Revision as of 17:15, 26 February 2007 view sourceAzim7 (talk | contribs)3 edits →Hindu temple desecration← Previous edit | Latest revision as of 14:51, 11 December 2024 view source Worldbruce (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Page movers, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers128,007 edits Undid revision 1262442708 by Mahusha (talk) MOS:LEADCITE applies. The two sentences are a fair high level summary (although not the only possible one, you're welcome to try to do better) of the "Assessments and legacy" section, which is well cited.Tag: Undo | ||
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{{Short description|Mughal emperor from 1658 to 1707}} | |||
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{{About|the sixth Mughal emperor|the Indian movie of the same name|Aurangzeb (film)}} | |||
|+ <big>'''Aurangzeb'''</big> | |||
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] | |||
{{Use Indian English|date=April 2018}} | |||
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}} | |||
{{Infobox royalty | |||
| name = Alamgir I | |||
| title = {{transliteration|fa|]{{efn|English: The Honorable, Generous}} }}<br/><!-- | |||
-->{{transliteration|fa|]<ref name=Aurangzeb>{{cite web |title=Tomb of Aurangzeb |url=http://www.asiaurangabad.in/pdf/Tourist/Tomb_of_Aurangzeb-_Khulatabad.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923175254/http://www.asiaurangabad.in/pdf/Tourist/Tomb_of_Aurangzeb-_Khulatabad.pdf |archive-date=23 September 2015 |access-date=21 March 2015 |publisher=ASI Aurangabad}}</ref>}}<br/><!-- | |||
-->{{transliteration|ar|]{{efn|English: Commander of the Faithful}} }}<br/><!-- | |||
-->]<br /><!-- | |||
-->(Emperor of the Sultanate of India)<ref name=Aurangzeb/> | |||
| image = Aurangzeb-portrait.jpg | |||
| caption = Portrait by ], {{circa|1660}} | |||
| succession = ] | |||
| reign = 31 July 1658{{snd}}3 March 1707 | |||
| reign-type = | |||
| coronation = 31 July 1658{{efn|A second coronation was held on 5 June 1659}} | |||
| predecessor = ] | |||
| successor = ] | |||
| reg-type = '']'' | |||
| regent = {{Collapsible list|title=''See list'' | |||
|Fazil Khan | |||
|Jafar Khan | |||
|]}} | |||
{{Collapsed infobox section begin |cont = yes |Other governmental responsibilities |titlestyle = border:1px dashed lightgrey;}}{{Infobox royalty |embed=yes | |||
| succession1 = ]{{efn|The unified province of Deccan included the governorates of ], ], ], ], ] and ]}} | |||
| reign1 = November 1653 – 5 February 1658 | |||
| reign-type1 = | |||
| regent1 = | |||
| reg-type1 = | |||
| cor-type1 = ] | |||
| coronation1 = ] | |||
| predecessor1 = ] | |||
| successor1 = | |||
| reign2 = 14 July 1636 – 28 May 1644 | |||
| reign-type2 = | |||
| regent2 = | |||
| reg-type2 = | |||
| cor-type2 = ] | |||
| coronation2 = ] | |||
| predecessor2 = ''Position established'' | |||
| successor2 = ] | |||
| succession3 = ] | |||
| reign3 = November 1648 – 14 July 1652 | |||
| reign-type3 = | |||
| regent3 = Mughal Khan | |||
| reg-type3 = ] | |||
| cor-type3 = ] | |||
| coronation3 = ] | |||
| predecessor3 = Mughal Khan | |||
| successor3 = Sardar Khan Shahjahani | |||
| succession4 = ] | |||
| reign4 = March 1648 – 14 July 1652 | |||
| reign-type4 = | |||
| regent4 = | |||
| reg-type4 = | |||
| cor-type4 = ] | |||
| coronation4 = ] | |||
| predecessor4 = Saeed Khan Bahadur | |||
| successor4 = Bahadur Khan Rohilla | |||
| succession5 = ] | |||
| reign5 = 21 January 1647 – 1 October 1647 | |||
| reign-type5 = | |||
| regent5 = | |||
| reg-type5 = | |||
| cor-type5 = ] | |||
| coronation5 = ] | |||
| predecessor5 = ] | |||
| successor5 = ''Position abolished'' | |||
| succession6 = ] | |||
| reign6 = 21 January 1647 – 1 October 1647 | |||
| reign-type6 = | |||
| regent6 = | |||
| reg-type6 = | |||
| cor-type6 = ] | |||
| coronation6 = ] | |||
| predecessor6 = ] | |||
| successor6 = ''Position abolished'' | |||
| succession7 = ] | |||
| reign7 = 16 February 1645 – January 1647 | |||
| reign-type7 = | |||
| regent7 = | |||
| reg-type7 = | |||
| cor-type7 = ] | |||
| coronation7 = ] | |||
| predecessor7 = ] | |||
| successor7 = ] | |||
{{Collapsed infobox section end}} }} | |||
| birth_name = Muhi al-Din Muhammad | |||
| birth_date = 3 November 1618<ref name="c639">{{cite web | title=Aurangzeb | website=Wikidata | date=2017-10-09 | url=https://m.wikidata.org/Q485547 | access-date=2024-07-10}}</ref> | |||
| birth_place = ], ], ] | |||
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1707|03|03|1618|11|03|df=y}} | |||
| death_place = ], ], Mughal Empire | |||
| issue = {{Unbulleted list | |||
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| issue-link = #Family | |||
| issue-pipe = ''Detail'' | |||
| full name = | |||
| posthumous name = | |||
| house = ] | |||
| father = ] | |||
| mother = ] | |||
| signature = File:Seal detail, from- Painted seal of Mughal Emperor Awrangzib Wellcome L0034099 (cropped).jpg | |||
| signature_type = ] | |||
| religion = ]{{efn|School of Thought: ]}} | |||
| dynasty = ] | |||
| spouse-type = Consort | |||
| spouses = {{ubl| | |||
| {{marriage|]|1637|1657|end=died}} | |||
| {{marriage|]|1638|1691|end=died}} | |||
| ] <br />({{Abbr|d.|death}} 1688) | |||
| ] | |||
}} | |||
| spouses-type = Spouse | |||
| burial_place = ], ], India | |||
| module = | |||
{{Infobox military person | embed=yes | |||
| allegiance = {{flagicon image|Shah Jahan Flag.png|border=}} ] | |||
| branch = {{flagicon image|Shah Jahan Flag.png|border=}} ] | |||
| commands = {{collapsible list|title = {{nobold|''See list''}}|]|]{{efn|The unified province of Deccan included the governorates of ], ], ], ], ] and ]}}|]|]|]|]|]}} | |||
| battles_label = | |||
| battles = {{collapsible list|title = {{nobold|''See list''}}|{{tree list}} | |||
* ] | |||
|colspan=2 align=center style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"| | |||
* ] | |||
|- | |||
** ] | |||
|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Birth name:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|Abu Muzaffar Muhiuddin Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir | |||
* ] | |||
|- | |||
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|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Family name:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|] | |||
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|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Title:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|] of ]<br /> | |||
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|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Birth:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|], ] | |||
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|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Birthplace:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"| ], ] | |||
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|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Death:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|], ] | |||
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|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Succeeded by:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|] | |||
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|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Marriage:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"| | |||
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*] | |||
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{{tree list/end}} | |||
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}} | |||
}} | |||
'''Muhi al-Din Muhammad''' (3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title '''Aurangzeb''',{{efn|{{IPA|fa|ʔaw.ɾaŋɡ.ˈzeːb}} {{lit|Ornament of the Throne}}; Awrangzīb}} and also by his ] '''Alamgir I''',{{efn|{{IPA|fa|ʔɑː.ˈlam.ˈɡiːɾ}} {{lit|Conqueror of the World}}}}{{efn|Which is derived from his title, Abu al-Muzaffar Muhi-ad-Din Muhammad Bahadur Alamgir Aurangzeb Badshah al-Ghazi.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Khomdan Singh Lisam |title=Encyclopaedia Of Manipur (3 Vol.) |date=2011 |publisher=Gyan Publishing House |isbn=9788178358642 |page=706 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z6d-IyINtk4C |access-date=20 March 2024 |language=En |quote=... Aurangzeb Bahadur Alamgir I ( Conqueror of the Universe ) , more commonly known as Aurangzeb , the 6th Mughal Emperor ruled from 1658 to}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Gul Rahim Khan |title=Silver Coins Hoard of the Late Mughals from Kohat |journal=Ancient Pakistan |date=2021 |volume=18 |page=16 |url= |publisher=Department of Archaeology, ] |language=en |issn=2708-4590 |quote=In gold there is no more type. In silver some other types like Abu al Muzaffar Muhiuddin/ Muhammad (and date) / Bahadur Alamgir/ Aurangzeb/ Badshah Ghazi or ...}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy Volume 3 |date=1893 |publisher=Harvard University; Royal Irish Academy |page=398 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ru4AAAAAYAAJ |access-date=20 March 2024 |language=En |quote=The Emperor's name and title were proclaimed in the pulpit as Abu al-Muzaffar Bahadur ' Alamgir Badshah i Ghazi}}</ref>}} was the sixth ], reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707. Under his reign, the ] reached its greatest extent, with territory spanning nearly the entirety of the ].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Chapra |first1=Muhammad Umer |title=Morality and Justice in Islamic Economics and Finance |date=2014 |publisher=Edward Elgar Publishing |isbn=978-1-78347-572-8 |pages=62–63 |quote=Aurangzeb (1658–1707). Aurangzeb's rule, spanning a period of 49 years}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Bayly |first1=C.A. |title=Indian society and the making of the British Empire |date=1990 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-38650-0 |edition=1st pbk. |location=Cambridge |page=7}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Turchin |first1=Peter |last2=Adams |first2=Jonathan M. |last3=Hall |first3=Thomas D |date=December 2006 |title=East-West Orientation of Historical Empires |url=http://jwsr.pitt.edu/ojs/index.php/jwsr/article/view/369/381 |journal=Journal of World-Systems Research |volume=12 |issue=2 |page=223 |issn=1076-156X |access-date=12 September 2016}}</ref><ref name="borocz">{{cite book |author=József Böröcz |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d0SPAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA21 |title=The European Union and Global Social Change |date=2009 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-135-25580-0 |page=21 |author-link=József Böröcz |access-date=26 June 2017}}</ref> | |||
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|align=left style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"|'''Children:'''||style="border-top:1px #CCCCCC solid"| | |||
*], son | |||
*], son | |||
*], son | |||
*], son | |||
*], daughter | |||
|} | |||
Aurangzeb and the Mughals belonged to a branch of the ]. He held administrative and military posts under his father ] ({{Reign|1628|1658}}) and gained recognition as an accomplished military commander. Aurangzeb served as the viceroy of the ] in 1636–1637 and the governor of ] in 1645–1647. He jointly administered the provinces of ] and ] in 1648–1652 and continued expeditions into the neighboring ] territories. In September 1657, Shah Jahan nominated his eldest and liberalist son ] as his successor, a move repudiated by Aurangzeb, who proclaimed himself emperor in February 1658. In April 1658, Aurangzeb defeated the allied army of Shikoh and the ] at the ]. Aurangzeb's decisive victory at the ] in May 1658 cemented his sovereignty and his suzerainty was acknowledged throughout the Empire. After Shah Jahan recovered from illness in July 1658, Aurangzeb declared him incompetent to rule and imprisoned his father in the ]. | |||
'''Aurangzeb''' ({{lang-fa|اورنگزیب}}, {{lang-en|Onetime Adorning the Crown}}) (], ] – ], ]), also known as '''Alamgir I''', was the ruler of the ] from 1658 until 1707. He was the sixth Mughal ruler after Babur, Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, and Shah Jahan. Aurangzeb was remarkably pious and zealous. Strict adherence to ] and ] (Islamic law)—as he interpreted them—were the foundations of his reign. He codified and instituted Sharia law throughout the empire, abandoning the religious tolerance of his predecessors. During his reign, allegedly many ] temples were defaced and destroyed, and many non-Muslims converted to ], both by inducement and by force.<ref>{{cite book | last = Richards | first = John F. | title = The Mughal Empire | year = 1995 | publisher = Cambridge University Press | location = Cambridge | id = ISBN 0-521-56603-7 | pages = 130,177 | quote =Jujhar Singh's outright defiance of this order inflamed Shah Jahan. He sent another large army under the nominal command of the sixteen-year-old Prince Aurangzeb to invade Bundelkhand....When overtaken by Mughal troops, Jujhar Singh's principal queens were killed by their attendants, but the remaining royal women were sent to join the Mughal harem. ''Two very young sons and a grandson were converted to Islam. Another older son who refused to convert was killed outright.''}}</ref> The ], a head tax on non-Muslims, was reinstated during his rule. | |||
Aurangzeb's reign is characterized by a period of rapid military expansion, with several dynasties and states being overthrown by the Mughals. The Mughals also surpassed ] as the world's largest economy and biggest manufacturing power. The Mughal military gradually improved and became one of the strongest armies in the world. A staunch Muslim, Aurangzeb is credited with the construction of numerous mosques and patronizing works of ]. He successfully imposed the ''Fatawa-i Alamgiri'' as the principal regulating body of the empire and prohibited religiously ] activities in Islam. Although Aurangzeb suppressed several local revolts, he maintained cordial relations with foreign governments. | |||
Aurangzeb ruled India for 48 years. He expanded the Mughal Empire to its greatest extent, encompassing all but the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent. His constant policies of war, however, left the empire dangerously overextended, isolated from its strong ] allies, and with a population that (except for the Muslim minority) expressed resentment, if not outright rebellion, to his reign. | |||
Aurangzeb was the longest reigning Mughal Emperor. His empire was also one of the largest in Indian history. However, his emperorship has a complicated legacy.<ref>{{cite book | last1=Ali | first1=A. | last2=Thiam | first2=I.D. | last3=Talib | first3=Y.A. | title=The Different aspects of Islamic culture: Islam in the World today; Retrospective of the evolution of Islam and the Muslim world | publisher=UNESCO Publishing | year=2016 | isbn=978-92-3-100132-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RMh7DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA51 | page=51}}</ref> His critics, citing his actions against the non-Muslims and his conservative view of Islam, argue that he abandoned the legacy of pluralism and tolerance of the earlier Mughal emperors. Others, however, reject these assertions, arguing that he opposed bigotry against Hindus, Sikhs and Shia Muslims and that he employed significantly more Hindus in his imperial bureaucracy than his predecessors. | |||
He remains one of the most controversial figures in Indian history. His religious policies continue to inspire conflict between religious and political groups in India, Pakistan and elsewhere. He is generally regarded as the last great Mughal ruler. His successors, the 'Later Mughals', lacked his strong hand and the Hindu ] mostly replaced Mughal rule during the rest of the 18th century. | |||
== |
==Early life== | ||
], ], their father ] (center), and maternal grandfather ] (right) c.1628]] | |||
===Early life=== | |||
Aurangzeb was born in ] on 3 November 1618.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bibb |first1=Sheila C. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N98eEAAAQBAJ&dq=aurangzeb+4+november+1618&pg=PA32 |title=Framing the Apocalypse: Visions of the End-of-Times |last2=Simon-López |first2=Alexandra |year=2019 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-39944-0 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Aurangzeb |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Aurangzeb |access-date=6 April 2016 |author-link=Percival Spear |last1=Spear |first1=Percival}}</ref><ref name="Thackeray248">{{cite book |title=Events that formed the modern world: from the European Renaissance through the War on Terror |url=https://archive.org/details/eventsthatformed0005unse |url-access=registration |year=2012 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-59884-901-1 |editor-last1=Thackeray |editor-first1=Frank W. |location=Santa Barbara, Calif. |page=248 |editor-last2=Findling |editor-first2=John E.}}</ref> His father was ] ] ({{Reign|1628|1658}}), who hailed from the ] of the ].<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Waseem |editor-first=M. |year=2003 |title=On Becoming an Indian Muslim: French Essays on Aspects of Syncretism |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New Delhi |page=103 |isbn=978-0-19-565807-1}}</ref> The latter was descended from Emir ] ({{Reign|1370|1405}}), the founder of the ].{{sfn|Mukerjee|2001|p=23}}{{sfn|Sarkar|1912|p=61}} Aurangzeb's mother ] was the daughter of the Persian nobleman ], who was the youngest son of vizier ].{{sfn|Tillotson|2008|p=194}} Aurangzeb was born during the reign of his patrilineal grandfather ] ({{Reign|1605|1627}}), the fourth emperor of the ]. | |||
Aurangzeb (full name: ''Abu Muzaffar Muhiuddin Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir'' --]: ابو مظفر محی الدین محمد اورنگزیب عالمگیر) was the third son of the fifth great ] emperor ] (builder of the ]) and Arjumand Bānū Begum (also known as ]). After a rebellion by his father, part of Aurangzeb's childhood was spent as a virtual hostage at his grandfather ]'s court. | |||
In June 1626, after an unsuccessful rebellion by his father, eight-year-old Aurangzeb and his brother ] were sent to the Mughal court in ] as hostages of their grandfather Jahangir and his wife, ], as part of their father's pardon deal.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Eaton|first=Richard M.|title=India in the Persianate Age: 1000–1765|publisher=University of California Press|year=2019|isbn=978-0-520-97423-4|page=251|oclc=1243310832}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gandhi |first=Supriya |year=2020 |title=The emperor who never was: Dara Shukoh in Mughal India |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |publisher=Belknap Press |pages=52–53 |isbn=978-0-674-98729-6|oclc=1112130290 }}</ref> After Jahangir died in 1627, Shah Jahan emerged victorious in the ensuing war of succession to the Mughal throne. Aurangzeb and his brother were consequently reunited with Shah Jahan in ].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gandhi|first=Supriya |year=2020 |title=The emperor who never was: Dara Shukoh in Mughal India |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |publisher=Belknap Press |pages=59–62 |isbn=978-0-674-98729-6|oclc=1112130290 }}</ref> | |||
After Jahangir's death in ], Aurangzeb returned to live with his parents. Shah Jahan followed the Mughal practice of assigning authority to his sons, and in ] made Aurangzeb ] (governor) of the ]. He moved to Kirki, which in time he renamed ]. In ], he married Rabia Daurrani. During this period the Deccan was relatively peaceful. In the Mughal court, however, Shah Jahan began to show greater and greater favoritism to his eldest son ]. | |||
As a Mughal prince, Aurangzeb received an education covering subjects like combat, military strategy, and administration. His curriculum also included areas like Islamic studies, ] and ]. Aurangzeb grew up fluent in the ]. He was also fluent in his ancestral language of ], but similar to his predecessors, he preferred to use ].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Truschke|first=Audrey|title=Aurangzeb: the life and legacy of India's most controversial king|date=2017|publisher=Stanford University Press|isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5|location=Stanford, California|pages=17–18|oclc=962025936}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=Streusand |first=Douglas E. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/191926598 |title=Islamic gunpowder empires: Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals |date=2011 |publisher=Westview Press |isbn=978-0-8133-1359-7 |location=Boulder, Colo |pages=281–282 |oclc=191926598}}</ref> | |||
In ], Aurangzeb's sister ] was accidentally burned in ]. This event precipitated a family crisis which had political consequences. Aurangzeb suffered his father's displeasure when returning to Agra three weeks after the event, instead of returning immediately on hearing of the accident. Shah Jahan dismissed him as the governor of Deccan. Aurangzeb later claimed (]) he had resigned in protest of his father favoring Dara. | |||
On 28 May 1633, a ] stampeded through the Mughal imperial encampment. Aurangzeb rode against the elephant and threw his spear at its head. He was unhorsed but escaped death. For his courage, Aurangzeb's father conferred on him the title of '']'' (brave) and presented him with gifts. When chided for his recklessness, Aurangzeb replied:{{sfn|Sarkar|1912|pp=10–12}} | |||
Aurangzeb's fortunes continued to decline. In ], he was barred from the court for seven months. Later, Shah Jahan appointed him governor of ]. He performed well and was rewarded. In ], Shah Jahan made him governor of ] and ] (near modern ] and ]), replacing Aurangzeb's ineffective brother ]. These areas were at the time under attack from a various forces. Aurangzeb's military skill proved successful, and the story of how he spread his prayer rug and prayed in the midst of battle brought him much fame. | |||
{{blockquote|If the fight had ended fatally for me it would not have been a matter of shame. Death drops the curtain even on emperors; it is no dishonor. The shame lay in what my brothers did!}} | |||
He was appointed governor of ] alongside Osman Junaid and ] and began a protracted military struggle against the ] army in an effort to capture the city of ]. He failed, and fell again into his father's disfavor. | |||
Historians have interpreted this as an unjust slur against his brothers. Shuja had also faced the elephant and wounded it with his spear. Dara had been too far away to come to their assistance.{{sfn|Sarkar|1912|pp=11–12}}<ref>{{cite book |last=Hansen |first=Waldemar |title=The Peacock Throne: The Drama of Mogul India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AV--abKg9GEC&pg=PA122 |access-date=23 November 2012 |year=1996 |orig-date=1972 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0225-4 |pages=122–124}}</ref> | |||
In ], Aurangzeb was re-appointed governor of the ]. But both man and place had changed. The Deccan produced poor tax revenue for the Mughals. In his previous term, Aurangzeb ignored the problem, allowing state-sanctioned corruption and extortion to grow. This time Aurangzeb set about reforming the system, but his efforts often placed additional burdens on the locals and were poorly received. | |||
Three days later Aurangzeb turned fifteen. Shah Jahan weighed him and presented him with his weight in gold along with other presents worth Rs. 200,000. His bravery against the elephant was documented in Persian and ] verses.{{sfn|Sarkar|1912|p=12}} | |||
It was during this second governorship that Aurangzeb first recounts destroying a ] temple. In addition, Aurangzeb's officers began treating non-Muslims harshly, and he defended these practices in letters to Shah Jahan's court. The practices would become themes in Aurangzeb's rule as emperor. | |||
=== Career as prince === | |||
In an effort to raise additional revenues, Aurangzeb attacked the border kingdoms of ] (]), and ] (]). Both times, Shah Jahan called off the attacks near the moment of Aurangzeb's triumph. Even at the time it was believed that the withdrawals had been ordered by Prince Dara, in Shah Jahan's name. | |||
] under the command of Aurangzeb recaptures ] in October 1635.|left]] | |||
Aurangzeb was nominally in charge of the force sent to ] with the intent of subduing the rebellious ruler of ], ], who had attacked another territory in defiance of Shah Jahan's policy and was refusing to atone for his actions. By arrangement, Aurangzeb stayed in the rear, away from the fighting, and took the advice of his generals as the ] gathered and commenced the siege of Orchha in 1635. The campaign was successful and Singh was removed from power.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=130}}</ref> | |||
]'' depicts Prince Aurangzeb facing a maddened ] named ''Sudhakar''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Abdul Hamid Lahori |url=http://warfare.atspace.eu/Moghul/ShahJahan/Prince_Awrangzeb_facing_a_maddened_elephant_named_Sudhakar.htm |title=Prince Awrangzeb (Aurangzeb) facing a maddened elephant named Sudhakar |year=1636 |website=Padshahnama |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140106034412/http://warfare.atspace.eu/Moghul/ShahJahan/Prince_Awrangzeb_facing_a_maddened_elephant_named_Sudhakar.htm |archive-date=6 January 2014}}</ref>]] | |||
Aurangzeb was appointed viceroy of the ] in 1636.<ref name="Markovits2004p103">{{cite book |date=2004 |orig-date=First published 1994 as ''Histoire de l'Inde Moderne'' |editor-first=Claude |editor-last=Markovits |title=A History of Modern India, 1480–1950 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uzOmy2y0Zh4C |edition=2nd |location=London |publisher=Anthem Press |page=103 |isbn=978-1-84331-004-4}}</ref> After Shah Jahan's vassals had been devastated by the alarming expansion of ] during the reign of the ] boy-prince ], the emperor dispatched Aurangzeb, who in 1636 brought the Nizam Shahi dynasty to an end.<ref>George Michell and Mark Zebrowski, ''Architecture and Art of the Deccan Sultanates'', (Cambridge University Press, 1999), 12.</ref> In 1637, Aurangzeb married the ] princess ], posthumously known as Rabia-ud-Daurani.{{sfn|Mukerjee|2001|p=23}}{{sfn|Sarkar|1912|p=61}} She was his first wife and chief consort as well as his favourite.<ref>{{cite book |last=Eraly |first= Abraham |author-link=Abraham Eraly |year=2007 |title=The Mughal World: Life in India's Last Golden Age |url=https://archive.org/details/mughalworldlifei00eral |url-access=limited |publisher=Penguin Books India |page= |isbn=978-0-14-310262-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Chandra |first=Satish |year=2002 |orig-date=1959 |title=Parties and politics at the Mughal Court, 1707–1740 |edition=4th |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=50 |isbn=978-0-19-565444-8}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Krieger-Krynicki |first1=Annie |translator-last=Hamid |translator-first=Enjum |title=Captive princess: Zebunissa, daughter of Emperor Aurangzeb |year=2005 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=92 |isbn=978-0-19-579837-1}}</ref> He also had an infatuation with a slave girl, ], whose death at a young age greatly affected him. In his old age, he was under the charms of his concubine, ].{{sfn|Mukerjee|2001|p=53}}{{sfn|Sarkar|1912|pp=64–66}} The latter had formerly been a companion to Dara Shukoh.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Katherine Butler |last=Brown |date=January 2007 |title=Did Aurangzeb Ban Music? Questions for the Historiography of his Reign |journal=Modern Asian Studies |volume=41 |issue=1 |pages=82–84 |doi=10.1017/S0026749X05002313|s2cid=145371208 | issn=0026-749X }}</ref> | |||
In the same year, 1637, Aurangzeb was placed in charge of annexing the small ] kingdom of ], which he did with ease.<ref name=Richards1996p128>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=128}}</ref> In 1638, Aurangzeb married ], later known as Rahmat al-Nisa.{{sfn|Mukerjee|2001|p=23}}{{sfn|Sarkar|1912|p=61}} That same year, Aurangzeb dispatched an army to ], however his forces met stubborn resistance and were eventually repulsed at the end of a long siege.<ref>The Calcutta Review, Volume 75, 1882, p. 87.</ref><ref>Sir Charles Fawcett: The Travels of the Abbarrn India and the Near East, 1672 to 1674 Hakluyt Society, London, 1947, p. 167.</ref><ref>M. S. Commissariat: Mandelslo's Travels In Western India, Asian Educational Services, 1995, p. 57.</ref> At some point, Aurangzeb married ], who was a ] or ].<ref>{{cite book |last=Krieger-Krynicki |first=Annie |title=Captive Princess: Zebunissa, Daughter of Emperor Aurangzeb |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-195-79837-1 |pages=3, 41}}</ref>{{sfn|Mukerjee|2001|p=23}} | |||
In 1644, Aurangzeb's sister, ], suffered from burns when the chemicals in her perfume were ignited by a nearby lamp while in ]. This event precipitated a family crisis with political consequences. Aurangzeb suffered his father's displeasure by not returning to Agra immediately but rather three weeks later. Shah Jahan had been nursing Jahanara back to health in that time and thousands of vassals had arrived in Agra to pay their respects.{{Citation needed|date=October 2012}} Shah Jahan was outraged to see Aurangzeb enter the interior palace compound in military attire and immediately dismissed him from his position of viceroy of the Deccan; Aurangzeb was also no longer allowed to use red tents or to associate himself with the official military standard of the Mughal emperor.{{Citation needed|date=October 2012}} Other sources state that Aurangzeb was dismissed from his position because Aurangzeb left the life of luxury and became a '']''.<ref>Ahmad, Fazl. Heroes of Islam. Lahore: Sh. Muhammad Ashraff, 1993. Print.</ref> | |||
====Governor of Gujarat==== | |||
In 1645, he was barred from the court for seven months. It is reported that he mentioned his grief about this to fellow Mughal commanders. Thereafter, Shah Jahan appointed him governor of ]. His rule in Gujarat was marked with religious disputes but he was rewarded for bringing stability.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Campbell |first1=James McNabb |year=1896 |title=History of Gujarát |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/54652/54652-h/54652-h.htm#pb280 |access-date=2022-04-29 |location=Bombay |publisher=Government Central Press |page=280 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Subramanian |first=Archana |date=2015-07-30 |title=Way to the throne |language=en-IN |work=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/kids/rise-and-fall-of-aurangzeb/article7481718.ece |access-date=2022-02-26 |issn=0971-751X}}</ref> | |||
====Governor of Balkh==== | |||
In 1647, Shah Jahan moved Aurangzeb from Gujarat to be governor of ], replacing a younger son, ], who had proved ineffective there. The area was under attack from ] and ] tribes. The Mughal artillery and muskets were matched by the skirmishing skills of their opponents which led to a stalemate. Aurangzeb discovered that his army could not live off the land, which was devastated by war.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} It is recorded that during the battle against the Uzbeks during this campaign, Aurangzeb dismounted from his elephant ride to recite prayer to the surprise of the opposing force commander.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Munis D. Faruqui |title=The Princes of the Mughal Empire, 1504–1719 |date=2012 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-02217-1 |page=175 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2vhbDSXbbksC |access-date=15 March 2024 |language=En |format=Hardcover}}</ref> With the onset of winter, he and his father had to make an unsatisfactory deal with the Uzbeks. They had to give away territory in exchange for nominal recognition of Mughal sovereignty.<ref name="Richards 1996 132–133">{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|pp=132–133}}</ref> The Mughal force suffered still further with attacks by Uzbeks and other tribesmen as it retreated through the snow to ]. By the end of this two-year campaign, into which Aurangzeb had been plunged at a late stage, a vast sum of money had been expended for little gain.<ref name="Richards 1996 132–133"/> | |||
Further unsuccessful military involvements followed, as Aurangzeb was appointed governor of ] and ]. His efforts in 1649 and 1652 to ] at ] which they had recently retaken after a decade of Mughal control, both ended in failure as winter approached. The logistical problems of supplying an army at the extremity of the empire, combined with the poor quality of armaments and the intransigence of the opposition have been cited by John Richards as the reasons for failure. A third attempt in 1653, led by Dara Shikoh, met with the same outcome.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|pp=134–135}}</ref> | |||
====Second Deccan governorate==== | |||
Aurangzeb became viceroy of the Deccan again after he was replaced by Dara Shukoh in the attempt to recapture Kandahar. Aurangbad's two '']s'' (land grants) were moved there as a consequence of his return. The Deccan was a relatively impoverished area, this caused him to lose out financially. The area required grants were required from ] and Gujarat in order to maintain the administration. The situation caused ill-feeling between him and his father Shah Jahan who insisted that things could be improved if Aurangzeb made efforts to develop cultivation.<ref name="Chandra2005p267" /> Aurangzeb appointed Murshid Quli Khan{{Citation needed|reason=Murshid Quli Khan was born at 1670|date=June 2016}} to extend to the Deccan the ''zabt'' revenue system used in northern India. Murshid Quli Khan organised a survey of agricultural land and a tax assessment on what it produced. To increase revenue, Murshid Quli Khan granted loans for seed, livestock, and irrigation infrastructure. This led the Deccan region to return to prosperity.<ref name="Markovits2004p103" /><ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|pp=140, 188}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb proposed to resolve financial difficulties by attacking the dynastic occupants of ] (the ]s) and ] (the ]s). This proposal would also extend Mughal influence by accruing more lands.<ref name="Chandra2005p267" /> Aurangzeb advanced against the Sultan of Bijapur and ]. The '']'' (governor or captain) of the fortified city, Sidi Marjan, was mortally wounded when a gunpowder magazine exploded. After twenty-seven days of fighting, ] was captured by the Mughals and Aurangzeb continued his advance.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Prasad |first=Ishwari |year=1974 |title=The Mughal Empire |location=Allahabad |publisher=Chugh Publications |pages=524–525 |oclc=1532660 |quote= marched in the direction of Bijapur and on reaching Bidar laid siege to it ... The Qiladar of the fort was Sidi Marjan ... were helped by an explosion of powder magazine in the fortress ... Sidi Marjan and two of his sons were badly burnt ... Thus was the fort of Bidar taken after a siege of 27 days ... Sidi Marjan died of his wounds soon afterwards ... Aurangzeb arrived at Kalyani.}}</ref> Aurangzeb suspected Dara had exerted influence on his father. He believed that he was on the verge of victory in both instances, and was frustrated that Shah Jahan chose then to settle for negotiations with the opposing forces rather than pushing for complete victory.<ref name="Chandra2005p267" /> | |||
===War of succession=== | ===War of succession=== | ||
{{Main|Mughal war of succession (1658–1659)}} | |||
] fought in 1658, part of the ]]] | |||
The four sons of Shah Jahan all held governorships during their father's reign. The emperor favoured the eldest, ].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://scroll.in/article/879195/aurangzeb-and-dara-shikohs-fight-for-the-throne-was-entwined-with-the-rivalry-of-their-two-sisters |title=Aurangzeb and Dara Shikoh's fight for the throne was entwined with the rivalry of their two sisters |first=Ira |last=Mukhoty |work=Scroll.in |date=17 May 2018}}</ref> This had caused resentment among the younger three, who sought at various times to strengthen alliances between themselves and against Dara. There was no Mughal tradition of ], the systematic passing of rule, upon an emperor's death, to his eldest son.<ref name="Chandra2005p267" /> Instead it was customary for sons to overthrow their father and for brothers to war to the death among themselves.<ref name="Markovits-2004">{{cite book |date=2004 |orig-date=First published 1994 as ''Histoire de l'Inde Moderne'' |editor-first=Claude |editor-last=Markovits |title=A History of Modern India, 1480–1950 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uzOmy2y0Zh4C |edition=2nd |location=London |publisher=Anthem Press |page=96 |isbn=978-1-84331-004-4}}</ref> Historian ] says that "In the ultimate resort, connections among the powerful military leaders, and military strength and capacity the real arbiters".<ref name="Chandra2005p267" /> The contest for power was primarily between Dara Shikoh and Aurangzeb because, although all four sons had demonstrated competence in their official roles, it was around these two that the supporting cast of officials and other influential people mostly circulated.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|pp=151–152}}</ref> There were ideological differences – Dara was an intellectual and a religious liberal in the mould of Akbar, while Aurangzeb was much more conservative – but, as historians ] and ] say, "To focus on divergent philosophies neglects the fact that Dara was a poor general and leader. It also ignores the fact that factional lines in the succession dispute were not, by and large, shaped by ideology."<ref>{{cite book |title=A Concise History of Modern India |url=https://archive.org/details/concisehistorymo00metc |url-access=limited |first1=Barbara D. |last1=Metcalf |first2=Thomas R. |last2=Metcalf |author-link1=Barbara D. Metcalf |author-link2=Thomas R. Metcalf |edition=2nd |location=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2006 |pages=–21 |isbn=978-0-521-86362-9}}</ref> Marc Gaborieau, professor of Indian studies at l'],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ceias.ehess.fr/index.php?90 |title=Marc Gaborieau |publisher=Centre d'Études de l'Inde et de l'Asie du Sud |date=6 July 2016 |language=fr |access-date=2 May 2016}}</ref> explains that "The loyalties of seem to have been motivated more by their own interests, the closeness of the family relation and above all the charisma of the pretenders than by ideological divides."<ref name="Markovits-2004" /> Muslims and Hindus did not divide along religious lines in their support for one pretender or the other nor, according to Chandra, is there much evidence to support the belief that Jahanara and other members of the royal family were split in their support. Jahanara, certainly, interceded at various times on behalf of all of the princes and was well-regarded by Aurangzeb even though she shared the religious outlook of Dara.<ref name="Chandra2005p271" /> | |||
