Mughal Empire

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Mughal Empire
مغلیہ سلطنت (Urdu)
دولتِ مغل (Persian)
1526–1858
Mughal Empire at its greatest extent in 1700.
Mughal Empire at its greatest extent in 1700.
Capital
Official languages
Religion
Sunni Islam (Official)
GovernmentMonarchy
Emperor[a] 
• 1526–1530 (first)
Babur
• 1837–1857 (last)
Bahadur Shah II
Vakil-i-Mutlaq 
• 1526–1540 (first)
Mir Khalifa
• 1795–1818 (last)
Daulat Rao Sindhia
Grand Vizier 
• 1526–1540 (first)
Mir Khalifa
• 1775–1797 (last)
Asaf-ud-Daula
Establishment
• Founding
1526
• Fall
1858
Area
1690[5][6]4,000,000 km2 (1,500,000 sq mi)
Population
• 1595
125,000,000[7]
• 1700
158,000,000[8]

The Mughal Empire (Urdu: مغلیہ سلطنت, Persian: دولتِ مغل) was a Muslim empire in South Asia which existed from 1526 to 1858. When it was biggest it ruled most of the subcontinent, including what is now Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, between 1526 and 1707. Worth 25% of the world's GDP, it was the world's largest economy and it was well known for having signaled proto-industrialization and for its lavish architecture.

The Mughal emperors were Turk-Mongols in origin.[9] Babur of the Timurid dynasty founded the Mughal Empire (and Mughal dynasty) in 1526 and ruled until 1530. He was followed by Humayun (1530-1540) and (1555-1556), Akbar (1556-1605), Jahangir (1605-1627), Shah Jahan (1628-1658), and Aurangzeb (1658-1707) and several other minor rulers until Bahadur Shah Zafar II (1837-1857). After the death of Aurangzeb, the Mughal Empire became weak. It continued until 1857-58. By that time, South Asia had become under the British Raj.

The Mughal Empire was established by able Muslim rulers who came from the present-day Uzbekistan after defeating the Delhi sultanate. The Mughal rule in South Asia saw the region being united as one single unit and being administered under one single powerful ruler. During the Mughal period, art and architecture flourished and many beautiful monuments were constructed. The rulers were skillful warriors and admirers of art as well.

Notes[change | change source]

  1. The title (Mirza) descends to all the sons of the family, without exception. In the royal family it is placed after the name instead of before it, thus, Abbas Mirza and Hosfiein Mirza. Mirza is a civil title, and Khan is a military one. The title of Khan is creative, but not hereditary.[4]

References[change | change source]

  1. Sinopoli, Carla M. (1994). "Monumentality and Mobility in Mughal Capitals". Asian Perspectives. 33 (2): 294. ISSN 0066-8435. JSTOR 42928323. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  2. Conan 2007, p. 235.
  3. "Islam: Mughal Empire (1500s, 1600s)". BBC. 7 September 2009. Archived from the original on 13 August 2018. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
  4. Morier 1812, p. 601.
  5. Turchin, Peter; Adams, Jonathan M.; Hall, Thomas D. (2006). "East–West Orientation of Historical Empires and Modern States". Journal of World-Systems Research. 12 (2): 219–229. doi:10.5195/JWSR.2006.369. ISSN 1076-156X.
  6. Rein Taagepera (September 1997). "Expansion and Contraction Patterns of Large Polities: Context for Russia". International Studies Quarterly. 41 (3): 475–504. doi:10.1111/0020-8833.00053. JSTOR 2600793. Archived from the original on 19 November 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  7. Dyson, Tim (2018). A Population History of India: From the First Modern People to the Present Day. Oxford University Press. pp. 70–71. ISBN 978-0-19-256430-6. We have seen that there is considerable uncertainty about the size of India's population c.1595. Serious assessments vary from 116 to 145 million (with an average of 125 million). However, the true figure could even be outside of this range. Accordingly, while it seems likely that the population grew over the course of the seventeenth century, it is unlikely that we will ever have a good idea of its size in 1707.
  8. Cite error: The named reference borocz was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).
  9. Richards, John F. (1995), The Mughal Empire, Cambridge University Press, p. 6, ISBN 978-0-521-56603-2