1554 1554 2nd and last ruler of the Suri Dynasty, claims of sons Sikandar and Adil Shah were eliminated by Humayun's restoration.
Nasiruddin Muhammad Humayun Mar 6, 1508 1555–1556 Jan 1556 Restored rule was more unified and effective than initial reign of 1530–1540; left unified empire for his son, Akbar.
Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar Nov 14, 1542 1556–1605 Oct 27, 1605 Akbar greatly expanded the Empire and is regarded as the most illustrious ruler of the Mughal Dynasty as he set up the empire's various institutions; he married Mariam-uz-Zamani, a Rajput princess. One of his most famous construction marvels was the Lahore Fort.
Nooruddin Muhammad Jahangir Oct 1569 1605–1627 1627 Jahangir set the precedent for sons rebelling against their emperor fathers. Opened first relations with the British East India Company. Reportedly was an alcoholic, and his wife Empress Noor Jahan became the real power behind the throne and competently ruled in his place.
Shahaabuddin Muhammad Shah Jahan Jan 5, 1592 1627–1658 1666 Under him, Mughal art and architecture reached their zenith; constructed the Taj Mahal, Jama Masjid, Red Fort, Jahangir mausoleum, and Shalimar Gardens in Lahore. Deposed and imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb.
Mohiuddin Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir Oct 21, 1618 1658–1707 Mar 3, 1707 He reinterpreted Islamic law and presented the Fatawa-e-Alamgiri; he captured the diamond mines of the Sultanate of Golconda; he spent the major part of his last 27 years in the war with the Maratha rebels; at its zenith, his conquests expanded the empire to its greatest extent; the over-stretched empire was controlled by Mansabdars, and faced challenges after his death. He is known to have transcribed copies of the Qur'an using his own styles of calligraphy.
Bahadur Shah I Oct 14, 1643 1707–1712 Feb 1712 First of the Mughal emperors to preside over a steady and severe decline in the territories under the empire's control and military power due to the rising strength of the autonomous Nawabs. After his reign, the empire went into steady decline.
Jahandar Shah 1664 1712–1713 Feb 1713 He was highly influenced by his Grand Vizier Zulfikar Khan.
Furrukhsiyar 1683 1713–1719 1719 In 1717 he granted a firman to the English East India Company granting them duty free trading rights for Bengal and confirmed their position in India.
Rafi Ul-Darjat Unknown 1719 1719  
Rafi Ud-Daulat
a.k.a Shah Jahan II
Unknown 1719 1719  
Nikusiyar Unknown 1719 1743  
Muhammad Ibrahim Unknown 1720 1744  
Muhammad Shah 1702 1719–1720, 1720–1748 1748 Got rid of the Syed Brothers. Fought a long war with the Maratha Empire, losing Deccan and Malwa in the process. Suffered the invasion of Nadir-Shah of Persia in 1739. He was the last Mughal Emperor to have full control over the Empire, since the Mughal Court was now under control of the Maratha.[16]
Ahmad Shah Bahadur 1725 1748–54 1754 Mughal forces massacred by the Maratha during the Battle of Sikandarabad;
Alamgir II 1699 1754–1759 1759 Consolidation of power of the Nizam of Hyderabad,Nawab of Oudh, Marathas, State of Mysore & Nawab of Bengal, Bihar, Orissa;
Shah Jahan III Unknown In 1759 1770s
Shah Alam II 1728 1759–1806 1806 Defeat of the combined forces of Mughal, Nawab of Oudh & Nawab of Bengal,Bihar at the hand of East India Company at the Battle of Buxar. Treaty of Allahabad. Hyder Ali becomes Nawab of Mysore in 1761. Ahmed-Shah-Abdali in 1761 defeated the Marathas during the Third Battle of Panipat; The fall of Tipu Sultan of Mysore in 1799; He was the last Mughal Emperor to preside effective control over the empire.
Akbar Shah II 1760 1806–1837 1837 Titular figurehead under British protection
Bahadur Shah (Zafar) II 1775 1837–1857 1862 The last Mughal emperor was deposed by the British and exiled to Burma following the Indian Rebellion of 1857. End of Mughal dynasty.