In 1656, a general under ] named Musa Khan led an army of 12,000 musketeers to attack Aurangzeb, who was ]. Later in the same campaign, Aurangzeb, in turn, rode against an army consisting of 8,000 horsemen and 20,000 ] musketeers.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Syed |first1=Anees Jahan |year=1977 |title=Aurangzeb in Muntakhab-al Lubab |publisher=Somaiya Publications |pages=64–65 |oclc=5240812}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Kolff |first1=Dirk H. A. |author1-link=Dirk H. A. Kolff |year=2002 |orig-date=1990 |title=Naukar, Rajput, and Sepoy: The Ethnohistory of the Military Labour Market of Hindustan, 1450–1850 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SrdiVPsFRYIC&pg=PA22 |edition=illustrated, revised |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=22 |isbn=978-0-521-52305-9}}</ref> | |||
] | |||
] fell ill in ], and was widely reported to have died. With this news, the struggle for succession began. Aurangzeb's eldest brother, ], was regarded as heir apparent, but the succession proved far from certain. When Shah Jahan supposedly died, his second son, ] declared himself emperor in ]. Imperial armies sent by Dara and Shah Jahan soon restrained this effort, and Shuja retreated. | |||
After making clear his desire for his son Dara to take over after him, Shah Jahan fell ill with ] in 1657. He was kept in seclusion and cared for by Dara in the newly built city of ] (Old Delhi). Rumours spread that Shah Jahan had died, which led to concerns among his younger sons. Subsequently, these younger sons took military actions seemingly in response but it is not known whether these preparations were made in the mistaken belief that the rumours of death of Shah Jahan were true and that Dara might be hiding it for political gain, or whether the challengers were taking advantage of the situation.<ref name="Chandra2005p267">{{cite book |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |year=2005 |isbn=978-81-241-1066-9 |first=Satish |last=Chandra |author-link=Satish Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA267 |pages=267–269 |access-date=29 September 2012}}</ref> | |||
Soon after, Shuja's youngest brother ], with secret promises of support from Aurangzeb, declared himself emperor in ]. Aurangzeb, ostensibly in support of Murad, marched north from Aurangabad, gathering support from nobles and generals. Following a series of victories, Aurangzeb declared that Dara had illegally usurped the throne. Shah Jahan, determined that Dara would succeed him, handed over control of his empire to Dara. A Hindu lord opposed to Aurangzeb and Murad, ], battled them both at Dharmatpur near ], leaving them heavily weakened. Aurangzeb eventually defeated Singh and concentrated his forces on Dara. A series of bloody battles followed, with troops loyal to Aurangzeb battering Dara's armies at . In a few months, Aurangzeb's forces surrounded ]. Fearing for his life, Dara departed for ], leaving behind Shah Jahan. The old emperor surrendered the ] of Agra to Aurangzeb's nobles, but Aurangzeb refused any meeting with his father, declaring that Dara was his enemy. | |||
] in ], where he had been governor since 1637 crowned himself King at RajMahal. He brought his cavalry, artillery and river flotilla upriver towards Agra. Near Varanasi his forces confronted a defending army sent from Delhi under the command of Prince Sulaiman Shukoh, son of Dara Shukoh, and Raja Jai Singh.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=159}}</ref> | |||
In a sudden reversal, Aurangzeb then had Murad arrested after intoxicating him and later executed him;<ref>The Great Moghuls, ''Aurangzeb'', ]</ref> Murad's former supporters, instead of fighting for Murad, defected to Aurangzeb. Meanwhile, Dara gathered his forces, and set up an alliance with Shuja. But the key commander of Dara's armies, the ] general ], defected to Aurangzeb, along with many thousand Rajput soldiers. Dara fled Delhi and sought an alliance with brother Shuja, who refused the offer after Aurangzeb offered him the governorship of ]. This move had the effect of isolating Dara and causing more troops to defect to Aurangzeb. Shuja, however, uncertain of Aurangzeb's sincerity, continued to battle his brother, but his forces suffered a series of defeats at Aurangzeb's hands. At length, Shuja went into exile in ] (in present-day ]) where he disappeared, and was presumed to be dead. | |||
Murad did the same in his governorship of Gujarat and Aurangzeb did so in the Deccan. | |||
With Shuja and Murad disposed of, and with his father Shah Jahan confined in Agra, Aurangzeb pursued Dara, chasing him across the northwest bounds of the empire. After a series of battles, defeats and retreats, Dara was betrayed by one of his generals, who arrested and bound him. In ], Aurangzeb arranged a formal coronation in ]. He had Dara openly marched in chains back to Delhi; when Dara finally arrived, he had his brother executed. Legends about the cruelty of this execution abound, including stories that Aurangzeb had Dara's severed head sent to the dying Shah Jahan. With his succession secured, Aurangzeb kept Shah Jahan under house arrest at the Red Fort in Agra. Legends concerning this imprisonment abound, for the fort is ironically close to Shah Jahan's great architectural masterpiece, the ]. | |||
After regaining some of his health, Shah Jahan moved to Agra and Dara urged him to send forces to challenge Shah Shuja and Murad, who had declared themselves rulers in their respective territories. While Shah Shuja was defeated at ] in February 1658, the army sent to deal with Murad discovered to their surprise that he and Aurangzeb had combined their forces,<ref name="Chandra2005p271" /> the two brothers having agreed to partition the empire once they had gained control of it.<ref name="Chandra2005p272" /> The two armies clashed at ] in April 1658, with Aurangzeb being the victor. Shuja was chased through ]. The victory of Aurangzeb proved this to be a poor decision by Dara Shikoh, who now had a defeated force on one front and a successful force unnecessarily pre-occupied on another. Realising that his recalled Bihar forces would not arrive at Agra in time to resist the emboldened Aurangzeb's advance, Dara scrambled to form alliances in order but found that Aurangzeb had already courted key potential candidates. When Dara's disparate, hastily concocted army clashed with Aurangzeb's well-disciplined, battle-hardened force at the ] in late May, neither Dara's men nor his generalship were any match for Aurangzeb. Dara had also become over-confident in his own abilities and, by ignoring advice not to lead in battle while his father was alive, he cemented the idea that he had usurped the throne.<ref name="Chandra2005p271">{{cite book |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |year=2005 |isbn=978-81-241-1066-9 |first=Satish |last=Chandra |author-link=Satish Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA270 |pages=270–271 |access-date=29 September 2012}}</ref> "After the defeat of Dara, Shah Jahan was imprisoned in the fort of Agra where he spent eight long years under the care of his favourite daughter Jahanara."<ref name="sen2">{{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra |title=A Textbook of Medieval Indian History |publisher=Primus Books |year=2013 |isbn=978-9-38060-734-4 |page=183}}</ref> | |||
==Aurangzeb's Reign== | |||
===Enforcement of Islamic law=== | |||
Aurangzeb then broke his arrangement with Murad Baksh, which probably had been his intention all along.<ref name="Chandra2005p272" /> Instead of looking to partition the empire between himself and Murad, he had his brother arrested and imprisoned at Gwalior Fort. Murad was executed on 4 December 1661, ostensibly for the murder of the '']'' of Gujarat. The allegation was encouraged by Aurangzeb, who caused the ''diwan's'' son to seek retribution for the death under the principles of ].<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=162}}</ref> Meanwhile, Dara gathered his forces, and moved to the ]. The army sent against Shuja was trapped in the east, its generals ] and Dilir Khan submitted to Aurangzeb, but Dara's son, Suleiman Shikoh, escaped. Aurangzeb offered Shah Shuja the governorship of Bengal. This move had the effect of isolating Dara Shikoh and causing more troops to defect to Aurangzeb. Shah Shuja, who had declared himself emperor in Bengal began to annex more territory and this prompted Aurangzeb to march from Punjab with a new and large army that fought during the ], where Shah Shuja and his ] armoured war elephants were routed by the forces loyal to Aurangzeb. Shah Shuja then fled to ] (in present-day Burma), where he was executed by the local rulers.<ref>''The Cambridge History of India'' (1922), vol. IV, p. 481.</ref> | |||
The Mughals had for the most part been tolerant of non-Muslims (compared to Aurangzeb), allowing them to practice their customs and religion without too much interference. Though certain Muslim laws had been in place -- prohibitions against building new Hindu temples, the poll tax on non-Muslims (the ]), was repealed by Emperor ] in 1562. Akbar also encouraged political tolerance toward the non-Muslim majority. | |||
With Shuja and Murad disposed of, and with his father immured in Agra, Aurangzeb pursued Dara Shikoh, chasing him across the north-western bounds of the empire. Aurangzeb claimed that Dara was no longer a Muslim {{citation needed |date=June 2018}} and accused him of poisoning the Mughal ] ]. After a series of battles, defeats and retreats, Dara was betrayed by one of his generals, who arrested and bound him. In 1658, Aurangzeb arranged his formal coronation in Delhi. | |||
Until Aurangzeb's reign, ]n ] had been guided by mystical ] precepts. Although Sunni in ancestry, the emperors from ] on had tolerated or openly embraced the activities of the ] Sufis. But Aurangzeb abandoned many of the more liberal viewpoints of his predecessors. He espoused a more fundamentalist interpretation of Islam and a behavior based on the ] (Islamic law), which he set about codifying through edicts and policies. His ], is a 33 volume compilation of these edicts (which have never been challenged). | |||
On 10 August 1659, Dara was executed on grounds of apostasy and his head was sent to Shah Jahan.<ref name="sen2"/> This was the first prominent execution of Aurangzeb based on accusations of being influenced by Hinduism, however some sources argue it was done for political reasons.<ref>{{cite book |last=Larson |first=Gerald James |title=India's Agony Over Religion |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-7914-2411-7 |page=111 |author-link=Gerald James Larson}}</ref> Aurangzeb had his allied brother Prince ] held for murder, judged and then executed.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Allan |first1=J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9_48AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA416 |title=The Cambridge Shorter History of India |last2=Haig |first2=Sir T. Wolseley |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1934 |editor-last=Dodwell |editor-first=H. H. |editor-link=H. H. Dodwell |page=416}}</ref> Aurangzeb was accused of poisoning his imprisoned nephew ].<ref>{{cite book |last=Smith |first=Vincent Arthur |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p2gxAQAAMAAJ&pg=PG412 |title=The Oxford History of India: From the Earliest Times to the End of 1911 |publisher=Clarendon Press |year=1920 |page=412 |author-link=Vincent Arthur Smith}}</ref> Having secured his position, Aurangzeb confined his frail father at the Agra Fort but did not mistreat him. Shah Jahan was cared for by Jahanara and died in 1666.<ref name="Chandra2005p272">{{cite book |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |year=2005 |isbn=978-81-241-1066-9 |first=Satish |last=Chandra |author-link=Satish Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA270 |page=272 |access-date=29 September 2012}}</ref> | |||
Under Aurangzeb, Mughal court life changed dramatically. According to his interpretation (in consultation with fundamentalist clerics), Islam did not allow ]. Thus, he banished court musicians, dancers and singers (Surprisingly, he is well accomplished in playing ], a stringed instrument). Further, based on Muslim precepts forbidding images, he stopped the production of representational artwork, including the miniature painting that had reached its zenith before his rule. Soldiers and citizens were also given free rein to deface architectural images such as faces, flowers and vines -- even on the walls of Mughal palaces. Untold thousands of representational images were destroyed in this way. Aurangzeb abandoned the Hindu-inspired practices of former Mughal emperors, especially the practice of 'darshan', or public appearances to bestow blessings, which had been commonplace since the time of Akbar, as well as lavish celebrations of the Emperor's birthday. | |||
== Ancestry == | |||
Aurangzeb began to enact and enforce a series of edicts and with punishments. Most significantly, Aurangzeb initiated laws which sometimes interfered with non-Muslim worship. These included the destruction of several temples (mostly Hindu), a prohibition of certain religious gatherings, collection of the ] tax, the closing of non-Islamic religious schools, and prohibition of practices deemed immoral by him, such as temple dances. Often the punishment for breaking these laws was death. | |||
{{ahnentafel|1. '''Aurangzeb'''|2. ]<ref name="Kobita">{{cite book |first=Kobita |last=Sarker |title=Shah Jahan and his paradise on earth: the story of Shah Jahan's creations in Agra and Shahjahanabad in the golden days of the Mughals |year=2007 |page=187}}</ref>|3. ]<ref name="Kobita"/>|4. ]<ref name="Mehta">{{cite book |first=J.l. |last=Mehta |title=Advanced Study in the History of Medieval India |year=1986 |page=418}}</ref>|5. ]<ref name="Mehta"/>|6. ]<ref name="Thackeray254">{{cite book |first1=Frank W. |last1=Thackeray |first2=John E. |last2=Findling |title=Events That Formed the Modern World |url=https://archive.org/details/eventsthatformed0005unse |url-access=registration |year=2012 |page=254}}</ref>|7. Diwanji Begum<ref name="Thackeray254"/>|8. ]<ref name="Mehta 1986 374">{{harvtxt|Mehta|1986|p=374}}</ref>|9. ]<ref name="Mehta 1986 374">{{harvtxt|Mehta|1986|p=374}}</ref>|10. ]<ref name="Mukerjee">{{cite book |first=Soma |last=Mukherjee |title=Royal Mughal Ladies and Their Contributions |publisher=Gyan Books |year=2001 |page=128 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v-2TyjzZhZEC |isbn=978-8-121-20760-7 }}</ref>|11. Manrang Devi <ref name="Mukerjee"/>|12. ]<ref>Subhash Parihar, ''Some Aspects of Indo-Islamic Architecture'' (1999), p. 149</ref>|13. ]<ref>{{cite book|last1=Shujauddin|first1=Mohammad|last2=Shujauddin|first2=Razia|title=The Life and Times of Noor Jahan|date=1967|publisher=Caravan Book House|page=1|language=en}}</ref>|14. Ghias ud-din 'Ali Asaf Khan<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ahmad|first1=Moin-ud-din|title=The Taj and Its Environments: With 8 Illus. from Photos., 1 Map, and 4 Plans|date=1924|publisher=R. G. Bansal|page=101|language=en}}</ref>||collapsed=yes|align=center|boxstyle_1=background-color: #fcc;|boxstyle_2=background-color: #fb9;|boxstyle_3=background-color: #ffc;|boxstyle_4=background-color: #bfc;}} | |||
==Reign== | |||
There were a great many rebellions during Aurangzebs's reign, including those by the Rajput states of Marwar and Mewar, and the ]. Things came to such a head that ], the 9th Guru of the Sikhs was tortured and executed by Aurangzeb for refusing to accept Islam, a martyrdom which is mourned to this day by the Sikh community. The 10th Guru of the Sikhs, ] led an open revolt against Aurangzeb. His efforts to conquer the ] also met with fierce resistance. | |||
] | |||
===Bureaucracy=== | |||
Aurangzeb's imperial bureaucracy employed significantly more Hindus than that of his predecessors. | |||
Between 1679 and 1707, the number of Hindu officials in the Mughal administration rose by half, to represent 31.6% of Mughal nobility, the highest in the Mughal era.<ref name="Truschke50">{{cite book |last=Truschke |first=Audrey |year=2017 |title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oUUkDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT50 |publisher=Stanford University Press |page=58 |isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Malik|first=Jamal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FduG_t2sxwMC&q=Aurangzeb+levied+taxes+on+Hindu+merchants&pg=PA190|title=Islam in South Asia: A Short History|date= 2008|publisher=Brill|page=190|isbn=978-90-04-16859-6}}</ref> Many of them were ] and ], who were his political allies.<ref name="Truschke50" /> However, Aurangzeb encouraged high ranking Hindu officials to convert to Islam.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Laine|first=James W.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-x3fBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA152|title=Meta-Religion: Religion and Power in World History|year=2015|publisher=Univ of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-95999-6|page=153|language=en}}</ref> | |||
The climate of religious orthodoxy is often cited as the reason for these rebellions, as well as for the collapse of the Mughal empire after Aurangzeb. But many historians today are re-assessing the period, and offer economic and political reasons for the many rebellions and the disintegration that followed, rather than religious, including the fact that the empire had become too huge and unwieldy, also that Aurangzeb's long wars of expansion, especially his decades in the Deccan, seriously strained the imperial treasury, while the many new nobles created and promoted by him (many of them Deccanis) did not share the old loyalty to the empire. Above all, the peasantry was steadily getting bled to death. | |||
=== Economy === | |||
Also, it is useful to note that even amidst the orthodoxy, a great many top imperial officers continued to be Hindu, including Aurangzeb's highest general Mirza Raja Jai Singh. The number of Hindu mansabdars actually went up in Aurangzeb's time to 33% in the fourth decade of his rule, from 24.5% under his father Shah Jahan. | |||
Under his reign, the Mughal Empire contributed to the world's GDP by nearly 25%, surpassing ], making it the world's largest economy and biggest manufacturing power, more than the entirety of Western Europe, and signaled ].<ref>] (2003): '''', ], {{ISBN|92-64-10414-3}}, pp. 259–261</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Ahmed Sayeed |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IGnQDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA201 |title=Negate Fighting Faith |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2020 |isbn=978-93-88660-79-2 |page=201}}</ref> | |||
=== |
===Religious policy=== | ||
{{See also|Religious policy of the Mughals after Akbar}} | |||
] in the ]. Such scenes would be rare in the latter part of his reign as he was permanently camped in the Deccan, fighting wars.]] | |||
From the start of his reign up until his death, Aurangzeb engaged in almost constant warfare. He built up a massive army, and began a program of military expansion at all the boundaries of his empire. | |||
] law by introducing the ].|left]] | |||
Aurangzeb pushed into the northwest -- into ], and what is now ]. He also drove south, conquering Bijapur and ], his old enemies. He further attempted to suppress the ] territories, which had recently been liberated from Bijapur by ]. | |||
Aurangzeb was an orthodox Muslim ruler. Subsequent to the policies of his three predecessors, he endeavored to make ] a dominant force in his reign. However these efforts brought him into conflict with the forces that were opposed to this revival.<ref>{{Cite book|date=1977|editor-last=Holt|editor-first=P. M.|editor2-last=Lambton|editor2-first=Ann K. S.|editor3-last=Lewis|editor3-first=Bernard|title=The Cambridge History of Islam|language=en|volume=2a|page=52|doi=10.1017/chol9780521219488|isbn=978-1-139-05504-8}}</ref> Aurangzeb was a follower of the Mujaddidi Order and a disciple of the son of the Punjabi saint, ]. He sought to establish Islamic rule as instructed and inspired by him.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=US5gEAAAQBAJ&dq=aurangzeb+mujaddidi&pg=PA155 |page= 155 |title= History of Indian Nation: Medieval India |date= 2022 |publisher= K. K. Publications }}</ref> | |||
But the combination of military expansion and religious intolerance had far deeper consequences. Though he succeeded in expanding Mughal control, it was at an enormous cost in lives and treasure. And as the empire expanded in size, the chain of command grew weaker. | |||
] stated that after returning from Kashmir, Aurangzeb issued order in 1663, to ban the practice of ], a Hindu practice to burn a widow whenever her husband passed away.<ref name=Columbia>{{cite book |author1=S. M. Ikram |author-link= S. M. Ikram |author2=Ainslie T. Embree |title=Muslim Civilization in India |chapter= 17 |url=https://franpritchett.com/00islamlinks/ikram/part2_17.html |publisher=Columbia University Press |access-date=25 November 2023 |language=En |format=Ebook |date=1964 |quote=Aurangzeb was most forthright in his efforts to stop sati. According to Manucci, on his return from Kashmir in December, 1663, he "issued an order that in all lands under Mughal control, never again should the officials allow a woman to be burnt." Manucci adds that "This order endures to this day."/26/ This order, though not mentioned in the formal histories, is recorded in the official guidebooks of the reign./27/ Although the possibility of an evasion of government orders through payment of bribes existed, later European travelers record that sati was not much practiced by the end of Aurangzeb's reign. As Ovington says in his Voyage to Surat: "Since the Mahometans became Masters of the Indies, this execrable custom is much abated, and almost laid aside, by the orders which nabobs receive for suppressing and extinguishing it in all their provinces. And now it is ] very rare, except it be some Rajah's wives, that the Indian women burn at all; /27/ Jadunath Sarkar, History of Aurangzib (Calcutta, 1916), III, 92. /28/ John Ovington, A Voyage to Surat (London, 1929), p. 201.}}</ref> Ikram recorded that Aurangzeb issued decree: | |||
The ]s of Punjab grew both in strength and numbers in rebellion against Aurangzeb's armies. When the minor Muslim kingdoms of Golconda and Bijapur fell beneath Aurangzeb's might, rebellious Hindus flocked to join ] and the ]. For the last 27 years of his life, Aurangzeb engaged in constant battles in the ], at enormous expense. | |||
<blockquote><p>''"in all lands under Mughal control, never again should the officials allow a woman to be burnt"''.<ref name=Columbia/> </p></blockquote> | |||
Even Aurangzeb's own armies grew restive -- particularly the fierce ]s, who were his main source of strength. Aurangzeb gave a wide berth to the Rajputs, who were mostly Hindu. While they fought for Aurangzeb during his life, mostly out of fear, on his death they immediately revolted against the Empire, an essential after effect of Aurangzeb's Islamic fundamentalist policies. | |||
Although Aurangzeb's orders could be evaded with payment of bribes to officials, adds Ikram, later European travellers record that ''sati'' was not much practised in Mughal empire, and that Sati was "very rare, except it be some Rajah's wives, that the Indian women burn at all" by the end of Aurangzeb's reign.<ref name=Columbia/> | |||
With much of his attention on military matters, Aurangzeb's political power waned, and his provincial governors and generals grew in authority. | |||
Historian Katherine Brown has noted that "The very name of Aurangzeb seems to act in the popular imagination as a signifier of politico-religious bigotry and repression, regardless of historical accuracy." The subject has also resonated in modern times with popularly accepted claims that he intended to destroy the ].<ref>{{cite journal |first=Katherine Butler |last=Brown |date=January 2007 |title=Did Aurangzeb Ban Music? Questions for the Historiography of his Reign |journal=Modern Asian Studies |volume=41 |issue=1 |page=78 |doi=10.1017/S0026749X05002313|s2cid=145371208 }}</ref> As a political and religious conservative, Aurangzeb chose not to follow the secular-religious viewpoints of his predecessors after his ascension. He made no mention of the Persian concept of kinship, the Farr-i-Aizadi, and based his rule on the Quranic concept of kingship.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=EjFmAAAAMAAJ&q=aurangzeb+chingezi |title= Indian Archives: Volume 50 |page= 141 |date= 2001 |publisher= National Archives of India. }}</ref> Shah Jahan had already moved away from the liberalism of ], although in a token manner rather than with the intent of suppressing Hinduism,<ref name="Chandra2005p255">{{cite book |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |year=2005 |isbn=978-81-241-1066-9 |first=Satish |last=Chandra |author-link=Satish Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA255 |pages=255–256 |access-date=29 September 2012}}</ref>{{efn|Regarding the tokenistic aspect of Shah Jahan's actions to strengthen Islam in his empire, Satish Chandra says, "We may conclude that Shah Jahan tried to effect a compromise. While formally declaring the state to be an Islamic one, showing respect to the ''sharia'', and observing its injunctions in his personal life, he did not reject any of the liberal measures of Akbar. ... Shah Jahan's compromise was based not on principle but on expediency."<ref name="Chandra2005p255" />}} and Aurangzeb took the change still further.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=171}}</ref> Though the approach to faith of Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan was more syncretic than ], the founder of the empire, Aurangzeb's position is not so obvious. | |||
===Conversion of non-Muslims=== | |||
The forcible conversion of non-Muslims to Islam was a policy objective under Aurangzeb's rule.<blockquote>Aurangzeb's ultimate aim was conversion of non-Muslims to Islam. Whenever possible the emperor gave out robes of honor, cash gifts, and promotions to converts. It quickly became known that conversion was a sure way to the emperor's favor.<ref>Richards 1995:177</ref></blockquote>In economic and political terms, Aurangzeb's rule significantly favored Muslims over non-Muslims,<ref>Richards 1995:177. "In many disputed successions for hereditary local office Aurangzeb chose candidates who had converted to Islam over their rivals. Pargana headmen and quangos or recordkeepers were targeted especially for pressure to convert. The message was very clear for all concerned. Shared political community must also be shared religious belief."</ref> and he interfered with non-Muslim religious practice through sweeping and often violent methods. Aurangzeb created a climate favorable for conversion by discriminating against non-Muslims who refused to give up their ancestral faiths and rewarding those who converted. | |||
His emphasis on ] competed, or was directly in conflict, with his insistence that ''zawabit'' or secular decrees could supersede sharia.<ref>{{cite book |title=Medieval India: From Sultanate To The Mughals: Mughal Empire (1526–1748) |first=Satish |last=Chandra |edition=Second Reprint|year=2006 |publisher=Har-Anand Publications Pvt Ltd |orig-date=1999 |isbn=978-81-241-1066-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA350 |page=350 |access-date=24 October 2014}}</ref> The chief qazi refusing to crown him in 1659, Aurangzeb had a political need to present himself as a "defender of the sharia" due to popular opposition to his actions against his father and brothers.<ref>{{cite book|author=Satish Chandra|title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals Part – II|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC&pg=PA350|year=2005|publisher=Har-Anand Publications|isbn=978-81-241-1066-9|pages=280–|quote=Although Aurangzeb had not raised the slogan of defending Islam before the battle of Samugarh with Dara, and had tried to befriend the Rajput rajas as we have seen, there were a number of factors which make it necessary for Aurangzeb to present himself as the defender of the sharia, and to try and win over the theologians. A principal factor was the popular revulsion against his treatment of his brothers, Murad and Dara, both of whom had the reputation of being liberal patrons of the poor and needy. Aurangzeb was shocked when as the time of his second coronation in 1659, the chief qazi refused to crown him since his father was still alive.}}</ref> Despite claims of sweeping edicts and policies, contradictory accounts exist. Historian Katherine Brown has argued that Aurangzeb never imposed a complete ban on music.<ref name="Brown">{{cite journal |first=Katherine Butler |last=Brown |date=January 2007 |title=Did Aurangzeb Ban Music? Questions for the Historiography of his Reign |journal=Modern Asian Studies |volume=41 |issue=1 |page=77 |doi=10.1017/S0026749X05002313|s2cid=145371208 |quote=More importantly, though, the fact that Aurangzeb did not order a universal ban on music lends support to the idea that his regime was less intolerant and repressive than has been widely believed in the past...Thus, the overwhelming evidence against a ban on musical practice in Aurangzeb's reign suggests that the nature of his state was less orthodox, tyrannical and centralised than }}</ref> He sought to codify ] law by the work of several hundred jurists, called ].<ref name="Brown"/> It is possible the War of Succession and continued incursions combined with Shah Jahan's spending made cultural expenditure impossible.<ref>{{cite book |last=Zaman |first=Taymiya R. |year=2007 |title=Inscribing Empire: Sovereignty and Subjectivity in Mughal Memoirs |publisher=University of Michigan |page=153 |isbn=978-0-549-18117-0}}</ref> | |||
===Atitudes towards Hindus=== | |||
Aurangzeb has been widely characterized as an ], unlike other more liberal emperors who immediately preceded him. This characterization came about largely due to his disparaging views against Hindus and his attempts to induce the conversion of Hindus to Islam.<ref name="Singhal"> | |||
{{cite book | |||
| last = Singhal | |||
| first = Damodar Prasad | |||
| authorlink = Damodar Prasad Singhal | |||
| title = A History of the Indian People | |||
| year = 2003 | |||
| publisher = Cosmo (Publications,India); New Ed edition | |||
| language = English | |||
| url = | |||
| isbn = 8170200148 | |||
}}</ref><ref name=""> | |||
{{cite book | |||
| last = Prasad | |||
| first = Ishwari | |||
| authorlink = Ishwari Prasad | |||
| title = A Short History of Muslim Rule in India, from the Advent of Islam to the Death of Aurangzeb P 609 | |||
| year = 1965 | |||
| publisher = Allahabad. The Indian Press. Private Ltd. | |||
| language = English | |||
| isbn = N/A | |||
}}</ref>The anti-Hindu measures of Aurangzeb were intended to help the orthodox Sunni faith gain prominence in India in an indirect manner.<ref>{{cite book | |||
| last = Lalwani | |||
| first = Kastur Chand | |||
| authorlink = Kastur Chand Lalwani | |||
| title = The medieval muddle (Philosophy of Indian history) P90 | |||
| year = 1978 | |||
| publisher = Prajñanam | |||
| language = English | |||
}}</ref> | |||
His various edicts against Hindus, such as banning the celebration of ] and imposition of ] on non-Muslims are also factors in determining his attitudes.Indian historian, Sir ] has traced the anti-Hindu policies of Aurangzeb from as early an year as 1644 AD<ref>{{cite book | |||
| last = Joshi | |||
| first = Rekha | |||
| authorlink = Rekha Joshi | |||
| title = Aurangzeb, Attitudes and Inclinations Pg 34 | |||
| year = 1979 | |||
| publisher = Original from the ] | |||
| language = English | |||
}} | |||
</ref> Historian E. Taylor writes that his negative views on Hindus were the primary reason for his reversal of the liberal policies of the previous Mughal emperors and "resume the persecution of Hindus" in the Empire, and the many rebellions that arose against him in ] and among the ].<ref>{{cite book | |||
| last = Taylor | |||
| first = Edmond | |||
| authorlink = Edmond Taylor | |||
| title = Richer by Asia P147 | |||
| year = 1947 | |||
| publisher = Houghton Mifflin Co. | |||
| language = English | |||
| url = http://www.amazon.com/RICHER-ASIA-introduction-Robert-Trumbell/dp/B000JW8ZOW/sr=1-4/qid=1171927259/ref=sr_1_4/103-5884052-1974266?ie=UTF8&s=books | |||
| isbn = N/A | |||
}} | |||
</ref>. | |||
He learnt that at ], ], and particularly at ], the teachings of Hindu ] attracted numerous Muslims. He ordered the ]s of these provinces to demolish the schools and the temples of non-Muslims.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mukhia |first=Harbans |author-link=Harbans Mukhia |year=2004 |title=The Mughals of India |url=https://archive.org/details/mughalsindiapeop00mukh |url-access=limited |page= |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-0-631-18555-0 |quote=learnt that in Multan and Thatta in Sind, and especially at Varanasi, Brahmins attracted a large number of Muslims to their discourses. Aurangzeb ... ordered the governors of all these provinces 'to demolish the schools and temples of the infidels'.}}</ref> Aurangzeb also ordered subahdars to punish Muslims who dressed like non-Muslims. The executions of the ] Sufi mystic ] and the ninth Sikh Guru ] bear testimony to Aurangzeb's religious policy; the former was beheaded on multiple accounts of heresy,{{efn| It has however been argued that the Mughal emperor had political motives for this particular execution. See the article on ] for references.}} the latter, according to Sikhs, because he objected to Aurangzeb's ]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.com/religion/religions/sikhism/people/teghbahadur.shtml |title=Religions – Sikhism: Guru Tegh Bahadur |publisher=BBC |date=1 October 2009 |access-date=29 April 2012}}</ref><ref>{{citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7xEdAAAAMAAJ|title=A Vindication of Aurangzeb: In Two Parts|author=Sadiq Ali|year=1918|page=141}}</ref><ref>{{citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wsiXwh_tIGkC&pg=RA1-PA152|title=The Pearson Indian History Manual for the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination|page=152|author=Vipul Singh|publisher=Pearson Education India |isbn=978-81-317-1753-0}}</ref> Aurangzeb had also banned the celebration of the Zoroastrian festival of Nauroz along with other un-Islamic ceremonies, and encouraged conversions to Islam; instances of persecution against particular Muslim factions were also reported.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Na |first1=Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na'im |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aKenKtONX2MC&pg=PA145 |title=Islam and the Secular State |last2=Naʻīm |first2=ʻAbd Allāh Aḥmad |date=2009 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-03376-4 |page=145 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Richards |first=John F. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHyVh29gy4QC&pg=PA173 |title=The Mughal Empire |date=1993 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-56603-2 |page=173 |language=en}}</ref> | |||
===Hindu temple desecration=== | |||
Fortunately, in recent years quite a few Hindu historians have come out in the open disputing those allegations. For example, historian Babu Nagendranath Banerjee rejected the accusation of forced conversion of Hindus by Muslim rulers by stating that if that was their intention then in India today there would not be nearly four times as many Hindus compared to Muslims, despite the fact that Muslims had ruled for nearly a thousand years. Banerjee challenged the Hindu hypothesis that Aurangzeb was anti-Hindu by reasoning that if the latter were truly guilty of such bigotry, how could he appoint a Hindu as his military commander-in-chief? Surely, he could have afforded to appoint a competent Muslim general in that position. Banerjee further stated: "No one should accuse Aurangzeb of being communal minded. In his administration, the state policy was formulated by Hindus. Two Hindus held the highest position in the State Treasury. Some prejudiced Muslims even questioned the merit of his decision to appoint non-Muslims to such high offices. The Emperor refuted that by stating that he had been following the dictates of the Shariah (Islamic Law) which demands appointing right persons in right positions." During Aurangzeb's long reign of fifty years, many Hindus, notably Jaswant Singh, Raja Rajrup, Kabir Singh, Arghanath Singh, Prem Dev Singh, Dilip Roy, and Rasik Lal Crory, held very high administrative positions. Two of the highest ranked generals in Aurangzeb's administration, Jaswant Singh and Jaya Singh, were Hindus. Other notable Hindu generals who commanded a garrison of two to five thousand soldiers were Raja Vim Singh of Udaypur, Indra Singh, Achalaji and Arjuji. One wonders if Aurangzeb was hostile to Hindus, why would he position all these Hindus to high positions of authority, especially in the military, who could have mutinied against him and removed him from his throne? | |||
] has reported that according to many modern historians and thinkers, the puritanical thought of ] inspired the religious orthodoxy policy of Aurangzeb.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Gerhard Bowering |author2=Mahan Mirza |author3=Patricia Crone |title=The Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought |date=2013 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0-691-13484-0 |page=27 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q1I0pcrFFSUC |access-date=6 March 2024 |language=En |format=Hardcover}}</ref>{{sfn|Malik|Zubair|Parveen|2016|pp=162-163}} | |||
