Acknowledgement:

I, Rhea Pius of class IX C, would like to express my gratitude towards everyone who has contributed
to the completion of this project without whom it would not be possible.

Firstly, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the Principal, Sr Sandhya.

I thank my history teacher, Miss Vesta, for her invaluable support and guidance throughout this
history project. Her teaching has greatly contributed to the success of this project.

I would also like to thank the authors of the various resources I used for this project. This has helped
me gain a deeper understanding of the historical context and significance of this project.

Finally, I would like to thank my family and friends for their unwavering support and encouragement
throughout this project.

Introduction:

The Mughal Empire was one that emerged as one of the richest and longest-ruling empires
withinside the history of India. It dominated massive components of the Indian subcontinent.
Established in 1526, this prosperous dynasty continued to flourish for more than two centuries and
finally collapsed by 1858. Central Asian in origin, Muslim in religion and Persian in court language,
the Mughals lead to many cultural changes. The rulers are greatly known for their sophisticated taste
in art and architecture. The empire had maintained much peace in the 17th century which led to the
economic expansion of India. Increasing demand for Indian products also established European and
non-European trading organisations.

Sources:

The Mughal Empire has been studied largely by the abundant sources available. There are several
literary and archaeological sources that help historians study the Mughal Empire.

Literary Sources

 Ain-i-Akbari
The Ain-i-Akbari was written by Abul Fazl on Akbar’s command. He was Akbar’s minister and
one of the nine gems of the court of Akbar (nine famous intellectual officials of the court of
Akbar). It is considered one of the most important literal sources of information on the
Mughal Empire. It is divided into five books- each dealing with different aspects such as
imperialism, Hindu philosophy and wisdom.
 Tuzuk-i-Baburi
The Tuzuk-i-Baburi is the autobiography of the founder of the Mughal Empire, Babur. It
provides information on his life and his various battles.

Archaeological Sources

 The Taj Mahal, Agra

The Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It is the
mausoleum of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan. It was designed by Ustad Isha Khan. It is
made of pure white marble. It is built on a raised platform. The striking features of the Taj
Mahal include the domes, the octagonal chamber inside and the four minarets. It is
decorated with intricate floral patterns and semi-precious stones.
 The Jama Masjid
 The Jama Masjid was built by Shah Jahan. It is the largest mosque in India. It consists of a
massive courtyard, a basement and huge staircases. It has three gates, four towers and two
minarets. The prayer hall is very spacious.
 The Red Fort, Delhi
The Red Fort was also built by Shah Jahan on shifting the capital to Delhi. Red sandstone and
marble were used for its construction. The fort has massive gateways used for the emperor’s
ceremonial purposes. Many other famous monuments are inside this fort like the Diwaan-i-
Aam and the Diwaan-i-Khaas. It is a very important archaeological source.

Political History

The Mughal Empire was founded by Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur in 1526 CE. There were 21 rulers
in total Mughal Empire. The last ruler was Bahadur Shah II.

Following are four of the important emperors of this empire:

 Babur (1483 –1531)

Babur was a descendant of Timur, a Mongol ruler. He defeated Ibrahim Lodi, Sultan of Delhi
at the First Battle of Panipat (1526). He then fought the Battle of Khanwa (1527) against Rana
Sanga of Mewar and conquered the Delhi-Agra region. He also fought the Battle of Ghagra
(1529) against the eastern Afghans to consolidate his empire. However, he died before he
could stabilise the Mughal Empire.
 Akbar (1542 –1605)
Akbar, whose full name was Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, was the greatest ruler
of the Mughal Empire. He was the grandson of Babur and son of Humayun, the previous
ruler. He was only thirteen when he ascended the throne. His tutor Bairam Khan guided him.
Bairam Khan defeated regrouping Afghans in the Second Battle of Panipat (1556). Akbar
conquered many regions of India. His authority extended from Afghanistan in the north to
the Deccan region near Gujarat in the south and from Assam in the east to Kabul and
Kandahar in the west. Akbar’s policy of religious tolerance was one of the many social
reforms he brought about.
 Shah Jahan (1592 –1666)
Shah Jahan, known as Prince Khurram before ascending the throne, was the grandson of
Akbar and the son of Jahangir, his predecessor. He is notable for his conquests in the Deccan
region. He shifted the capital from Agra to Delhi in 1648 and created a city, Shahjahanabad.
He is also famously known for his taste in architecture and passion for building. He built the
Taj Mahal, two great mosques- Jama Masjid and Moti Masjid and the Red Fort. Shah Jahan’s
reign was a period of great advancement in art and literature.
 Aurangzeb (1618 –1707)
Aurangzeb ascended the throne after a struggle with his father, Shah Jahan, and his three
brothers. Under him, the Mughal Empire extended over almost the entire Indian
subcontinent. But his reign included a lot of political disturbances. He abolished the policy of
religious tolerance and suppressed many rebellions. He died in 1707, leaving the empire on
the verge of collapse.

