T H E LATER MUGHALS the

Peasure-loving nman who was unable to give

saw in chapter 4, Aurangzcb spent 25 ycars the strong lcadershipit needed to survive.
in pire were
During his long rule the Sayyid brothers
s a w

s
you life fighting wars in the Deccan. During
o fh i s
that long period, unrests broke out in other parts ioved from power. However, Hyderabad, Awadhn
In Punjab, the Sikhs began to assert and Bengal broke away from Mughal control.
empire.
In
ofthe independence.
In the Cianga-Yamuna Doab, By the cnd of the 17th century, the power of the
ir Tests
hcasant unrestsbecame
b frequent. The Mughal army central administration had weakened further.
pcas
was kept busy marching
keptbu
from one part of the
empire Merchants and feudal lords started taking greater
was
to put down rebellions. control of trade. Increased wealth made then very
the other
to

the death of Aurangzeb in 1707 CE, his powerful-they owned ships, controlled exports,
After the
maintained armies and became self-made
ccessors wereunable to hold the Mughal Empire jagirdars.
her. When Aurangzeb died, his three sons
together.

Bahadur Shah, Muhammad Azam and Kam PERSIAN INVASIONS

Leh fought for the throne. Bahadur Shah
Bak In 1739 CE, Nadir Shah, the ruler of Persia, invaded
defeated his brothers and ascended the throne in
India. He plundered Delhi of its wealth and took
1707 CE. He took the name of Shah Alam.
back with him, among other valuables, the Peacock
However, he was already 65 when he became
Throne and the Kohinoor Diamond. Before the
emperor. Mughal Empire could recover from this attack,
Shah Alam's reign saw the growing power of the Nadir Shah's successor, Ahmad Shah Abdali,
Marathas and the Rajputs. The Sikhs revolted under attacked India in 1748 CE. He invaded India
their leader Banda Bahadur. Banda Bahadur was repeatedly over the few years. He
next
captured
executed along with several of his followers. Punjab and defeated the Marathas in the Third
Battle of Panipat in 1761 CE. These invasions
In 1712 CE, Shah Alam was deposed by Jahander
Shah. quickened the process of disintegration of the
Jahander Shah's reign saw the rise of the
Sayyid brothers. The Sayyid brothers were part of a Mughal Empire.) |, 2
group of nobles who became so powerful that they
were able to
put the people of their choice on the
Mughal throne and remove the ones who displeased
them; thus they were also known as
kingmakers
They killed Jahander Shah within a year and placed
Farrukhsiyar on the throne in 1713 CE.
rarrukhsiyar was murdered in 1719 CE, and after
Series of other rulers, Muhammad Shah, a
srandson of Shah
l
Alam, came to power. He ruled
his death in
1748 CE. Mohammad Shah was a
 s a m e
t i me.
e. They were hence
the
at

the
emergence ofinde.
ndepender unahi.
preoviy
prevent
challenge of
and to
meet
the

fallin
foreign inva
revenues from
steep
There wasa
independent
provinces
from provincey
and from
indepenntrol of the empire.re.
under the control
For exatm
Golconda, which was a rich state.

annual tribute to t
state, stoppe
e Mughal"
its
sending
Mughal emperors contin
T h e later

world of fading
splendour, Ato ive
our. of touch
mostly controlled, h led by poweh
a
were
h wit
reality. They
Shah Jahan on the original Peacock Throne
nobles, and
were unable to hold
hold the empite
together
ENRICHMENT ACTIVITY did ha.
The Mughal Dynasty
not

the table shown below. It shows

the dear ndes
Look at

period of reign of the later Mughal emperors.

of succession. This
led to
bloody conticts
the death of every ruler ah
ater
How many emperors ruled berween 1707 and
1857 CE Now compare this to the number of