Influence on the Indian subcontinent

Mughal influence on South Asian art and culture

A major Mughal contribution to the Indian subcontinent was their unique architecture. Many monuments were built by the Muslim emperors, especially Shahjahan, during the Mughal era including the UNESCO World Heritage Site Taj Mahal, which is known to be one of the finer examples of Mughal architecture. Other World Heritage Sites includes the Humayun's Tomb, Fatehpur Sikri, Red Fort, Agra Fort, and Lahore Fort The palaces, tombs, and forts built by the dynasty stands today in Agra, Aurangabad, Delhi, Dhaka, Fatehpur Sikri, Jaipur, Lahore, Kabul, Sheikhupura, and many other cities of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.[17] With few memories of Central Asia, Babur's descendents absorbed traits and customs of the Indian Subcontinent,[18] and became more or less naturalised.

Mughal influence can be seen in cultural contributions such as[citation needed]:

Although the land the Mughals once ruled has separated into what is now India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan, their influence can still be seen widely today. Tombs of the emperors are spread throughout India, Afghanistan,[22] and Pakistan. There are 16 million descendants spread throughout the Subcontinent and possibly the world.[23][unreliable source?]

Urdu language

Although Persian was the dominant and "official" language of the empire, the language of the elite later evolved into a form known as Urdu. Highly Persianized and also influenced by Arabic and Turkic, the language was written in a type of Perso-Arabic script known as Nastaliq, and with literary conventions and specialized vocabulary being retained from Persian, Arabic and Turkic; the new dialect was eventually given its own name of Urdu. Compared with Hindi, the Urdu language draws more vocabulary from Persian and Arabic (via Persian) and (to a much lesser degree) from Turkic languages where Hindi draws vocabulary from Sanskrit more heavily.[24] Modern Hindi, which uses Sanskrit-based vocabulary along with Urdu loan words from Persian and Arabic, is mutually intelligible with Urdu.[25] Today, Urdu is the national language of Pakistan and also an important co-official language in India.

Mughal society

The Indian economy remained as prosperous under the Mughals as it was, because of the creation of a road system and a uniform currency, together with the unification of the country. Manufactured goods and peasant-grown cash crops were sold throughout the world. Key industries included shipbuilding (the Indian shipbuilding industry was as advanced as the European, and Indians sold ships to European firms), textiles, and steel. The Mughals maintained a small fleet, which merely carried pilgrims to Mecca, imported a few Arab horses in Surat. Debal in Sindh was mostly autonomous. The Mughals also maintained various river fleets of Dhows, which transported soldiers over rivers and fought rebels. Among its admirals were Yahya Saleh, Munnawar Khan, and Muhammad Saleh Kamboh. The Mughals also protected the Siddis of Janjira. Its sailors were renowned and often voyaged to China and the East African Swahili Coast, together with some Mughal subjects carrying out private-sector trade. Cities and towns boomed under the Mughals; however, for the most part, they were military and political centres, not manufacturing or commerce centres. Only those guilds which produced goods for the bureaucracy made goods in the towns; most industry was based in rural areas. The Mughals also built Maktabs in every province under their authority, where youth were taught the Quran and Islamic law such as the Fatawa-e-Alamgiri in their indigenous languages.

The nobility was a heterogeneous body; while it primarily consisted of Rajput aristocrats and foreigners from Muslim countries, people of all castes and nationalities could gain a title from the emperor. The middle class of openly affluent traders consisted of a few wealthy merchants living in the coastal towns; the bulk of the merchants pretended to be poor to avoid taxation. The bulk of the people were poor. The standard of living of the poor was as low as, or somewhat higher than, the standard of living of the Indian poor under the British Raj; whatever benefits the British brought with canals and modern industry were neutralized by rising population growth, high taxes, and the collapse of traditional industry in the nineteenth century.

Science and technology

Astronomy

While there appears to have been little concern for theoretical astronomy, Mughal astronomers continued to make advances in observational astronomy and produced nearly a hundred Zij treatises. Humayun built a personal observatory near Delhi, while Jahangir and Shah Jahan were also intending to build observatories but were unable to do so. The instruments and observational techniques used at the Mughal observatories were mainly derived from the Islamic tradition.[26][27] In particular, one of the most remarkable astronomical instruments invented in Mughal India is the seamless celestial globe (see Technology below).