Administration:

The Mughal administration was centralised and based on military power. Following are the features
of this kind of administration:
  Monarch:
The Mughal kings were believed to be the representative of God on Earth. The emperor was
the head of the executive, judiciary, legislature and the army. He made the laws and
administrative reforms.
 Ministers:
The Prime Minister or the vakil was entrusted with large powers in terms of administration
and military.
The head of the revenue department was the wazir, also known as the diwan or diwan-i-ala.
They were responsible for the collection of revenue and expenditure.
The head of the military department was the mir bakshi. They were the head of intelligence
and information.
 Provincial Government:
The entire empire was divided into 12 provinces or subahs. These were further divided into
sarkars and each was again divided into parganas or mahals.
The Subahs were headed by governors or subahdars or sipah salars or nazims. He his of high
rank and is responsible for the maintenance, enforcement of laws, administration and
smooth revenue collection. Other important officials include faujdar, kotwal, bakhshi, sadr
qazi and muhtasib.
All the officials were appointed by the Centre.
 Mansabdari System:
This system was introduced by Akbar and it was unique to the Mughals. According to the
system, every officer had ranks or mansabs. Mansabdar is a person who holds rank or
mansab. They formed the ruling class. Their salary and responsibilities depended on the
mansab. The salaries were received in revenue assignments or jagirs.
The ranks were divided into two, zat and sawar. Zat was the personal status of a person and
his salary. Higher the zat, higher the prestige of the noble’s position in the court.
 Land Revenue System
There was a uniform system for the collection of revenue. The plans were drawn by Todar
Mal. This system was highly beneficial as it enriched state treasury and gave loans to poor
farmers which in turn resulted in the progress in agriculture.

Social, Educational and Cultural Reforms:

Akbar is known for the many reforms he brought about during his reign. Following are some social
and educational reforms Akbar brought about:

 The practice of Sati was checked upon by kotwals. The women were given a choice to be
cremated with their dead husbands. There was no compulsion towards women for this
practice.
 Widow remarriage was made legal.
 Akbar discouraged having multiple wives unless the first wife could not bear children.
 The age of marriage was increased for boys (16 years) and girls (14 years).
 Akbar revised the educational syllabus. He encouraged more emphasis on moral value
education and secular sciences.
 Female education was also existed to some extent.

The other Mughal emperors also were patrons of education. They contributed immensely towards
this field just like Akbar.
Cultural reforms were quite prominent. The rulers were patrons of art, architecture, science,
literature and many more subjects.

The Mughals were greatly influenced by Persian culture. Persian began to be used as a state
language. Mughlai cuisine was an Indo-Persian cuisine that was popularised during this period.
Biriyani is one of the most popular Mughlai dishes.

A form of architecture called the pietra dura was popularised by Shah Jahan by the construction of
the Taj Mahal. The development of the language Urdu has a lot of Mughal contribution.

The Mughals influenced these cultural changes and many more. Some of these changes are still quite
prominent like the purdah system and Mughlai cooking.

Bibliography:

www.metmuseum.org
www.britannica.com
en.wikipedia.org
homeoflearning.in
Total History and Civics Textbook- Class 9
ijrcs.org