THE RISE OF REGIONAL KINGD0A

rulers who ruled the Mughal Empire berween
1550 and 1700 CE. What does ittell you about AND PROVINCES
OMS
the state of the Mughal Empire after 1707?
The popular uprisings that fHared up in dife
ShahAlam 1707-1712 CE parts of the country in the 18th century cE
Jahander Shah 1712-1713 CE in the Mughal Empire
Tesl
Farrukhsiyar 1713-1719 CE breaking up into dif
Muhammad Shah 1719-1748 CE regions. We can classity the ifferent erent
Ahmad Shah 1748-1754 CE emerged as region thar
Alamgir II 1754-1759 CE
Shah Alam II 1759-1806 CE regions that were originally under the
AkbarII 1806-1837 CE e.g, Awadh, Hyderabad and Mughal
ghals
Bahadur Shah Zafar I1837-1857 cE Bengal;
independent regions, e.g, the Rajputs of
CAUSES OF DECLINE OF THE Mewar and Marwar; and Ambe
EMPIRE MUGHAL
new states
that were
formed by
tormed
Aurangzeb's policies made enemies regional groups, e-g., the Jats, the powerfu
powerful
Rajputs, Jats, Sikhs and of the Marathas. Sikhs and the
Aurangzeb's Marathas
frequent wars
empire was unabledepleted
and so the the
on time. to
treasury,
pay the troops
The
troops were
hghting on too
many tronts
Regions
orginaariginally under the Mughals
XAwaDN
was a pros ous area on the fertile
Awadh
Aadin of th
the Ganga (see map).
plain

of
lood
n 1721
l CE, the
CE,
zamindars (landlords) of Awadh
and refused to pay their taxes
bellion
in
ghal authorities. To handle them, in
totheM e
CE,
Saadat Khan, the leader of the Irani group
1722
es in Delhi, was appointed by Muhammad
f no
"nobles
of Awadh. He was successful
the governor
the revolts and ensuring that the
suppressing
in
paid their Saadat Khan soon
taxes.
amindars
Hyderabad
established
a semi-independen provinceat Awadh. Qamaruddin Chin Qilich Khan, the Nizam of
he continued to
rule in theaname of the
in Delhi, he met with opposition and
Thoug resentment.
emperor,
Awadh was in
every other way an He
Mugh. to Hyderabad.
The full revenue collected Disappointed, he returned
independent province. established the kingdom of Hyderabad
in
to Delhi.
was no longer sent semi-independent
1724 CE and ruled it in a
Saadat Khan helped the Mughal declared his
CE, never openly
In 1739 manner. However, he
fhght against Nadir Shah. Saadat Khan Qilich
emperor independence from the Mughal emperor.
by his son-in- Nizam ul Mulk and
was
succeeded
Khan was given the titles of
in 1739 CE. known as the
law Safdarjung AsafJah. He and his successors were
In 1748 CE, Emperor Ahmad nizams of the Asaf Jahi Dynasty.
Shah made Safdarjung a wazir Khan had
As the Nizam of Hyderabad, Qilich
prime minister). Safdarjung raids of the Marathas.
to deal with the frequent
the title of Nawab-
took
friendly relations with both
on
He tried to maintain
Wazir of Awadh.
one hand, and the Mughal
the
the Marathas on
Saadar Khan and his successors
emperor on the other. Qilich Khan also helped the
Safdarjung the second
brought back peace to Awadh. Nawab of Awadh emperor fight against Nadir Shah.
Its capital, Lucknow, became
(shayari), dance Qilich Khan was a capable ruler and Hyderabad
a famous centre of Urdu poetry became well
prospered under him. Hyderabad
and music. The
known for its art, culture and cuisine (food).
Asaf Jahis continued to rule the state till it finally
HYDERABAD the Indian Union in 1948 CE.
Qamaruddin Chin Qilich Khan, the leader of merged with
appointed in
the lurani group of nobles, was
Deccan. In 1722 CE, BENGAL
/15 CE as the viceroy of the The independent state of Bengal was founded by
he was made the wazir at Delhi by the emperor
Murshid Kuli Khan. He was first appointed by the
Mohammad Shah. When he tried to restore order
113
 ASE
SMENT
F o R M A T I V E
roR
Mughal empeny as irs diwan and later elevatevd to le PmoyEcT
Joa project
Do
ts
offour.
gomerno later. the rgon of Odisha was added Work in
groups
kingdois
or provinces
that came
t.
to
Bengal Rengal pepered under him. He shitred the regional
ofIndia,
a, when the perwer
hs capital tfom Dhaka to
Murshidabad. He owed in
diflerent
M u g h a l s

parts
w e a k e n e d .