Technology

Fathullah Shirazi (c. 1582), a Persian-Indian polymath and mechanical engineer who worked for Akbar the Great in the Mughal Empire, developed a volley gun.[28]

Considered one of the most remarkable feats in metallurgy, the seamless globe was invented in Kashmir by Ali Kashmiri ibn Luqman in 998 AH (1589–90 CE), and twenty other such globes were later produced in Lahore and Kashmir during the Mughal Empire. Before they were rediscovered in the 1980s, it was believed by modern metallurgists to be technically impossible to produce metal globes without any seams, even with modern technology. Another famous series of seamless celestial globes was produced using a lost-wax casting method in the Mughal Empire in 1070 AH (1659–1960 CE) by Muhammad Salih Tahtawi with Arabic and Persian inscriptions. It is considered a major feat in metallurgy. These Mughal metallurgists pioneered the method of wax casting while producing these seamless globes.[29]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Richards, John F. (March 26, 1993). Johnson, Gordon; Bayly, C. A. (eds.). The Mughal Empire. The New Cambridge history of India: 1.5. Vol. I. The Mughals and their Contemporaries. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 1, 190. doi:10.2277/0521251192. ISBN 978-0521251198. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  2. ^ Zahir ud-Din Mohammad (September 10, 2002). Thackston, Wheeler M. (ed.). The Baburnama: Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor. New York: Modern Library. p. xlvi. ISBN 978-0375761379. In India the dynasty always called itself Gurkani, after Temür's title Gurkân, the Persianized form of the Mongolian [kürägän] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help), 'son-in-law,' a title he assumed after his marriage to a Genghisid princess.
  3. ^ Balfour, E.G. (1976). Encyclopaedia Asiatica: Comprising Indian-subcontinent, Eastern and Southern Asia. New Delhi: Cosmo Publications. S. 460, S. 488, S. 897. ISBN 978-8170203254.
  4. ^ "The Mughal Empire"
  5. ^ menloschool.org[dead link]
  6. ^ http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00islamlinks/ikram/part2_11.html
  7. ^ http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00islamlinks/ikram/graphics/india1605.jpg
  8. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-Ygz9VbiE0
  9. ^ "Mughal Empire (1500s, 1600s)". bbc.co.uk. London: British Broadcasting Corporation. Section 5: Aurangzeb. Retrieved 18 October 2010.
  10. ^ http://books.google.co.in/books?id=jBBYD2J2oE4C&pg=PA43&dq=marathas+peshawar&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9V0IT5ibFMLorQes6s3ZDw&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=marathas%20peshawar&f=false
  11. ^ "Iran in the Age of the Raj". Avalanchepress.com. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
  12. ^ Gordon, Stewart. The Marathas 1600–1818, Volume 2. Cambridge University Press, 1993. ISBN 978-0-521-26883-7.
  13. ^ Black, Jeremy (1996). Cambridge illustrated atlas, warfare: Renaissance to revolution, 1492-1792. Cambridge University Press. p. 142. ISBN 978-0-521-47033-9. Retrieved 25 January 2012.
  14. ^ a b c Robert L. Canfield, Turko-Persia in historical perspective, Cambridge University Press, 1991. pg 20: "The Mughals – Persianized Turks who invaded from Central Asia and claimed descent from both Timur and Genghis – strengthened the Persianate culture of Muslim India"
  15. ^ http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00islamlinks/ikram/part2_10.html
  16. ^ a b S. N. Sen (2006). History Modern India. New Age International. pp. 11–13, 41–43. ISBN 8122417744.
  17. ^ Ross Marlay, Clark D. Neher. 'Patriots and Tyrants: Ten Asian Leaders' pp.269 ISBN 0847684423
  18. ^ webindia123.com-Indian History-Medieval-Mughal Period-AKBAR
  19. ^ "Mughal Empire – MSN Encarta". Archived from the original on 2009-11-01. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  20. ^ Indo-Persian Literature Conference: SOAS: North Indian Literary Culture (1450–1650)
  21. ^ Mughlai Recipes, Mughlai Dishes – Cuisine, Mughlai Food
  22. ^ The garden of Bagh-e Babur : Tomb of the Mughal emperor
  23. ^ Descendants of Mughal came together to rehabilitate the Mughal Dynasty | TwoCircles.net
  24. ^ "A Brief Hindi – Urdu FAQ". sikmirza. Archived from the original on 2007-12-02. Retrieved 2008-05-20.
  25. ^ Urdu Dictionary Project is Under Threat : ALL THINGS PAKISTAN
  26. ^ Sharma, Virendra Nath (1995), Sawai Jai Singh and His Astronomy, Motilal Banarsidass Publ., pp. 8–9, ISBN 8120812565
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  29. ^ Savage-Smith, Emilie (1985), Islamicate Celestial Globes: Their history, Construction, and Use, Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.

Further reading

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