Most Hindus like Akbar over Aurangzeb for his multi-ethnic court where Hindus were favored. Historian Shri Sharma states that while Emperor Akbar had fourteen Hindu Mansabdars (high officials) in his court, Aurangzeb actually had 148 Hindu high officials in his court. (Ref: Mughal Government) But this fact is somewhat less known. | |||
===Taxation policy=== | |||
Shortly after coming to power, Aurangzeb remitted more than 80 long-standing taxes affecting all of his subjects.<ref name="Pirbhai-2009">{{Cite book|last=Pirbhai|first=M. Reza|url=https://brill.com/view/title/17049|title=Reconsidering Islam in a South Asian Context|date=2009|publisher=Brill|isbn=978-90-474-3102-2|location=|pages=67–116|chapter=Chapter Two : Indicism, Intoxication And Sobriety Among The 'Great Mughals'|doi=10.1163/ej.9789004177581.i-370.14|chapter-url=https://brill.com/view/book/9789047431022/Bej.9789004177581.i-370_004.xml}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Chandra|first=Satish|date=September 1969|title=Jizyah and the State in India during the 17th Century|journal=Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient|volume=12|issue=3|pages=322–340|doi=10.2307/3596130|jstor=3596130|issn=0022-4995}}</ref>] | |||
In 1679, Aurangzeb chose to re-impose '']'', a military tax on non-Muslim subjects in lieu of military service, after an abatement for a span of hundred years, in what was critiqued by many Hindu rulers, family-members of Aurangzeb, and Mughal court-officials.<ref name="Truschke-2017">{{Cite book|last=Truschke|first=Audrey|url=https://www.degruyter.com/view/title/590382|title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King|year=2017|publisher=]|isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5|location=|pages=70–71|language=en|chapter=5. Moral Man and Leader|doi=10.1515/9781503602595-009|s2cid=243691670|chapter-url=https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781503602595-009/html}}</ref><ref name="Lal">{{Cite web|last=Lal|first=Vinay|author-link=Vinay Lal|title=Aurangzeb's Fatwa on Jizya|url=http://southasia.ucla.edu/history-politics/mughals-and-medieval/aurangzeb/aurangzebs-fatwa-jizya/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170511063033/http://southasia.ucla.edu:80/history-politics/mughals-and-medieval/aurangzeb/aurangzebs-fatwa-jizya/ |archive-date=11 May 2017 |access-date=2021-02-05|website=MANAS|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Khan|first=Iqtidar Alam|date=January–February 2001|title=State in the Mughal India: Re-Examining the Myths of a Counter-Vision|journal=Social Scientist|volume=29|issue=1/2|pages=16–45|doi=10.2307/3518271|jstor=3518271|issn=0970-0293}}</ref> The specific amount varied with the socioeconomic status of a subject and tax-collection were often waived for regions hit by calamities; also, Brahmins, women, children, elders, the handicapped, the unemployed, the ill, and the insane were all perpetually exempted.<ref name="Lal" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Truschke|first=Audrey|url=https://www.degruyter.com/view/title/590382|title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King|year=2017|publisher=]|isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5|location=|page=94|chapter=7. Later Years|doi=10.1515/9781503602595-011|s2cid=242351847|chapter-url=https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781503602595-011/html}}</ref> The collectors were mandated to be Muslims.<ref name="Truschke-2017" /> A majority of modern scholars reject that religious bigotry influenced the imposition; rather, realpolitik – economic constraints as a result of multiple ongoing battles and establishment of credence with the orthodox Ulemas – are held to be primary agents.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Aggarwal|first=Dhruv Chand|date=Spring 2017|title=The Afterlives of Aurangzeb: Jizya, Social Domination and the Meaning of Constitutional Secularism|url=https://lawandreligion.com/sites/law-religion/files/01_Aggarwal%20%281%29.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://lawandreligion.com/sites/law-religion/files/01_Aggarwal%20%281%29.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live|journal=Rutgers Journal of Law & Religion|volume=18|pages=109–155}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Husain|first=S.M. Azizuddin|date=2000-07-01|title=Jizya – Its Reimposition During the Reign of Aurangzeb: An Examination|journal=Indian Historical Review|language=en|volume=27|issue=2|pages=87–121|doi=10.1177/0376983620000204|s2cid=220267774|issn=0376-9836}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Lal|first=Vinay|author-link=Vinay Lal|title=Aurangzeb, Akbar, and the Communalization of History|url=http://southasia.ucla.edu/history-politics/mughals-and-medieval/aurangzeb/communalization-of-history/|website=Manas}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Kulke|first=Tilmann|url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/aurangzeb-islam-india-tilmann-kulke/e/10.4324/9780429054853-14|title=Routledge Handbook of South Asian Religions|date=2020|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-429-05485-3|editor-last=Jacobsen|editor-first=Knut A.|editor-link=Knut A. Jacobsen|location=|page=194|language=en|chapter=Aurangzeb and Islam in India : 50 years of Mughal Realpolitik|doi=10.4324/9780429054853-14|s2cid=226338454|chapter-url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/aurangzeb-islam-india-tilmann-kulke/e/10.4324/9780429054853-14}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Husain|first=S. M. Azizuddin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yTJuAAAAMAAJ|title=Structure of Politics Under Aurangzeb, 1658–1707|date=2002|publisher=Kanishka Publishers, Distributors|isbn=978-81-7391-489-8|language=en}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb also enforced a higher tax burden on Hindu merchants at the rate of 5% (as against 2.5% on Muslim merchants), which led to considerable dislike of Aurangzeb's economic policies; a sharp turn from Akbar's uniform tax code.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}} According to Marc Jason Gilbert, Aurangzeb ordered the jizya fees to be paid in person, in front of a tax collector, where the non Muslims were to recite a verse in the Quran which referred to their inferior status as non Muslims. This decision led to protests and lamentations among the masses as well as Hindu court officials. In order to meet state expenditures, Aurangzeb had ordered increases in land taxes; the burden of which fell heavily upon the Hindu Jats.<ref name="Pirbhai-2009" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gilbert |first=Marc Jason |title=South Asia in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1dhKDgAAQBAJ&pg=PT96 |year=2017 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-066137-3 |pages=85–86 |language=en}}</ref> The reimposition of the jizya encouraged Hindus to flee to areas under East India Company jurisdiction, under which policies of religious sufferance and pretermissions of religious taxes prevailed.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Haig Z. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AFNYEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA215 |title=Religion and Governance in England's Emerging Colonial Empire, 1601–1698 |date=2022 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-030-70131-4 |pages=215, 216 |language=en}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb issued land grants and provided funds for the maintenance of shrines of worship but also (often) ordered their destruction.<ref name="Puniyani-2003">{{cite book|last=Puniyani|first=Ram|title=Communal politics: facts versus myths|publisher=Sage Publications|year=2003|isbn=978-0-7619-9667-5|page=60|quote=he kept changing his policies depending on the needs of the situation ... he had put a brake on the construction of new temples but the repair and maintenance of old temples was permitted. He also generously donated jagirs to many temples to win the sympathies of the people ... ''firmans'' include the ones from the temples of Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain), Balaji temple (Chitrakut), Umanand temples (Guwahati) and Jain temples of Shatrunjaya. Also there are ''firmans'' supporting other temples and gurudwaras in north India.|author-link=Ram Puniyani}}</ref><ref name="Mukhia-2004">{{Citation|last=Mukhia|first=Harbans|title=For Conquest and Governance: Legitimacy, Religion and Political Culture|year=2004|url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9780470758304.ch1|work=The Mughals of India|pages=25–26|publisher=John Wiley & Sons, Ltd|language=en|doi=10.1002/9780470758304.ch1|isbn=978-0-470-75830-4|access-date=2021-02-05}}</ref> Modern historians reject the thought-school of colonial and nationalist historians about these destruction being guided by religious zealotry; rather, the association of temples with sovereignty, power and authority is emphasized upon.<ref name="Subodh-2001">{{Cite journal|last=Subodh|first=Sanjay|title=Temples Rulers and Historians' Dilemma: Understanding the Medieval Mind|year=2001|journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress|volume=62|pages=334–344|jstor=44155778|issn=2249-1937}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Pauwels|first1=Heidi|last2=Bachrach|first2=Emilia|date=July 2018|title=Aurangzeb as Iconoclast? Vaishnava Accounts of the Krishna images' Exodus from Braj|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/abs/aurangzeb-as-iconoclast-vaishnava-accounts-of-the-krishna-images-exodus-from-braj/E38DFDADE1A61737AC9D24394EF11F4C|journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society|language=en|volume=28|issue=3|pages=485–508|doi=10.1017/S1356186318000019|s2cid=165273975|issn=1356-1863}}</ref> | |||
====Accounts of iconoclasm==== | |||
During his reign, many hundreds -- perhaps many thousands -- of temples were desecrated: facades and interiors were defaced and their ]s (idols) looted. In many cases, temples were destroyed entirely; in numerous instances mosques were built on their foundations, sometimes using the same stones.His edicts show that he authorized and encouraged these acts. The history of the Mughal reign under Aurangzeb was chronicled as the Maāsir-i-ʻālamgiri, which states that: | |||
Whilst constructing mosques were considered an act of royal duty to subjects, there are also several '']s'' in Aurangzeb's name, supporting temples, '']'', chishti shrines, and ]s, including ] of ], a gurudwara at Dehradun, Balaji temple of ], ] of ] and the ] ] temples, among others.<ref name="Puniyani-2003" /><ref name="Mukhia-2004" /><ref name="Subodh-2001" /><ref name="Eaton-2000" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Truschke |first=Audrey |title=What Aurangzeb did to preserve Hindu temples (and protect non-Muslim religious leaders) |url=https://scroll.in/article/829943/what-aurangzeb-did-to-preserve-hindu-temples-and-protect-non-muslim-religious-leaders |access-date=2021-02-05 |work=Scroll.in |date=23 February 2017 |language=en-US}}</ref> Numerous new temples were built, as well.<ref name="Eaton-2000" /> | |||
#Aurangzeb issued a general order to destroy all centers of Hindu learnings including Varnasi and destroyed the temple at Mathura and rename it as Islamabad<ref name="Harbans">Mukhia, Harbans,"The Mughals of India" P25,Blackwell Publishing,2004,ISBN 0631185550</ref><ref name="Maasir"> | |||
{{cite book | |||
| last = Khan | |||
| first = Saqi Mustad | |||
| authorlink = Saqi Mustad Khan | |||
| coauthors = Jadunath Sarkar | |||
| title = "Maasir-i-' Alamgiri : a history of the emperor Aurangzib-'Alamgir, reign 1658-1707 A. D. / of Saqi Musta'ad Khan ; translated into English and annotated by Jadu-Nath Sarkar" | |||
| year = 1986 (reprint) | |||
| publisher = Oriental books Reprint Corporation | |||
| language = English | |||
| url = http://www.amazon.com/Maasir-I-Alamgiri-History-Emperor-Auranzib-Alamgir-1658-1707/dp/8170690013/sr=8-1/qid=1171876614/ref=sr_1_1/103-5884052-1974266?ie=UTF8&s=books | |||
| isbn = 8170690013 | |||
}}</ref> | |||
#In Khandela (Rajastan) he killed 300 Hindus in one day for they resisted the destruction of their temple. | |||
#In ] and ] in ], Aurangzeb ordered the governors to "demolish the schools and temples of the infidels and with utmost urgency put down the teachings and practices of these religious misbelievers "<ref name="Harbans"/><ref name="Maasir"/> | |||
#In Udaipur all Hindus of the town were killed as they vowed to defend the temple of Udaipur from destruction.172 temples were destroyed in Udaipur.<ref name="Maasir"/> | |||
#66 temples were pulled down in Amber. All Hindu clerks were dismissed from the office of the Imperial empire. | |||
#In ], ], the Emperor ordered and executed the destruction of temple and butchering of cows within the temple.<ref name="Maasir"/> | |||
Contemporary court-chronicles mention hundreds of temple which were demolished by Aurangzab or his chieftains, upon his order.<ref name="Mukhia-2004" /> In September 1669, he ordered the destruction of ] at Varanasi, which was established by Raja Man Singh, whose grandson Jai Singh was believed to have facilitated Shivaji's escape.<ref name="Eaton-2000" /> After the Jat rebellion in Mathura (early 1670), which killed the patron of the town-mosque, Aurangzeb suppressed the rebels and ordered for the city's ] to be demolished, and replaced with an '']''.<ref name="Eaton-2000" /> In 1672–73, Aurangzeb ordered the resumption of all grants held by Hindus throughout the empire, though this was not followed absolutely in regions such as ], where lands granted in in'am to ]s were not affected.<ref>{{cite thesis |last=Shafqat |first=Arshia |year=2008 |title=Administration Of Gujarat Under The Mughals (A.D. 1572–1737) |url=http://archive.org/details/AdmistrationOfGujarat |type=PhD |publisher=Aligarh University |page=194}}</ref> In around 1679, he ordered destruction of several prominent temples, including those of Khandela, Udaipur, Chittor and Jodhpur, which were patronaged by rebels.<ref name="Eaton-2000">{{cite journal |last=Eaton |first=Richard |year=2000 |title=Temple Desecration and Indo-Muslim States |journal=Journal of Islamic Studies |volume=11 |issue=3 |pages=307–308 |quote=In early 1670, soon after the ring-leader of these rebellions had been captured near Mathura, Aurangzeb ordered the destruction of the city's Keshava Deva temple and built an Islamic structure ('īd-gāh) on its site ... Nine years later, the emperor ordered the destruction of several prominent temples in Rajasthan that had become associated with imperial enemies. These included temples in Khandela ... Jodhpur ... Udaipur and Chitor.|doi=10.1093/jis/11.3.283 |doi-access= }}</ref> The ] at ] was similarly treated, after it was found that its ruler had built it to hide revenues from the state; however desecration of mosques are rare due to their complete lack of political capital contra temples.<ref name="Eaton-2000" /> | |||
From the beginning of his reign, Aurangzeb permitted and even encouraged the defacement and destruction of Hindu temples. Other edicts added to the impact. In ] he forbade Hindus to display illuminations at Diwali festivals.<ref name="Mehta">{{cite book | |||
| last = Mehta | |||
| first = Jaswant Lal | |||
| authorlink = Jaswant Lal Mehta | |||
| title = Advanced Study in the History of Medieval India P362 | |||
| year = 1987 | |||
| publisher = Stosius Inc/Advent Books Division; 2nd Rev edition | |||
| language = English | |||
| isbn = 8120705734 | |||
}}</ref> Hindu religious fairs were outlawed in ]. The following year, he prohibited construction of new Hindu temples as well as the repair of existing ones. In ] Aurangzeb issued an order that only Muslims could be landlords of crown lands. He ordered provincial Viceroys to dismiss all Hindu clerks. In ] certain lands owned by Hindus in Gujarat were confiscated. The customs duties levied on merchants was doubled for non-Muslims. In ], contrary to the advice of many of his court nobles and theologians, Aurangzeb reimposed the ] tax on all non-Muslims.<ref name="Mehta"/> | |||
In an order specific to Benaras, Aurangzeb invokes Sharia to declare that Hindus will be granted state-protection and temples won't be razed (but prohibits construction of any new temple); other orders to similar effect can be located.<ref name="Eaton-2000" /><ref>{{Citation|title=Precedents for Mughal architecture|year=1992|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/architecture-of-mughal-india/precedents-for-mughal-architecture/087130D88C52F03255F9228F16A1E3C6|work=Architecture of Mughal India|page=8|editor-last=Asher|editor-first=Catherine B.|series=The New Cambridge History of India|place=Cambridge|publisher=Cambridge University Press|doi=10.1017/CHOL9780521267281.002 |isbn=978-0-521-26728-1|access-date=2021-02-05}}</ref> Richard Eaton, upon a critical evaluation of primary sources, counts 15 temples to have been destroyed during Aurangzeb's reign.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Eaton|first=Richard M.|year=2000|title=Temple Desecration and Indo-Muslim States|page=297|work=]|location=Chennai, India|url=http://www.hindu.com/fline/fl1726/17260700.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140106040012/http://www.hindu.com/fline/fl1726/17260700.pdf|archive-date=6 January 2014}}</ref><ref name="Mukhia-2004" /> Ian Copland and others reiterate Iqtidar Alam Khan who notes that, overall, Aurangzeb built more temples than he destroyed.<ref name="Copland2013"/> | |||
Speaking of the devastating persecution of the Hindu and his architectural symbols,] has written ''" This is such a big and bad event that people still have to find polite, destiny-defying ways of speaking about it" '' | |||
===Administrative reforms=== | |||
Among those that Aurangzeb is said to have destroyed were two most sacred to Hindus, in ] and ]. In both cases, he had large mosques built on the sites. Some historians opine that these temples were destroyed more for political reasons than religious, e.g. the ] temple in ], which marked the place believed to be the birth place of Shri ], was destroyed as a reprisal for the peasant rebellions in the locality. The temple had large, gilded spires that could be seen from ]. In ] Aurangzeb ordered the demolition of the temple, and constructed the ] mosque. Traces of the ancient Hindu temple can be seen from the back of the mosque. | |||
Aurangzeb received tribute from all over the ], using this wealth to establish bases and fortifications in India, particularly in the Carnatic, Deccan, Bengal and Lahore. | |||
====Historical revisionism==== | |||
Some latter-day historians engage in ] to state that Aurangzeb did not indiscriminately destroy temples but went as far as to protect some of them. eg. Aurangzeb ordered the local officials in Benares to protect the temples and Brahman temple functionaries.<ref>Firman ordering mansabdar Abulhasan in Benares dt. Feb. 28, 1659, quoted by the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Page 689-90, 1911</ref> The revisionists claim that, despite decades of campaigning in the ], little record is to be found of temple destruction in the region only (although records are abound of Aurangzeb's ] elsewhere in the subcontinent). And, following the practise of earlier emperors, he continued to confer jagirs upon some Hindu temples, such as the Someshwar Nath Mahadev temple in Allahabad, Jangum Badi Shiva temple in Banaras, and Umanand temple in Gauhati. <ref> Professor Vinay Lal in http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/southasia/History/Mughals/Aurang2.html</ref>. | |||
====Revenue==== | |||
Some ] historians like ] and ] have gone even beyond that, and tried to prove that Aurangzeb, alltogether, in fact, was a benevolent ruler and very tolerant towards other religions. Thapar has even attempted to dismiss "local legends" of Aurangzeb's cruelty as "mere rumours". Thapar has come under fire from her high-profile critic, ], for "white-washing" the records Aurangzeb and of "tampering with history" in order to appease her ] biases in favor of Muslims, which she allegedly sees as "pitted against ] in a class struggle".<ref>Arun Shourie, Eminent Historians: Their Technology, Their Line, Their Fraud, New Delhi: ASA Publications,1998, ISBN 81-900199-8-8.</ref>. Such claims have also been criticized by ] when he wrote 'And indeed is the case, when it comes to the number of temples Aurangzeb demolished, the inclusion of the sentence: "...number of such desecrations is probably much exaggerated...",is an unwritten law among Indian historians.' | |||
] to ]"''.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HTCsAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA178|title=The East India Company and the British Empire in the Far East |first1=Marguerite Eyer |last1=Wilbur |location=Stanford |publisher=Stanford University Press |year=1951 |page=178 |isbn=978-0-8047-2864-5}}</ref>]] | |||
Aurangzeb's exchequer raised a record{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} £100 million in annual revenue through various sources like taxes, customs and land revenue, ''et al.'' from 24 provinces.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yUhvfR1S_UEC&pg=PA311 |title=The Indian Empire: Its People, History, and Products |first=Sir William Wilson |last=Hunter |author-link=William Wilson Hunter |publisher=Asian Educational Services |location=New Delhi |year=2005 |orig-date=First published 1886 (London:) |edition=Reprinted |page=311 |isbn=978-81-206-1581-6}}</ref> He had an annual yearly revenue of $450 million, more than ten times that of his contemporary ].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Harrison |first1=Lawrence E. |author-link=Lawrence Harrison (academic) |last2=Berger |first2=Peter L. |author2-link=Peter L. Berger |year=2006 |title=Developing cultures: case studies |url=https://archive.org/details/developingcultur0000unse |url-access=registration |publisher=] |page=158 |isbn=978-0-415-95279-8}}</ref> | |||
===Impact of Aurangzeb's reign=== | |||
This is again a disputed issue. Some (including Hindutva organisations like the RSS) hold that Aurangzeb's religious expansionist policies and his discriminatory laws, caused a momentous change in India in which peoples began to identify and align themselves according to their religions, a development would influence all subsequent Indian history. Many ] like ] (who refers to a severe agrarian crisis), ] (who blames the never-ending Deccan wars), etc, believe that the real crisis was in the political and economic policies. And there are those like ] who believe that the Mughal empire was already weakened (a jagirdari crisis) before Aurangzeb came to the throne, so it was only his steadfast commitment to strong rule and expansion that kept it from falling apart during his reign itself. In fact ] holds that the Islamicist propaganda of his reign was just that, propaganda to cover up the dubious methods he had used to come to power, and then the failed military expansions. | |||
=== |
====Coins==== | ||
<gallery> | |||
Many subjects rebelled against Aurangzeb's policies, among them his own son, Prince Akbar. | |||
File:Half rupee coin of Aurangzeb.jpg|Half rupee | |||
File:Silver Rupee of Aurangazeb AH1096.jpg|Rupee coin showing full name | |||
File:047aur13.jpg|Rupee with square area | |||
File:074aur-12.JPG|A copper dam of Aurangzeb | |||
</gallery> | |||
Aurangzeb felt that verses from the ''Quran'' should not be stamped on coins, as done in former times, because they were constantly touched by the hands and feet of people. His coins had the name of the mint city and the year of issue on one face, and, the following couplet on other:<ref name=Alamgiri>{{cite book |last=Khan |first=Sāqi Must'ad |translator-last=Sarkar |translator-first=Sir Jadunath |translator-link=Jadunath Sarkar |year=1947 |title=Maāsir-i-'Ālamgiri: A History of the Emperor Aurangzib 'Ālamgir (reign 1658–1707 A.D.) |location=Calcutta |publisher=Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal |page=13 |oclc=692517744 |quote=In former times the sacred Quaranic ''credo'' (''Kalma'') used to be stamped on gold and silver coins, and such coins were constantly touched with the hands and feet of men; Aurangzib said that it would be better to stamp some other words ... The Emperor liked it and ordered that one face ... should be stamped with this verse and the other with the name of the mint-city and the year.}}</ref> | |||
{{blockquote|King Aurangzib 'Ālamgir<br /> Stamped coins, in the world, like the bright full moon.<ref name=Alamgiri />}} | |||
In 1667, the Yusufzais revolted near Peshawar and were crushed. | |||
===Law=== | |||
In ] the Hindu ]s in the Agra district revolted. Though they suffered horrendous loss of life, the rebellion continued for years. In ], the Jats attacked and desecrated ]'s tomb in ]. | |||
{{See also|Execution of Sambhaji}} | |||
In 1689, the second Maratha Chhatrapati (King) ] was executed by Aurangzeb. In a sham trial, he was found guilty of murder and violence, atrocities<ref name="Stein2010">{{cite book |last=Stein |first=Burton |author-link=Burton Stein |year=2010 |orig-date= 1998 |editor-last=Arnold |editor-first=David |editor-link=David Arnold (historian) |title=A History of India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QY4zdTDwMAQC&dq=maratha+plunder+and+rape&pg=PA179 |publisher=Blackwell Publishers |edition=2nd |page=179 |isbn=978-1-4051-9509-6}}</ref> against the Muslims of ] and Bahadurpur in ] by Marathas under his command.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=223}}</ref> | |||
In 1675 the Sikh leader ] was arrested on orders by Aurangzeb, found guilty of blasphemy by a ]'s court and executed.<ref>{{cite book |last=Syan |first=Hardip Singh |year=2012 |title=Sikh Militancy in the Seventeenth Century: Religious Violence in Mughal and Early Modern India |publisher=I.B. Tauris |pages=130–131 |isbn=978-1-78076-250-0}}</ref> | |||
In 1670, ], who had been defeated in 1666 by ], and brought to the Imperial Court at ], looted ] again, thus re-opening war with the Mughals. | |||
The 32nd Da'i al-Mutlaq (Absolute Missionary) of the ] sect of Musta'lī Islam Syedna Qutubkhan Qutubuddin was executed by Aurangzeb, then governor of Gujarat, for heresy; on 27 Jumadil Akhir 1056 AH (1648 AD), Ahmedabad, India.<ref>{{cite book |first=Jonah |last=Blank |author-link=Jonah Blank |year=2001 |title=Mullahs on the Mainframe: Islam and Modernity Among the Daudi Bohras |page=44 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uDVHN6xkdiMC |isbn=978-0-226-05676-0}}</ref> | |||
In ] the ]s, a Kabirpanthi sect concentrated in an area near Delhi, staged an armed revolt, taking over the administration of Narnaul, and defeating Mughal forces in an advance on Delhi. Aurangzeb sent an army of ten thousand, including his Imperial Guard, and put the rebellion down with great loss of life. | |||
<gallery> | |||
Soon afterwards the Afghan Afridi clans in the northwest also revolted, and Aurangzeb was forced to lead his army personally to Hasan Abdal to subdue them. | |||
File:Tulapur arch.jpg|In the year 1689, according to Mughal accounts, ] was put on trial, found guilty of atrocities<ref name="Stein2010" /> and executed.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mehta |first=J. L. |title=Advanced Study in the History of Modern India: Volume One: 1707{{snd}}1813 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d1wUgKKzawoC&pg=PA50 |access-date=29 September 2012 |date=2005 |publisher=Sterling Publishers |isbn=978-1-932705-54-6 |pages=50–}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Stein |first=Burton |author-link=Burton Stein |year=2010 |orig-date=1998 |editor-last=Arnold |editor-first=David |editor-link=David Arnold (historian) |title=A History of India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QY4zdTDwMAQC&pg=PA180 |publisher=Blackwell Publishers |edition=2nd |page=180 |isbn=978-1-4051-9509-6}}</ref> | |||
File:Gurdwara Rakabganj Sahib, Delhi.jpg|] was publicly executed in 1675 on the orders of Aurangzeb in Delhi<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.allaboutsikhs.com/Sikh-Guru-Ji'/Sri-Guru-Tegh-Bhadur-Sahib-Ji.html |title=A Gateway to Sikhism {{!}} Sri Guru Tegh Bhadur Sahib |website=Gateway to Sikhism |access-date=28 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140327223831/http://www.allaboutsikhs.com/Sikh-Guru-Ji'/Sri-Guru-Tegh-Bhadur-Sahib-Ji.html#12 |archive-date=27 March 2014 }}</ref> | |||
File:Indian - Single Leaf of Shah Sarmad and Prince Dara Shikoh - Walters W912.jpg|], a Jewish convert to Islam and ] mystic was accused of heresy and executed.<ref>{{cite book |last=Cook |first=David |author-link=David Cook (historian) |year=2007 |title=Martyrdom in Islam |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=80 |isbn=978-0-521-85040-7}}</ref> | |||
</gallery> | |||
=== Military === | |||
When its Maharaja Jaswant Singh of ] died in ], a conflict ensued over who would be the next Raja, Aurangzeb's choice of a nephew of the former Maharaja not being accepted by other members of Jaswant Singh's family. They rebelled, but in vain. Aurangzeb seized control of ], destroying many Hindu temples. He also moved on Udaipur, which was the only other state of Rajputana to support the rebellion. There was never a clear resolution to this conflict, although it is noted that the other Rajputs, including the celebrated Kachwaha Rajput clan of Mirza Raja Jai Singh, also the Bhattis, Haras and Rathods, remained loyal. On the other hand, Aurangzeb's own third son, Prince Akbar, joined the rebels, along with a few Muslim Mansabdar supporters, in the hope of dethroning his father and becoming emperor. (Once again the easy divide of Muslim Aurangzeb versus 'all the Hindus' is called into question.) The rebels were however defeated and Akbar fled south to the shelter of the Maratha Sambhaji, Shivaji's successor. When they were defeated as well, and Sambhaji killed, he fled abroad where he died. | |||
{{See also|Army of the Mughal Empire|Mughal weapons|Mughal artillery}} | |||
] | |||
] in the ]. Standing before him is his son, ].]] | |||
It is reported that Aurangzeb always inspected his cavalry contingents every day, while testing his cutlasses sheep carcass, brought before him without the entrails and neatly bound up, in one strike.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Rosalind O'Hanlon |title=Military Sports and the History of the Martial Body in India |journal=Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient |date=2007 |volume=50 |issue=4 |pages=490–523 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25165208 |publisher=Brill |doi=10.1163/156852007783245133 |jstor=25165208 |language=En |issn=1568-5209 |quote=...''Bernier reported that the emperor Aurangzeb inspected his contingents of cavalry every day. During these inspections, "the King takes pleasure also in having the blades of cutlasses tried on dead sheep, brought before him without the entrails and neatly bound up. Young Omrahs, Mansebdars and Gourze-berdars or mace bearers, exercise their skill and put forth all their strength to cut through the four feet, which are fastened together, and the body of the sheep at one blow."...''"}}</ref> | |||
===The Deccan wars and the rise of the Marathas=== | |||
In the time of Shah Jahan, the Deccan had been controlled by three Muslim kingdoms: Ahmednagar, Bijapur and Golconda. Following a series of battles, Ahmendnagar was effectively divided, with large portions of the kingdom ceded to the Mughals and the balance to Bijapur. One of Ahmednagar's generals, a Hindu ] named ], retreated to Bijapur. Shahaji appointed his wife and young son ] in ] to look after his jagir. | |||
In 1663, during his visit to ], Aurangzeb established direct control over that part of the empire and loyal subjects such as Deldan Namgyal agreed to pledge tribute and loyalty. Deldan Namgyal is also known to have constructed a Grand Mosque in ], which he dedicated to Mughal rule.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mg8My6WaWRcC&pg=PA63 |title=Rediscovery of Ladakh |first=H. N. |last=Kaul|publisher=Indus Publishing |year=1998 |page=63 |access-date=29 April 2012|isbn=978-81-7387-086-6 }}</ref> | |||
In 1657, while Aurangzeb attacked Golconda and Bijapur, Shivaji, using guerrilla tactics, took control of three Bijapuri forts formerly controlled by his father. With these victories, Shivaji assumed defacto leadership of many independent Maratha clans. The Marathas harried the flanks of the warring Bijapuris and Mughals, gaining weapons, forts, and territories. During the war of succession, Shivaji's small and ill-equipped army survived an all out Bijapuri attack, and Shivaji personally killed the Bijapuri general, ]. With this event, the Marathas transformed into a powerful military force, capturing more and more Bijapuri and Mughal territory. | |||
]. ]]] | |||
Following his coronation in ], Aurangzeb sent his trusted general and maternal uncle ] to the Deccan to recover his lost forts. Shaista Khan drove into Marathi territory, and took up residence in ]. In a daring raid, Shivaji attacked the governor's residence in Pune, killed Shaista Khan's son, even hacking off Shaista Khan's thumb as he fled. Once more the Marathis rallied to his leadership, taking back the territory. | |||
In 1664, Aurangzeb appointed ] ] (governor) of Bengal. Shaista Khan eliminated Portuguese and ] pirates from the region, and in 1666 recaptured the port of ] from the Arakanese king, ]. Chittagong remained a key port throughout Mughal rule.<ref>{{cite book |date=2004 |orig-date=First published 1994 as ''Histoire de l'Inde Moderne'' |editor-first=Claude |editor-last=Markovits |title=A History of Modern India, 1480–1950 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uzOmy2y0Zh4C |edition=2nd |location=London |publisher=Anthem Press |page=106 |isbn=978-1-84331-004-4 |quote=Shayista Khan ... was appointed governor in 1664 and swept the region clean of Portuguese and Arakanese pirates ... in 1666, he recaptured the port of Chittagong ... from the king of Arakan. A strategic outpost, Chittagong would remain the principal commercial port of call before entering the waters of the delta.}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb for the next few years ignored the rise of the Marathas. Shivaji led by inspiration, not by official authority, and the Marathas continued to capture forts belonging to both Mughals and Bijapur. At last Aurangzeb sent his Jaipuri general ], a Hindu, to attack the Marathas. | |||
In 1685, Aurangzeb dispatched his son, ], with a force of nearly 50,000 men to capture ] and defeat ] (the ruler of Bijapur) who refused to be a vassal. The Mughals could not make any advancements upon Bijapur Fort,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sxhAtCflwOMC&q=Aurangzeb+bijapur+1686&pg=PA263|title=A Comprehensive History of Medieval India: Twelfth to the Mid-Eighteenth Century|isbn=978-81-317-3202-1|last1=Farooqui|first1=Salma Ahmed|year=2011|publisher=Pearson Education India }}</ref> mainly because of the superior usage of cannon batteries on both sides. Outraged by the stalemate Aurangzeb himself arrived on 4 September 1686 and commanded the ]; after eight days of fighting, the Mughals were victorious.<ref>{{cite wikisource |title=1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, Volume 3 |volume=3 |year=1911 |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica|language=En }}</ref> | |||
Jai Singh's blistering attacks were so successful that he was able to persuade Shivaji to agree to peace by becoming a Mughal vassal. But when Shivaji and his son accompanied Jai Singh to Agra to meet Aurangzeb, confusion occurred, ending in an altercation at he fealty ceremony. As a result, Shivaji and his son ] were placed under house arrest in Agra, from which they daringly managed to escape. | |||
Only one remaining ruler, ] (the ] ruler of ]), refused to surrender. He and his servicemen fortified themselves at Golconda and fiercely protected the ], which was then probably the world's most productive diamond mine, and an important economic asset. In 1687, Aurangzeb led his grand Mughal army against the Deccan Qutbshahi fortress during the ]. The Qutbshahis had constructed massive fortifications throughout successive generations on a ] hill over 400 ft high with an enormous eight-mile long wall enclosing the city. The main gates of Golconda had the ability to repulse any war elephant attack. Although the Qutbshahis maintained the impregnability of their walls, at night Aurangzeb and his infantry erected complex ]ing that allowed them to scale the high walls. During the eight-month siege the Mughals faced many hardships including the death of their experienced commander ]. Eventually, Aurangzeb and his forces managed to penetrate the walls by capturing a gate, and their entry into the fort led Abul Hasan Qutb Shah to surrender; he died after twelve years of Mughal imprisonment.<ref>{{cite journal |title=The Rise and fall of Persian to the Muslims of South Asia |issn=2643-9670 |date=2022 |publisher=University of Sindh |page=267 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/360259941 |access-date=19 March 2024 |issue=4 |volume=6 |journal=International Journal of Academic Multidisciplinary Research |via=ResearchGate}}</ref> | |||
Shivaji returned to the Deccan, successfully drove out the Mughal armies, and was crowned ] or Emperor of the Maratha Empire in ]. While Aurangzeb continued to send troops against him, Shivaji expanded Maratha control throughout the Deccan until his death in ]. | |||
