Mughal Architecture

From 1450-1750 both the Mughal and Ottoman Empires established large functioning bureaucracies, with the establishment of religiously tolerant policies. Political and religious climates of the Muslim Empires in 1450-1750 were tense, however religious tolerance can be seen in the Mughal and Ottoman Empires. According to the document, the military needed the support from the government and to back up political decisions. Document 5 is taken from the perspective of a missionary who lived for years in Egypt, the Ottoman Empire and a foreign employee of the Mughal emperor. In this document he talks about his experiences through both empires and describe each empire in terms of political and religious. This document give us information about how

The Ottoman and Mughal empires were two of the most successful empires to ever come together. However, in their dominance there was many similarities as well as differences. Both went through their share of struggle. Whether through political, religious, or cultural struggle the two empires had to rely on their emperors for guidance and rule.

The Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughals were all explosive realms. The reason for this paper is to thoroughly analyze the contrasts between these domains.

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.

People, places, and/or things come and go, changing from one thing to another or none at all. In other cases, it is just not people, places, and/or things, it can also be generations or empires. Empires are known to adopt similar traditions or beliefs from other empires. In addition, some empires have similar, but slightly different laws and/or goals. Two of the empires that were similar, but different is many ways are the Ottoman and Mughal Empires.

During the early modern period, two great Islamic states were created. One, covered most of the Middle East, while the Balkans covered the remaining majority of India. The two major Islamic Empires, the Ottomans and the Mughals, both brought major new influences to these regions as well. The Ottoman and Mughal Empires’ influences included great political and military strength, amongst other things. During the early modern period, these two empires established very large territories and new boundaries, resembling Russia’s rule. Also similarly to Russia, both of these empires included a diverse population made up of different linguistic, ethnic, and religious groups. Both the Ottoman and Mughal Empires, while similar, followed their own, separate paths during most of the early modern period. In doing so, they avoided Western civilization and the rest of the world, for the most part. However, contact with the West did increase with time as by the late 17th to early 18th century, “a more substantial Western presence began to affect internal developments”.

The Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal societies all relied on bureaucracies that drew inspiration from the steppe traditions of Turkish and Mogol people and from the heritage of Islam, they adopted similar policies, they looked for ways to keep peace in their societies which were made up of different religious and ethnic backgrounds, and they were associated with literary and artistic talents. Military and religious factors gave rise to all three of these empires.

The Ottoman and Mughal Empires The fifteenth and sixteenth century held many political and religious changes. Two of the largest empires at the time, the Ottoman Empire and the Mughal Empire faced many challenges in terms of religion, government, and women’s rights. With each decision the empires had to chose, one group of people would be unsatisfied. The strength of an empire would always show through during conflict.

This Madrasa is especially significant, because it is one of the earliest pieces of Islamic architecture to still be standing today. It was also one of the first Islamic architectural buildings to employ to use of decorated floral mosaic tiles which was uncommon during the Ilkhanid period but later mastered by the Timurids. Earlier mosaic designs were strictly geometric, but this new floral pattern gained popularity as time passed. While walking through the museum I was fascinated by several secular and religious pieces of art from the Islamic region. The reason that I chose to analyze this piece over the other exhibits was a result of my interest in mosque architecture, and because this was as close as I was able to get to an ancient piece of Islamic architecture. I have seen many qibla walls, many qurans, and many mihrabs, but this specific one was unlike the modern prayer niches in the mosques that I visit, it was a spectacular masterpiece of polychrome mosaic and it was unlike any religious architectural exhibit in the western world. It’s impossible to ignore the important role that the east Asian ideas of the Mongol empire played in the religious architecture of the Ilkhanid period, and had the Ilkhanids not been so heavily influenced by Mongol traditions their architecture would have had a completely different look and feel.

In ancient civilizations, architecture was fundamental to revealing certain aspects of a culture, such as its leaders and their communication with the citizens. Rulers that controlled society utilized temples and buildings to express their power and communicate with their subjects. Cultures were able to express their abilities through architecture, along with their beliefs and the functionality of their society. Architecture allowed cultures to leave behind physical evidence of their existence and further display their ideologies, capabilities, and accomplishments. The exploration of architecture in ancient Persia and India reveals many correlations between the two cultures. Ancient Persian architecture displayed the Persians’ liberal policy, in incorporating diverse cultures, and their intricate designs, most of which, relating to royalty. Meanwhile, ancient Indian architecture exhibited close resemblance to Persian architecture, and the Indians also used their building as an expression of royalty and the power that the ruler held.

Hatshepsut’s temple was built in the 15th century to the Queen and Pharaoh Hatshepsut. It was a mortuary building; although it was used for religions purpose to worship the Egyptian Gods. It has an unique style since the architecture was based on the Egyptian traditional buildings. Ananda Temple was built in the 12th century by the King Kyanzitth located in Bagan, Myanmar. This building is one of a kind, the legend say that the king once hosted 8 monks who showed him the places and temples that they lived before, the king then ordered to build Ananda Temple and as the building was finished, he ordered to kill the architects.

Located in Agra, India the ______________________ was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal.

Taj Mahal is one of the famous monument situated in Agra, India built by the great Mughal Emperor Shan Jahan in dedication to his wife. The building was built between 1631 and 1648 by a famous architect Ustad Ahmad Lahouri with the help of more than 20,000 workers to complete the work. Taj Mahal was built in the remembrance of Shan Jahan’s third wife Mumtaz Mahal. This monument stands out for the internal love towards his wife. The building was built out with marvelous white marbles, also different types of marbles from many regions have. Taj Mahal is considered to be one of the seven wonders of the world. People of India is really proud to have a monument which took place in the seven wonders of the world. The real intent was to create a monument that would be matchless in beauty and magnificence and continuing inheritance, a masterpiece for the eternities to come, to assure his place in history. In 2007 the Official Declaration Ceremony took place and acknowledged Taj Mahal as the new seven wonders of the world. Along with The Great Wall of China, Petra, Chichén Itzá, The Statue of Christ Redeemer, the Colosseum, Machu Picchu. The Taj Mahal is the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally masterpieces of the world's heritage for Islamic community to worship and one of the engaged tourist site. According to history Taj Mahal is famous in India because of its significance in its culture, architecture, design, myths and legend and tourism.

A mosque (Masjid in Arabic) is a place for Muslims to worship God. The sacred space that I visited is “Dar AlHjrah” mosque in Falls church, VA. In my country every neighborhood has a mosque and each mosque has different shape and Design. Dar AlHjrah mosque had everything a mosque has. There’s “minaret” which is a slim tower attached to the mosque. The “minaret” shape was octagonal with pointed roof. The reason for the “minaret” tower is to make the call for prayer (Adhan). The color of the whole mosque from outside is white and beige.

The Taj Mahal, or “crown of palaces,” was commissioned by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in 1632 to be built in Agra, India, on the bank of the Yamuna River (“Taj Mahal Facts” 1). Shah Jahan married Arjumand Banu Begum in 1612, and she was his third wife. However, Shah Jahan quickly took to her beautiful looks and charming personality and dubbed her Mumtaz Mahal, meaning “Chosen One of the Palace” (“The Taj Mahal” 1). Being his favorite wife and faithful companion, Mahal and Jahan traveled together frequently and came to have many children. During the birth of their fourteenth child, however, Mumtaz Mahal tragically died. To commemorate his love for her, Jahan ordered the greatest mausoleum of all time to be built in her honor: the Taj Mahal (“History of Taj Mahal” 1).