The Mughal Empire

UPSC GS1 — Akbar's policies:

Akbar (1556–1605) is considered the greatest Mughal for consolidating a diverse empire through pragmatic and inclusive policies:

Religious policy:

• Sulh-i-kul ("Peace with all"): Universal tolerance; no persecution of any religion
• Din-i-Ilahi (1582): A syncretic "divine faith" combining elements of Islam, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity; Akbar as spiritual guide; only ~18–19 followers — more a court experiment than a religion
• Abolished jizya (tax on non-Muslims): Removed in 1564; (Aurangzeb later reimposed it in 1679)
• Ibadat Khana (House of Worship, 1575): Built at Fatehpur Sikri; invited scholars of all religions to debate — Hindus, Jains, Zoroastrians, Christians (Jesuit priests), Sufi Muslims
• Married Rajput princess Jodha Bai — political and cultural integration

Administrative reforms:

• Mansabdari system: Standardised hierarchy; ensured nobles' loyalty and military capability
• Todar Mal's revenue system: Land measured accurately; different rates for different soil quality; fixed assessment (zabti system in some areas); basis of Mughal revenue administration
• Ain-i-Akbari (Abul Fazl): Detailed statistical record of empire — revenues, provinces, population, prices
• Included Rajput nobles in highest mansab ranks — first Mughal emperor to truly integrate Rajputs

Fatehpur Sikri:

• New capital built near Agra (1571); abandoned ~1585 — Akbar moved to Lahore primarily due to north-western frontier unrest; water shortage is a secondary/contested reason
• Contains: Buland Darwaza (Gate of Victory — 54m high; built to commemorate Gujarat conquest), Panch Mahal (5-storey pleasure palace), Diwan-i-Khas, Diwan-i-Am, Jama Masjid, tomb of Sheikh Salim Chishti (Sufi saint whose prayers Akbar credited for the birth of his son Jahangir)
• UNESCO World Heritage Site

[Additional] Sher Shah Suri — Grand Trunk Road, Silver Rupee, Revenue Reforms, and Rohtas Fort (GS1 — Medieval History):

Sur Empire — timeline:

Grand Trunk Road:

Silver Rupee (Rupiya):

• Introduced to replace the debased, chaotic multi-denomination currency system inherited from the Lodi and Sur predecessors
• Weight: ~178–180 grains (~11.5 grams) of silver; exchange rate = 64 copper dams per rupiya
• Standard adopted by Akbar; retained by all Mughal emperors; continued by the British East India Company until 1835 (when British India introduced its own standardised rupee)
• The modern Indian Rupee (₹) traces its lineage directly to Sher Shah's standardisation

Revenue System — Patta and Qabuliyat:

• Land classified into 4 categories: Polaj (best, cultivated annually), Parauti (cultivated alternate years), Chachar (fallow 3–4 years), Banjar (fallow 5+ years)
• Revenue assessment: 1/3 of produce as the state's share; cash payment preferred
• Patta (farmer's deed) + Qabuliyat (farmer's acceptance contract) = the first systematic contractual documentation of the farmer-state revenue relationship in medieval India
• Akbar's minister Todar Mal refined this system into the Ain-i-Dahsala (Ten-Year Settlement, 1580) — but the Patta-Qabuliyat framework was inherited directly from Sher Shah

Dak Chowki (Postal Relay):

• Relay stations every ~11 miles along major roads; ~3,400 horses maintained exclusively for postal and intelligence use
• Enabled news to reach the capital within days from distant provinces
• Simultaneously served as an intelligence network — couriers reported local activities to the court

Rohtas Fort — UNESCO WHS:

Sher Shah's Tomb, Sasaram (Bihar):

• Location: Sasaram, Rohtas district, Bihar — his hometown
• Three-storied octagonal structure surmounted by a large hemispherical dome; height ~122 feet; red sandstone
• Stands on a plinth in the middle of an artificial rectangular lake (locally called Pani Roza — "water tomb") — a unique feature in Indian funerary architecture
• Architect: Mir Muhammad Aliwal Khan (1540–45)
• Architectural lineage: drew from Sayyid-Lodi tomb styles → directly influenced Humayun's Tomb → ultimately the Taj Mahal tradition

Why Akbar adopted Sher Shah's system: Akbar had spent his boyhood in Kabul during Humayun's exile. When he recaptured India, Sher Shah's administrative framework was the functioning system he inherited. Todar Mal (revenue minister), the mansabdari system (adapted from Sher Shah's administrative hierarchy), the GT Road infrastructure, the rupiya standard — all were Sher Shah's creations, refined and expanded by Akbar over 49 years.