ofthe
allegianr to the Mughal empenr only in name.
After Aul Khan passed awar in 1727 F, his son
independent

regions or i the watan

in-law Shujauddaulah became the next governor The Rajputs
ot Bengal B1har was alo under his charge. In jagirs of the
te
jogirs of
had always enjoyed
140t. Alivardi Khan (1740-1756 CE) defeated
The Rajput
rulers
the
c
times,
Mughal times,
Mughal eso.
especially
Certai
Sartarar Ahan. the son of Shujauddaulah. and took
frecdom
during
Akbar had reali realised early in unde
over
Bengal. He went back on his promise of paying Akbar. his rule
the rule of aintaining a cordial
revenuc to the Mughal cmperor. Bengal. Bihar and
relationship
the
importance
ofmain
with the Rajputs. To
the ajputs.
concil: them
lo concilia.
(friend
Odisha became an independent state under him relationship
with
e r e aalso made
He Under these were
rulers w
governe
succccded bv Sirajuddaulah.
ofthe Rajput
was
some
Tulers, Bengal becamc rich and prosperous. lt was, jagirs.
or
theretore. thefrst statc to be targeted and caprured
ofprovinces
of Amber was mad
Sirajuddaulah (6Raia Sawai Jai Singh
the
British The British defeated Malwa.Jai Singh later founded hi
hs new
in the Bartle of Plassey in 1757 CE.) governor of
capitalat Jaipur6
During the rule of Aurangzeb, the relarionship
between the Rajputs and the Mughals deteriora
The Rajputs fought the Mughals safeguard h
to
jagirsand their homeland (watan).
When Jai Singh of Amber died, Raja Jaswa
Singhof Marwar (odhpur) was made the govetnor
of Deccan. After the deathof Jaswant Singh in 1678
CE, the cordiality between Jodhpur and Aurangzb
Shujauddaulah (1753-1775 CE) played a crucial role in
the Third Battle ofPanipat (1761). also died. Aurangzeb dispatched an army which
defeated and destroyed the state, its towns and
villages. To add to the troubles of Aurangzeb,
Raja Jai Singh of Mewar also revolted at the sane
time. Aurangzeb
settled for peace with Mewar, but
Marwar continued to trouble him.
Thus, Aurangzeb was forced to
maintain troo
A Bangladeshi stamp
near
Rajasthan to safeguard the empire
Alivardi Khan showing Sirajuddaulah
Rajputstroops which could have beenfrom th
used to
fight the Marathas.
 the Sikhs into a militant sect, the Khalsa, in
1699 CE.

ENRICHMENT ACTIVITY
Chart making: Collect
information about
Guru Gobind Singh and present it in the form
ofa chart. According to Guru Gobind Singh's
Strictures, every Sikh was expected to have five
things (all of which started with 'k) his a on or
her
person. Find out what these five
Hint: one of them was
things were
kes, or hair.long
nointing of Maharaja Sangram Singh and Sawai Guru Gobind Singh
Amber enjoying a feast outside Jai Singh of
Jaipur led the Sikhs in several
Raia Ajit Singh of Marwar (Jodhpur) battles against the
was made
governor ofAjmer and Gujarat by the Mughals. After his
brochers supporting them in their fightSayyid
for
with
death in 1708 CE,
the Sikhs continued
Muhammad Shah, the Mughal ruler. They also
their struggle against
appointed Jai Singh Il governor of Agra.
the Mughals under
the leadership of Guru Gobind Singh established the
New power groups Sikh Khalsa.
Banda Bahadur. By
THE SIKHS 1720 CE, they had established their kingdom
As you saw in between the Sutlej and the Yamuna rivers. The
chapter 9, Guru Nanak (1469-1539
CE) founded Sikhism in the Sikhs struck their coins and had their own
own
beginning of the 16th administrative set up. Their army consisted of
century. He its first
was
guru. The fifth guru, Arjan
several well-trained
Dev, compiled the teachings of the earlier compact units called misls.
gurus They collected taxes from the farmers in return for
into what came to be called the Guru Granth Sahib.
He also built the Harmandir Sahib (or the Golden protection from the Mughal officials.
Temple) at Amritsar. Though they tried repeatedly, the
Mughals
could not put down the
Emperor Jahangir was enraged with Arjan Dev Sikhs. Under the rule of
for
helping Shah Jahan rebel against him and had Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the
him put to death. This act
of Jahangir's angered the Sikh Kingdom reached the
ikhs, who took this as an attack on their religion
by the Mughals. The ninth Sikh guru, Guru Teg height of its glory. It now
extended from the rivers
Bahadur (1664-1675 CE) was also put to death
Indus to the Yamuna. Ranjit
by the Mughals-this time by Aurangzeb. In
Singh established his capital
Tcsponse to this act, his son and the last Sikh guru,
uru Gobind Singh (1675-1708 CE) transformed
at
Lahore. )NA Maharaja Ranjit Singh
 THE MARATHAS
The Marathas belonged the Marathwada
to
egion, which consisted of present-day Mumbat.
Ahandesh. Konkan. Berat, parts of Madhya Pradesh
and Andhra Pradesh. Under the leadership of
Shivaji (1627-1680 CE). the Marathas rose to
Decome major threat the
a to Mughal Enmpire.
Suvarnadurg Fort, one of Shivaji's naval bases
Shivaji
born in 1627 CE. Shivaji was the last of six sons of the Mughal