Mughal ] making skills advanced during the 17th century.<ref>{{cite book |title=Modern World System and Indian Proto-industrialization: Bengal 1650–1800 |volume=1 |first=Abhay Kumar |last=Singh |pages=351–352 |publisher=Northern Book Centre |location=New Delhi |year=2006 |isbn=978-81-7211-201-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WwNUblS-jpwC&pg=PA351 |access-date=30 September 2012}}</ref> One of the most impressive Mughal cannons is known as the Zafarbaksh, which is a very rare ''composite cannon'', that required skills in both wrought-iron forge welding and ]-casting technologies and the in-depth knowledge of the qualities of both metals.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Balasubramaniam |first1=R. |last2=Chattopadhyay |first2=Pranab K. |year=2007 |title=''Zafarbaksh'' – The Composite Mughal Cannon of Aurangzeb at Fort William in Kolkata |url=http://www.insa.nic.in/writereaddata/UpLoadedFiles/IJHS/Vol42_2_5_RBalasubramaniam.pdf |journal=Indian Journal of History of Science |volume=42 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222081939/http://www.insa.nic.in/writereaddata/UpLoadedFiles/IJHS/Vol42_2_5_RBalasubramaniam.pdf |archive-date=22 December 2015}}</ref> The ''Ibrahim Rauza'' was a famed cannon, which was well known for its multi-barrels.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lDRbAAAAQAAJ |title=Bombay and western India: a series of stray papers |volume=2 |first=James |last=Douglas |publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Company |year=1893}}</ref> ], the personal physician to Aurangzeb, observed Mughal gun-carriages each drawn by two horses, an improvement over the bullock-drawn gun-carriages used elsewhere in India.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Khan |first1=Iqtidar Alam |editor-last=Buchanan |editor-first=Brenda J. |chapter=The Indian Response to Firearms, 1300-1750 |title=Gunpowder, Explosives And the State: A Technological History |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7n6Cg9znFrUC&pg=PA59 |publisher=Ashgate Publishing |year=2006 |page=59 |isbn=978-0-7546-5259-5}}</ref> | |||
Sambhaji succeeded in ]. Though he was less effective militarily and politically, Mughal efforts to control the Deccan continued to fail. | |||
During the rule of Aurangzeb, In 1703, the Mughal commander at ], ] spent 10,500 coins to purchase 30 to 50 war elephants from ].<ref>{{Google books |id=3C1vz5ioOMwC |page=122 |title=Mughal Warfare: Indian Frontiers and Highroads to Empire, 1500–1700 }}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb's son ] left the Mughal court and joined with Sambhaji, inspiring some Mughal forces to join the Marathas. Aurangzeb in response moved his court to Aurangabad and took over command of the Deccan campaign. More battles ensued, and Akbar fled to Persia. | |||
===Art and culture=== | |||
For nine years, Aurangzeb couldn't win a single fort from the ]s. But in ] Aurangzeb captured ] by treachery and publicly tortured and killed him. His brother ] succeeded, but the empire fell into disarray. Surprisingly, however, this collapse provided the Marathas with great military advantage. Maratha Sardars (commanders) fought individual battles against the Mughals, and territory changed hands again and again during years of endless warfare. As there was no central authority among the Marathas, Aurangzeb was forced to contest every inch of territory, at great cost in lives and treasure. Even as Aurangzeb drove west, deep into Maratha territory (notably conquering ]), the Marathas expanded attacks eastward into Mughal lands, including Mughal-held ] and ]. Once, the Marathas attacked the imperial camp in the night, and cut off the ropes of the Emperor's tent. The Emperor escaped being crushed by the heavy tent only because he happened to spend that night in another tent. | |||
Aurangzeb was noted for his religious piety; he ], studied ]s and stringently observed the rituals of Islam,<ref name="Richards1996p128" /><ref>{{cite book |last1=Truschke |first1=Audrey |title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King |publisher= Stanford University Press|year=2017 |isbn=978-1-5036-0257-1 |page=66}}</ref> and "transcribe copies of the Quran."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Dasgupta |first=K. |year=1975 |title=How Learned Were the Mughals: Reflections on Muslim Libraries in India |journal=The Journal of Library History |volume=10 |issue=3 |pages=241–254 |jstor=25540640}}</ref><ref name="Qadir1936">{{cite journal |last=Qadir |first=K.B.S.S.A. |year=1936 |title=The Cultural Influences of Islam in India |journal=Journal of the Royal Society of Arts |volume=84 |issue=4338 |pages=228–241 |jstor=41360651}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb had a more austere nature than his predecessors, and greatly reduced imperial patronage of the figurative ].<ref>''Imperial Mughal Painting'', ], (New York: George Braziller, 1978), pp. 112–113. "In spite of his later austerity, which turned him against music, dance, and painting, a few of the best Mughal paintings were made for 'Alamgir. Perhaps the painters realized that he might close the workshops and therefore exceeded themselves in his behalf".</ref> This had the effect of dispersing the court atelier to other regional courts. Being religious he encouraged Islamic calligraphy. His reign also saw the building of the Lahore ] and ] in Aurangabad for his wife Rabia-ud-Daurani. Aurangzeb was considered a '']'' by contemporary Muslims considered Aurangzeb.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Truschke |first=Audrey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oUUkDwAAQBAJ&dq=Aurangzeb+mujaddid&pg=PT63 |title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King |date=2017 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5 |language=en}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb waged continual war for more than two decades with no resolution. After his death, new leadership arose among the Marathas, who soon became unified under the rule of the ]s during the reign of Shivaji's grandson, ]. | |||
=== |
====Calligraphy==== | ||
]'', parts of which are believed to have been written in Aurangzeb's own hand.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&id=202553 |title = Emirates owner to sell Quran inscribed by Aurangzeb |date = 15 November 2018 |access-date = 7 April 2011 |archive-date = 24 July 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110724232445/http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&id=202553 }}</ref>]] | |||
Along with the Rajputs, the Pashtun tribesmen of the Empire were considered the bedrock of the Mughal Army as well as crucial defenders of the Mughal Empire from the threat of invasion from the West. The Pashtun revolt in 1672 was triggered when soldiers under the orders of the Mughal Governor Amir Khan attempted to molest women of the ] tribe in modern day ]. The Safi tribes attacked the soldiers. This attack provoked a reprisal, which triggered a general revolt of most of the tribes. Attempting to reassert his authority, Amir Khan led a large Mughal Army to near the ]. There the army was surrounded by tribesmen and routed, with only four men -- including the Governor -- managing to escape. | |||
The Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb is known to have patronised works of ];<ref>{{cite book |author=Taher, M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qRLXDBX5KzkC |title=Librarianship and Library Science in India: An Outline of Historical Perspectives |date=1994 |publisher=Concept Publishing Company |isbn=978-81-7022-524-9 |page=54 |access-date=3 October 2014}}</ref> the demand for Quran manuscripts in the '']'' style peaked during his reign. Having been instructed by ], Aurangzeb was himself a talented calligrapher in ''naskh'', evidenced by Quran manuscripts that he created.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Blair|first=Sheila|title=Islamic calligraphy|date=2006|publisher=Edinburgh University Press|isbn=978-0-7486-1212-3|location=Edinburgh|page=550|oclc=56651142}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Schimmel|first=Annemarie|title=Calligraphy and Islamic culture|date=1990|publisher=Tauris|isbn=1-85043-186-8|location=London|oclc=20420019}}</ref> | |||
After that the revolt spread, with the Mughals suffering a near total collapse of their authority along the Pashtun belt. Particularly felt was the closure of the important Attock to Kabul trade route along the ]. By 1674 the situation had deteriorated to the extent that Aurangzeb himself camped at Attock to personally take charge. Switching to diplomacy and bribery along with force of arms, the Mughals eventually split the rebellion and while they never managed to wield effective authority outside the main trade route, the revolt was partially suppressed. However the long term anarchy on the Mughal frontier that prevailed as a consequence ensured that Nadir Shah's forces half a century later faced little resistance on the road to Delhi. | |||
====Architecture==== | |||
===Defiance of the Sikhs and the rise of the Khalsa=== | |||
Aurangzeb was not as involved in architecture as his father. Under Aurangzeb's rule, the position of the Mughal Emperor as chief architectural patron began to diminish. However, Aurangzeb did endow some significant structures. Catherine Asher terms his architectural period as an "Islamization" of ].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Asher|first=Catherine B.|title=Architecture of Mughal India|date=1992|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-26728-1|pages=252 & 290|doi=10.1017/chol9780521267281}}</ref> One of the earliest constructions after his accession was a small marble mosque known as the ] (Pearl Mosque), built for his personal use in the Red Fort complex of Delhi. He later ordered the construction of the ] in Lahore, which is today one of the largest mosques in the Indian subcontinent.<ref>{{cite book |date=2004 |orig-date=First published 1994 as ''Histoire de l'Inde Moderne'' |editor-first=Claude |editor-last=Markovits |title=A History of Modern India, 1480–1950 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uzOmy2y0Zh4C |edition=2nd |location=London |publisher=Anthem Press |page=166 |isbn=978-1-84331-004-4}}</ref> The mosque he constructed in Srinagar is still the largest in ].<ref>{{cite web |title=Aali Masjid |url=http://www.heritageofkashmir.org/projects/conservation-projects/aali-masjid.html |website=heritageofkashmir.org |access-date=29 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140809232839/http://www.heritageofkashmir.org/projects/conservation-projects/aali-masjid.html |archive-date=9 August 2014}}</ref> Aurangzeb had a palace constructed for himself in Aurangabad, which was extant till a few years ago.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sohoni |first=Pushkar |date=2016-12-20 |title=A Tale of Two Imperial Residences: Aurangzeb's Architectural Patronage |url=http://ejournal.uin-malang.ac.id/index.php/JIA/article/view/3514 |journal=Journal of Islamic Architecture |volume=4 |issue=2 |page=63 |doi=10.18860/jia.v4i2.3514 |issn=2356-4644|doi-access=free }}</ref> | |||
Since its founding by ] in the 1500s, ]ism grew in popularity throughout India, particularly in the Punjab. Even Emperor ] is said to have been a great admirer of the third Guru, and to have donated land to him for the creation of the ] tank. But in the years following the persecution and death of the fifth ] by Aurangzeb's grandfather ], the Sikh-Mughal conflict grew. Some historians believe that the root of this conflict was not religious but political, in the fact that the Gurus had supported Prince Khusrao over Jehangir in the latter's battle for the throne, and then Dara over Aurangzeb in the next generation. They are also reported to have started collecting taxes in the Punjab region. | |||
Most of Aurangzeb's building activity revolved around mosques, but secular structures were not neglected. The Bibi Ka Maqbara in Aurangabad, the mausoleum of Rabia-ud-Daurani, was constructed by his eldest son ] upon Aurangzeb's decree. Its architecture displays clear inspiration from the Taj Mahal.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Asher|first=Catherine B.|title=Architecture of Mughal India|date=1992|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-26728-1|pages=263–264|doi=10.1017/chol9780521267281}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=World Heritage Sites. Bibi-Ka-Maqbar |url=http://asi.nic.in/asi_monu_whs_ellora_bibi.asp |access-date=28 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111011201131/http://asi.nic.in/asi_monu_whs_ellora_bibi.asp |archive-date=11 October 2011 }}</ref> Aurangzeb also provided and repaired urban structures like fortifications (for example a wall around Aurangabad, many of whose ] still survive), bridges, ], and gardens.<ref name="Asher-1992">{{Cite book|last=Asher|first=Catherine B.|title=Architecture of Mughal India|date=1992|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-26728-1|pages=260–261|doi=10.1017/chol9780521267281}}</ref> | |||
Early in Aurangzeb's reign, various insurgent groups of Sikhs engaged Mughal troops in increasingly bloody battles. In 1670, the ninth ] Guru, ] encamped in Delhi, receiving large numbers of followers, which is said to have attracted the ire of Aurangzeb. | |||
Aurangzeb was more heavily involved in the repair and maintenance of previously existing structures. The most important of these were mosques, both Mughal and pre-Mughal, which he repaired more of than any of his predecessors.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Asher|first=Catherine B.|title=Architecture of Mughal India|date=1992|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-26728-1|pages=255–259|doi=10.1017/chol9780521267281}}</ref> He patronised the '']'' of Sufi saints such as ], and strived to maintain royal tombs.<ref name="Asher-1992" /> | |||
Sikhs and Kashmiri Pandits recount that in ] a group of Kashmiri brahmins, who were of the Hindu faith, were being pressured by Muslim authorities to convert to Islam and approached Guru Tegh Bahadur with their dilemma. To demonstrate a spirit of unity and tolerance, the Guru agreed to help the brahmins: He told them to inform Aurangzeb that the brahmins would convert only if Guru Tegh Bahadur himself was converted. | |||
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His response led to his death. The Guru and his diciples were tortured by various methods, boiled alive, burned alive, sawn in half and scalped. Needless to say, Aurangzeb decided to try more brutal methods to force Tegh Bahadur Sahib to accept Islam. He was kept in chains and imprisoned for three days in an iron cage designed to be shorter than the prisoner's height, with sharp spikes pointing inwards, so that the victim could neither stand, nor sit, nor lean against the walls of the cage<ref> http://www.freeman.org/m_online/feb04/ratzlav-katz.htm</ref>. | |||
File:Badshahi Mosque July 1 2005 pic32 by Ali Imran (1).jpg|Seventeenth-century ] built by Aurangzeb in Lahore. | |||
File:Aurangabad, Bibi Ka Maqbara, mausoleo per la prima moglie di aurangzaeb Dilras Banu Begum, 1660-69 ca., corpo centrale e minareti 04.jpg|Bibi ka Maqbara. | |||
</gallery> | |||
====Textiles==== | |||
The execution of Guru Tegh Bahadur infuriated the Sikhs. In response, his son and successor, ] further militarized his followers. | |||
The textile industry in the Mughal Empire emerged very firmly during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb and was particularly well noted by Francois Bernier, a French physician of the Mughal Emperor. Francois Bernier writes how '']'', or workshops for the artisans, particularly in textiles flourished by "employing hundreds of embroiderers, who were superintended by a master". He further writes how "Artisans manufacture of silk, fine brocade, and other fine muslins, of which are made turbans, robes of gold flowers, and tunics worn by females, so delicately fine as to wear out in one night, and cost even more if they were well embroidered with fine needlework".<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Werner |first=Louis |date=July–August 2011 |title=Mughal Maal |url=http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/201104/mughal.maal.htm |magazine=Saudi Aramco World |access-date=3 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160222152801/http://archive.aramcoworld.com/issue/201104/mughal.maal.htm |archive-date=22 February 2016}}</ref> | |||
He also explains the different techniques employed to produce such complicated textiles such as ''Himru'' (whose name is Persian for "brocade"), ''Paithani'' (whose pattern is identical on both sides), ''Mushru'' (satin weave) and how ''Kalamkari'', in which fabrics are painted or block-printed, was a technique that originally came from Persia. Francois Bernier provided some of the first, impressive descriptions of the designs and the soft, delicate texture of ] also known as ''Kani'', which were very valued for their warmth and comfort among the Mughals, and how these textiles and shawls eventually began to find their way to France and England.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Hansen |first=Eric |date=July–August 2002 |title=Pashmina: Kashmir's Best Cashmere |url=http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200204/pashmina-kashmir.s.best.cashmere.htm |magazine=Saudi Aramco World |access-date=3 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041027085612/http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200204/pashmina-kashmir.s.best.cashmere.htm |archive-date=27 October 2004}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb installed his son ] as governor of the northwest territories, including Sikh-controlled parts of Punjab. The new governor relaxed enforcement of Aurangzeb's edicts, and an uneasy peace ensued. However, Guru Gobind Singh had determined that the Sikhs should actively prepare to defend their territories and their faith. In 1699 he established the ] a Sikh order of "saint-soldiers" or "warrior-monks", ready to die for their cause. | |||
<gallery> | |||
This development alarmed not only the Mughals, but the nearby Rajputs. In a temporary alliance, both groups attacked Guru Gobind Singh and his followers. The united Mughal and Rajput armies laid siege to the fort at Anandpur Sahib. Although they faced certain death, the Sikhs refused to surrender. In an attempt to dislodge the Sikhs, Aurangzeb vowed that the Guru and his Sikhs would be allowed to leave Anandpur safely. Aurangzeb is said to have validated this promise in writing. Unconfirmed by scholars, this account of the promise is unlikely; however, seeing the suffering of his followers, Guru Gobind Singh Ji had made plans to sneak away. It is reported that in the absence of any formal surrender by the Sikhs, as they abandoned the fort under the cover of darkness, the Mughals were alerted and enagaged the battle to ensue again. | |||
File:Caspar David Friedrich - Frau mit Umschlagtuch (1804).jpg|]s manufactured in the Mughal Empire had highly influenced other cultures around the world. | |||
File:Muslim-shawl-makers-kashmir1867.jpg|] makers in the Mughal Empire. | |||
File:Floorspread LACMA M.79.9.6 (1 of 3).jpg|Mughal imperial carpet | |||
</gallery> | |||
===Foreign relations=== | |||
The Mughals, although suffering some mighty losses, apparently killed all four of Guru Gobind Singh's sons and decimated much of the Sikh army. Only Guru Gobind Singh and forty others escaped. Guru Gobind Singh in response sent Aurangzeb an eloquent yet defiant letter entitled the ] (''Notification of Victory''), accusing the emperor of treachery, and claiming a moral victory. | |||
].<ref>{{cite book|title=The Empire of the Great Mughals: History, Art and Culture|author1=Schimmel, A.|author2=Waghmar, B.K.|date=2004|publisher=Reaktion Books|isbn=978-1-86189-185-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N7sewQQzOHUC|page=17|access-date=3 October 2014}}</ref>]] | |||
Aurangzeb sent diplomatic missions to ] in 1659 and 1662, with money and gifts for the ]. He also sent alms in 1666 and 1672 to be distributed in Mecca and ]. Historian Naimur Rahman Farooqi writes that, "By 1694, Aurangzeb's ardour for the Sharifs of Mecca had begun to wane; their greed and rapacity had thoroughly disillusioned the Emperor ... Aurangzeb expressed his disgust at the unethical behavior of the Sharif who appropriated all the money sent to the ] for his own use, thus depriving the needy and the poor."{{sfn|Farooqi|1989|pp=124, 126|ps=: "In November 1659, shortly after his formal coronation, Aurangzeb sent ... a diplomatic mission to Mecca ... entrusted with 630.000 rupees for the Sharif families of Mecca and Medina ... Aurangzeb sent another mission to Mecca in 1662 ... with presents worth 660,000 rupees ... Aurangzeb also sent considerable amount of money, through his own agents, to Mecca. In 1666 ... alms and offerings; ... six years later ... several lakhs of rupees; the money was to be spent in charity in Mecca and Medina."}} According to English traveller named John Fryar, Aurangzeb also consider that despite his enormous power on land, it is cheaper to establish reciprocal relation with the naval forces of Portuguese empire to secure the sea interest of ships in Mughal territory, so he did not built an overtly massive naval forces.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Daniel R. Headrick |title=Power Over Peoples Technology, Environments, and Western Imperialism, 1400 to the Present |date=2012 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-1-4008-3359-7 |page=76 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-xRtD64vi5EC |access-date=15 March 2024 |language=en |format=ebook}}</ref> | |||
On receipt of this letter, Aurangzeb is said to have invited Guru Gobind Singh to meet in Ahmednagar, but Aurangzeb died before Guru Gobind Singh arrived. | |||
====Relations with Aceh==== | |||
Also see article ] | |||
For decades, the Malabari ] which representing the Mughal empire are already patronized ].<ref name="Andaya-2008">{{cite book |author1=Leonard Y. Andaya |author-link= Leonard Y. Andaya |title=Leaves of the Same Tree Trade and Ethnicity in the Straits of Melaka |date=January 22, 2008 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |isbn=978-0-8248-3189-9 |pages=121–122 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w7AqZR1ZUZgC |access-date=2 December 2023 |language=En |format=Hardcover |quote=... Aurangzeb and Dara Shukoh participated in Aceh's trade, and Aurangzeb even exchanged presents with Aceh's sultan in 1641. For two decades after the Dutch conquest of Portuguese Melaka in 1641, the VOC tried to attract trade to Melaka by the VOC tried to attract trade to Melaka by restricting Muslim trade to Aceh. Angered by}}</ref> Aurangzeb, and his brother, Dara Shikoh, participated with Aceh trade and Aurangzeb himself also exchanging presents with the Sultan of Aceh in 1641.<ref name="Andaya-2008" /> In that year, it is recorded the daughter of ], Sultanah Safiatuddin, has presented Aurangzeb with eight elephants.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Pius Malekandathil |title=The Indian Ocean in the Making of Early Modern India |date=2016 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-351-99745-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-WEPDQAAQBAJ |access-date=11 March 2024 |language=En |format=ebook |quote=... 1641 , his daughter , Sultanah Safiatuddin presented Aurangzeb with eight ...}}</ref> | |||
When the VOC, or ] trying to disrupt the trade in Aceh to make their own Malaka trade lucrative, Aurangzeb threatened the Dutch with retaliation against any losses in Gujarat due to Dutch intervention.<ref name="Andaya-2008" /> This effort were caused due to VOC realization that Muslim tradings were damaging to the VOC.<ref name="Malekandathil-2016">{{cite book |editor1-last=Malekandathil |editor1-first=Pius |title=The Indian Ocean in the Making of Early Modern India |date=September 13, 2016 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-351-99746-1 |page=154 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=viUlDwAAQBAJ |access-date=2 December 2023 |quote=... backed out and allowed Indian traders to sail to Aceh and other southern ports without restriction.74 According to S ...}}</ref> The ] issued by Aurangzeb caused the VOC to back down and allowed Indian sailors to pass into Aceh, ], and ], without any restrictions.<ref name="Andaya-2008" /><ref name="Malekandathil-2016"/><ref>{{cite book |author1=Frans Huskin |author2=Dick van der Meij |title=Reading Asia New Research in Asian Studies |date=October 11, 2013 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |page=87 |isbn=978-1-136-84377-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IVhUAQAAQBAJ |access-date=2 December 2023 |language=En |format=ebook |quote=... 1660s the VOC backed down and allowed Indian traders to sail to Aceh, Perak, and Kedah without restriction.ll Another important trading community in Aceh consisted of Indians from the Coromandel Coast who had been prominent in Malay ...}}</ref> | |||
==Legacy== | |||
] ] built by ] emperor Aurangzeb in ] ]] | |||
]]] | |||
====Relations with the Uzbek==== | |||
Aurangzeb's influence continues through the centuries, affecting not only India, but Asia, and the world. He was the first ruler to attempt to impose Sharia law on a non-Muslim country. His critics, principally Hindu, decry this as intolerance, while his mostly Muslim supporters applaud him, some calling him a ] or ]. He engaged in nearly perpetual war, justifying the ensuing death and destruction on moral and religious grounds. He eventually succeeded in the imposition of Islamic Sharia in his realm, but alienated many constituencies, not only non-Muslims, but also native ]. This led to increased militancy by the Marathas, the Sikhs, and Rajputs, who along with other territories broke from the empire after his death, and to disputes among Indian Muslims. The destruction of Hindu temples remains a dark stain on Muslim/Hindu relations to this day. | |||
], ]'s Uzbek ruler was the first to recognise him in 1658 and requested for a general alliance, he worked alongside the new Mughal Emperor since 1647, when Aurangzeb was the Subedar of Balkh.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}} | |||
====Relations with the Safavid dynasty==== | |||
Unlike his predecessors, Aurangzeb did consider the royal treasury as a trust of the citizens of his empire and did not use it for personal expenses or extravagant building projects. He left few buildings, save for a modest mausoleum for his first wife, ], sometimes called the mini-Taj, in Aurangabad. He also created the ] mosque (Imperial or Alamgiri Mosque) in ], which was once the largest outside of Mecca. He also added a small marble mosque known as the '']'' (Pearl Mosque) to the ] complex in Delhi. His constant warfare, however, drove his empire to the brink of bankruptcy just as much as the wasteful personal spending and opulence of his predecessors. | |||
] and the Mughal Empire had long clashed over Kandahar, an outpost on the distant frontier of their two empires. Control of the city swung back and forth.{{sfn|Matthee|2012|pp=122-124}} Aurangzeb led two unsuccessful campaigns to recapture it 1649 and 1652. Mughal attempts died down after 1653 amidst internal rivalries.{{sfn|Matthee|2012|pp=124-125}}{{sfn|Farooqi|1989|p=60}} | |||
Upon ascending the throne, Aurangzeb was eager to obtain diplomatic recognition from the Safavids to bolster the legitimacy of his rule. ] sent an embassy in 1661. Aurangzeb received the ambassador warmly and they exchanged gifts.{{sfn|Farooqi|1989|pp=58-59}} A return embassy sent by Aurangzeb to Persia in 1664 was poorly treated. Tensions over Kandahar rose again. There were cross border raids, but hostilities subsided after Abbas II's death in 1666.{{sfn|Matthee|2012|p=126}} | |||
]He alienated many of his children and wives, driving some into exile and imprisoning others. At the ebb of his life, he expressed his loneliness and perhaps a regret for his militant intolerant rule. His personal piety, however, is undeniable. Unlike the often alcohol- and women-absorbed personal lives of his Mughal predecessors, he led an extremely simple and pious life. He followed Muslim precepts with his typical determination, and even memorized the entire ]. He knitted ] caps and copied out the ] throughout his life and sold these anonymously. He used the proceeds, and only these, to fund his modest resting place. He died in ] in ] at the age of 90, having outlived many of his children. His modest open-air grave, in ], expresses his strict and deep interpretation of Islamic beliefs. | |||
Aurangzeb's rebellious son, ], sought refuge with ]. Suleiman rescued him from the ] of ], but refused to assist him in any military adventures against Aurangzeb.{{sfn|Matthee|2012|p=136}} | |||
After Aurangzeb's death, his son ] took the throne. The Mughal Empire, due both to Aurangzeb's overextension and cruelty and to Bahadur's weak military and leadership qualities, entered a long decline. Immediately after Bahadur Shah occupied the throne, the Maratha Empire (held at bay by Aurangzeb, albeit at a high human and monetary cost) consolidated and launched effective invasions of Mughal territory, seizing power from the weak emperor. Within 100 years of his death, the Mughal Emperor would simply be a puppet of the first, the ] and then, the ], with little power beyond Delhi and ignored by most Indian princes. | |||
====Relations with the French==== | |||
===Trivia=== | |||
In 1667, the French East India Company ambassadors Le Gouz and Bebert presented ]'s letter which urged the protection of French merchants from various rebels in the Deccan. In response to the letter, Aurangzeb issued a '']'' allowing the French to open a factory in ].{{citation needed|date=July 2020}} | |||
* When the Emperor banned music in the court, the musicians arranged a mock funeral of the "Lady Music". The Emperor who witnessed it commented, "Let her be well and truly buried!" | |||
* Alamgir (World grabber), as he preferred to style himself, in his old age, regretted the errors he made. <ref>http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/india/1707aurangzeb.html</ref>. He implored his sons not to engage in a war of succession and left behind a will dividing his empire among them. His sons ignored the will and fought a bitter war of succession. | |||
* Aurangzeb's son Akbar rebelled against him and ran away to ]. He wrote a stinging letter to his father. | |||
*During Aurangzeb reign, the ] born ] ] ] came into his court and eventualy would become harem-queen to his son ], and used to rode on a war elephant beside him during battles to defend his authority. | |||
* Aurangzeb nipped the attempts of the East India Company to gain territory by attacking it in 1687. | |||
* In 1675, the English poet ] wrote a , a play about Aurangzeb's accession. | |||
<gallery> | |||
==Notes== | |||
File:Pomp and Ceremony of the March of the Great Mogol.jpg|''March of the Great Moghul'' (Aurangzeb) | |||
<references/> | |||
File:Voyage de Francois Bernier by Paul Maret 1710.jpg|], was a French physician and traveller, who for 12 years was the personal physician of Aurangzeb. He described his experiences in ''Travels in the Mughal Empire''. | |||
File:Indostan - a Map of India by Vincenzo Coronelli, Venice 1692.jpg|Map of the Mughal Empire by Vincenzo Coronelli (1650–1718) of Venice, who served as Royal Geographer to Louis XIV of France. | |||
File:1652 Sanson Map of India - Geographicus - India-sanson-1652.jpg|French map of the ]. | |||
</gallery> | |||
====Relations with the Sultanate of Maldives==== | |||
==References== | |||
* ''Essays on Islam and Indian History'', Richard M. Eaton. Reprint. New Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2002 (ISBN 0-19-566265-2). -- ''Eaton's essay "Temple Desecration and Indo-Muslim States", which attempts to comprehend Aurangzeb's motivation in destroying temples, has generated much recent debate'' | |||
* ''The Peacock Throne'', Waldemar Hansen (Holt, Rinehart, Winston, 1972). -- ''a very British accounting of Aurangzeb's reign, but filled with excellent references and source material'' | |||
* ''A Short History of Pakistan'', Dr. Ishtiaque Hussain Qureshi, University of Karachi Press. | |||
* ''Delhi'', Khushwant Singh, Penguin USA, Open Market Ed edition, February 5, 2000. (ISBN 0-14-012619-8) | |||
* from MANAS group page, ] | |||
In the 1660s, the Sultan of the Maldives, ], requested help from Aurangzeb's representative, the ] of ]. The Sultan wished to gain his support in possible future expulsions of Dutch and English trading ships, as he was concerned with how they might impact the economy of the Maldives. However, as Aurangzeb did not possess a powerful navy and had no interest in providing support to Ibrahim in a possible future war with the Dutch or English, the request came to nothing.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tripathy |first=Rasananda |year=1986 |title=Crafts and commerce in Orissa in the sixteenth-seventeenth centuries |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ybX1-CqEXPkC&pg=PA91 |location=Delhi |publisher=Mittal Publications |page=91 |oclc=14068594 |access-date=29 April 2012}}</ref> | |||
==Commentary by recent historians== | |||
===Wolpert=== | |||
====Relations with the Ottoman Empire==== | |||
] writes in his ''New History of India'' ISBN 0-19-516677-9 (Oxford, 2003) | |||
Like his father, Aurangzeb was not willing to acknowledge the Ottoman claim to the ]. He often supported the Ottoman Empire's enemies, extending cordial welcome to two rebel Governors of Basra, and granting them and their families a high status in the imperial service. Sultan ]'s friendly postures were ignored by Aurangzeb.{{sfn|Farooqi|1989|pp=332–333|ps=: "Aurangzeb, who seized the Peacock throne from Shahjahan, was equally unwilling to acknowledge the Ottoman claim to the Khilafat. Hostile towards the Ottomans, the Emperor took every opportunity to support the opponents of the Ottoman regime. He cordially welcomed two rebel Governors of Basra and gave them and their dependents high mansabs in the imperial service. Aurangzeb also did not respond to Sultan Suleiman II's friendly overtures."}} The Sultan urged Aurangzeb to wage holy war against Christians.{{sfn|Farooqi|1989|p=151|ps=: "Suleiman II even solicited Aurangzeb's support against the Christians and urged him to wage holy war against them."}} However, Aurangzeb were granted as patron of ], and sending the Sherif at that time with richly laden mission, which at that time were under the jurisdiction of Ottoman.<ref>{{cite book |author=John F. Richards |title=The Mughal Empire Part 1, Volume 5 |date=1993 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-56603-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHyVh29gy4QC |access-date=2 December 2023 |language=En |format=Paperback}}</ref> | |||
:...Yet the conquest of the Deccan, to which devoted the last 26 years of his life, was in many ways a ], costing an estimated hundred thousand lives a year during its last decade of futile ] game warfare...The expense in gold and rupees can hardly be accurately estimated. 's moving capital alone- a city of tents 30 miles in circumference, some 250 ]s, with a ½ million camp followers, 50,000 camels and 30,000 elephants, all of whom had to be fed, stripped peninsular India of any and all of its surplus gain and wealth... Not only famine but ] arose...Even had ceased to understand the purpose of it all by the time he..was nearing 90... "I came alone and I go as a stranger. I do not know who I am, nor what I have been doing," the dying old man confessed to his son in Feb 1707. "I have sinned terribly, and I do not know what punishment awaits me." | |||
====Relations with the English and the Anglo-Mughal War==== | |||
{{See also|Anglo-Mughal War (1686–1690)}} | |||
] requests a pardon from Aurangzeb during the ].]] | |||
In 1686, the ], which had unsuccessfully tried to obtain a '']'' that would grant them regular trading privileges throughout the Mughal Empire, initiated the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Asia.aspx# |title=Asia Facts, information, pictures | Encyclopedia.com articles about Asia | Europe, 1450 to 1789: Encyclopedia of the Early Modern World |publisher=encyclopedia.com|access-date=23 February 2015}}</ref> This war ended in disaster for the English after Aurangzeb in 1689 dispatched a large fleet from ] that ]d ]. The ships, commanded by ], were manned by Indians and ]s.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Faruki |first=Zahiruddin |year=1972 |orig-date=1935 |title=Aurangzeb & His Times |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vvNtAAAAMAAJ |location=Bombay |publisher=Idarah-i Adabiyāt-i Delli |page=442 |oclc=1129476255}}</ref> In 1690, realising the war was not going favourably for them, the Company sent envoys to Aurangzeb's camp to plead for a pardon. The company's envoys prostrated themselves before the emperor, agreed pay a large indemnity, and promise to refrain from such actions in the future.{{citation needed|date=November 2020}} | |||
In September 1695, English pirate ] conducted one of the most profitable pirate raids in history with his capture of a Grand Mughal ] convoy near ]. The Indian ships had been returning home from their annual ] when the pirate struck, ] the '']'', reportedly the largest ship in the Muslim fleet, and its escorts in the process. When news of the capture reached the mainland, a livid Aurangzeb nearly ordered an armed attack against the English-governed city of Bombay, though he finally agreed to compromise after the Company promised to pay financial reparations, estimated at £600,000 by the Mughal authorities.<ref name="Burgess">{{cite journal |last1=Burgess |first1=Douglas R. | author-link = Douglas R. Burgess |year=2009 |title=Piracy in the Public Sphere: The Henry Every Trials and the Battle for Meaning in Seventeenth-Century Print Culture |journal=Journal of British Studies |volume=48 |issue=4 |pages=887–913 |doi=10.1086/603599 |s2cid=145637922 }}</ref> Meanwhile, Aurangzeb shut down four of the English East India Company's ], imprisoned the workers and captains (who were nearly ] by a rioting mob), and threatened to put an end to all English trading in India until Every was captured.<ref name="Burgess"/> The Lords Justices of England offered a bounty for Every's apprehension, leading to the first worldwide manhunt in recorded history. However, Every successfully eluded capture.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Pirates' Pact: The Secret Alliances Between History's Most Notorious Buccaneers and Colonial America |url=https://archive.org/details/piratespactsecre00jrdo |url-access=limited |last=Burgess |first=Douglas R. | author-link = Douglas R. Burgess |year=2009 |publisher= McGraw-Hill |location=New York |isbn=978-0-07-147476-4 |pages=}}</ref> | |||
