Causes of the Downfall of Mughal Empire

As you have read, many things attributed to the rise of the Empire. Many things also attributed to its fall as well. These included poor leadership, economic trouble, as well

Zahir al-Din Muhammad Babur was a founder of India’s Mughal Empire; furthermore, he was a Chaghatai-Turkish prince and a direct descendant not only of Timur but also of Chinggis Khan (Balabanlilar 2). There was an effective centralized rule that was provided by the Mughal dynasty to the Indian subcontinent during the first half of the Mughal period (Stearns 32).

The Mughal, Qing and Ottoman dynasties all had taken rule over multi-ethnic agrarian Eurasian empires in the duration of the 17th and 18th century. All empires respectively faced enormous political, economic and social transformations which challenged and set hindrance to their rule in the 19th century. The Ottoman and Qing and Mughal empires had been 3 of probably the greatest empires to have ruled in history. Nevertheless, they'd many similarities in addition to differences. The empires went through difficult periods of time, but at some point, they additionally went through times of prosperity and growth. Though the Ottoman and Mughal Empire both didn't force conversions into Islam, the Ottoman's development relied on the bad military force of theirs, even though the

Although the Ottoman and Mughal empires had two different reasons for decline, both were because of the leaders currently in power at the time. Even though Suleyman, the ruler of the Ottomans, accomplished social and cultural achievements, the empire was losing ground. Suleyman made a mistake by killing two of his sons. His third son, the incompetent Selim II, inherited the throne. Suleyman set the pattern for the future sultans to gain and hold power. It became customary for each new sultan to kill his brother. This practice produced a long line of weak sultans who eventually brought ruin on the empire. Since India was mainly a land of the Hindus, The stability of the Emperor, in this case Aurangzeb, depended on the support of the people. Without their loyalty and cooperation, stability was impossible. When Aurangzeb came into power, he departed from the tradition of religious tolerance and persecuted the other

India is a great example about how they were too weak. India is probably in the best position for trade, due to its central location between Africa and Asia. India was a great area for trade.Before the West’s power overtook India, it was small not unified. In document 5 a person can be seen weaving on their own. This is before they were introduced to industrial textile production. The British wanted to take control of India and combine with them to become bigger and stronger. Britain saw India as a market and is a source of raw materials they built roads and impressive railroads to transport factory made goods across the subcontinent. These roads and railroads are used to carry materials such as coal and cotton to coastal ports to transfer the factories in England. This description of India can relate to Document 6, in this document a railroad is seen being built under British control. Railroads are an example of modernization taking over this country.

Throughout time empires have risen and fallen and taken various approaches in doing so. Some of these society were warlike, while others focused on intellectual discovery. Among these various societies were great empires like the Ottoman, the Mughal, the Spanish, and the Ming. All four of these great empire ruled at overlapping times but all eventually fell for different reasons. All had strengths and weakness and can be used as a learning opportunity for an empire that came after them. From the Ming and the Ottoman you can learn strength such as religious tolerance and government structure. On the other hand, the Mughal and the Spanish teach us the dangers of over taxing and over centralizing government. In order for an empire to successfully function they must have an accepting culture, a balanced economy, and manageable size.

In the Mughal Empire, Hindus had been allowed to build new temples despite the fact the empire had Muslim origins. To further gain the people’s loyalty, Akbar the leader of Mughal Empire eliminated tax on the non Muslims which would attract the Hindus and also the Christians into the empire creating a universal religion which a mix of Islam, Christians and Hindus.. Akbar had also secured the support and the allegiance of the different Hindus who existed in the region through the negotiation of the peace treaties. Akbar had endured that the local governors would be given grants rather than the salaries. Being dependent on the central government for their income, such a strategy helped them develop increased loyalty enhancing military operations of the army and the general government structure in the empire. On the other hand, Ottoman’s emperor enhanced social integration through striking the high levels of peoples’ loyalty (Gingeras 13).

The Mughal empire was founded by leader Zahir al-Din Muhammad, known as Babur (the tiger) in 1526. When he defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Afghan Lodi Sultans at the First Battle of Panipat, where they used gunpowder for the first time in India. The Mughal Empire is known as a “gunpowder empire.” With the help of gunpowder weapons Babur took Delhi in 1526. When Babur died in 1530 he left a “loosely knit empire” he called Mughal. The word "Mughal" was the Persian term for "Mongol."

The Mughal Empire: Zahir al-Din, also known as Babur, was a Chagatai Turk that, unlike the Ottoman and Safavids, was just a soldier of fortune not fighting on behalf of Islam. He wanted to use his fortune to transform a glorious central Asian empire. Although, he did not succeed at that goal he then focused on India. Babur took Delhi in 1526. He did not like the land that he had conquered, it was a hot and humid climate but, Babur decided to stay. By the time of his death he had embraced most of the Indian subcontinent. The height of the Mughal power and influence came from Babur’s grandson Akbar. He gained power in Gujarat and Bengal, destroyed the Hindu kingdom of Vijayanagar in order to later expand in southern India. He was a thoughtful man who tolerated the religious differences in

The first reason for the fall included widespread epidemics. Smallpox, measles, and the bubonic plague spread rapidly in both empires, due to lack of medical knowledge and new interactions between people of different areas, carrying different diseases. The outbreak of diseases claimed the lives of a large portion of both empires. With the population down, trade decreased and their economies suffered alongside the ill. With less money, the empires started to fall.

In context, like the Han and the Roman, the Gupta Empire fell for similar reasons. The Gupta fell for reasons such as from the invasions of the White Hun, which drained the Guptas treasuries, similar to Han China who were invaded by the Xiongnu and Imperial Rome by the Visigoths. Civil unrest is also a recurring factor in the fall of all three mentioned civilizations.

Since the beginning, all empires have faced change in many ways, declining and rising in status. Many empires have collapsed, only to start again under a different name. Like all empires, the three Muslim Empires, the Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals have faced this inevitable state. Although each individual empire is different, they each have similarities in their reasons for decline. Whether it is social, religious, economic, or political reasons, the empires, like many others, have fallen.

Turkish people known as the Mughals extended their authority and their empire to much of the subcontinent.

Each of these seemingly invincible dynasties all went on to eventually “collapse” for a myriad of reasons.

The Ottoman empire; one of the greatest empires in history. The Empire, at its height, ruled most of the land around the Mediterranean. It contributed much to culture, science, religion, war, politics, and the world. Its monumental fall will be known throughout history. How can the swift decline of the Ottoman power be explained? Perhaps the best way to understand how important this event was, there needs to be a brief explanation of the history behind this epic collapse; showing the rise before the fall and the drastic change.