Shahaji Bhonsle. in the service

Aurangzeb became inemperor
1658-
powerful noble Both the Sultan of Bijapur and the
Mughals we
a

of the Sultan of Bijapur. Shivaji's guru Samartha

Mughal
alarmed at the growing powerofShivai
Ramdas was a Bhakti saint. He taught Shivaji curb him.
a Atten
were made to
to take pride in Maratha culture and to hght tor
In 1664 CE, Shivaji attacked the port
freedom from Mughal rule. Shivaji grew to be a
ura
looted it of its wealth. He caused enough d
gTeat soldier and a strong leader.
to paralyse trade in Gujarat and the
entire
tama
Establishment of power Mugh
Empire.
Shivaji started on his mission Shivaji crowned himselt as Chhatrapas
of
conquest when he was just sovereign ruler in Poona in 1674 CE. H. trapati o
18, in 1644-45 CE. Within
the Deccan, capturing Gingee and Vllo
11 years, he had laid the ote
South India, and Kopal and Bellary below K
foundation of the Maratha
in Karnataka.
Empire by capturing the
whole of the Konkan. He
built a fort at Raigarh and
NAdministration
made his capital there. Shivaji Shivaji was a good administrator. He looked ate
his territory well. Shivaji ruled his
kingdom wit=
Taking full advantage of the rocky and mountainous the help of a council of
eight ministers called
terrain of western Maharashtra, Shivaji and his
followers launched surprise attacks on their
Ashtapradhans. The most important of these eigh
ministers were the peshwa or the
enemies. This kind of hidden warfare is prime ministe
called and the senapati or the commander of the
guerilla warfare. The element of surprise gave the army
Marathas a great 1 (The main source of revenue for the Marati
advantage over their enemies.
Unlike the Mughals, who government was land revenue. Shivaji collectd
neglected the sea ports, land from territories ruled directly by
tax
Shivaji built strong navy ports at hin
other places to Suvarnadurg and This amounted to
two-fifths of the land's produ
protect his territory from attacks
through sea route. He also befriended the
the However, the peasants who
lived in territona
Europeans to learn modern administered by the Mughals or other rulers
techniques
of warfare a
from them. had to pay
pay two taxes to the Marathas
taxes to rathas--chau
and
sardeshmukhi-in addition to the tar they
 hostage
rulers. Chauth was
one-fourth of his Sahu was taken as

urangzeb and
their own
son

nue and was pad to ensure that the Maratha kingdom passed
the Mughal court. The
h e land revenue

to
of
raid the lands of these the step-brother
peasants. n t o the hands of Rajaram,
larathas
wvuld

an additional one tenth of the Aurangzeb., he retreated to

d e s h m u k h i
was
Sambhaji. Harrassed by
these farmershad from there. When
h a n dr e v e n u e to
pay Gingee and fought rhe Mughals
wife Tarabai raided
he died in 1700 CE, his
fighting
Miltary administration
son, Pahadur
army was oompact and disciplined. Shivaji
Gujarat and Baroda. Aurangzeb's
the Marathas
Shiva Shah, released Sahu. He began ruling
his ofheers in cash, nlike the Mughal system minister,
zNdhis of his peshwa. or prime
anding them with jagirs. lrained in guerilla
with the help
o fn e w a n t i n g
Balaji Vishwanath.
his soldicrs would swoop and attack the
wartare. his

mics with lightning speod, cause severe

damage Balaji Viswanath (1713-1720 cE)
with cqual speed. hivaji, with his administration and revenue
and retreat
Balaji was an expert in
atriotism. inspired his soldiers to be brave and collection. He got back from the Mughals the
parre the right to collect
daring
territories ruled by Shivaji and
chauth and sardeshmukhi from
the Mughal
The Peshwas
territories in the Deccan. Balaji was the first of a
his son Sambhaji carried
After the death of Shivaji,
became
line of seven peshwas. The peshwas soon
an the battle with the Mughals. He was executed by