In 1702, Aurangzeb sent Daud Khan Panni, the Mughal Empire's Subhedar of the ], to besiege and blockade ] for more than three months.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yQgt5SYepi8C&pg=PA11 |title=A Miscellany of Mutinies And Massacres in India |first=Terence R. |last=Blackburn |publisher=APH Publishing |year=2007 |page=11 |isbn=978-81-313-0169-2}}</ref> The governor of the fort ] was instructed by the East India Company to sue for peace. | |||
==== Relations with the Ethiopian Empire ==== | |||
] ] dispatched an embassy to India in 1664–65 to congratulate Aurangzeb upon his accession to the throne of the Mughal Empire.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bernier |first=François |title=Travels in the Mogul Empire: A.D. 1656–1668 |year=1671}}</ref> | |||
==== Relations with the Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Dzungars ==== | |||
After 1679, the ], which was in the Mughal sphere of influence. Aurangzeb intervened on ] behalf in 1683, but his troops retreated before ] reinforcements arrived to bolster the Tibetan position. At the same time, however, a letter was sent from the governor of Kashmir claiming the Mughals had defeated the ] and conquered all of Tibet, a cause for celebration in Aurangzeb's court.<ref>{{Cite web |title=MAASIR-I-'ALAMGIRI |url=https://dspace.gipe.ac.in/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10973/19784/GIPE-108534-Contents.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y |website=dspace.gipe.ac.in}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb received an embassy from ] of ] in 1690, seeking assistance in driving out "Qirkhiz infidels" (meaning the Buddhist Dzungars), who "had acquired dominance over the country". | |||
==== Relations with the Czardom of Russia ==== | |||
] ] requested Aurangzeb to open Russo-Mughal trade relations in the late 17th century. In 1696 Aurangzeb received his envoy, Semyon Malenkiy, and allowed him to conduct free trade. After staying for six years in India, and visiting ], ], Agra, Delhi and other cities, Russian merchants returned to Moscow with valuable Indian goods.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Russia and India: A civilisational friendship |date=9 September 2016 |url=https://www.rbth.com/arts/history/2016/09/09/russia-and-india-a-civilizational-friendship_628415}}</ref> | |||
==Rebellions== | |||
] | |||
Traditional and newly coherent social groups in northern and western India, such as the Marathas, Rajputs, ], ], and ]s, gained military and governing ambitions during Mughal rule, which, through collaboration or opposition, gave them both recognition and military experience.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Metcalf |first1=Barbara D. |author-link1=Barbara D. Metcalf |last2=Metcalf |first2=Thomas R. |author-link2=Thomas R. Metcalf |year=2006 |title=A Concise History of Modern India |url=https://archive.org/details/concisehistorymo00metc |url-access=limited |edition=Second |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=–24 |isbn=978-0-521-86362-9}}</ref> | |||
* In 1669, the Hindu Jat peasants of Bharatpur around ] rebelled and created ] but were defeated. | |||
* In 1659, ] leader ], launched a surprise attack on the Mughal Viceroy ] and, while waging war against Aurangzeb. Shivaji and his forces attacked the Deccan, ] and ] and tried to gain control of vast territories.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}} In 1689, Aurangzeb's armies captured Shivaji's son ] and executed him. But the Marathas continued the fight.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FzmkFXSgxqgC&pg=RA1-PA54 |title=An Atlas and Survey of South Asian History |first=Karl J. |last=Schmidt |location=Armonk, New York |publisher=M.E. Sharpe |year=1995 |page=54 |isbn=978-1-56324-334-9}}</ref> | |||
* In 1679, the ] clan under the command of ] of ] rebelled when Aurangzeb did not give permission to make the young Rathore prince the king and took direct command of ]. This incident caused great unrest among the Hindu ] rulers under Aurangzeb and led to many rebellions in ], resulting in the loss of Mughal power in the region and religious bitterness over the destruction of temples.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Laine |first1=James W. |title=Meta-Religion: Religion and Power in World History |date= 2015 |publisher=Univ of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-95999-6 |page=153 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-x3fBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA152 |access-date=21 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Burn|editor-first1=Richard|editor-link=Richard Burn (Indologist)|year=1937|title=The Cambridge History of India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yoI8AAAAIAAJ|volume=IV|pages=248–252|quote=The whole country was soon occupied by the imperialists, anarchy and slaughter were let loose upon the doomed state; all great towns in the village were pillaged; the temples were thrown down|access-date=15 September 2011}}</ref> | |||
* In 1672, the ], a sect concentrated in an area near Delhi, under the leadership of Bhirbhan, took over the administration of ], but they were eventually crushed upon Aurangzeb's personal intervention with very few escaping alive.<ref name="Edwardes1930" /> | |||
* In 1671, the ] was fought in the easternmost regions of the Mughal Empire against the ]. The Mughals led by ] and Shaista Khan attacked and were defeated by the Ahoms. | |||
* ] was the warrior from Bundela Rajput clan, who fought against the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, and established his own kingdom in ], becoming a Maharaja of ].<ref>Bhagavānadāsa Gupta, ''Contemporary Sources of the Mediaeval and Modern History of Bundelkhand (1531–1857)'', vol. 1 (1999). {{ISBN|81-85396-23-X}}.</ref> | |||
===Jat rebellion=== | |||
] was pillaged by Jat rebels during the reign of Aurangzeb.]] | |||
In 1669, ] began to organise a rebellion that is believed to have been caused by the re-imposition of ''jizya'' and destruction of Hindu temples in Mathura.{{sfn|Avari|2013|p=131|ps=: Crisis arose in the north among the Jat agriculturists dissatisfied with punitive imperial taxation ... The first to rebel against the Mughals were the Hindu Jats.}}<ref> Quote: "In 1669 the demolition of Hindu temples and building of mosques in Mathura led to a Jat uprising under Gokla"</ref> The Jats were led by ], a rebel landholder from ]. By the year 1670 20,000 Jat rebels were quelled and the Mughal Army took control of Tilpat, Gokula's personal fortune amounted to 93,000 gold coins and hundreds of thousands of silver coins.<ref>{{cite book|title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals Part – II|author=Chandra, S.|date=2005|publisher=Har-Anand Publications|isbn=978-81-241-1066-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rm9MC4DDrcC|page=290|access-date=3 October 2014}}</ref> | |||
Gokula was caught and executed. But the Jats once again attempted rebellion. ], in order to avenge his father Gokula's death, plundered Akbar's tomb of its gold, silver and fine carpets, opened Akbar's grave and dragged his bones and burned them in retaliation.<ref>Vīrasiṃha, 2006, , Delhi: Originals , pp. 100–102.</ref><ref>Edward James Rap;son, Sir Wolseley Haig and Sir Richard, 1937, , Cambridge University Press, Volume 4, pp. 305.</ref><ref>Waldemar Hansen, 1986, , p. 454.</ref><ref>Reddy, 2005, , ], p. B-46.</ref><ref>Catherine Ella Blanshard Asher, 1992, , Cambridge university Press, Vol. 4, p. 108.</ref> Jats also shot off the tops of the minarets on the gateway to Akbar's Tomb and melted down two silver doors from the ].<ref>{{cite book |last=Peck |first=Lucy |year=2008 |title=Agra: The Architectural Heritage |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZtFbBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT44 |publisher=Roli Books |isbn=978-81-7436-942-0}}</ref><ref>Sir Harry Hamilton Johnston, Leslie Haden Guest, 1937, , Vol. 2, p. 510</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Havell |first=Ernest Binfield |author-link=Ernest Binfield Havell |year=1904 |title=A Handbook to Agra and the Taj, Sikandra, Fatehpur-Sikri and the Neighbourhood |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AmgLAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA75 |publisher=Longmans, Green, and Company |page=75|isbn=978-1-4219-8341-7 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Penfield |first=Frederic Courtland |author-link=Frederic Courtland Penfield |year=1907 |title=East to Suez Ceylon, India, China, and Japan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7X9Q_rOFzZIC&pg=PA179 |page=179}}</ref> Aurangzeb appointed Mohammad Bidar Bakht as commander to crush the Jat rebellion. On 4 July 1688, Raja Ram Jat was captured and beheaded. His head was sent to Aurangzeb as proof of his beheading.<ref>{{Cite book | url=https://archive.org/stream/in.ernet.dli.2015.48871/2015.48871.Maasir---I---Alamgiri#page/n199/mode/2up/search/ellora | title=Maasir – I – Alamgiri| year=1947}}</ref> | |||
However, after Aurangeb's death, Jats under ] later established their independent state of ]. | |||
Due to the Jat rebellion, the temples of ], ], and ] Vaishnavs in Braj were abandoned and their icons were taken to different regions or into hiding.<ref>{{cite thesis |last=Saha |first=Shandip |year=2004 |title=Creating a Community of Grace: A History of the Puṣṭi Mārga in Northern and Western India |publisher=University of Ottawa |pages=89, 178}}</ref> | |||
===Mughal–Maratha Wars=== | |||
{{Main|Mughal–Maratha Wars}} | |||
{{See also|Maratha Empire}} | |||
].]] | |||
In 1657, while Aurangzeb attacked Golconda and Bijapur in the Deccan, the Hindu ] warrior, ], used guerrilla tactics to take control of three Adil Shahi forts formerly under his father's command. With these victories, Shivaji assumed de facto leadership of many independent Maratha clans. The Marathas harried the flanks of the warring Adil Shahis, gaining weapons, forts, and territory.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kincaid |first=Dennis |year=1937 |title=The Grand Rebel: An Impression of Shivaji, Founder of the Maratha Empire |location=London |publisher=Collins |pages=72–78}}</ref> Shivaji's small and ill-equipped army survived an all out Adil Shahi attack, and Shivaji personally killed the Adil Shahi general, Afzal Khan.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kincaid |first=Dennis |year=1937 |title=The Grand Rebel: An Impression of Shivaji Maharaj, Founder of the Maratha Empire |location=London |publisher=Collins |pages=121–125}}</ref> With this event, the Marathas transformed into a powerful military force, capturing more and more Adil Shahi territories.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kincaid |first=Dennis |year=1937 |title=The Grand Rebel: An Impression of Shivaji, Founder of the Maratha Empire |location=London |publisher=Collins |pages=130–138}}</ref> Shivaji went on to neutralise Mughal power in the region.<ref>{{cite book |date=2004 |orig-date=First published 1994 as ''Histoire de l'Inde Moderne'' |editor-first=Claude |editor-last=Markovits |title=A History of Modern India, 1480–1950 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uzOmy2y0Zh4C |edition=2nd |location=London |publisher=Anthem Press |page=102 |isbn=978-1-84331-004-4}}</ref> | |||
In 1659, Aurangzeb sent his trusted general and maternal uncle Shaista Khan, the ] in Golconda to recover forts lost to the Maratha rebels. Shaista Khan drove into Maratha territory and took up residence in ]. But in a daring raid on the governor's palace in Pune during a midnight wedding celebration, led by Shivaji himself, the Marathas killed Shaista Khan's son and Shivaji maimed Shaista Khan by cutting off three fingers of his hand. Shaista Khan, however, survived and was re-appointed the administrator of Bengal going on to become a key commander in the war against the Ahoms.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}} | |||
] | |||
Aurangzeb next sent general ] to vanquish the Marathas. Jai Singh besieged the ] and fought off all attempts to relieve it. Foreseeing defeat, Shivaji agreed to terms.<ref>{{cite book |last=Chandra |first=Satish |author-link=Satish Chandra (historian) |year=1999 |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |edition=1st |location=New Delhi |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |page=321 |oclc=36806798}}</ref> Jai Singh persuaded Shivaji to visit Aurangzeb at Agra, giving him a personal guarantee of safety. Their meeting at the Mughal court did not go well, however. Shivaji felt slighted at the way he was received, and insulted Aurangzeb by refusing imperial service. For this affront he was detained, but managed to effect a daring escape.<ref>{{cite book |last=Chandra |first=Satish |author-link=Satish Chandra (historian) |year=1999 |title=Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals |volume=2 |edition=1st |location=New Delhi |publisher=Har-Anand Publications |pages=323–324 |oclc=36806798}}</ref> | |||
Shivaji returned to the Deccan, and crowned himself ''Chhatrapati'' or the ruler of the Maratha Kingdom in 1674.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kincaid |first=Dennis |year=1937 |title=The Grand Rebel: An Impression of Shivaji, Founder of the Maratha Empire |location=London |publisher=Collins |page=283}}</ref> Shivaji expanded Maratha control throughout the Deccan until his death in 1680. Shivaji was succeeded by his son, Sambhaji.<ref>{{cite book|title=Studies in Mughal History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AZdCrUxFAHEC&pg=PA42|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publication|first=Ashvini|last=Agrawal|year=1983|pages=162–163|isbn=978-81-208-2326-6}}</ref> Militarily and politically, Mughal efforts to control the Deccan continued to fail. | |||
On the other hand, Aurangzeb's third son ] left the Mughal court along with a few Muslim Mansabdar supporters and joined Muslim rebels in the Deccan. Aurangzeb in response moved his court to Aurangabad and took over command of the Deccan campaign. The rebels were defeated and Akbar fled south to seek refuge with Sambhaji, Shivaji's successor. More battles ensued, and Akbar fled to ] and never returned.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Great Moghuls |first1=Bamber |last1=Gascoigne |first2=Christina |last2=Gascoigne |author-link1=Bamber Gascoigne |publisher=Cape |year=1971 |pages=228–229 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-ryFAAAAIAAJ |isbn=978-0-224-00580-7}}</ref> | |||
In 1689, Aurangzeb's forces captured and executed Sambhaji. His successor ], later Rajaram's widow ] and their Maratha forces fought individual battles against the forces of the Mughal Empire. Territory changed hands repeatedly during the years (1689–1707) of interminable warfare. As there was no central authority among the Marathas, Aurangzeb was forced to contest every inch of territory, at great cost in lives and money. Even as Aurangzeb drove west, deep into Maratha territory – notably conquering ] – the Marathas expanded eastwards into Mughal lands – ] and ]. The Marathas also expanded further South into Southern India defeating the independent local rulers there capturing ] in Tamil Nadu. Aurangzeb waged continuous war in the Deccan for more than two decades with no resolution.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Great Moghuls |first1=Bamber |last1=Gascoigne |first2=Christina |last2=Gascoigne |author-link1=Bamber Gascoigne |publisher=Cape |year=1971 |pages=239–246 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-ryFAAAAIAAJ |isbn=978-0-224-00580-7}}</ref><ref>Kulkarni, G. T. "Some Observations on the Medieval History of the Deccan." Bulletin of the Deccan College Post-Graduate and Research Institute, vol. 34, no. 1/4, 1974, pp. 101–102. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/42931021. Accessed 10 May 2024.</ref>{{page range too broad|date=July 2020}} He thus lost about a fifth of his army fighting rebellions led by the Marathas in ]. He travelled a long distance to the Deccan to conquer the Marathas and eventually died at the age of 88, still fighting the Marathas.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gordon |first1=Stewart |title=The Marathas 1600–1818 |date=1993 |publisher=Cambridge University |location=New York |isbn=978-0-521-26883-7 |pages=101–105 |edition=1. publ. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iHK-BhVXOU4C&q=aurangzeb+1707&pg=PR9 |access-date=20 July 2016}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb's shift from conventional warfare to anti-insurgency in the Deccan region shifted the paradigm of Mughal military thought. There were conflicts between Marathas and Mughals in ], Jinji, Malwa and ]. The Mughal Empire's port city of ] was sacked twice by the Marathas during the reign of Aurangzeb and the valuable port was in ruins.<ref>{{cite book|title=A History of India|author1=Stein, B.|author2=Arnold, D.|date=2010|publisher=Wiley|isbn=978-1-4443-2351-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QY4zdTDwMAQC|page=181|access-date=3 October 2014}}</ref> | |||
Matthew White estimates that about 2.5 million of Aurangzeb's army were killed during the Mughal–Maratha Wars (100,000 annually during a quarter-century), while 2 million civilians in war-torn lands died due to drought, ] and ].<ref>{{cite book|author=Matthew White|year=2011|title=Atrocitology: Humanity's 100 Deadliest Achievements|publisher=] |page=113|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q5w9qmd1UeMC&pg=PP113|isbn=978-0-85786-125-2|author-link=Matthew White (historian)}}</ref> | |||
<gallery> | |||
File:A portrait probably made by a Mughal artist, in the Deccan, during Aurangzeb's military campaigns there.jpg|A Mughal trooper in the Deccan. | |||
File:Bhavanidas. The Emperor Aurangzeb Carried on a Palanquin ca. 1705–20 Metripolitan Museum of Art..jpg|Aurangzeb leads his final expedition (1705), leading an army of 500,000 troops. | |||
File:Prince with rifle.jpg|Mughal-era aristocrat armed with a matchlock musket. | |||
File:Khalili Collection Islamic Art mss 1067.1 crop.jpg|Aurangzeb, in later life, hunting with hounds and falconers | |||
</gallery> | |||
===Ahom campaign=== | |||
].]] | |||
While Aurangzeb and his brother Shah Shuja had been fighting against each other, the Hindu rulers of ] and ] took advantage of the disturbed conditions in the Mughal Empire, had invaded imperial dominions. For three years they were not attacked,{{citation needed|date=November 2018}} but in 1660 ], the viceroy of Bengal, was ordered to recover the lost territories.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Sarkar |editor-first=Jadunath |editor-link=Jadunath Sarkar |year=1973 |orig-date=1948 |title=The History of Bengal |volume=II |location=Patna |publisher=Academica Asiatica |page=346 |oclc=924890 |quote=Mir Jumla was appointed governor of Bengal (June 1660) and ordered to punish the kings of Kuch Bihar and Assam.}}</ref> | |||
The Mughals set out in November 1661. Within weeks they occupied the capital of Kuch Behar, which they annexed. Leaving a detachment to garrison it, the Mughal army began to retake their territories in Assam. Mir Jumla II advanced on Garhgaon, the capital of the ], and reached it on 17 March 1662. The ruler, Raja ], had fled before his approach. The Mughals captured 82 elephants, 300,000 rupees in cash, 1000 ships, and 173 stores of rice.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Sarkar |editor-first=Jadunath |editor-link=Jadunath Sarkar |year=1973 |orig-date= 1948 |title=The History of Bengal |volume=II |location=Patna |publisher=Academica Asiatica |pages=346–347 |oclc=924890 |quote= left Dacca on 1st November 1661 ... the Mughal army entered the capital of Kuch Bihar on 19th December ... The kingdom was annexed to the Mughal empire ... Mir Jumla set out for the conquest of Assam on 4th January, 1662 ... triumphantly marched into Garh-gaon the Ahom capital on 17th March. Raja Jayadhwaj ... had fled .. The spoils ... 82 elephants, 3 lakhs of rupees in cash, ... over a thousand bots, and 173 stores of paddy.}}</ref> | |||
On his way back to ], in March 1663, Mir Jumla II died of natural causes.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Sarkar |editor-first=Jadunath |editor-link=Jadunath Sarkar |year=1973 |orig-date=1948 |title=The History of Bengal |volume=II |location=Patna |publisher=Academica Asiatica |page=350 |oclc=924890 |quote= set out on his return on 10th January 1663, travelling by ''pālki'' owing to his illness, which daily increased. At Baritalā he embarked in a boat and glided down the river toward Dacca, dying on 31st March.}}</ref> Skirmishes continued between the Mughals and Ahoms after the rise of ], who refused to pay further indemnity to the Mughals and during the wars that continued the Mughals suffered great hardships. Munnawar Khan emerged as a leading figure and is known to have supplied food to vulnerable Mughal forces in the region near Mathurapur. Although the Mughals under the command of Syed Firoz Khan the ] at Guwahati were overrun by two Ahom armies in 1667, but they continued to hold and maintain presence in their eastern territories even after the ] in 1671.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}} | |||
The battle of Saraighat was fought in 1671 between the Mughal empire (led by the Kachwaha king, Raja Ramsingh I), and the Ahom Kingdom (led by ]) on the Brahmaputra river at Saraighat, now in Guwahati. Although much weaker, the Ahom Army defeated the Mughal Army by brilliant uses of the terrain, clever diplomatic negotiations to buy time, guerrilla tactics, psychological warfare, military intelligence and by exploiting the sole weakness of the Mughal forces{{snd}}its navy.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}} | |||
The battle of Saraighat was the last battle in the last major attempt by the Mughals to extend their empire into Assam. Though the Mughals managed to regain Guwahati briefly after a later Borphukan deserted it, the Ahoms wrested control in the ] in 1682 and maintained it till the end of their rule.<ref>Sarkar, J. N. (1992), "Chapter VIII Assam-Mughal Relations", in Barpujari, H. K., The Comprehensive History of Assam 2, Guwahati: Assam Publication Board, pp. 148–256</ref> | |||
===Satnami opposition=== | |||
] | |||
In May 1672, the ] sect, obeying the commands of an old toothless woman (according to Mughal accounts), organised a revolt in the agricultural heartlands of the Mughal Empire. The Satnamis were known to have shaved off their heads and even eyebrows and had temples in many regions of ]. They began a large-scale rebellion 75 miles southwest of Delhi.<ref name="Hansen1986p454">{{cite book |title=The Peacock Throne: The Drama of Mogul India |last1=Hansen |first1=Waldemar |year=1986 |orig-date=1972 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0225-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AV--abKg9GEC |page=454 |access-date=3 October 2014}}</ref> | |||
The Satnamis believed they were invulnerable to Mughal bullets and believed they could multiply in any region they entered. The Satnamis initiated their march upon Delhi and overran small-scale Mughal infantry units.<ref name="Edwardes1930">{{cite book |last1=Edwardes |first1=Stephen Meredyth |authorlink1=Stephen Edwardes |last2=Garrett |first2=Herbert Leonard Offley |year=1930 |title=Mughal Rule in India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4aqU9Zu7mFoC&pg=PA119 |publisher=Atlantic Publishers and Distributors |page=119 |isbn=978-81-7156-551-1}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb responded by organising a ] of 10,000 troops, artillery, and a detachment of his imperial guards. Aurangzeb wrote Islamic prayers and drew designs that were sewn into the army's flags. His army crushed the Satnami rebellion.<ref name="Hansen1986p454"/> | |||
===Sikh opposition=== | |||
] in Delhi is built at the place where ] was beheaded.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=] |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/pm-modi-visits-gurdwara-sis-ganj-sahib-in-delhi-on-400th-prakash-parab-of-guru-teg-bahadur-101619837925141.html |title=PM Modi visits Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib in Delhi on 400th Prakash Parab of Guru Teg Bahadur |date=1 May 2021}}</ref>]] | |||
The ninth Sikh Guru, ], like his predecessors was opposed to forced conversion of the local population as he considered it wrong. Approached by ]s to help them retain their faith and avoid ], Guru Tegh Bahadur sent a message to the emperor that if he could convert Teg Bagadur to Islam, every Hindu will become a Muslim.<ref name=sehgal /> In response, Aurangzeb ordered arrest of the Guru. He was then brought to Delhi and tortured so as to convert him. On his refusal to convert, he was beheaded in 1675.<ref name=sehgal>{{cite book |last=Sehgal |first=Narender |year=1994 |title=Converted Kashmir: Memorial of Mistakes |url=http://www.kashmir-information.com/ConvertedKashmir/Chapter14.html |location=Delhi |publisher=Utpal Publications |pages=152–153 |isbn=978-81-85217-06-2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140418030529/http://www.kashmir-information.com/ConvertedKashmir/Chapter14.html |archive-date=18 April 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/sikhism/people/teghbahadur.shtml#top |title=Guru Tegh Bahadur |website=BBC}}</ref> | |||
] is the name given to the letter sent by the tenth Sikh Guru, ] in 1705 to Aurangzeb. The letter is written in Persian script.]] | |||
In response, Guru Tegh Bahadur's son and successor, ], further militarised his followers, starting with the establishment of ] in 1699, eight years before Aurangzeb's death.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Arvind-Pal Singh Mandair |author2=Christopher Shackle |author3=Gurharpal Singh |title=Sikh Religion, Culture and Ethnicity |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D8xdAgAAQBAJ |year=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-84627-4 |pages=25–28}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/sikhism/people/gobindsingh.shtml |title=BBC Religions – Sikhism |publisher=BBC |date=26 October 2009 |access-date=30 July 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=P Dhavan |title=When Sparrows Became Hawks: The Making of the Sikh Warrior Tradition, 1699–1799 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-7HJ5idB8_QC&pg=PA45 |year=2011 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-975655-1 |pages=3–4}}</ref> In 1705, Guru Gobind Singh sent a letter entitled '']'', which accused Aurangzeb of cruelty and betraying Islam.<ref>{{cite book |last=Chaitanya |first=Krishna |year=1994 |title=A History of Indian Painting: The Modern Period |volume=5 |publisher=Abhinav Publications |pages=3–4 |isbn=978-81-7017-310-6 |quote="In the letter to Aurangzeb in his ''Zafarnama'', Gobind Singh opposes the emperor not because he is a Muslim, but condemns him because he had betrayed Islam by his deceit, unscrupulousness and intolerance. 'You, who profess belief in the one God and the Koran do not have at heart an atom of faith in them... You neither recognise any God, nor do you have any respect for Prophet Mohammed.'"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Randhawa |first=Karenjot |title=Civil Society in Malerkotla, Punjab: Fostering Resilience Through Religion |date=2012 |publisher=Lexington Books |isbn=978-0-7391-6737-3 |page=61}}</ref> The letter caused him much distress and remorse.<ref>{{cite book |last=Renard |first=John |title=Fighting Words: Religion, Violence, and the Interpretation of Sacred Texts |date=2012 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-27419-8 |page=215}}</ref> Guru Gobind Singh's formation of Khalsa in 1699 led to the establishment of the ] and later ]. | |||
===Pashtun opposition=== | |||
] | |||
The Pashtun revolt in 1672 under the leadership of the warrior poet ] of Kabul,<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Morgenstierne | first1 = G. | doi = 10.1080/03068376008731684 | title = Khushhal Khan – the national poet of the Afghans | journal = Journal of the Royal Central Asian Society | volume = 47 | pages = 49–57 | year = 1960 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Banting |first=Erinn |title=Afghanistan: The Culture ''Lands, Peoples, & Cultures'' |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w5fqBZDuGPgC&pg=PA28 |access-date=28 February 2013 |year=2003 |publisher=Crabtree Publishing Company |isbn=978-0-7787-9337-3 |page=28 }}</ref> was triggered when soldiers under the orders of the Mughal Governor Amir Khan allegedly molested a ] woman affiliated with the ] in modern-day ] of ]. The Safi tribes retaliated against the soldiers. This attack provoked a reprisal, which triggered a general revolt of most of tribes. Attempting to reassert his authority, Amir Khan led a large Mughal Army to the ], where the army was surrounded by tribesmen and routed, with only four men, including the Governor, managing to escape.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}} | |||
Aurangzeb's incursions into the Pashtun areas were described by Khushal Khan Khattak as "Black is the Mughal's heart towards all of us Pathans".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bose |first1=Sugata |author1-link=Sugata Bose |last2=Jalal |first2=Ayesha |author2-link=Ayesha Jalal |year=2018 |orig-date=1998 |chapter=5. India between empires: decline or decentralization? |title=Modern South Asia: History, Culture, Political Economy |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T4U0DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT80 |edition=4th |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-315-10607-6 |quote='Black is the Mughal's heart towards all us Pathans', complained the Pushto poet Khushal Khan Khattak about Aurangzeb's incursions in the tribal regions of the northwest frontier of India.}}</ref> Aurangzeb employed the scorched earth policy, sending soldiers who massacred, looted and burnt many villages. Aurangzeb also proceeded to use bribery to turn the Pashtun tribes against each other, with the aim that they would distract a unified Pashtun challenge to Mughal authority, and the impact of this was to leave a lasting legacy of mistrust among the tribes.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Omrani|first1=Bijan|title=The Durand Line: History and Problems of the Afghan-Pakistan Border|journal=Asian Affairs|date=July 2009|volume=XL|page=182|quote=The situation deteriorated and matters came to a head in 1675, at the time of the last great Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb. He launched a terrible scorched earth policy, sending thousands of soldiers into the valleys, burning, despoiling, smashing villages and killing as many tribesmen as possible. He also successfully used bribery to set the tribal chiefs against each other, thus fomenting so much mutual suspicion that they were too busy fighting each other to fight the Mughal Empire. This worked up to a point. But the resulting legacy of mistrust between the tribes destroyed any prospect that unified political institutions might slowly emerge or that the laws and government of the settled regions might be adopted.}}</ref> | |||
After that the revolt spread, with the Mughals suffering a near total collapse of their authority in the Pashtun belt. The closure of the important ]-] trade route along the ] was particularly disastrous. By 1674, the situation had deteriorated to a point where Aurangzeb camped at Attock to personally take charge. Switching to diplomacy and bribery along with force of arms, the Mughals eventually split the rebels and partially suppressed the revolt, although they never managed to wield effective authority outside the main trade route.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}} | |||
==Death== | |||
{{See also|Tomb of Aurangzeb}} | |||
], the mausoleum of Aurangzeb's wife ], was commissioned by him]] | |||
], Maharashtra.]] | |||
By 1689, the conquest of Golconda and Mughal victories in the south expanded the Mughal Empire to 4 million square kilometres,<ref name="Taagepera">{{cite journal |author=Rein Taagepera |author-link=Rein Taagepera |date=September 1997 |title=Expansion and Contraction Patterns of Large Polities: Context for Russia |url=http://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/3cn68807 |journal=] |volume=41 |issue=3 |page=500 |doi=10.1111/0020-8833.00053 |jstor=2600793}}</ref> with a population estimated to be over 158 million.<ref name="borocz"/> However, this supremacy was short-lived.<ref>{{harvtxt|Richards|1996|p=1}}</ref> Historian ] says that "... the highpoint of imperial centralisation under emperor Aurangzeb coincided with the start of the imperial downfall."<ref>{{Cite book|title=Mughal Warfare: Indian Frontiers and Highroads to Empire 1500–1700 |first=Jos J. L. |last=Gommans|author-link=Jos Gommans |location=London |publisher=Routledge |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-415-23989-9 |page=16 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3C1vz5ioOMwC&pg=PA16 |access-date=30 September 2012}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb constructed a small marble mosque known as the ] (Pearl Mosque) in the ] complex in Delhi.<ref>{{cite book |last=Murray |first=John |year=1911 |title=A handbook for travelers in India, Burma and Ceylon |url=https://archive.org/stream/handbooktravelle00john#page/198 |edition=8th |location=Calcutta |publisher=Thacker, Spink, & Co. |page=198 |isbn=978-1-175-48641-7 |access-date=25 January 2014}}</ref> However, his constant warfare, especially with the Marathas, drove his empire to the brink of bankruptcy just as much as the wasteful personal spending and opulence of his predecessors.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Richards | first1 = J. F. | year = 1981 | title = Mughal State Finance and the Premodern World Economy | journal = Comparative Studies in Society and History | volume = 23 | issue = 2| pages = 285–308 | jstor=178737 | doi=10.1017/s0010417500013311| s2cid = 154809724 }}</ref> | |||
] | |||
The Indologist ] says that: | |||
{{blockquote|The conquest of the Deccan, to which Aurangzeb devoted the last twenty-six years of his life, was in many ways a Pyrrhic victory, costing an estimated hundred thousand lives a year during its last decade of fruitless, chess-game warfare ... The expense in gold and rupees can hardly be imagined or accurately estimated. Alamgir's moving capital alone-a city of tents thirty miles in circumference, two hundred and fifty bazaars, with half a million camp followers, fifty thousand camels, and thirty thousand elephants, all of whom had to be fed, stripped peninsular India of any and all of its surplus grain and wealth ... Not only famine, but bubonic plague arose ... Even Alamgir had ceased to understand the purpose for it all by ... 1705. The emperor was nearing ninety by then ... "I came alone and I go as a stranger. I do not know who I am, nor what I have been doing," the dying old man confessed to his son in February 1707.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Wolpert|first=Stanley A. |author-link=Stanley Wolpert |year=2004 |orig-date= 1977 |title=New History of India |edition=7th |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=167–168 |isbn=978-0-19-516677-4}}</ref>}} | |||
], Maharashtra. Painting by ], 1850s]] | |||
Even when ill and dying, Aurangzeb made sure that the populace knew he was still alive, for if they had thought otherwise then the turmoil of another war of succession was likely.<ref>{{cite book |title=Civilization and Capitalism: 15th–18th Century: The Perspective of the World |volume=III |first=Fernand |last=Braudel |author-link=Fernand Braudel |publisher=University of California Press |location=Berkeley & Los Angeles |year=1992 |orig-date=1979 (Paris: Librairie Armand Colin: ''Le Temps du Monde'') |isbn=978-0-520-08116-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xMZI2QEer9QC&pg=PA514 |page=514 |access-date=30 September 2012}}</ref> He died at his military camp in ] near Ahmednagar on 3 March 1707 at the age of 88, having outlived many of his children. He had only 300 rupees with him which were later given to charity as per his instructions and he prior to his death requested not to spend extravagantly on his funeral but to keep it simple.<ref name="Qadir1936"/><ref>Sohoni, P., 2016. A Tale of Two Imperial Residences: Aurangzeb's Architectural Patronage. Journal of Islamic Architecture, 4(2), pp. 63–69.</ref> His modest open-air grave in ], ], Maharashtra expresses his deep devotion to his Islamic beliefs. It is sited in the courtyard of the shrine of the Sufi saint Shaikh Burhan-u'd-din Gharib, who was a disciple of ] of Delhi. | |||
Brown writes that after his death, "a string of weak emperors, wars of succession, and coups by noblemen heralded the irrevocable weakening of Mughal power". She notes that the populist but "fairly old-fashioned" explanation for the decline is that there was a reaction to Aurangzeb's oppression.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Katherine Butler |last=Brown |date=January 2007 |title=Did Aurangzeb Ban Music? Questions for the Historiography of his Reign |journal=Modern Asian Studies |volume=41 |issue=1 |page=79 |doi=10.1017/S0026749X05002313|s2cid=145371208 }}</ref> Although Aurangzeb died without appointing a successor, he instructed his three sons to divide the empire among themselves. His sons failed to reach a satisfactory agreement and fought against each other in a ]. Aurangzeb's immediate successor was his third son ], who was defeated and killed in June 1707 at the ] by the army of ], the second son of Aurangzeb.{{sfn|Irvine|1971|p=33}} Both because of Aurangzeb's over-extension and because of Bahadur Shah's weak military and leadership qualities, entered a period of terminal decline. Immediately after Bahadur Shah occupied the throne, the ] – which Aurangzeb had held at bay, inflicting high human and monetary costs even on his own empire – consolidated and launched effective invasions of Mughal territory, seizing power from the weak emperor. Within decades of Aurangzeb's death, the Mughal Emperor had little power beyond the walls of Delhi.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mehta|first1=Jaswant|title=Advanced Study in the History of Modern India 1707–1813|date=2005|publisher=New Dawn Press|location=Elgin Ill, US|isbn=978-1-932705-54-6|page=141|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d1wUgKKzawoC&q=%22mughal+emperor%22+%22gates+of+delhi%22+maratha+decline&pg=PR7}}</ref> | |||