UPSC synthesis: Sher Shah Suri = GS1 Medieval History. Key exam facts: Real name = Farid Khan; Sur Empire = 1540–1556; personal reign = 1540–1545 (~5 years, died at Kalinjar fort in gunpowder explosion); Grand Trunk Road = original Uttarapatha (Mauryan) → Sher Shah's Sadak-e-Azam → British's Grand Trunk Road = ~3,655 km = Teknaf to Kabul = caravanserais every 2 kos + kos minars every kos; rupiya = ~178–180 grains silver = 64 dams per rupiya = continued by Mughals + British until 1835; Dak Chowki = horse relay every ~11 miles = ~3,400 horses = intelligence + postal; revenue = Patta (farmer's deed) + Qabuliyat (farmer's contract) + 1/3 produce = 4-category land classification; Rohtas Fort = Punjab, Pakistan = 1997 UNESCO = built 1541 to subdue Gakhars; Tomb = Sasaram Bihar = octagonal + artificial lake (Pani Roza). Prelims trap: Rohtas Fort UNESCO WHS is in Punjab, Pakistan (NOT Bihar, India — they are two different forts; the Bihar Rohtas fort is NOT a UNESCO WHS); Grand Trunk Road is on India's Tentative List (NOT yet inscribed as a UNESCO WHS); gaz-i-Sikandari was originally introduced by Sikandar Lodi (NOT Sher Shah — Sher Shah standardized it); the modern rupee traces to Sher Shah (NOT to Akbar or the British); Sur dynasty ended 1556 (NOT 1545 — Sher Shah died 1545 but the dynasty continued under successors until Humayun recaptured Delhi in 1555–56).

[Additional] Mughal Miniature Painting — Three-Way Synthesis, Emperor-by-Emperor Evolution (GS1 — Art & Culture):

The three-way synthesis:

Emperor-by-emperor evolution:

Akbar (1556–1605) — Establishment:

• Founded the Tasvir Khana (imperial workshop); ~225 painters at peak
• Brought Persian masters (Mir Sayyid Ali + Abd al-Samad) from Safavid Tabriz via Humayun
• Commissioned the Hamzanama (c. 1562–1577; ~1,400 paintings on cotton cloth; ~200 survive; MAK Vienna holds 60)
• Also commissioned: Akbarnama (his own illustrated history, c. 1590–95; at V&A London), Razmnama (Persian translation of the Mahabharata), Ramayana, and Baburnama in illustrated form
• Pioneered portraiture as a genre — real court individuals depicted, not idealized types
• Deliberately integrated Indian artists alongside Persian masters to engineer the synthesis

Jahangir (1605–1627) — Naturalist Peak:

• Intense personal passion for nature → commissioned extraordinarily detailed bird, animal, and plant studies
• Key artists:
  • Abu al-Hasan — titled Nadir al-Zaman ("Wonder of the Age") by Jahangir; master of portraiture
  • Bishandas — master of psychological portraiture; sent to Persia to paint Shah Abbas I from life
  • Ustad Mansur — titled Nadir al-Asr ("Wonder of the Epoch"); exquisite scientific-level fauna studies
• European influence deepened: Jahangir acquired European engravings through Jesuit missions and diplomacy; his artists adopted atmospheric perspective, volumetric shading, and graduated sky backgrounds
• Jahangir claimed (in his memoir Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri) he could identify an individual painter's contribution within a composite painting — rare connoisseurship

Shah Jahan (1628–1658) — Formal Grandeur:

• Painting shifted to formal, ceremonially perfect court scenes emphasising imperial pomp and architectural backgrounds
• Key work: Padshahnama (gold-illuminated record of his reign)
• Technically superb but narrower subject matter; less naturalism than Jahangir era

Aurangzeb (1658–1707) — Dispersal:

• Formally banned music and figurative painting from his court in 1680 (considered un-Islamic)
• The Tasvir Khana was effectively shut down as an active imperial workshop
• Paradox: some of the finest late Mughal paintings were produced as the karkhana closed down — trained masters working in anticipation of unemployment
• Dispersal effect: Former imperial painters migrated to Rajput courts (Bikaner, Bundi, Kota, Mewar) and Pahari courts (Kangra, Guler, Basohli) — directly seeding the golden age of Rajasthani and Pahari miniature painting in the 18th century

Major museum collections today:

UPSC synthesis: Mughal painting = GS1 Art & Culture. Key exam facts: Tasvir Khana = Akbar's imperial painting workshop = ~225 painters = directed first by Mir Sayyid Ali then Abd al-Samad (both from Safavid Tabriz, brought by Humayun); Hamzanama = ~1,400 paintings on cotton cloth (~200 survive) = commissioned by Akbar (~1562) = largest holding at MAK Vienna (60 folios); Akbarnama illustrated version = at V&A London; three-way synthesis = Persian + Indian + European; Jahangir's court painters = Abu al-Hasan (Nadir al-Zaman) + Bishandas + Ustad Mansur (Nadir al-Asr, fauna studies); Jahangir's own account = Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri; Aurangzeb banned painting 1680 → dispersal → Rajasthani + Pahari painting traditions flourished. Prelims trap: Hamzanama painted on cotton cloth (NOT paper — one of the most unusual aspects); Mir Sayyid Ali and Abd al-Samad came from Safavid Tabriz (brought by Humayun, NOT Akbar — they were part of Humayun's court during his Persian exile and returned with him); Ustad Mansur was titled Nadir al-Asr (NOT Nadir al-Zaman — that was Abu al-Hasan; both titles mean "Wonder of the Age/Epoch"); Jahangir is known for naturalism (flora/fauna/portraits) NOT architecture (architecture = Shah Jahan's domain); Akbarnama (illustrated) is at V&A London (NOT National Museum Delhi or Metropolitan Museum).