(THE MARATHAS IN 1680 CE

Tropic of Cancer

Cambay, arma
S u r a t r-SATPLRA RANG NG
Daman °Durhanpur
Mahanae
Diu
BasseinKalyan Chandor
Salsette Kirkeéurangabad

Bombay Ahmadnagar
Chaul
Janjira
Ratnagirn
aigarh
Satare Kalyani
Bijapur
Gheria KólhapúrRaichur
Godae ri BAY

Goa KopPal Masulipatam F

Karwar Bellari
ARABIAN Vellore BENGAL
Sira KolarMadras
SEA MangalorBangaluru Arni
Mysore Gingee oPondicherry
Calicut ePorto Novo
Trichirapalye *Thanjavur Shivaji's territories
Cochin
Madurai Maharashtra
Quilon
SRI Important towns
Present external boundary
LANKA of India

IND IAN OCE AN

Map of Shivajl's territories

117
 ENRICHMENT ACTIVITY
Suppose you were a farmer who lived
in Mal
in AD 1735. Was Malwa directly
rul ed
Aarathas, or didit pay chauth and
sardes by t
Imagine that in a season
you carned omul
from the sale ofyour crop. You pay Rs1
your land's produce to your ruler. W
the land revenue you would have had .
Marathas? How much money would ht
left with you? Find out and let your have
Peshwa Baji Rao teacherer knor
the real rulers of the Maratha Kingdom. subcontinent (look at the map on paoe

Baji Raol (1720-1740 CE) places that were not ruled directly by the 117).T
The second Peshwa, Baji Rao I, was determined had to pay chauth and sardeshmukhi to Mara
to take Maratha glory to greater heights. Under brought the Marathas great wealth. D
the anger of the Sikhs,
Bur it a
carned them
earned them
him the Marathas took control of Gujarat, raided the I
and the kingdoms of Bengal and Hvdp Rajpa
Bengal, and overran Malwa and Bundelkhand.
Delhiin The Marathas clashed with Abdali in
Hyderabad.
They defeated the Mughal army near
in the
the Th
1737 CE. They also defeated the Nizam of Hyderabad, Battle of Panipat in 1761 CE. Neither th
Neither the ST
who had been sent by the Mughal emperor to drive nor the Rajput kingdoms helped the
Marni
arat
out the Marathas from Malwa. Asaf Jah was forced The Marathas were roured; they never
recove-
to enter into a treaty with the Marathas. Baji Rao, fully from this defeat. As the power of the pesh-
however, did not ocupy the throne. declined, the various Maratha chiefs, such 2s
Bhonsles, the Gaekwads, the Sindhias and
Balaji Baji Rao (1740-1761 CE) Holkars, established their separate states.
The eldest son of Baji Rao I, Balaji Baji Rao,
succeeded his father. In 1750 CE he made P'une THE JATS
his capital. Under Balaji Baji Rao, the Maratha Close to Delhi in the

Kingdom reached its greatest extent; its fame and Mathura-Agra region, the
Rao captured
power reached their peak. Balaji Baji Jat peasants, under their
Delhi in 1753 CE and Punjab in 1758 CE. leader Gokula, rose in
The Mughal emperor entered into a treaty with rebellion against the high
the Marathas by which the Marathas agreed to taxes levied by the Mughal
defend the Mughal Empire from further invasions rulers. In 1619 CE, they
of Ahmad Shah Abdali. In return for the protection, built forts and blocked Gokula

the Marathas were given the right to collect chauth caravan routes from Agra to
oul
and sardeshmukhi from Punjab and Sind. The Delhi. They killed the Faujdars who caried
Maratha Kingdom now controlled most of the

118
 sive policies of Aurangzeb. One of their kin
established the kings.
Surar kingdom of
againstBharatpur.
could not ENRICHMENT ACTIVITY
However, they succeed
the Presentation/Website: Make a presentation
f the Mughals. Gokula was
executed. But
might
to trouble the the Jats or website on Shivaji. Include pictures of
ontinucd Mughals for Shivaji, his family, the forts he built and a
the
1691 CE, ther rebels years. In
reappeared in greater force
captured Akbars tomb. and map showing the extent of his cmpire.