==Assessments and legacy== | |||
Aurangzeb's rule has been the subject of both praise and controversy.<ref>{{cite book |last=Truschke |first=Audrey |title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King |publisher=] |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5 |chapter=Chapter 1: Introducing Aurangzeb |quote=Some follow the Indian line that Aurangzeb was a straight-up bigot, whereas others view him as one of the few truly righteous Muslim rulers of old. |access-date=17 November 2018 |chapter-url=https://www.sup.org/books/extra/?id=28067&i=Chapter%201.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Balabanlilar |first1=Lisa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VQmcDQAAQBAJ&pg=PG129 |title=Imperial Identity in the Mughal Empire: Memory and Dynastic Politics in Early Modern South and Central Asia |date=2015 |publisher=I.B. Tauris |isbn=978-0-85773-246-0 |page=129 |language=en}}</ref> During his lifetime, victories in the south expanded the Mughal Empire to 4 million square kilometres,<ref name="Taagepera" /> and he ruled over a population estimated to be over 158 million subjects.<ref name="borocz" /><!--with an annual revenue of $450 million (more than ten times that of his contemporary ]) in 1690.<ref>{{pn|date=December 2020}} --> His critics argue that his ruthlessness and religious bigotry made him unsuitable to rule the mixed population of his empire. Some critics assert that the persecution of ]s, ]s and non-Muslims to impose practices of orthodox Islamic state, such as imposition of sharia and '']'' religious tax on non-Muslims, doubling of custom duties on Hindus while abolishing it for Muslims, executions of Muslims and non-Muslims alike, and destruction of temples eventually led to numerous rebellions.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Pletcher |editor-first=Kenneth |year=2010 |title=The History of India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hdmcAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA183 |publisher=Britannica Educational Publishing |page=183 |isbn=978-1-61530-201-7}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Joseph |editor-first=Paul |year=2016 |title=The SAGE Encyclopedia of War: Social Science Perspectives |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=idw0DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA433 |publisher=Sage Publications |pages=432–433 |isbn=978-1-4833-5988-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Gupta |first1=R.K. |last2=Bakshi |first2=S.R. |year=2008 |title=Dalit Literature: Our Response |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DLQeSBLpUwsC&pg=PA77 |publisher=Sarup & Sons |page=77 |isbn=978-81-7625-841-8}}</ref><ref name=bitory4>{{cite book |editor-last1=Shakir |editor-first1=Moin |year=1989 |title=Religion State And Politics in India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x_gQAQAAIAAJ |publisher=Ajanta Publications (India) |page=47 |isbn=978-81-202-0213-9}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Upshur |first1=Jiu-Hwa L. |last2=Terry |first2=Janice J. |last3=Holoka |first3=Jim |year=2011 |title=Cengage Advantage Books: World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mBo-2D0TKUcC&pg=PA527 |publisher=Cengage Learning |page=527 |isbn=978-1-111-34514-3}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Chua |first=Amy |year=2009 |title=Day of Empire: How Hyperpowers Rise to Global Dominance – and Why They Fall |url=https://books.google.com/books?isbn=0307472450 |publisher=] |page=189 |isbn=978-0-307-47245-8}}</ref> G. N. Moin Shakir and Sarma Festschrift argue that he often used political opposition as pretext for religious persecution,<ref name=bitory4/> and that, as a result, groups of ], ], ]s, ]s and ] rose against him.<ref name="Edwardes1930"/><ref name=bitory4/><ref>{{cite book |last=Agrawal |first=Ashvini |year=1983 |title=Studies in Mughal History |url=https://books.google.com/books?isbn=8120823265 |page=15 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publ. |isbn=978-81-208-2326-6}}</ref> | |||
Multiple interpretations of Aurangzeb's life and reign over the years by critics have led to a very complicated legacy. Some argue that his policies abandoned his predecessors' legacy of pluralism and religious tolerance, citing his introduction of the '']'' tax and other policies based on ]; his demolition of ]s; the executions of his elder brother ], ] of ]<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mehta |first1=J. L. |year=2005 |title=Advanced Study in the History of Modern India: Volume One: 1707–1813 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d1wUgKKzawoC&pg=PA47 |publisher=Sterling Publishers |page=47 |isbn=978-1-932705-54-6}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Bhattacherje |first1=S. B. |year=2009 |title=Encyclopaedia of Indian Events & Dates |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oGVSvXuCsyUC&pg=SL1-PA81 |publisher=Sterling Publishers |pages=A80–A81 |isbn=978-81-207-4074-7}}</ref> and ]<ref>{{cite book |last=Ayalon |first=David |title=Studies in Islamic History and Civilisation |publisher=Brill |year=1986 |isbn=978-965-264-014-7 |page=271}}</ref><ref>Abraham Eraly (2000), ''Emperors of the Peacock Throne: The Saga of the Great Mughals'', Penguin Books, {{ISBN|978-0-14-100143-2}}, pp. 398–399. According to Abraham Eraly, "in 1670, all temples around Ujjain were destroyed" and later "300 temples were destroyed in and around Chitor, Udaipur and Jaipur" among other Hindu temples destroyed elsewhere in campaigns through 1705.<br /><br />Avari writes, "Aurangzeb's religious policy caused friction between him and the ninth Sikh guru, Tegh Bahadur. In both Punjab and Kashmir the Sikh leader was roused to action by Aurangzeb's excessively zealous Islamic policies. Seized and taken to Delhi, he was called upon by Aurangzeb to embrace Islam and, on refusal, was tortured for five days and then beheaded in November 1675. Two of the ten Sikh gurus thus died as martyrs at the hands of the Mughals. (Avari (2013), p. 115)</ref>{{efn|See also ; more links at the bottom of that page. For Muslim historian's record on major Hindu temple destruction campaigns, from 1193 to 1729 AD, see Richard Eaton (2000), "Temple Desecration and Indo-Muslim States", ''Journal of Islamic Studies'', Vol. 11, Issue 3, pp. 283–319}} and the prohibition and supervision of behaviour and activities that are ] such as gambling, fornication, and consumption of alcohol and narcotics.<ref>{{cite book |last=Haroon |first=Asif |title=Muhammad Bin Qasim to General Pervez Musharraf: Triumphs, Tribulations |publisher=Sang-e-Meel |year=2004 |isbn=978-969-35-1624-1 |location=Lahore |page=70 |quote=To start with, Aurangzeb gradually transformed the system of governance as per the dictates of Shariah ... He curbed practices of gambling, drinking, music and prostitution}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Mughal dynasty {{!}} History, Map, & Facts |work=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mughal-dynasty |access-date=2018-10-06}}</ref> At the same time, some historians question the historical authenticity of the claims of his critics, arguing that his destruction of temples has been exaggerated,{{sfn|Avari|2013|p=115 |ps=: citing a 2000 study, writes "Aurangzeb was perhaps no more culpable than most of the sultans before him; they desecrated the temples associated with Hindu power, not all temples. It is worth noting that, in contrast to the traditional claim of hundreds of Hindu temples having been destroyed by Aurangzeb, a recent study suggests a modest figure of eighty destructions."}}<ref>{{cite book |last=Truschke |first=Audrey |year=2017 |title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oUUkDwAAQBAJ |publisher=Stanford University Press |page=85 |isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5 |quote=Nobody knows the exact number of temples demolished or pillaged on Aurangzeb's orders, and we never will. Richard Eaton, the leading authority on the subject, puts the number of confirmed temple destructions during Aurangzeb's rule at just over a dozen, with fewer tied to the emperor's direct commands. Other scholars have pointed out additional temple demolitions not counted by Eaton, such as two orders to destroy the Somanatha Temple in 1659 and 1706 (the existence of a second order suggests that the first was never carried out). Aurangzeb also oversaw temple desecrations. For example, in 1645 he ordered mihrabs (prayer niches, typically located in mosques) erected in Ahmedabad's Chintamani Parshvanath Temple, built by the Jain merchant Shantidas. Even adding in such events, however, to quote Eaton, "the evidence is almost always fragmentary, incomplete, or even contradictory". Given this, there were probably more temples destroyed under Aurangzeb than we can confirm (perhaps a few dozen in total?), but here we run into a dark curtain drawn across an unknown past.}}</ref> and noting that he built more temples than he destroyed,<ref name="Copland2013" /> paid for their maintenance, employed significantly more Hindus in his imperial bureaucracy than his predecessors, and opposed bigotry against Hindus and ].<ref name="Truschke50" /> | |||
] has compilled that the opinions from Islamic scholarly community towards Aurangzeb were positive for the emperor general attitude such as abolished ] celebrations, musics, and also abolished the customs of bowing and kissing the ground which were done by his predecessors, practically adhering practice of ] while still held to Hanafite creed.{{#tag:ref|through ],<ref>{{cite web |author1=Muhammad Salih al-Munajjid |title=Biography of the Moghul ruler Aurangzeb; was he Salafi in his 'aqeedah? |url=https://islamqa.info/en/answers/174824/biography-of-the-moghul-ruler-aurangzeb-was-he-salafi-in-his-aqeedah |website=IslamQA |access-date=19 September 2023 |language=en |date=18 April 2015}}</ref> Professor Muhammad al-Munajjid on his online correspondence has answered that he based his opinion ''Silk ad-Durar fi A'yaan al-Qarn ath-Thaani 'Ashar (4/113)''<ref>{{cite book |author1=Muhammad Khalil Al-Muradi |title=سلك الدرر في أعيان القرن الثاني عشر |date=1997 |publisher=Dar al Kutub al 'Alamiyya |page=113 |url=https://www.neelwafurat.com/itempage.aspx?id=lbb78642-39113&search=books |access-date=19 September 2023 |language=Ar}}</ref> and Aurangzeb biography by Professor 'Abd al-Mun'im an-Nimr in his book ''Tareekh al-Islam fi'l-Hind''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Nimr |first1='Abd al-Mun'im |title=Tarikh al-Islam fi al-Hind |date=1981 |publisher=Beirut : Al-Mu'ssasah al-Jam'iyah al-Dirasat wa al-Nashr wa al-Tawzi |pages=286–288 |url=https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/catalog/2000399 |access-date=19 September 2023 |language=En}}</ref> | |||
|group="Notes"}} Apparently this view of Aurangzeb were influenced by ],<ref>{{cite web |author1=Deepaj Kamboj |title=Shaikh Inayat-Allah Kamboh |url=https://www.kambojsociety.com/post/shaikh-inayat-allah-kamboh#_note-3 |website=KambojSociety.com |publisher=Kamboj Society |access-date=18 November 2023 |language=En |date=3 September 2014 |quote=Modern Asian Studies 1988, p. 308; Cambridge University Press Online Journals. Asia Shah Jahan, 1975, p. 131, Henry Miers Elliot – Mogul Empire}}</ref> who acted as his teacher.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Mohammad Nurul Alam Rafiq Ahmed |author2=Rafiq Ahmed |title=World Heritage & Records of Sufism Volume – II |date=2010 |publisher=World Spiritual Assembly |isbn=978-0-615-37164-1 |url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10824048-world-heritage-records-of-sufism-volume-ii |access-date=18 November 2023 |language=en |format=paperback}}</ref> | |||
In ], author Haroon Khalid writes that, "Aurangzeb is presented as a hero who fought and expanded the frontiers of the Islamic empire" and "is imagined to be a true believer who removed corrupt practices from religion and the court, and once again purified the empire."<ref>Haroon Khalid (1 October 2018), "In India and Pakistan, religion makes one country's hero the other's villain", ''Quartz India''. Retrieved 21 April 2019.</ref> The academic Munis Faruqui also opines that the "Pakistani state and its allies in the religious and political establishments include him in the pantheon of premodern Muslim heroes, especially lauding him for his militarism, personal piety, and seeming willingness to accommodate Islamic morality within state goals."<ref>Munis D. Faruqui "Book review of ''Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King''" in ''Journal of the American Academy of Religion'', Volume 87, Issue 1, March 2019, p. 300</ref> | |||
], considered the spiritual founder of Pakistan, admired Aurangzeb. Iqbal Singh Sevea, in his book on the ] of the thinker, says that "Iqbal considered that the life and activities of Aurangzeb constituted the starting point of ]".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sevea |first1=Iqbal Singh |title=The Political Philosophy of Muhammad Iqbal: Islam and Nationalism in Late Colonial India |year=2012 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=168 |isbn=978-1-107-00886-1}}</ref> ], in his funeral oration, hailed ], the founder of Pakistan, to be the greatest Muslim since Aurangzeb.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dhulipala |first1=Venkat |title=Creating a New Medina: State Power, Islam, and the Quest for Pakistan in Late Colonial North India |year=2015 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=489 |isbn=978-1-107-05212-3}}</ref> Pakistani-American academic ] described President ], known for his ] drive, as "conceptually ... a spiritual descendent of Aurangzeb" because Zia had an orthodox, legalistic view of Islam.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ahmed |first1=Akbar S. |author-link=Akbar Ahmed |year=2002 |orig-date= 1987 |title=Discovering Islam: Making Sense of Muslim History and Society |edition=Rev. |publisher=Routledge |page=82 |isbn=978-0-415-28525-4}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Irfani |first=Suroosh |date=July–December 1996 |title=Review Article: Discovering Islam: Making Sense of Muslim History and Society |url=http://pjhc.nihcr.edu.pk/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/10-Review-Article.pdf |journal=Pakistan Journal of History and Culture |volume=13 |issue=2 |page=116}}</ref> | |||
], a grand mufti of ], once called Aurangzeb as "A remnant of the ]", as appreciation of Aurangzeb commitment to Islam teaching.<ref>{{cite book |author1=فريق بصمة |title=التاريخ كما كان |date=October 2016 |publisher=كتوبيا للنشر والتوزيع |page=92 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nIBjDwAAQBAJ |access-date=4 December 2023 |language=Ar |format=ebook |quote=... الطنطاوي بأنه "بقية الخلفاء الراشدين"، وقد كان على دراية كاملة بمخططات الهندوس والشيعة، خصوصا الأفغان منهم، فحارب ...}}</ref> | |||
Beyond the individual appreciations, Aurangzeb is seminal to Pakistan's national self-consciousness, as historian ], while referring to the ], mentions M. D. Zafar's ''A Text Book of Pakistan Studies'' where we can read that, under Aurangzeb, "Pakistan spirit gathered in strength", while his death "weakened the Pakistan spirit."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Jalal |first=Ayesha |date=February 1995 |title=Conjuring Pakistan: History as Official Imagining |journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies |volume=27 |issue=1 |page=79|doi=10.1017/S0020743800061596 |s2cid=162731882 }}</ref> Another historian from Pakistan, ], also looking at the textbooks, and while noting that Akbar "is conveniently ignored and not mentioned in any school textbook from class one to matriculation", contrasts him with Aurangzeb, who "appears in different textbooks of Social Studies and Urdu language as an orthodox and pious Muslim copying the Holy Quran and sewing caps for his livelihood."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ali |first=Mubarak |date=September–October 1992 |title=Akbar in Pakistani Textbooks |journal=Social Scientist |volume=20 |issue=9/10 |pages=73–76 |doi=10.2307/3517719 |jstor=3517719 }}</ref> This image of Aurangzeb is not limited to Pakistan's official historiography. | |||
As of 2015, about 177 towns and villages of India have been named after Aurangzeb.<ref>{{cite news |last=Shaikh |first=Zeeshan |title=A capital road gone, Mughal king Aurangzeb lives in 177 towns and villages |work=The Indian Express |date=2015-09-05 |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/a-capital-road-gone-aurangzeb-lives-in-177-towns-and-villages/ |access-date=2023-07-01}}</ref> Historian ] points out that ] (BJP), Hindutva proponents and some others outside Hindutva ideology regard Aurangzeb as Muslim zealot in India. ] wrote that, due to his reversal of the cultural and religious syncretism of the previous Mughal emperors, Aurangzeb acted "more as a Moslem than an Indian ruler",<ref>{{cite book |last=Truschke |first=Audrey |year=2017 |title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King |publisher=Stanford University Press |page=7 |isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5}}</ref> while ] was of the view that there was greater degree of freedom under Mughal rule than the British rule and asks that "in Aurangzeb's time a Shivaji could flourish. Has one hundred and fifty years of the British rule produced any ] and Shivaji?"<ref>{{cite journal |last=Hasan |first=Farhat |title=Nationalist representations of the Mughal state: The views of Tilak and Gandhi |journal=Studies in People's History |publisher=Sage Publications |volume=6 |issue=1 |date=2019-05-16 |issn=2348-4489 |doi=10.1177/2348448919834791 |pages=52–62 |s2cid=182002531}}</ref> Other historians also noting that there are Hindu temples built during Aurangzeb reign,<ref name="Copland2013">{{Cite book |last1=Copland |first1=Ian |title=A History of State and Religion in India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uWcZulI5tL0C&pg=PA119 |last2=Mabbett |first2=Ian |last3=Roy |first3=Asim |last4=Brittlebank |first4=Kate |last5=Bowles |first5=Adam |publisher=Routledge |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-136-45950-4 |page=119 |display-authors=3}}</ref> while he also employed significantly more ] in his imperial bureaucracy than his predecessors did, opposed bigotry against Hindus and ].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Truschke |first=Audrey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oUUkDwAAQBAJ |title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King |publisher=] |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-5036-0259-5}}</ref> | |||
=== Literatures === | |||
Aurangzeb has prominently featured in the following books | |||
* 1675 – '']'', play by ], written and performed on the London stage during the Emperor's lifetime. | |||
* 1688 – Alamgirnama by Mirza Mohammed Qasim official biographer at Aurangzeb's court <ref>{{cite book | chapter-url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/history-of-india-as-told-by-its-own-historians/alamgirnama-of-muhammad-kazim/01D357035F5F4EC3BA6AC42AE2F3D1F0 | doi=10.1017/CBO9781139507202.014 | chapter=''ʾÁlamgír-náma'' , of Muhammad Kázim | title=The History of India, as Told by its Own Historians | series=Cambridge Library Collection – Perspectives from the Royal Asiatic Society | date=2013 | volume=7 | pages=174–180 | publisher=Cambridge University Press | isbn=978-1-139-50720-2 }}</ref> | |||
* 19?? – Hindi fiction novel by ]<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/entertainment/Understanding-Aurangzeb/article14434624.ece|title=Understanding Aurangzeb|last=Lokapally|first=Vijay|date=21 June 2016|work=The Hindu|access-date=13 December 2017|issn=0971-751X}}</ref> | |||
* 1970 – '']'' ({{langx|mr|शहेनशहा}}), the ] fictional biography by ]; translated into English in 2017 by Vikrant Pande as ''Shahenshah – The Life of Aurangzeb'' | |||
* 2017 – ''1636: Mission to the Mughals'', by ] and Griffin Barber | |||
* 2018 – ''Aurangzeb: The Man and the Myth'', by ] | |||
== Personal life == | |||
=== Full title === | |||
]'' and seal of Aurangzeb, on an imperial '']'']]The epithet Aurangzeb means 'Ornament of the Throne'.<ref name="Thackeray248" /> His chosen title Alamgir translates to Conqueror of the World.<ref>{{cite book |title=Dictionary of Wars |date=2013 |publisher=Taylor and Francis |isbn=978-1-135-95494-9 |location=Hoboken |page=387}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb's full imperial title was: | |||
''Al-Sultan al-Azam wal Khaqan al-Mukarram Hazrat Abul Muzaffar Muhy-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb Bahadur Alamgir I'', | |||
''Badshah Ghazi'', | |||
''Shahanshah-e-Sultanat-ul-Hindiya Wal Mughaliya''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tomb of Aurangzeb|url=http://www.asiaurangabad.in/pdf/Tourist/Tomb_of_Aurangzeb-_Khulatabad.pdf|publisher=ASI Aurangabad|access-date=21 March 2015|archive-date=23 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923175254/http://www.asiaurangabad.in/pdf/Tourist/Tomb_of_Aurangzeb-_Khulatabad.pdf}}</ref> | |||
Aurangzeb had also been attributed various other titles including ''Caliph of The Merciful'', ''Monarch of Islam'', and ''Living Custodian of God''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hussein |first1=S M |date=2002 |title=Structure of Politics Under Aurangzeb 1658–1707 |publisher=Kanishka Publishers Distributors |page=158 |isbn=978-81-7391-489-8}}</ref><ref>Shah Muhammad Waseem (2003): '''', Kanishka Publishing. {{ISBN|978-81-7391-537-6}}</ref> | |||
=== Family === | |||
==== Consorts ==== | |||
Aurangzeb had at least 4 consorts in his harem, from which he fathered 6 sons and 6 daughters: | |||
*]. ] Princess, daughter of Prince ], Aurangzeb's first wife. | |||
*]. Secondary's wife of Aurangzeb, daughter of Raja Tajuddin Khan | |||
*]. First Concubine of Aurangzeb | |||
*]. Second concubine of Aurangzeb; She was a dancing girl before entering the harem | |||
==== Issues ==== | |||
===== Sons ===== | |||
*] (30 December 1639 – 14 December 1676). Imprisoned by his father; With ] | |||
*] (14 October 1643 – 27 February 1712). Mughal Emperor, conspired to overthrow his younger brother; With ] | |||
*] (28 June 1653 – 20 June 1707). Overthrowen by his elder half-brother; With Dilras Banu Begum | |||
*] (11 September 1657 – 31 March 1706). Exiled to ]; With Dilras Banu Begum | |||
*] (7 March 1667 – 14 January 1709). Ruler of ]; With Udaipuri Mahal | |||
===== Daughters ===== | |||
*] (15 February 1638 – 26 May 1702). She poet and was imprisoned by her father. She never married or had children; With ] | |||
*] ( 5 October 1643 – 7 May 1721). She became Mughal Empress (]) .With ] | |||
*] (17 November 1647 – 9 April 1670). Never married or had any children; With Nawab Bai | |||
*] (2 September 1651 – 17 February 1707). Married once and had a son; With Dilras Banu Begum | |||
*] (Persian: مهرالنسا بیگم; 28 September 1661 – 2 April 1706). Married once and had 2 sons; With Aurangabadi Mahal | |||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
==Notes== | |||
== External links == | |||
{{notelist}} | |||
===Temple destruction=== | |||
{{Reflist|group="Notes"}} | |||
* -- ''Aurangzeb destroyed temple after evidence of crimes'' | |||
* -- ''Cites multiple edicts issued and Mughal court documents'' | |||
* -- ''Expands article above with additional source materials'' | |||
* -- ''Presents a review of several theories regarding motivation for temple destruction'' | |||
== |
== Citations == | ||
{{Reflist}} | |||
* Another look at Emperor Aurangzeb's policies towards Hindus. | |||
== Bibliography == | |||
===Contemporary drama=== | |||
{{refbegin}} | |||
* Text of ]'s drama, based loosely on Aurangzeb and the Mughal court, ] | |||
* {{citation |first=Burjor |last=Avari |author-link=Burjor Avari |title=Islamic Civilization in South Asia: A History of Muslim Power and Presence in the Indian Subcontinent |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hGHpVtQ8eKoC |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-41558-061-8 |year=2013}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Durant |first=Will |author-link=Will Durant |year=1993 |orig-date=1935 |title=The Story of Civilization: Our Oriental Heritage |publisher=Simon & Schuster |isbn=978-1-56731-023-8}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Farooqi |first=Naimur Rahman |title=Mughal-Ottoman relations: a study of political & diplomatic relations |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uB1uAAAAMAAJ |year=1989 |publisher=Idarah-i Adabiyat-i Delli |oclc=20894584}} | |||
* {{cite journal |last1=Malik |first1=Adnan |last2=Zubair |first2=Muhammad |last3=Parveen |first3=Uzman |title=Effects of social reforms of shaykh Ahmad sirhindi (1564–1624) on Muslim society in the sub continent |journal=Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities |date=2016 |volume=55 |issue=2 |pages=155–164 |url=https://philpapers.org/rec/MALEOS-28 |access-date=9 March 2024 |publisher=] |doi=10.46568/jssh.v55i2.70 |language=En |doi-access=free}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Matthee |first=Rudi |author-link=Rudi Matthee |title=Persia in Crisis: Safavid Decline and the Fall of Isfahan |year=2012 |publisher=I.B.Tauris |isbn=978-1-84511-745-0}} | |||
* {{cite book |last1=Mukerjee |first1=Soma |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v-2TyjzZhZEC&pg=PA23 |title=Royal Mughal ladies and their contributions |date=2001 |publisher=Gyan Publishing House |isbn=978-81-212-0760-7}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Richards |first=John F. |author-link=John F. Richards |year=1996 |orig-date=1993 |title=The Mughal Empire |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHyVh29gy4QC&pg=PA1 |series=The New Cambridge History of India |volume=5 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-56603-2}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Sarkar |first=Jadunath |url=https://jambudveep.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/history-of-aurangzeb-vol-1.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://jambudveep.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/history-of-aurangzeb-vol-1.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |title=History of Aurangzib Vol. I |date=1912 |publisher=M.C. Sarkar & Sons |location=Calcutta}} | |||
{{refend}} | |||
==Further reading== | |||
{{start box}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Eraly |first=Abraham |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qhluAAAAMAAJ |year=2007 |title=The Mughal world |publisher=] |place=London |isbn=978-0-297-85209-4}} | |||
{{succession box|title=]|before=]|after=]|years=1659–1707}} | |||
* {{cite book |title=The Peacock Throne: The Drama of Mogul India |first=Waldemar |last=Hansen |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |year=1986 |edition=2nd |orig-date=1972 (Holt, Rinehart, Winston) |isbn=978-81-208-0225-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AV--abKg9GEC}} | |||
{{end box}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Irvine |first=William |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ak5oFjTys8MC |title=The Later Mughals |publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Distribution |year=1971 |author-link=William Irvine (historian)}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Khan |first=Khafi |editor-last=Hashim |editor-first=Muhammad |year=2006 |orig-date=1718 |title=Muntakhab-ul Lubab |publisher=Sang-e-Meel Publications |place=Pakistan}} | |||
* {{cite book |first=Muḥammad Bakhtāvar |last=Khān |title=Mir'at al-'Alam: History of Emperor Awangzeb Alamgir |translator-link=Sajida Alvi |translator-first=Sajida |translator-last=Alvi |location=Lahore |publisher=Idārah-ʾi Taḥqīqāt-i Pākistan |year=1979}} | |||
* {{cite book |title=Xenophobia in Seventeenth-century India |first=Gijs |last=Kruijtzer |publisher=Leiden University Press |year=2009 |url=https://openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/bitstream/handle/1887/13850/Kruijtzer..?sequence=2 |isbn=978-90-8728-068-0}} | |||
* {{cite book |title=] |first=Ishtiaq Hussain |last=Qureshi |publisher=University of Karachi Press}} | |||
* {{cite book |author-link=Jadunath Sarkar |last=Sarkar |first=Jadunath |year=1972 |title=] |location=Bombay |publisher=Orient Longman}} | |||
* {{cite book |title=Delhi |first=Khushwant |last=Singh |year=2000 |publisher=Penguin USA |edition=Open Market |isbn=0-14-012619-8}} | |||
* {{cite book |last1=Tillotson |first1=Giles |title=Taj Mahal |url=https://archive.org/details/tajmahal0000till_r2b4 |url-access=registration |date=2008 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-06365-5 |location=Cambridge, MA}} | |||
* {{cite book |first=Audrey |last=Truschke |title=Aurangzeb: The Man and The Myth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oUUkDwAAQBAJ |publisher=Penguin India |year=2017 |isbn=9780670089819}} | |||
** {{cite book |first=Audrey |last=Truschke |title=Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oUUkDwAAQBAJ |publisher=Stanford University Press |year=2017 |isbn=9781503602038}} | |||
==External links== | |||
] | |||
{{Wikiquote}} | |||
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{{Commons category}} | |||
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{{EB9 Poster|Aurungzebe}} | |||
* | |||
* from MANAS group page, ] | |||
* by Audrey Truschke, published on AEON | |||
* Text of ]'s drama, based loosely on Aurangzeb and the Mughal court, 1675 | |||
* | |||
* | |||
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Latest revision as of 14:51, 11 December 2024
Mughal emperor from 1658 to 1707 This article is about the sixth Mughal emperor. For the Indian movie of the same name, see Aurangzeb (film).
Alamgir I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Al-Mukarram Al-Sultan al-Azam Amir al-Mu'minin Shahenshah-e-Sultanat Al-Hindiyyah (Emperor of the Sultanate of India) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portrait by Bichitr, c. 1660 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Emperor of Hindustan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Reign | 31 July 1658 – 3 March 1707 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coronation | 31 July 1658 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Predecessor | Shah Jahan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Successor | Azam Shah | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Grand Viziers |
See list
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Born | Muhi al-Din Muhammad 3 November 1618 Dahod, Gujarat Subah, Mughal Empire | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 3 March 1707(1707-03-03) (aged 88) Qila-e-Ark, Ahmednagar, Mughal Empire | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Burial | Tomb of Aurangzeb, Khuldabad, Maharashtra, India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Spouse |
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Issue Detail | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
House | House of Babur | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dynasty | Timurid | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Father | Shah Jahan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mother | Mumtaz Mahal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Religion | Sunni Islam | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Imperial Seal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Military career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Allegiance | Mughal Empire | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Service | Mughal Army | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Commands | See list | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Battles / wars | See list | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Muhi al-Din Muhammad (3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, and also by his regnal name Alamgir I, was the sixth Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707. Under his reign, the Mughal Empire reached its greatest extent, with territory spanning nearly the entirety of the Indian subcontinent.
Aurangzeb and the Mughals belonged to a branch of the Timurid dynasty. He held administrative and military posts under his father Shah Jahan (r. 1628–1658) and gained recognition as an accomplished military commander. Aurangzeb served as the viceroy of the Deccan in 1636–1637 and the governor of Gujarat in 1645–1647. He jointly administered the provinces of Multan and Sindh in 1648–1652 and continued expeditions into the neighboring Safavid territories. In September 1657, Shah Jahan nominated his eldest and liberalist son Dara Shikoh as his successor, a move repudiated by Aurangzeb, who proclaimed himself emperor in February 1658. In April 1658, Aurangzeb defeated the allied army of Shikoh and the Kingdom of Marwar at the Battle of Dharmat. Aurangzeb's decisive victory at the Battle of Samugarh in May 1658 cemented his sovereignty and his suzerainty was acknowledged throughout the Empire. After Shah Jahan recovered from illness in July 1658, Aurangzeb declared him incompetent to rule and imprisoned his father in the Agra Fort.
Aurangzeb's reign is characterized by a period of rapid military expansion, with several dynasties and states being overthrown by the Mughals. The Mughals also surpassed Qing China as the world's largest economy and biggest manufacturing power. The Mughal military gradually improved and became one of the strongest armies in the world. A staunch Muslim, Aurangzeb is credited with the construction of numerous mosques and patronizing works of Arabic calligraphy. He successfully imposed the Fatawa-i Alamgiri as the principal regulating body of the empire and prohibited religiously forbidden activities in Islam. Although Aurangzeb suppressed several local revolts, he maintained cordial relations with foreign governments.
Aurangzeb was the longest reigning Mughal Emperor. His empire was also one of the largest in Indian history. However, his emperorship has a complicated legacy. His critics, citing his actions against the non-Muslims and his conservative view of Islam, argue that he abandoned the legacy of pluralism and tolerance of the earlier Mughal emperors. Others, however, reject these assertions, arguing that he opposed bigotry against Hindus, Sikhs and Shia Muslims and that he employed significantly more Hindus in his imperial bureaucracy than his predecessors.
Early life
Aurangzeb was born in Dahod on 3 November 1618. His father was Emperor Shah Jahan (r. 1628–1658), who hailed from the Mughal house of the Timurid dynasty. The latter was descended from Emir Timur (r. 1370–1405), the founder of the Timurid Empire. Aurangzeb's mother Mumtaz Mahal was the daughter of the Persian nobleman Asaf Khan, who was the youngest son of vizier Mirza Ghiyas. Aurangzeb was born during the reign of his patrilineal grandfather Jahangir (r. 1605–1627), the fourth emperor of the Mughal Empire.
In June 1626, after an unsuccessful rebellion by his father, eight-year-old Aurangzeb and his brother Dara Shikoh were sent to the Mughal court in Lahore as hostages of their grandfather Jahangir and his wife, Nur Jahan, as part of their father's pardon deal. After Jahangir died in 1627, Shah Jahan emerged victorious in the ensuing war of succession to the Mughal throne. Aurangzeb and his brother were consequently reunited with Shah Jahan in Agra.
As a Mughal prince, Aurangzeb received an education covering subjects like combat, military strategy, and administration. His curriculum also included areas like Islamic studies, Turkic and Persian literature. Aurangzeb grew up fluent in the Hindustani language. He was also fluent in his ancestral language of Chagatai Turkic, but similar to his predecessors, he preferred to use Persian.
On 28 May 1633, a war elephant stampeded through the Mughal imperial encampment. Aurangzeb rode against the elephant and threw his spear at its head. He was unhorsed but escaped death. For his courage, Aurangzeb's father conferred on him the title of Bahadur (brave) and presented him with gifts. When chided for his recklessness, Aurangzeb replied:
If the fight had ended fatally for me it would not have been a matter of shame. Death drops the curtain even on emperors; it is no dishonor. The shame lay in what my brothers did!
Historians have interpreted this as an unjust slur against his brothers. Shuja had also faced the elephant and wounded it with his spear. Dara had been too far away to come to their assistance.
Three days later Aurangzeb turned fifteen. Shah Jahan weighed him and presented him with his weight in gold along with other presents worth Rs. 200,000. His bravery against the elephant was documented in Persian and Urdu verses.
Career as prince
Aurangzeb was nominally in charge of the force sent to Bundelkhand with the intent of subduing the rebellious ruler of Orchha, Jhujhar Singh, who had attacked another territory in defiance of Shah Jahan's policy and was refusing to atone for his actions. By arrangement, Aurangzeb stayed in the rear, away from the fighting, and took the advice of his generals as the Mughal Army gathered and commenced the siege of Orchha in 1635. The campaign was successful and Singh was removed from power.
Aurangzeb was appointed viceroy of the Deccan in 1636. After Shah Jahan's vassals had been devastated by the alarming expansion of Ahmednagar during the reign of the Nizam Shahi boy-prince Murtaza Shah III, the emperor dispatched Aurangzeb, who in 1636 brought the Nizam Shahi dynasty to an end. In 1637, Aurangzeb married the Safavid princess Dilras Banu, posthumously known as Rabia-ud-Daurani. She was his first wife and chief consort as well as his favourite. He also had an infatuation with a slave girl, Hira Bai, whose death at a young age greatly affected him. In his old age, he was under the charms of his concubine, Udaipuri Mahal. The latter had formerly been a companion to Dara Shukoh.
In the same year, 1637, Aurangzeb was placed in charge of annexing the small Rajput kingdom of Baglana, which he did with ease. In 1638, Aurangzeb married Nawab Bai, later known as Rahmat al-Nisa. That same year, Aurangzeb dispatched an army to subdue the Portuguese coastal fortress of Daman, however his forces met stubborn resistance and were eventually repulsed at the end of a long siege. At some point, Aurangzeb married Aurangabadi Mahal, who was a Circassian or Georgian.
In 1644, Aurangzeb's sister, Jahanara, suffered from burns when the chemicals in her perfume were ignited by a nearby lamp while in Agra. This event precipitated a family crisis with political consequences. Aurangzeb suffered his father's displeasure by not returning to Agra immediately but rather three weeks later. Shah Jahan had been nursing Jahanara back to health in that time and thousands of vassals had arrived in Agra to pay their respects. Shah Jahan was outraged to see Aurangzeb enter the interior palace compound in military attire and immediately dismissed him from his position of viceroy of the Deccan; Aurangzeb was also no longer allowed to use red tents or to associate himself with the official military standard of the Mughal emperor. Other sources state that Aurangzeb was dismissed from his position because Aurangzeb left the life of luxury and became a faqir.
Governor of Gujarat
In 1645, he was barred from the court for seven months. It is reported that he mentioned his grief about this to fellow Mughal commanders. Thereafter, Shah Jahan appointed him governor of Gujarat. His rule in Gujarat was marked with religious disputes but he was rewarded for bringing stability.
Governor of Balkh
In 1647, Shah Jahan moved Aurangzeb from Gujarat to be governor of Balkh, replacing a younger son, Murad Baksh, who had proved ineffective there. The area was under attack from Uzbek and Turkmen tribes. The Mughal artillery and muskets were matched by the skirmishing skills of their opponents which led to a stalemate. Aurangzeb discovered that his army could not live off the land, which was devastated by war. It is recorded that during the battle against the Uzbeks during this campaign, Aurangzeb dismounted from his elephant ride to recite prayer to the surprise of the opposing force commander. With the onset of winter, he and his father had to make an unsatisfactory deal with the Uzbeks. They had to give away territory in exchange for nominal recognition of Mughal sovereignty. The Mughal force suffered still further with attacks by Uzbeks and other tribesmen as it retreated through the snow to Kabul. By the end of this two-year campaign, into which Aurangzeb had been plunged at a late stage, a vast sum of money had been expended for little gain.
Further unsuccessful military involvements followed, as Aurangzeb was appointed governor of Multan and Sindh. His efforts in 1649 and 1652 to dislodge the Safavids at Kandahar which they had recently retaken after a decade of Mughal control, both ended in failure as winter approached. The logistical problems of supplying an army at the extremity of the empire, combined with the poor quality of armaments and the intransigence of the opposition have been cited by John Richards as the reasons for failure. A third attempt in 1653, led by Dara Shikoh, met with the same outcome.
Second Deccan governorate
Aurangzeb became viceroy of the Deccan again after he was replaced by Dara Shukoh in the attempt to recapture Kandahar. Aurangbad's two jagirs (land grants) were moved there as a consequence of his return. The Deccan was a relatively impoverished area, this caused him to lose out financially. The area required grants were required from Malwa and Gujarat in order to maintain the administration. The situation caused ill-feeling between him and his father Shah Jahan who insisted that things could be improved if Aurangzeb made efforts to develop cultivation. Aurangzeb appointed Murshid Quli Khan to extend to the Deccan the zabt revenue system used in northern India. Murshid Quli Khan organised a survey of agricultural land and a tax assessment on what it produced. To increase revenue, Murshid Quli Khan granted loans for seed, livestock, and irrigation infrastructure. This led the Deccan region to return to prosperity.
Aurangzeb proposed to resolve financial difficulties by attacking the dynastic occupants of Golconda (the Qutb Shahis) and Bijapur (the Adil Shahis). This proposal would also extend Mughal influence by accruing more lands. Aurangzeb advanced against the Sultan of Bijapur and besieged Bidar. The Kiladar (governor or captain) of the fortified city, Sidi Marjan, was mortally wounded when a gunpowder magazine exploded. After twenty-seven days of fighting, Bidar was captured by the Mughals and Aurangzeb continued his advance. Aurangzeb suspected Dara had exerted influence on his father. He believed that he was on the verge of victory in both instances, and was frustrated that Shah Jahan chose then to settle for negotiations with the opposing forces rather than pushing for complete victory.
War of succession
Main article: Mughal war of succession (1658–1659)The four sons of Shah Jahan all held governorships during their father's reign. The emperor favoured the eldest, Dara Shikoh. This had caused resentment among the younger three, who sought at various times to strengthen alliances between themselves and against Dara. There was no Mughal tradition of primogeniture, the systematic passing of rule, upon an emperor's death, to his eldest son. Instead it was customary for sons to overthrow their father and for brothers to war to the death among themselves. Historian Satish Chandra says that "In the ultimate resort, connections among the powerful military leaders, and military strength and capacity the real arbiters". The contest for power was primarily between Dara Shikoh and Aurangzeb because, although all four sons had demonstrated competence in their official roles, it was around these two that the supporting cast of officials and other influential people mostly circulated. There were ideological differences – Dara was an intellectual and a religious liberal in the mould of Akbar, while Aurangzeb was much more conservative – but, as historians Barbara D. Metcalf and Thomas R. Metcalf say, "To focus on divergent philosophies neglects the fact that Dara was a poor general and leader. It also ignores the fact that factional lines in the succession dispute were not, by and large, shaped by ideology." Marc Gaborieau, professor of Indian studies at l'École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, explains that "The loyalties of seem to have been motivated more by their own interests, the closeness of the family relation and above all the charisma of the pretenders than by ideological divides." Muslims and Hindus did not divide along religious lines in their support for one pretender or the other nor, according to Chandra, is there much evidence to support the belief that Jahanara and other members of the royal family were split in their support. Jahanara, certainly, interceded at various times on behalf of all of the princes and was well-regarded by Aurangzeb even though she shared the religious outlook of Dara.
In 1656, a general under Qutb Shahi dynasty named Musa Khan led an army of 12,000 musketeers to attack Aurangzeb, who was besieging Golconda Fort. Later in the same campaign, Aurangzeb, in turn, rode against an army consisting of 8,000 horsemen and 20,000 Karnataki musketeers.
After making clear his desire for his son Dara to take over after him, Shah Jahan fell ill with stranguary in 1657. He was kept in seclusion and cared for by Dara in the newly built city of Shahjahanabad (Old Delhi). Rumours spread that Shah Jahan had died, which led to concerns among his younger sons. Subsequently, these younger sons took military actions seemingly in response but it is not known whether these preparations were made in the mistaken belief that the rumours of death of Shah Jahan were true and that Dara might be hiding it for political gain, or whether the challengers were taking advantage of the situation.
Shah Shuja in Bengal, where he had been governor since 1637 crowned himself King at RajMahal. He brought his cavalry, artillery and river flotilla upriver towards Agra. Near Varanasi his forces confronted a defending army sent from Delhi under the command of Prince Sulaiman Shukoh, son of Dara Shukoh, and Raja Jai Singh.
Murad did the same in his governorship of Gujarat and Aurangzeb did so in the Deccan.
After regaining some of his health, Shah Jahan moved to Agra and Dara urged him to send forces to challenge Shah Shuja and Murad, who had declared themselves rulers in their respective territories. While Shah Shuja was defeated at Banares in February 1658, the army sent to deal with Murad discovered to their surprise that he and Aurangzeb had combined their forces, the two brothers having agreed to partition the empire once they had gained control of it. The two armies clashed at Dharmat in April 1658, with Aurangzeb being the victor. Shuja was chased through Bihar. The victory of Aurangzeb proved this to be a poor decision by Dara Shikoh, who now had a defeated force on one front and a successful force unnecessarily pre-occupied on another. Realising that his recalled Bihar forces would not arrive at Agra in time to resist the emboldened Aurangzeb's advance, Dara scrambled to form alliances in order but found that Aurangzeb had already courted key potential candidates. When Dara's disparate, hastily concocted army clashed with Aurangzeb's well-disciplined, battle-hardened force at the battle of Samugarh in late May, neither Dara's men nor his generalship were any match for Aurangzeb. Dara had also become over-confident in his own abilities and, by ignoring advice not to lead in battle while his father was alive, he cemented the idea that he had usurped the throne. "After the defeat of Dara, Shah Jahan was imprisoned in the fort of Agra where he spent eight long years under the care of his favourite daughter Jahanara."
Aurangzeb then broke his arrangement with Murad Baksh, which probably had been his intention all along. Instead of looking to partition the empire between himself and Murad, he had his brother arrested and imprisoned at Gwalior Fort. Murad was executed on 4 December 1661, ostensibly for the murder of the diwan of Gujarat. The allegation was encouraged by Aurangzeb, who caused the diwan's son to seek retribution for the death under the principles of Sharia law. Meanwhile, Dara gathered his forces, and moved to the Punjab. The army sent against Shuja was trapped in the east, its generals Jai Singh and Dilir Khan submitted to Aurangzeb, but Dara's son, Suleiman Shikoh, escaped. Aurangzeb offered Shah Shuja the governorship of Bengal. This move had the effect of isolating Dara Shikoh and causing more troops to defect to Aurangzeb. Shah Shuja, who had declared himself emperor in Bengal began to annex more territory and this prompted Aurangzeb to march from Punjab with a new and large army that fought during the battle of Khajwa, where Shah Shuja and his chain-mail armoured war elephants were routed by the forces loyal to Aurangzeb. Shah Shuja then fled to Arakan (in present-day Burma), where he was executed by the local rulers.
With Shuja and Murad disposed of, and with his father immured in Agra, Aurangzeb pursued Dara Shikoh, chasing him across the north-western bounds of the empire. Aurangzeb claimed that Dara was no longer a Muslim and accused him of poisoning the Mughal Grand Vizier Saadullah Khan. After a series of battles, defeats and retreats, Dara was betrayed by one of his generals, who arrested and bound him. In 1658, Aurangzeb arranged his formal coronation in Delhi.
On 10 August 1659, Dara was executed on grounds of apostasy and his head was sent to Shah Jahan. This was the first prominent execution of Aurangzeb based on accusations of being influenced by Hinduism, however some sources argue it was done for political reasons. Aurangzeb had his allied brother Prince Murad Baksh held for murder, judged and then executed. Aurangzeb was accused of poisoning his imprisoned nephew Sulaiman Shikoh. Having secured his position, Aurangzeb confined his frail father at the Agra Fort but did not mistreat him. Shah Jahan was cared for by Jahanara and died in 1666.
Ancestry
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Reign
Bureaucracy
Aurangzeb's imperial bureaucracy employed significantly more Hindus than that of his predecessors.
Between 1679 and 1707, the number of Hindu officials in the Mughal administration rose by half, to represent 31.6% of Mughal nobility, the highest in the Mughal era. Many of them were Marathas and Rajputs, who were his political allies. However, Aurangzeb encouraged high ranking Hindu officials to convert to Islam.
Economy
Under his reign, the Mughal Empire contributed to the world's GDP by nearly 25%, surpassing Qing China, making it the world's largest economy and biggest manufacturing power, more than the entirety of Western Europe, and signaled proto-industrialization.
Religious policy
See also: Religious policy of the Mughals after AkbarAurangzeb was an orthodox Muslim ruler. Subsequent to the policies of his three predecessors, he endeavored to make Islam a dominant force in his reign. However these efforts brought him into conflict with the forces that were opposed to this revival. Aurangzeb was a follower of the Mujaddidi Order and a disciple of the son of the Punjabi saint, Ahmad Sirhindi. He sought to establish Islamic rule as instructed and inspired by him.
Sheikh Muhammad Ikram stated that after returning from Kashmir, Aurangzeb issued order in 1663, to ban the practice of Sati, a Hindu practice to burn a widow whenever her husband passed away. Ikram recorded that Aurangzeb issued decree:
"in all lands under Mughal control, never again should the officials allow a woman to be burnt".
Although Aurangzeb's orders could be evaded with payment of bribes to officials, adds Ikram, later European travellers record that sati was not much practised in Mughal empire, and that Sati was "very rare, except it be some Rajah's wives, that the Indian women burn at all" by the end of Aurangzeb's reign.
Historian Katherine Brown has noted that "The very name of Aurangzeb seems to act in the popular imagination as a signifier of politico-religious bigotry and repression, regardless of historical accuracy." The subject has also resonated in modern times with popularly accepted claims that he intended to destroy the Bamiyan Buddhas. As a political and religious conservative, Aurangzeb chose not to follow the secular-religious viewpoints of his predecessors after his ascension. He made no mention of the Persian concept of kinship, the Farr-i-Aizadi, and based his rule on the Quranic concept of kingship. Shah Jahan had already moved away from the liberalism of Akbar, although in a token manner rather than with the intent of suppressing Hinduism, and Aurangzeb took the change still further. Though the approach to faith of Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan was more syncretic than Babur, the founder of the empire, Aurangzeb's position is not so obvious.
His emphasis on sharia competed, or was directly in conflict, with his insistence that zawabit or secular decrees could supersede sharia. The chief qazi refusing to crown him in 1659, Aurangzeb had a political need to present himself as a "defender of the sharia" due to popular opposition to his actions against his father and brothers. Despite claims of sweeping edicts and policies, contradictory accounts exist. Historian Katherine Brown has argued that Aurangzeb never imposed a complete ban on music. He sought to codify Hanafi law by the work of several hundred jurists, called Fatawa 'Alamgiri. It is possible the War of Succession and continued incursions combined with Shah Jahan's spending made cultural expenditure impossible.
He learnt that at Multan, Thatta, and particularly at Varanasi, the teachings of Hindu Brahmins attracted numerous Muslims. He ordered the subahdars of these provinces to demolish the schools and the temples of non-Muslims. Aurangzeb also ordered subahdars to punish Muslims who dressed like non-Muslims. The executions of the antinomian Sufi mystic Sarmad Kashani and the ninth Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur bear testimony to Aurangzeb's religious policy; the former was beheaded on multiple accounts of heresy, the latter, according to Sikhs, because he objected to Aurangzeb's forced conversions. Aurangzeb had also banned the celebration of the Zoroastrian festival of Nauroz along with other un-Islamic ceremonies, and encouraged conversions to Islam; instances of persecution against particular Muslim factions were also reported.
Yohanan Friedmann has reported that according to many modern historians and thinkers, the puritanical thought of Ahmad Sirhindi inspired the religious orthodoxy policy of Aurangzeb.
Taxation policy
Shortly after coming to power, Aurangzeb remitted more than 80 long-standing taxes affecting all of his subjects.
In 1679, Aurangzeb chose to re-impose jizya, a military tax on non-Muslim subjects in lieu of military service, after an abatement for a span of hundred years, in what was critiqued by many Hindu rulers, family-members of Aurangzeb, and Mughal court-officials. The specific amount varied with the socioeconomic status of a subject and tax-collection were often waived for regions hit by calamities; also, Brahmins, women, children, elders, the handicapped, the unemployed, the ill, and the insane were all perpetually exempted. The collectors were mandated to be Muslims. A majority of modern scholars reject that religious bigotry influenced the imposition; rather, realpolitik – economic constraints as a result of multiple ongoing battles and establishment of credence with the orthodox Ulemas – are held to be primary agents.
Aurangzeb also enforced a higher tax burden on Hindu merchants at the rate of 5% (as against 2.5% on Muslim merchants), which led to considerable dislike of Aurangzeb's economic policies; a sharp turn from Akbar's uniform tax code. According to Marc Jason Gilbert, Aurangzeb ordered the jizya fees to be paid in person, in front of a tax collector, where the non Muslims were to recite a verse in the Quran which referred to their inferior status as non Muslims. This decision led to protests and lamentations among the masses as well as Hindu court officials. In order to meet state expenditures, Aurangzeb had ordered increases in land taxes; the burden of which fell heavily upon the Hindu Jats. The reimposition of the jizya encouraged Hindus to flee to areas under East India Company jurisdiction, under which policies of religious sufferance and pretermissions of religious taxes prevailed.
Aurangzeb issued land grants and provided funds for the maintenance of shrines of worship but also (often) ordered their destruction. Modern historians reject the thought-school of colonial and nationalist historians about these destruction being guided by religious zealotry; rather, the association of temples with sovereignty, power and authority is emphasized upon.
Whilst constructing mosques were considered an act of royal duty to subjects, there are also several firmans in Aurangzeb's name, supporting temples, maths, chishti shrines, and gurudwaras, including Mahakaleshwar temple of Ujjain, a gurudwara at Dehradun, Balaji temple of Chitrakoot, Umananda Temple of Guwahati and the Shatrunjaya Jain temples, among others. Numerous new temples were built, as well.
Contemporary court-chronicles mention hundreds of temple which were demolished by Aurangzab or his chieftains, upon his order. In September 1669, he ordered the destruction of Vishvanath Temple at Varanasi, which was established by Raja Man Singh, whose grandson Jai Singh was believed to have facilitated Shivaji's escape. After the Jat rebellion in Mathura (early 1670), which killed the patron of the town-mosque, Aurangzeb suppressed the rebels and ordered for the city's Kesava Deo temple to be demolished, and replaced with an Eidgah. In 1672–73, Aurangzeb ordered the resumption of all grants held by Hindus throughout the empire, though this was not followed absolutely in regions such as Gujarat, where lands granted in in'am to Charans were not affected. In around 1679, he ordered destruction of several prominent temples, including those of Khandela, Udaipur, Chittor and Jodhpur, which were patronaged by rebels. The Jama Masjid at Golkunda was similarly treated, after it was found that its ruler had built it to hide revenues from the state; however desecration of mosques are rare due to their complete lack of political capital contra temples.
In an order specific to Benaras, Aurangzeb invokes Sharia to declare that Hindus will be granted state-protection and temples won't be razed (but prohibits construction of any new temple); other orders to similar effect can be located. Richard Eaton, upon a critical evaluation of primary sources, counts 15 temples to have been destroyed during Aurangzeb's reign. Ian Copland and others reiterate Iqtidar Alam Khan who notes that, overall, Aurangzeb built more temples than he destroyed.
Administrative reforms
Aurangzeb received tribute from all over the Indian subcontinent, using this wealth to establish bases and fortifications in India, particularly in the Carnatic, Deccan, Bengal and Lahore.
Revenue
Aurangzeb's exchequer raised a record £100 million in annual revenue through various sources like taxes, customs and land revenue, et al. from 24 provinces. He had an annual yearly revenue of $450 million, more than ten times that of his contemporary Louis XIV of France.
Coins
Aurangzeb felt that verses from the Quran should not be stamped on coins, as done in former times, because they were constantly touched by the hands and feet of people. His coins had the name of the mint city and the year of issue on one face, and, the following couplet on other:
King Aurangzib 'Ālamgir
Stamped coins, in the world, like the bright full moon.
Law
See also: Execution of SambhajiIn 1689, the second Maratha Chhatrapati (King) Sambhaji was executed by Aurangzeb. In a sham trial, he was found guilty of murder and violence, atrocities against the Muslims of Burhanpur and Bahadurpur in Berar by Marathas under his command.
In 1675 the Sikh leader Guru Tegh Bahadur was arrested on orders by Aurangzeb, found guilty of blasphemy by a Qadi's court and executed.
The 32nd Da'i al-Mutlaq (Absolute Missionary) of the Dawoodi Bohra sect of Musta'lī Islam Syedna Qutubkhan Qutubuddin was executed by Aurangzeb, then governor of Gujarat, for heresy; on 27 Jumadil Akhir 1056 AH (1648 AD), Ahmedabad, India.
- In the year 1689, according to Mughal accounts, Sambhaji was put on trial, found guilty of atrocities and executed.
- Guru Tegh Bahadur was publicly executed in 1675 on the orders of Aurangzeb in Delhi
- Sarmad Kashani, a Jewish convert to Islam and Sufi mystic was accused of heresy and executed.
Military
See also: Army of the Mughal Empire, Mughal weapons, and Mughal artilleryIt is reported that Aurangzeb always inspected his cavalry contingents every day, while testing his cutlasses sheep carcass, brought before him without the entrails and neatly bound up, in one strike.
In 1663, during his visit to Ladakh, Aurangzeb established direct control over that part of the empire and loyal subjects such as Deldan Namgyal agreed to pledge tribute and loyalty. Deldan Namgyal is also known to have constructed a Grand Mosque in Leh, which he dedicated to Mughal rule.
In 1664, Aurangzeb appointed Shaista Khan subedar (governor) of Bengal. Shaista Khan eliminated Portuguese and Arakanese pirates from the region, and in 1666 recaptured the port of Chittagong from the Arakanese king, Sanda Thudhamma. Chittagong remained a key port throughout Mughal rule.
In 1685, Aurangzeb dispatched his son, Muhammad Azam Shah, with a force of nearly 50,000 men to capture Bijapur Fort and defeat Sikandar Adil Shah (the ruler of Bijapur) who refused to be a vassal. The Mughals could not make any advancements upon Bijapur Fort, mainly because of the superior usage of cannon batteries on both sides. Outraged by the stalemate Aurangzeb himself arrived on 4 September 1686 and commanded the siege of Bijapur; after eight days of fighting, the Mughals were victorious.
Only one remaining ruler, Abul Hasan Qutb Shah (the Qutbshahi ruler of Golconda), refused to surrender. He and his servicemen fortified themselves at Golconda and fiercely protected the Kollur Mine, which was then probably the world's most productive diamond mine, and an important economic asset. In 1687, Aurangzeb led his grand Mughal army against the Deccan Qutbshahi fortress during the siege of Golconda. The Qutbshahis had constructed massive fortifications throughout successive generations on a granite hill over 400 ft high with an enormous eight-mile long wall enclosing the city. The main gates of Golconda had the ability to repulse any war elephant attack. Although the Qutbshahis maintained the impregnability of their walls, at night Aurangzeb and his infantry erected complex scaffolding that allowed them to scale the high walls. During the eight-month siege the Mughals faced many hardships including the death of their experienced commander Kilich Khan Bahadur. Eventually, Aurangzeb and his forces managed to penetrate the walls by capturing a gate, and their entry into the fort led Abul Hasan Qutb Shah to surrender; he died after twelve years of Mughal imprisonment.
Mughal cannon making skills advanced during the 17th century. One of the most impressive Mughal cannons is known as the Zafarbaksh, which is a very rare composite cannon, that required skills in both wrought-iron forge welding and bronze-casting technologies and the in-depth knowledge of the qualities of both metals. The Ibrahim Rauza was a famed cannon, which was well known for its multi-barrels. François Bernier, the personal physician to Aurangzeb, observed Mughal gun-carriages each drawn by two horses, an improvement over the bullock-drawn gun-carriages used elsewhere in India.
During the rule of Aurangzeb, In 1703, the Mughal commander at Coromandel, Daud Khan Panni spent 10,500 coins to purchase 30 to 50 war elephants from Ceylon.
Art and culture
Aurangzeb was noted for his religious piety; he memorized the entire Quran, studied hadiths and stringently observed the rituals of Islam, and "transcribe copies of the Quran."
Aurangzeb had a more austere nature than his predecessors, and greatly reduced imperial patronage of the figurative Mughal miniature. This had the effect of dispersing the court atelier to other regional courts. Being religious he encouraged Islamic calligraphy. His reign also saw the building of the Lahore Badshahi Masjid and Bibi Ka Maqbara in Aurangabad for his wife Rabia-ud-Daurani. Aurangzeb was considered a Mujaddid by contemporary Muslims considered Aurangzeb.
Calligraphy
The Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb is known to have patronised works of Islamic calligraphy; the demand for Quran manuscripts in the naskh style peaked during his reign. Having been instructed by Syed Ali Tabrizi, Aurangzeb was himself a talented calligrapher in naskh, evidenced by Quran manuscripts that he created.
Architecture
Aurangzeb was not as involved in architecture as his father. Under Aurangzeb's rule, the position of the Mughal Emperor as chief architectural patron began to diminish. However, Aurangzeb did endow some significant structures. Catherine Asher terms his architectural period as an "Islamization" of Mughal architecture. One of the earliest constructions after his accession was a small marble mosque known as the Moti Masjid (Pearl Mosque), built for his personal use in the Red Fort complex of Delhi. He later ordered the construction of the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore, which is today one of the largest mosques in the Indian subcontinent. The mosque he constructed in Srinagar is still the largest in Kashmir. Aurangzeb had a palace constructed for himself in Aurangabad, which was extant till a few years ago.
Most of Aurangzeb's building activity revolved around mosques, but secular structures were not neglected. The Bibi Ka Maqbara in Aurangabad, the mausoleum of Rabia-ud-Daurani, was constructed by his eldest son Azam Shah upon Aurangzeb's decree. Its architecture displays clear inspiration from the Taj Mahal. Aurangzeb also provided and repaired urban structures like fortifications (for example a wall around Aurangabad, many of whose gates still survive), bridges, caravanserais, and gardens.
Aurangzeb was more heavily involved in the repair and maintenance of previously existing structures. The most important of these were mosques, both Mughal and pre-Mughal, which he repaired more of than any of his predecessors. He patronised the dargahs of Sufi saints such as Bakhtiyar Kaki, and strived to maintain royal tombs.
- Seventeenth-century Badshahi Masjid built by Aurangzeb in Lahore.
- Bibi ka Maqbara.
Textiles
The textile industry in the Mughal Empire emerged very firmly during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb and was particularly well noted by Francois Bernier, a French physician of the Mughal Emperor. Francois Bernier writes how Karkanahs, or workshops for the artisans, particularly in textiles flourished by "employing hundreds of embroiderers, who were superintended by a master". He further writes how "Artisans manufacture of silk, fine brocade, and other fine muslins, of which are made turbans, robes of gold flowers, and tunics worn by females, so delicately fine as to wear out in one night, and cost even more if they were well embroidered with fine needlework".
He also explains the different techniques employed to produce such complicated textiles such as Himru (whose name is Persian for "brocade"), Paithani (whose pattern is identical on both sides), Mushru (satin weave) and how Kalamkari, in which fabrics are painted or block-printed, was a technique that originally came from Persia. Francois Bernier provided some of the first, impressive descriptions of the designs and the soft, delicate texture of Pashmina shawls also known as Kani, which were very valued for their warmth and comfort among the Mughals, and how these textiles and shawls eventually began to find their way to France and England.
- Shawls manufactured in the Mughal Empire had highly influenced other cultures around the world.
- Shawl makers in the Mughal Empire.
- Mughal imperial carpet
Foreign relations
Aurangzeb sent diplomatic missions to Mecca in 1659 and 1662, with money and gifts for the Sharif. He also sent alms in 1666 and 1672 to be distributed in Mecca and Medina. Historian Naimur Rahman Farooqi writes that, "By 1694, Aurangzeb's ardour for the Sharifs of Mecca had begun to wane; their greed and rapacity had thoroughly disillusioned the Emperor ... Aurangzeb expressed his disgust at the unethical behavior of the Sharif who appropriated all the money sent to the Hijaz for his own use, thus depriving the needy and the poor." According to English traveller named John Fryar, Aurangzeb also consider that despite his enormous power on land, it is cheaper to establish reciprocal relation with the naval forces of Portuguese empire to secure the sea interest of ships in Mughal territory, so he did not built an overtly massive naval forces.
Relations with Aceh
For decades, the Malabari Mappila Muslims which representing the Mughal empire are already patronized Aceh Sultanate. Aurangzeb, and his brother, Dara Shikoh, participated with Aceh trade and Aurangzeb himself also exchanging presents with the Sultan of Aceh in 1641. In that year, it is recorded the daughter of Iskandar Muda, Sultanah Safiatuddin, has presented Aurangzeb with eight elephants.
When the VOC, or Dutch East India Company trying to disrupt the trade in Aceh to make their own Malaka trade lucrative, Aurangzeb threatened the Dutch with retaliation against any losses in Gujarat due to Dutch intervention. This effort were caused due to VOC realization that Muslim tradings were damaging to the VOC. The Firman issued by Aurangzeb caused the VOC to back down and allowed Indian sailors to pass into Aceh, Perak, and Kedah, without any restrictions.
Relations with the Uzbek
Subhan Quli Khan, Balkh's Uzbek ruler was the first to recognise him in 1658 and requested for a general alliance, he worked alongside the new Mughal Emperor since 1647, when Aurangzeb was the Subedar of Balkh.
Relations with the Safavid dynasty
Safavid Iran and the Mughal Empire had long clashed over Kandahar, an outpost on the distant frontier of their two empires. Control of the city swung back and forth. Aurangzeb led two unsuccessful campaigns to recapture it 1649 and 1652. Mughal attempts died down after 1653 amidst internal rivalries.
Upon ascending the throne, Aurangzeb was eager to obtain diplomatic recognition from the Safavids to bolster the legitimacy of his rule. Abbas II of Persia sent an embassy in 1661. Aurangzeb received the ambassador warmly and they exchanged gifts. A return embassy sent by Aurangzeb to Persia in 1664 was poorly treated. Tensions over Kandahar rose again. There were cross border raids, but hostilities subsided after Abbas II's death in 1666.
Aurangzeb's rebellious son, Prince Akbar, sought refuge with Suleiman I of Persia. Suleiman rescued him from the Imam of Musqat, but refused to assist him in any military adventures against Aurangzeb.
Relations with the French
In 1667, the French East India Company ambassadors Le Gouz and Bebert presented Louis XIV of France's letter which urged the protection of French merchants from various rebels in the Deccan. In response to the letter, Aurangzeb issued a firman allowing the French to open a factory in Surat.
- March of the Great Moghul (Aurangzeb)
- François Bernier, was a French physician and traveller, who for 12 years was the personal physician of Aurangzeb. He described his experiences in Travels in the Mughal Empire.
- Map of the Mughal Empire by Vincenzo Coronelli (1650–1718) of Venice, who served as Royal Geographer to Louis XIV of France.
- French map of the Deccan.
Relations with the Sultanate of Maldives
In the 1660s, the Sultan of the Maldives, Ibrahim Iskandar I, requested help from Aurangzeb's representative, the Faujdar of Balasore. The Sultan wished to gain his support in possible future expulsions of Dutch and English trading ships, as he was concerned with how they might impact the economy of the Maldives. However, as Aurangzeb did not possess a powerful navy and had no interest in providing support to Ibrahim in a possible future war with the Dutch or English, the request came to nothing.
Relations with the Ottoman Empire
Like his father, Aurangzeb was not willing to acknowledge the Ottoman claim to the caliphate. He often supported the Ottoman Empire's enemies, extending cordial welcome to two rebel Governors of Basra, and granting them and their families a high status in the imperial service. Sultan Suleiman II's friendly postures were ignored by Aurangzeb. The Sultan urged Aurangzeb to wage holy war against Christians. However, Aurangzeb were granted as patron of Sharif of Mecca, and sending the Sherif at that time with richly laden mission, which at that time were under the jurisdiction of Ottoman.
Relations with the English and the Anglo-Mughal War
See also: Anglo-Mughal War (1686–1690)In 1686, the East India Company, which had unsuccessfully tried to obtain a firman that would grant them regular trading privileges throughout the Mughal Empire, initiated the Anglo-Mughal War. This war ended in disaster for the English after Aurangzeb in 1689 dispatched a large fleet from Janjira that blockaded Bombay. The ships, commanded by Sidi Yaqub, were manned by Indians and Mappilas. In 1690, realising the war was not going favourably for them, the Company sent envoys to Aurangzeb's camp to plead for a pardon. The company's envoys prostrated themselves before the emperor, agreed pay a large indemnity, and promise to refrain from such actions in the future.
In September 1695, English pirate Henry Every conducted one of the most profitable pirate raids in history with his capture of a Grand Mughal grab convoy near Surat. The Indian ships had been returning home from their annual pilgrimage to Mecca when the pirate struck, capturing the Ganj-i-Sawai, reportedly the largest ship in the Muslim fleet, and its escorts in the process. When news of the capture reached the mainland, a livid Aurangzeb nearly ordered an armed attack against the English-governed city of Bombay, though he finally agreed to compromise after the Company promised to pay financial reparations, estimated at £600,000 by the Mughal authorities. Meanwhile, Aurangzeb shut down four of the English East India Company's factories, imprisoned the workers and captains (who were nearly lynched by a rioting mob), and threatened to put an end to all English trading in India until Every was captured. The Lords Justices of England offered a bounty for Every's apprehension, leading to the first worldwide manhunt in recorded history. However, Every successfully eluded capture.
In 1702, Aurangzeb sent Daud Khan Panni, the Mughal Empire's Subhedar of the Carnatic region, to besiege and blockade Fort St. George for more than three months. The governor of the fort Thomas Pitt was instructed by the East India Company to sue for peace.
Relations with the Ethiopian Empire
Ethiopian Emperor Fasilides dispatched an embassy to India in 1664–65 to congratulate Aurangzeb upon his accession to the throne of the Mughal Empire.
Relations with the Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Dzungars
After 1679, the Tibetans invaded Ladakh, which was in the Mughal sphere of influence. Aurangzeb intervened on Ladakh's behalf in 1683, but his troops retreated before Dzungar reinforcements arrived to bolster the Tibetan position. At the same time, however, a letter was sent from the governor of Kashmir claiming the Mughals had defeated the Dalai Lama and conquered all of Tibet, a cause for celebration in Aurangzeb's court.
Aurangzeb received an embassy from Muhammad Amin Khan of Chagatai Moghulistan in 1690, seeking assistance in driving out "Qirkhiz infidels" (meaning the Buddhist Dzungars), who "had acquired dominance over the country".
Relations with the Czardom of Russia
Russian Czar Peter the Great requested Aurangzeb to open Russo-Mughal trade relations in the late 17th century. In 1696 Aurangzeb received his envoy, Semyon Malenkiy, and allowed him to conduct free trade. After staying for six years in India, and visiting Surat, Burhanpur, Agra, Delhi and other cities, Russian merchants returned to Moscow with valuable Indian goods.
Rebellions
Traditional and newly coherent social groups in northern and western India, such as the Marathas, Rajputs, Hindu Jats, Pashtuns, and Sikhs, gained military and governing ambitions during Mughal rule, which, through collaboration or opposition, gave them both recognition and military experience.
- In 1669, the Hindu Jat peasants of Bharatpur around Mathura rebelled and created Bharatpur State but were defeated.
- In 1659, Maratha leader Shivaji, launched a surprise attack on the Mughal Viceroy Shaista Khan and, while waging war against Aurangzeb. Shivaji and his forces attacked the Deccan, Janjira and Surat and tried to gain control of vast territories. In 1689, Aurangzeb's armies captured Shivaji's son Sambhaji and executed him. But the Marathas continued the fight.
- In 1679, the Rathore clan under the command of Durgadas Rathore of Marwar rebelled when Aurangzeb did not give permission to make the young Rathore prince the king and took direct command of Jodhpur. This incident caused great unrest among the Hindu Rajput rulers under Aurangzeb and led to many rebellions in Rajputana, resulting in the loss of Mughal power in the region and religious bitterness over the destruction of temples.
- In 1672, the Satnami, a sect concentrated in an area near Delhi, under the leadership of Bhirbhan, took over the administration of Narnaul, but they were eventually crushed upon Aurangzeb's personal intervention with very few escaping alive.