XTHE SATNAMIS THE END OF THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD

In 167 CE the Satnamis, a
,
By 1750 CE, the rule of the
Hindu sect from Mughals
over India

the region
same as the
Jats, rebelled had as
good as ended. As we just saw, various new
oppressive
policies of the Mughals. Theagainst ne
the powers and kingdoms had established themselves
Satnamis
mostly goldsmiths, tanners and sweepers, in various parts of the
who country. Though Mughal
aimed overthrowing Aurangzeb and
at emperors would continue to sit on the throne of
.ist rule. Their revolt was put down establishing Delhi till 1857 CE, it would be
only in name. The
1he
eMughals. In 1704 CE, the repeatedly by British had started
Satnamis revolted for gaining power steadily and by
rhe last time under their 1800 CE would establish themselves as the the new
leader, Chauraman. But new
therwere defeated by rulers of India. With the decline of
the
Mughals, with heavy
a
Mughal power in
loss of lives on their side. Since India, the medieval period of Indian history comes
they shaved their to an end. Next year we will study the modern
heads they were also called the
'mundiyas' (bald
headed). period of Indian history, i.e., the period of British
rule in India and the
struggle
for independence.
Glossary
zamindar: a landlord
revenue
conciliate: to gain the goodwill of
sardeshmukhi: a land tax that was one-tenth of|
Khalsa: the militant sect of Sikhism
the revenue
guerilla warfare: fighting by sabotage and surprise peshwa: a prime minister of the Marathas
attacks
tanner: person who
a treats animal skins to convert|
chauth: a land tax that was one-fourth of the them into leather

In In Brief
Aurangzeb died in 1707 CE; his successors were unable to hold the Mughal Empire together.
In 1739 CE, Nadir Shah, the ruler of Persia, invaded India and took back with him treasures
including
the Peacock Throne and the Kohinoor Diamond.
Ahmad Shah Abdali defeated the Marathas in the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761 CE
Saadat Khan was appointed by the Mughal emperor Mohammad Shah as governor of Awadh.
Qilich Khan established the kingdom of Hyderabad in 1724 CE.
 Enrichment Activities
Makea scrapbook: Gather more intormation wore, the cuisine the place was
about anv onc of the threc independent the dance and music forms thatamous tor
egionsAwadh. Bengal or Hyderabad-in etc. Present your
em.

hndings in the form emerged

the 18th century. Find out about the art scrapbook.
and culture of the place, the dresses
people

Exercises
Fill in the blanks. II. True or false?
.J absucceeded
2rdudue
After Aurangzeb, 1. Aurangzeb's military policies were a
reason fo
to the throne of the Mughal Empire. the decline of the Mughals.
invaded India in 1739 CE and 2. The Kingdom of Hyderabad was establishe
took back the Peacock Throne with him. by Qilich Khan."1
The capital of Awadh was Luno 3. Jaipur was founded as the capital of Mewar
4 The independent state of Bengal was founded 4 Ranjit Singh was a great ruler of the Sik
by Kingdom.
Guru established the Khalsa. 5. Shivaji collected chauth and sardeshmukh
6 Shivajis cighr ministers (councillors) were from all territories.
called e 6. Bharatpur was the kingdom ofthe Satnams
7 Balaji Baji Rao made hiscapital l. Answer in brief.
in 1750 C.
1. Who was Nadir Shah? What was the result
8. Gokula was theleaderof the his attack on Delhi?

120
 Who were the wo sides in the Third
Panipat? hat was the outcome?
Battle of come to an end?

10. Wite a short note on the rebellion oftheJats.

Who were know as the
kingmakers g
the reign of the Later NMughals? Why during l1. Write a short note on the Satna

Khan? Name the

Who was Qilich in detail.
Answerin
IV. Answer detail.
Athe kingdom establishcd by him.
dynasty
nasty and
and
What were the reasons for the decline of the
who were the participants
in the Mughals?
Battle of of the
Plassey? What was the outcome? Give a short summary of the history
Who was aPpointed by Akbar as the governor kingdom of Hyderabad.
of Malwa? Name the capital he established. 3. Describe briefly the history of the independent
What were the two kinds of land taxes collecte state of Bengal.
by the Marathas in the territories they did not 4. Describe how the Sikhs rose to power.

rule? 5. Give an account of the administration of

8x Who were the Peshwas? How did they come Shivaji.