- In 1671, the battle of Saraighat was fought in the easternmost regions of the Mughal Empire against the Ahom Kingdom. The Mughals led by Mir Jumla II and Shaista Khan attacked and were defeated by the Ahoms.
- Maharaja Chhatrasal was the warrior from Bundela Rajput clan, who fought against the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, and established his own kingdom in Bundelkhand, becoming a Maharaja of Panna.
Jat rebellion
In 1669, Hindu Jats began to organise a rebellion that is believed to have been caused by the re-imposition of jizya and destruction of Hindu temples in Mathura. The Jats were led by Gokula, a rebel landholder from Tilpat. By the year 1670 20,000 Jat rebels were quelled and the Mughal Army took control of Tilpat, Gokula's personal fortune amounted to 93,000 gold coins and hundreds of thousands of silver coins.
Gokula was caught and executed. But the Jats once again attempted rebellion. Raja Ram Jat, in order to avenge his father Gokula's death, plundered Akbar's tomb of its gold, silver and fine carpets, opened Akbar's grave and dragged his bones and burned them in retaliation. Jats also shot off the tops of the minarets on the gateway to Akbar's Tomb and melted down two silver doors from the Taj Mahal. Aurangzeb appointed Mohammad Bidar Bakht as commander to crush the Jat rebellion. On 4 July 1688, Raja Ram Jat was captured and beheaded. His head was sent to Aurangzeb as proof of his beheading.
However, after Aurangeb's death, Jats under Badan Singh later established their independent state of Bharatpur.
Due to the Jat rebellion, the temples of Pushtimarg, Gaudiya, and Radha vallabh Vaishnavs in Braj were abandoned and their icons were taken to different regions or into hiding.
Mughal–Maratha Wars
Main article: Mughal–Maratha Wars See also: Maratha EmpireIn 1657, while Aurangzeb attacked Golconda and Bijapur in the Deccan, the Hindu Maratha warrior, Shivaji, used guerrilla tactics to take control of three Adil Shahi forts formerly under his father's command. With these victories, Shivaji assumed de facto leadership of many independent Maratha clans. The Marathas harried the flanks of the warring Adil Shahis, gaining weapons, forts, and territory. Shivaji's small and ill-equipped army survived an all out Adil Shahi attack, and Shivaji personally killed the Adil Shahi general, Afzal Khan. With this event, the Marathas transformed into a powerful military force, capturing more and more Adil Shahi territories. Shivaji went on to neutralise Mughal power in the region.
In 1659, Aurangzeb sent his trusted general and maternal uncle Shaista Khan, the Wali in Golconda to recover forts lost to the Maratha rebels. Shaista Khan drove into Maratha territory and took up residence in Pune. But in a daring raid on the governor's palace in Pune during a midnight wedding celebration, led by Shivaji himself, the Marathas killed Shaista Khan's son and Shivaji maimed Shaista Khan by cutting off three fingers of his hand. Shaista Khan, however, survived and was re-appointed the administrator of Bengal going on to become a key commander in the war against the Ahoms.
Aurangzeb next sent general Raja Jai Singh to vanquish the Marathas. Jai Singh besieged the fort of Purandar and fought off all attempts to relieve it. Foreseeing defeat, Shivaji agreed to terms. Jai Singh persuaded Shivaji to visit Aurangzeb at Agra, giving him a personal guarantee of safety. Their meeting at the Mughal court did not go well, however. Shivaji felt slighted at the way he was received, and insulted Aurangzeb by refusing imperial service. For this affront he was detained, but managed to effect a daring escape.
Shivaji returned to the Deccan, and crowned himself Chhatrapati or the ruler of the Maratha Kingdom in 1674. Shivaji expanded Maratha control throughout the Deccan until his death in 1680. Shivaji was succeeded by his son, Sambhaji. Militarily and politically, Mughal efforts to control the Deccan continued to fail.
On the other hand, Aurangzeb's third son Akbar left the Mughal court along with a few Muslim Mansabdar supporters and joined Muslim rebels in the Deccan. Aurangzeb in response moved his court to Aurangabad and took over command of the Deccan campaign. The rebels were defeated and Akbar fled south to seek refuge with Sambhaji, Shivaji's successor. More battles ensued, and Akbar fled to Persia and never returned.
In 1689, Aurangzeb's forces captured and executed Sambhaji. His successor Rajaram, later Rajaram's widow Tarabai and their Maratha forces fought individual battles against the forces of the Mughal Empire. Territory changed hands repeatedly during the years (1689–1707) of interminable warfare. As there was no central authority among the Marathas, Aurangzeb was forced to contest every inch of territory, at great cost in lives and money. Even as Aurangzeb drove west, deep into Maratha territory – notably conquering Satara – the Marathas expanded eastwards into Mughal lands – Malwa and Hyderabad. The Marathas also expanded further South into Southern India defeating the independent local rulers there capturing Jinji in Tamil Nadu. Aurangzeb waged continuous war in the Deccan for more than two decades with no resolution. He thus lost about a fifth of his army fighting rebellions led by the Marathas in Deccan India. He travelled a long distance to the Deccan to conquer the Marathas and eventually died at the age of 88, still fighting the Marathas.
Aurangzeb's shift from conventional warfare to anti-insurgency in the Deccan region shifted the paradigm of Mughal military thought. There were conflicts between Marathas and Mughals in Pune, Jinji, Malwa and Vadodara. The Mughal Empire's port city of Surat was sacked twice by the Marathas during the reign of Aurangzeb and the valuable port was in ruins. Matthew White estimates that about 2.5 million of Aurangzeb's army were killed during the Mughal–Maratha Wars (100,000 annually during a quarter-century), while 2 million civilians in war-torn lands died due to drought, plague and famine.
- A Mughal trooper in the Deccan.
- Aurangzeb leads his final expedition (1705), leading an army of 500,000 troops.
- Mughal-era aristocrat armed with a matchlock musket.
- Aurangzeb, in later life, hunting with hounds and falconers
Ahom campaign
While Aurangzeb and his brother Shah Shuja had been fighting against each other, the Hindu rulers of Kuch Behar and Assam took advantage of the disturbed conditions in the Mughal Empire, had invaded imperial dominions. For three years they were not attacked, but in 1660 Mir Jumla II, the viceroy of Bengal, was ordered to recover the lost territories.
The Mughals set out in November 1661. Within weeks they occupied the capital of Kuch Behar, which they annexed. Leaving a detachment to garrison it, the Mughal army began to retake their territories in Assam. Mir Jumla II advanced on Garhgaon, the capital of the Ahom kingdom, and reached it on 17 March 1662. The ruler, Raja Sutamla, had fled before his approach. The Mughals captured 82 elephants, 300,000 rupees in cash, 1000 ships, and 173 stores of rice.
On his way back to Dacca, in March 1663, Mir Jumla II died of natural causes. Skirmishes continued between the Mughals and Ahoms after the rise of Chakradhwaj Singha, who refused to pay further indemnity to the Mughals and during the wars that continued the Mughals suffered great hardships. Munnawar Khan emerged as a leading figure and is known to have supplied food to vulnerable Mughal forces in the region near Mathurapur. Although the Mughals under the command of Syed Firoz Khan the Faujdar at Guwahati were overrun by two Ahom armies in 1667, but they continued to hold and maintain presence in their eastern territories even after the battle of Saraighat in 1671.
The battle of Saraighat was fought in 1671 between the Mughal empire (led by the Kachwaha king, Raja Ramsingh I), and the Ahom Kingdom (led by Lachit Borphukan) on the Brahmaputra river at Saraighat, now in Guwahati. Although much weaker, the Ahom Army defeated the Mughal Army by brilliant uses of the terrain, clever diplomatic negotiations to buy time, guerrilla tactics, psychological warfare, military intelligence and by exploiting the sole weakness of the Mughal forces – its navy.
The battle of Saraighat was the last battle in the last major attempt by the Mughals to extend their empire into Assam. Though the Mughals managed to regain Guwahati briefly after a later Borphukan deserted it, the Ahoms wrested control in the battle of Itakhuli in 1682 and maintained it till the end of their rule.
Satnami opposition
In May 1672, the Satnami sect, obeying the commands of an old toothless woman (according to Mughal accounts), organised a revolt in the agricultural heartlands of the Mughal Empire. The Satnamis were known to have shaved off their heads and even eyebrows and had temples in many regions of Northern India. They began a large-scale rebellion 75 miles southwest of Delhi.
The Satnamis believed they were invulnerable to Mughal bullets and believed they could multiply in any region they entered. The Satnamis initiated their march upon Delhi and overran small-scale Mughal infantry units.
Aurangzeb responded by organising a Mughal army of 10,000 troops, artillery, and a detachment of his imperial guards. Aurangzeb wrote Islamic prayers and drew designs that were sewn into the army's flags. His army crushed the Satnami rebellion.
Sikh opposition
The ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur, like his predecessors was opposed to forced conversion of the local population as he considered it wrong. Approached by Kashmiri Pandits to help them retain their faith and avoid forced religious conversions, Guru Tegh Bahadur sent a message to the emperor that if he could convert Teg Bagadur to Islam, every Hindu will become a Muslim. In response, Aurangzeb ordered arrest of the Guru. He was then brought to Delhi and tortured so as to convert him. On his refusal to convert, he was beheaded in 1675.
In response, Guru Tegh Bahadur's son and successor, Guru Gobind Singh, further militarised his followers, starting with the establishment of Khalsa in 1699, eight years before Aurangzeb's death. In 1705, Guru Gobind Singh sent a letter entitled Zafarnamah, which accused Aurangzeb of cruelty and betraying Islam. The letter caused him much distress and remorse. Guru Gobind Singh's formation of Khalsa in 1699 led to the establishment of the Sikh Confederacy and later Sikh Empire.
Pashtun opposition
The Pashtun revolt in 1672 under the leadership of the warrior poet Khushal Khan Khattak of Kabul, was triggered when soldiers under the orders of the Mughal Governor Amir Khan allegedly molested a Parachi woman affiliated with the Safi in modern-day Kunar Province of Afghanistan. The Safi tribes retaliated against the soldiers. This attack provoked a reprisal, which triggered a general revolt of most of tribes. Attempting to reassert his authority, Amir Khan led a large Mughal Army to the Khyber Pass, where the army was surrounded by tribesmen and routed, with only four men, including the Governor, managing to escape.
Aurangzeb's incursions into the Pashtun areas were described by Khushal Khan Khattak as "Black is the Mughal's heart towards all of us Pathans". Aurangzeb employed the scorched earth policy, sending soldiers who massacred, looted and burnt many villages. Aurangzeb also proceeded to use bribery to turn the Pashtun tribes against each other, with the aim that they would distract a unified Pashtun challenge to Mughal authority, and the impact of this was to leave a lasting legacy of mistrust among the tribes.
After that the revolt spread, with the Mughals suffering a near total collapse of their authority in the Pashtun belt. The closure of the important Attock-Kabul trade route along the Grand Trunk road was particularly disastrous. By 1674, the situation had deteriorated to a point where Aurangzeb camped at Attock to personally take charge. Switching to diplomacy and bribery along with force of arms, the Mughals eventually split the rebels and partially suppressed the revolt, although they never managed to wield effective authority outside the main trade route.
Death
See also: Tomb of AurangzebBy 1689, the conquest of Golconda and Mughal victories in the south expanded the Mughal Empire to 4 million square kilometres, with a population estimated to be over 158 million. However, this supremacy was short-lived. Historian Jos Gommans says that "... the highpoint of imperial centralisation under emperor Aurangzeb coincided with the start of the imperial downfall."
Aurangzeb constructed a small marble mosque known as the Moti Masjid (Pearl Mosque) in the Red Fort complex in Delhi. However, his constant warfare, especially with the Marathas, drove his empire to the brink of bankruptcy just as much as the wasteful personal spending and opulence of his predecessors.
The Indologist Stanley Wolpert says that:
The conquest of the Deccan, to which Aurangzeb devoted the last twenty-six years of his life, was in many ways a Pyrrhic victory, costing an estimated hundred thousand lives a year during its last decade of fruitless, chess-game warfare ... The expense in gold and rupees can hardly be imagined or accurately estimated. Alamgir's moving capital alone-a city of tents thirty miles in circumference, two hundred and fifty bazaars, with half a million camp followers, fifty thousand camels, and thirty thousand elephants, all of whom had to be fed, stripped peninsular India of any and all of its surplus grain and wealth ... Not only famine, but bubonic plague arose ... Even Alamgir had ceased to understand the purpose for it all by ... 1705. The emperor was nearing ninety by then ... "I came alone and I go as a stranger. I do not know who I am, nor what I have been doing," the dying old man confessed to his son in February 1707.
Even when ill and dying, Aurangzeb made sure that the populace knew he was still alive, for if they had thought otherwise then the turmoil of another war of succession was likely. He died at his military camp in Bhingar near Ahmednagar on 3 March 1707 at the age of 88, having outlived many of his children. He had only 300 rupees with him which were later given to charity as per his instructions and he prior to his death requested not to spend extravagantly on his funeral but to keep it simple. His modest open-air grave in Khuldabad, Aurangabad, Maharashtra expresses his deep devotion to his Islamic beliefs. It is sited in the courtyard of the shrine of the Sufi saint Shaikh Burhan-u'd-din Gharib, who was a disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi.
Brown writes that after his death, "a string of weak emperors, wars of succession, and coups by noblemen heralded the irrevocable weakening of Mughal power". She notes that the populist but "fairly old-fashioned" explanation for the decline is that there was a reaction to Aurangzeb's oppression. Although Aurangzeb died without appointing a successor, he instructed his three sons to divide the empire among themselves. His sons failed to reach a satisfactory agreement and fought against each other in a war of succession. Aurangzeb's immediate successor was his third son Azam Shah, who was defeated and killed in June 1707 at the battle of Jajau by the army of Bahadur Shah I, the second son of Aurangzeb. Both because of Aurangzeb's over-extension and because of Bahadur Shah's weak military and leadership qualities, entered a period of terminal decline. Immediately after Bahadur Shah occupied the throne, the Maratha Empire – which Aurangzeb had held at bay, inflicting high human and monetary costs even on his own empire – consolidated and launched effective invasions of Mughal territory, seizing power from the weak emperor. Within decades of Aurangzeb's death, the Mughal Emperor had little power beyond the walls of Delhi.
Assessments and legacy
Aurangzeb's rule has been the subject of both praise and controversy. During his lifetime, victories in the south expanded the Mughal Empire to 4 million square kilometres, and he ruled over a population estimated to be over 158 million subjects. His critics argue that his ruthlessness and religious bigotry made him unsuitable to rule the mixed population of his empire. Some critics assert that the persecution of Shias, Sufis and non-Muslims to impose practices of orthodox Islamic state, such as imposition of sharia and jizya religious tax on non-Muslims, doubling of custom duties on Hindus while abolishing it for Muslims, executions of Muslims and non-Muslims alike, and destruction of temples eventually led to numerous rebellions. G. N. Moin Shakir and Sarma Festschrift argue that he often used political opposition as pretext for religious persecution, and that, as a result, groups of Jats, Marathas, Sikhs, Satnamis and Pashtuns rose against him.
Multiple interpretations of Aurangzeb's life and reign over the years by critics have led to a very complicated legacy. Some argue that his policies abandoned his predecessors' legacy of pluralism and religious tolerance, citing his introduction of the jizya tax and other policies based on Islamic ethics; his demolition of Hindu temples; the executions of his elder brother Dara Shikoh, King Sambhaji of Maratha and Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur and the prohibition and supervision of behaviour and activities that are forbidden in Islam such as gambling, fornication, and consumption of alcohol and narcotics. At the same time, some historians question the historical authenticity of the claims of his critics, arguing that his destruction of temples has been exaggerated, and noting that he built more temples than he destroyed, paid for their maintenance, employed significantly more Hindus in his imperial bureaucracy than his predecessors, and opposed bigotry against Hindus and Shia Muslims.
Muhammad Al-Munajjid has compilled that the opinions from Islamic scholarly community towards Aurangzeb were positive for the emperor general attitude such as abolished Bid'ah celebrations, musics, and also abolished the customs of bowing and kissing the ground which were done by his predecessors, practically adhering practice of Salafi while still held to Hanafite creed. Apparently this view of Aurangzeb were influenced by Muhammad Saleh Kamboh, who acted as his teacher.
In Pakistan, author Haroon Khalid writes that, "Aurangzeb is presented as a hero who fought and expanded the frontiers of the Islamic empire" and "is imagined to be a true believer who removed corrupt practices from religion and the court, and once again purified the empire." The academic Munis Faruqui also opines that the "Pakistani state and its allies in the religious and political establishments include him in the pantheon of premodern Muslim heroes, especially lauding him for his militarism, personal piety, and seeming willingness to accommodate Islamic morality within state goals."
Muhammad Iqbal, considered the spiritual founder of Pakistan, admired Aurangzeb. Iqbal Singh Sevea, in his book on the political philosophy of the thinker, says that "Iqbal considered that the life and activities of Aurangzeb constituted the starting point of Muslim nationality in India". Maulana Shabbir Ahmad Usmani, in his funeral oration, hailed M.A. Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, to be the greatest Muslim since Aurangzeb. Pakistani-American academic Akbar Ahmed described President Zia-ul-Haq, known for his Islamization drive, as "conceptually ... a spiritual descendent of Aurangzeb" because Zia had an orthodox, legalistic view of Islam.
Muhammad Sayyid Tantawy, a grand mufti of Egypt, once called Aurangzeb as "A remnant of the Rightly-Guided Rashidun Caliphs", as appreciation of Aurangzeb commitment to Islam teaching.
Beyond the individual appreciations, Aurangzeb is seminal to Pakistan's national self-consciousness, as historian Ayesha Jalal, while referring to the Pakistani textbooks controversy, mentions M. D. Zafar's A Text Book of Pakistan Studies where we can read that, under Aurangzeb, "Pakistan spirit gathered in strength", while his death "weakened the Pakistan spirit." Another historian from Pakistan, Mubarak Ali, also looking at the textbooks, and while noting that Akbar "is conveniently ignored and not mentioned in any school textbook from class one to matriculation", contrasts him with Aurangzeb, who "appears in different textbooks of Social Studies and Urdu language as an orthodox and pious Muslim copying the Holy Quran and sewing caps for his livelihood." This image of Aurangzeb is not limited to Pakistan's official historiography.
As of 2015, about 177 towns and villages of India have been named after Aurangzeb. Historian Audrey Truschke points out that Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), Hindutva proponents and some others outside Hindutva ideology regard Aurangzeb as Muslim zealot in India. Jawaharlal Nehru wrote that, due to his reversal of the cultural and religious syncretism of the previous Mughal emperors, Aurangzeb acted "more as a Moslem than an Indian ruler", while Mahatma Gandhi was of the view that there was greater degree of freedom under Mughal rule than the British rule and asks that "in Aurangzeb's time a Shivaji could flourish. Has one hundred and fifty years of the British rule produced any Pratap and Shivaji?" Other historians also noting that there are Hindu temples built during Aurangzeb reign, while he also employed significantly more Hindus in his imperial bureaucracy than his predecessors did, opposed bigotry against Hindus and Shia Muslims.
Literatures
Aurangzeb has prominently featured in the following books
- 1675 – Aureng-zebe, play by John Dryden, written and performed on the London stage during the Emperor's lifetime.
- 1688 – Alamgirnama by Mirza Mohammed Qasim official biographer at Aurangzeb's court
- 19?? – Hindi fiction novel by Acharya Chatursen Shastri
- 1970 – Shahenshah (Marathi: शहेनशहा), the Marathi fictional biography by N S Inamdar; translated into English in 2017 by Vikrant Pande as Shahenshah – The Life of Aurangzeb
- 2017 – 1636: Mission to the Mughals, by Eric Flint and Griffin Barber
- 2018 – Aurangzeb: The Man and the Myth, by Audrey Truschke
Personal life
Full title
The epithet Aurangzeb means 'Ornament of the Throne'. His chosen title Alamgir translates to Conqueror of the World.
Aurangzeb's full imperial title was:
Al-Sultan al-Azam wal Khaqan al-Mukarram Hazrat Abul Muzaffar Muhy-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb Bahadur Alamgir I, Badshah Ghazi, Shahanshah-e-Sultanat-ul-Hindiya Wal Mughaliya.
Aurangzeb had also been attributed various other titles including Caliph of The Merciful, Monarch of Islam, and Living Custodian of God.
Family
Consorts
Aurangzeb had at least 4 consorts in his harem, from which he fathered 6 sons and 6 daughters:
- Dilras Banu Begum. Safavid Princess, daughter of Prince Mirza Badi-uz-Zaman Safavi, Aurangzeb's first wife.
- Nawab Bai. Secondary's wife of Aurangzeb, daughter of Raja Tajuddin Khan
- Aurangabadi Mahal. First Concubine of Aurangzeb
- Udaipuri Mahal. Second concubine of Aurangzeb; She was a dancing girl before entering the harem
Issues
Sons
- Shahzada Mirza Muhammad Sultan (30 December 1639 – 14 December 1676). Imprisoned by his father; With Nawab Bai
- Bahadur Shah I (14 October 1643 – 27 February 1712). Mughal Emperor, conspired to overthrow his younger brother; With Nawab Bai
- Muhammad Azam Shah (28 June 1653 – 20 June 1707). Overthrowen by his elder half-brother; With Dilras Banu Begum
- Shahzade Mirza Muhammad Akbar (11 September 1657 – 31 March 1706). Exiled to Safavid empire; With Dilras Banu Begum
- Shahzada Mirza Muhammad Kam Bakhsh (7 March 1667 – 14 January 1709). Ruler of Bijapur; With Udaipuri Mahal
Daughters
- Shahzadi Zeb-un-Nissa (15 February 1638 – 26 May 1702). She poet and was imprisoned by her father. She never married or had children; With Dilras Banu Begum
- Shahzadi Zinat-un-Nissa Begum ( 5 October 1643 – 7 May 1721). She became Mughal Empress (Padshah Begum) .With Dilras Banu Begum
- Shahzadi Badr-un-Nissa Begum (17 November 1647 – 9 April 1670). Never married or had any children; With Nawab Bai
- Shahzadi Zubdat-un-Nissa Begum (2 September 1651 – 17 February 1707). Married once and had a son; With Dilras Banu Begum
- Shahzadi Mihr-un-Nissa Begum (Persian: مهرالنسا بیگم; 28 September 1661 – 2 April 1706). Married once and had 2 sons; With Aurangabadi Mahal
See also
Notes
- English: The Honorable, Generous
- English: Commander of the Faithful
- A second coronation was held on 5 June 1659
- The unified province of Deccan included the governorates of Khandesh, Bijapur, Berar, Aurangabad, Golconda and Bidar
- School of Thought: Hanafi
- The unified province of Deccan included the governorates of Khandesh, Bijapur, Berar, Aurangabad, Golconda and Bidar
- Persian pronunciation: [ʔaw.ɾaŋɡ.ˈzeːb] lit. 'Ornament of the Throne'; Awrangzīb
- Persian pronunciation: [ʔɑː.ˈlam.ˈɡiːɾ] lit. 'Conqueror of the World'
- Which is derived from his title, Abu al-Muzaffar Muhi-ad-Din Muhammad Bahadur Alamgir Aurangzeb Badshah al-Ghazi.
- Regarding the tokenistic aspect of Shah Jahan's actions to strengthen Islam in his empire, Satish Chandra says, "We may conclude that Shah Jahan tried to effect a compromise. While formally declaring the state to be an Islamic one, showing respect to the sharia, and observing its injunctions in his personal life, he did not reject any of the liberal measures of Akbar. ... Shah Jahan's compromise was based not on principle but on expediency."
- It has however been argued that the Mughal emperor had political motives for this particular execution. See the article on Sarmad Kashani for references.
- See also "Aurangzeb, as he was according to Mughal Records"; more links at the bottom of that page. For Muslim historian's record on major Hindu temple destruction campaigns, from 1193 to 1729 AD, see Richard Eaton (2000), "Temple Desecration and Indo-Muslim States", Journal of Islamic Studies, Vol. 11, Issue 3, pp. 283–319
- through IslamQA.info, Professor Muhammad al-Munajjid on his online correspondence has answered that he based his opinion Silk ad-Durar fi A'yaan al-Qarn ath-Thaani 'Ashar (4/113) and Aurangzeb biography by Professor 'Abd al-Mun'im an-Nimr in his book Tareekh al-Islam fi'l-Hind.
Citations
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In gold there is no more type. In silver some other types like Abu al Muzaffar Muhiuddin/ Muhammad (and date) / Bahadur Alamgir/ Aurangzeb/ Badshah Ghazi or ...
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The Emperor's name and title were proclaimed in the pulpit as Abu al-Muzaffar Bahadur ' Alamgir Badshah i Ghazi
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Aurangzeb (1658–1707). Aurangzeb's rule, spanning a period of 49 years
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marched in the direction of Bijapur and on reaching Bidar laid siege to it ... The Qiladar of the fort was Sidi Marjan ... were helped by an explosion of powder magazine in the fortress ... Sidi Marjan and two of his sons were badly burnt ... Thus was the fort of Bidar taken after a siege of 27 days ... Sidi Marjan died of his wounds soon afterwards ... Aurangzeb arrived at Kalyani.
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Aurangzeb was most forthright in his efforts to stop sati. According to Manucci, on his return from Kashmir in December, 1663, he "issued an order that in all lands under Mughal control, never again should the officials allow a woman to be burnt." Manucci adds that "This order endures to this day."/26/ This order, though not mentioned in the formal histories, is recorded in the official guidebooks of the reign./27/ Although the possibility of an evasion of government orders through payment of bribes existed, later European travelers record that sati was not much practiced by the end of Aurangzeb's reign. As Ovington says in his Voyage to Surat: "Since the Mahometans became Masters of the Indies, this execrable custom is much abated, and almost laid aside, by the orders which nabobs receive for suppressing and extinguishing it in all their provinces. And now it is 237 very rare, except it be some Rajah's wives, that the Indian women burn at all; /27/ Jadunath Sarkar, History of Aurangzib (Calcutta, 1916), III, 92. /28/ John Ovington, A Voyage to Surat (London, 1929), p. 201.
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Although Aurangzeb had not raised the slogan of defending Islam before the battle of Samugarh with Dara, and had tried to befriend the Rajput rajas as we have seen, there were a number of factors which make it necessary for Aurangzeb to present himself as the defender of the sharia, and to try and win over the theologians. A principal factor was the popular revulsion against his treatment of his brothers, Murad and Dara, both of whom had the reputation of being liberal patrons of the poor and needy. Aurangzeb was shocked when as the time of his second coronation in 1659, the chief qazi refused to crown him since his father was still alive.
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More importantly, though, the fact that Aurangzeb did not order a universal ban on music lends support to the idea that his regime was less intolerant and repressive than has been widely believed in the past...Thus, the overwhelming evidence against a ban on musical practice in Aurangzeb's reign suggests that the nature of his state was less orthodox, tyrannical and centralised than
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he kept changing his policies depending on the needs of the situation ... he had put a brake on the construction of new temples but the repair and maintenance of old temples was permitted. He also generously donated jagirs to many temples to win the sympathies of the people ... firmans include the ones from the temples of Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain), Balaji temple (Chitrakut), Umanand temples (Guwahati) and Jain temples of Shatrunjaya. Also there are firmans supporting other temples and gurudwaras in north India.
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In former times the sacred Quaranic credo (Kalma) used to be stamped on gold and silver coins, and such coins were constantly touched with the hands and feet of men; Aurangzib said that it would be better to stamp some other words ... The Emperor liked it and ordered that one face ... should be stamped with this verse and the other with the name of the mint-city and the year.
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The whole country was soon occupied by the imperialists, anarchy and slaughter were let loose upon the doomed state; all great towns in the village were pillaged; the temples were thrown down
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Mir Jumla was appointed governor of Bengal (June 1660) and ordered to punish the kings of Kuch Bihar and Assam.
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left Dacca on 1st November 1661 ... the Mughal army entered the capital of Kuch Bihar on 19th December ... The kingdom was annexed to the Mughal empire ... Mir Jumla set out for the conquest of Assam on 4th January, 1662 ... triumphantly marched into Garh-gaon the Ahom capital on 17th March. Raja Jayadhwaj ... had fled .. The spoils ... 82 elephants, 3 lakhs of rupees in cash, ... over a thousand bots, and 173 stores of paddy.
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set out on his return on 10th January 1663, travelling by pālki owing to his illness, which daily increased. At Baritalā he embarked in a boat and glided down the river toward Dacca, dying on 31st March.
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In the letter to Aurangzeb in his Zafarnama, Gobind Singh opposes the emperor not because he is a Muslim, but condemns him because he had betrayed Islam by his deceit, unscrupulousness and intolerance. 'You, who profess belief in the one God and the Koran do not have at heart an atom of faith in them... You neither recognise any God, nor do you have any respect for Prophet Mohammed.'
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'Black is the Mughal's heart towards all us Pathans', complained the Pushto poet Khushal Khan Khattak about Aurangzeb's incursions in the tribal regions of the northwest frontier of India.
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The situation deteriorated and matters came to a head in 1675, at the time of the last great Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb. He launched a terrible scorched earth policy, sending thousands of soldiers into the valleys, burning, despoiling, smashing villages and killing as many tribesmen as possible. He also successfully used bribery to set the tribal chiefs against each other, thus fomenting so much mutual suspicion that they were too busy fighting each other to fight the Mughal Empire. This worked up to a point. But the resulting legacy of mistrust between the tribes destroyed any prospect that unified political institutions might slowly emerge or that the laws and government of the settled regions might be adopted.
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Some follow the Indian line that Aurangzeb was a straight-up bigot, whereas others view him as one of the few truly righteous Muslim rulers of old.
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- Abraham Eraly (2000), Emperors of the Peacock Throne: The Saga of the Great Mughals, Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0-14-100143-2, pp. 398–399. According to Abraham Eraly, "in 1670, all temples around Ujjain were destroyed" and later "300 temples were destroyed in and around Chitor, Udaipur and Jaipur" among other Hindu temples destroyed elsewhere in campaigns through 1705.
Avari writes, "Aurangzeb's religious policy caused friction between him and the ninth Sikh guru, Tegh Bahadur. In both Punjab and Kashmir the Sikh leader was roused to action by Aurangzeb's excessively zealous Islamic policies. Seized and taken to Delhi, he was called upon by Aurangzeb to embrace Islam and, on refusal, was tortured for five days and then beheaded in November 1675. Two of the ten Sikh gurus thus died as martyrs at the hands of the Mughals. (Avari (2013), p. 115) - Haroon, Asif (2004). Muhammad Bin Qasim to General Pervez Musharraf: Triumphs, Tribulations. Lahore: Sang-e-Meel. p. 70. ISBN 978-969-35-1624-1.
To start with, Aurangzeb gradually transformed the system of governance as per the dictates of Shariah ... He curbed practices of gambling, drinking, music and prostitution
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- Avari 2013, p. 115: citing a 2000 study, writes "Aurangzeb was perhaps no more culpable than most of the sultans before him; they desecrated the temples associated with Hindu power, not all temples. It is worth noting that, in contrast to the traditional claim of hundreds of Hindu temples having been destroyed by Aurangzeb, a recent study suggests a modest figure of eighty destructions."
- Truschke, Audrey (2017). Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King. Stanford University Press. p. 85. ISBN 978-1-5036-0259-5.
Nobody knows the exact number of temples demolished or pillaged on Aurangzeb's orders, and we never will. Richard Eaton, the leading authority on the subject, puts the number of confirmed temple destructions during Aurangzeb's rule at just over a dozen, with fewer tied to the emperor's direct commands. Other scholars have pointed out additional temple demolitions not counted by Eaton, such as two orders to destroy the Somanatha Temple in 1659 and 1706 (the existence of a second order suggests that the first was never carried out). Aurangzeb also oversaw temple desecrations. For example, in 1645 he ordered mihrabs (prayer niches, typically located in mosques) erected in Ahmedabad's Chintamani Parshvanath Temple, built by the Jain merchant Shantidas. Even adding in such events, however, to quote Eaton, "the evidence is almost always fragmentary, incomplete, or even contradictory". Given this, there were probably more temples destroyed under Aurangzeb than we can confirm (perhaps a few dozen in total?), but here we run into a dark curtain drawn across an unknown past.
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Further reading
- Eraly, Abraham (2007). The Mughal world. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN 978-0-297-85209-4.
- Hansen, Waldemar (1986) . The Peacock Throne: The Drama of Mogul India (2nd ed.). Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-0225-4.
- Irvine, William (1971). The Later Mughals. Atlantic Publishers & Distribution.
- Khan, Khafi (2006) . Hashim, Muhammad (ed.). Muntakhab-ul Lubab. Pakistan: Sang-e-Meel Publications.
- Khān, Muḥammad Bakhtāvar (1979). Mir'at al-'Alam: History of Emperor Awangzeb Alamgir. Translated by Alvi, Sajida. Lahore: Idārah-ʾi Taḥqīqāt-i Pākistan.
- Kruijtzer, Gijs (2009). Xenophobia in Seventeenth-century India. Leiden University Press. ISBN 978-90-8728-068-0.
- Qureshi, Ishtiaq Hussain. A Short History of Pakistan. University of Karachi Press.
- Sarkar, Jadunath (1972). History of Aurangzib. Bombay: Orient Longman.
- Singh, Khushwant (2000). Delhi (Open Market ed.). Penguin USA. ISBN 0-14-012619-8.
- Tillotson, Giles (2008). Taj Mahal. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-06365-5.
- Truschke, Audrey (2017). Aurangzeb: The Man and The Myth. Penguin India. ISBN 9780670089819.
- Truschke, Audrey (2017). Aurangzeb: The Life and Legacy of India's Most Controversial King. Stanford University Press. ISBN 9781503602038.
External links
- Aurangzeb, as he was according to Mughal Records
- Article on Aurganzeb from MANAS group page, UCLA
- The great Aurangzeb is everybody's least favourite Mughal – Audrey Truschke | Aeon Essays by Audrey Truschke, published on AEON
- The Tragedy of Aureng-zebe Text of John Dryden's drama, based loosely on Aurangzeb and the Mughal court, 1675
- Coins of Aurangzeb
- Life of Auranzeb in Urdu (ebook)
AurangzebTimurid dynastyBorn: c. 1618 Died: 3 March 1707 | ||
Regnal titles | ||
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Preceded byShah Jahan | Mughal Emperor 1658–1707 |
Succeeded byAzam Shah |
Mughal Empire | |||||||||
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Administration |
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Architecture |
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Successor states |
- Sunni Muslims
- Sunni Sufis
- Hanafis
- Maturidis
- Mujaddid
- Emperors of the Mughal Empire
- 17th-century Indian Muslims
- 18th-century Indian Muslims
- People from Dahod district
- 17th-century Indian monarchs
- 18th-century Indian monarchs
- Subahdars of Gujarat
- Indian people of Iranian descent
- 1618 births
- 1707 deaths
- 17th-century Mughal Empire people
- 18th-century Mughal Empire people
- Subahdars of Thatta