6. Describe the rise of Maratha power under the
to power?
9How and when did the Maratha Kingdom Peshwas.

4Multiple Choice Questions

What was the impact of the 25 years spent by India, which challenged and defeated the
warsin the Deccan?
Aurangzebfighting Mughal army
aWith the emperor away from the capital for vd. The invasions of Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah
extended periods of time, several regional Abdali
4. Which of these statements is true?
powers felt emboldened to revolt against the
a. Saadat Khan was appointed by Aurangzeb as
Mughals.
b. The centre of power shifted from Delhi to the governor of Awadh.

Bijapur in the Deccan. b. Saadat Khan helped the invader, Nadir Shah,
Aurangzeb was able to establish a mighty fight against the Mughal Emperor.
C. Saadat Khan declared his independence
from
empire with a strong foundation.
d. Aurangzeb was able to amass a lot of ealth the Mughal Emperor.
from his conquests in the Deccan.
d. Saadat Khan and his successors brought peace
taken back to Persia as to Awadh.
2. The Peacock Throne was
5. The kingdom of Hyderabad was established in
part of his plundered wealth by
a. Ahmad Shah Abdali b. Shah Alam 1724 by
d. Muhammad Shah a. Qilich Khan b. Saadat Khan
A.Nadir Shah for the decline of the c. Safdurjung d. Murshid Kuli Khan
3. Which of these were causes
than one 6. Who was the ruler of Bengal who was defeated
Mughal empire? (There could be more by the British in the Battle of Plassey?
correct option.) a. Shujauddaulah
b. Alivardi Khan
Aurangzeb's policies made enemies ofthe
c Sirajuddaulah d. None of the above.
Rajputs, Jats, Sikhs and Marathas 7. To keep the Rajputs happy, whom did Akbar
. The frequent battles fought by Aurangzeb make the governor of Malwa?
was
emptied the treasury, so the empire a. Raja Sawai Jai Singh b. Raja Jaswant Singh
unable to pay the soldiers on time. c. Raja Jai Singh d. Raja Ajit Singh
in South
C. The rise of a powerful Chola kingdom

121
 kind ofwarfare conducted.
ed
d. It is a only in
The last Sikh Guru who
transformed the Sikhs forests.
collected by Shivaji from De. den
into a militant sect was
6. Guru Gobind Singh
10. The tax
territorles to ensure that
asants
he did
liw
a. Guru Nanak in Mughal
c. Guru Arjan Dev Tegh Bahadur
d. Guru attack them, was called
b. Chauth
not
was used by Shivaj
What is guerrilla warfare? lt
a. Sardeshmukhi

in his fight against the Mughals. c. Peshwa

d. Ashtapradhan
a. It is warfare where gorillas
are used to scare
11. Whom did Ahmad
Shah. dali defeat in
of Panipat, in
1761 cE? the
the enemies. Batle
warriors launch b. The Sikhs
b.It is hidden warfare where a.The Marathas
enemies. d. The Mughals
surprise attacks on their c. The Rajputs
methods
C. It is terrorist warfare
where different
of terror are used.

Life skills
HOTS: Think and Answer

halt Critical thinking

armers in the medieval age had to pay almost History bears testimony to the fact th.
their produce the ruler as tax. Why did they that the
of succession to the Mughal thr
to
from process
have to pay this? Today the farmer is exempt
usually accompanied by treachery, backstak
Do you suPport
paying agricultural taxes. Why? and murde. The greed for power turned h
this? Give your opinion. into foes. Ifyou were transported to the
and were third in line to the throne, what
year 1707
Values that enrich have been your choice-tamily or powe would
and answer. Give reasons to justiky your:
answer
Chhatrapati Shivaji often tested his soldiers
to see

if they obeyed his orders. One evening, he went

up the gates of his fort, and ordered the sentry
to

to open the gates. He said that

the enemy was
even when
chasing him. The sentry refused entry
shown the royal ring and threatened punishment.
refused
The sentry cited his master's orders and
rewarded the sentry for
toopen the gates. Shivaji
What values
observing the rules laid down by him.
did the sentry support?

122