Mughals = Mongols, who invaded India Backdrop of crumbled Gupta Empire by 600 CE and subsequent invaders Rajputs= rulers of the small kingdoms in India after the breakup of the Gupta empire Ongoing Conflicts o 8th century began with long clash between Hindus and Muslims o Hindus held off Muslims until 1000 CE, when Turkish armies led by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni devastated India o Delhi became the capital of a loose empire of Turkish warlords called the Delhi Sultanate o Between 13th and 16th centuries, 33 sultans ruled this divided country o 1398 Timur the Lame destroyed Delhi completely

Babur Founds an Empire o 1494 an 11-year old boy named Babur inherited a tiny kingdom in Central Asia o Built up an army and swept down into India laying the groundwork for the empire o Brilliant general, sensitive, loved poetry

The Golden Age of Akbar  Ruled India with wisdom and tolerance from 1556 to 1605  Muslim, who defended religious freedom  Genius at cultural blending  Governed through a bureaucracy of officials  Fair tax policy  Good military conqueror  Smart tactician- turned enemies into allies by appointing rajputs as officers in the army  Unified a land of at least 100 million people  Culture flowered  Language blended (example Urdu)  Literature and architecture flourished  Died in 1605 and son becomes ruler

Jahangir and Nur Jahan  Jahangir (Akbar’s son) is a weak ruler and his wife, Nur Jahan, was in charge of the state and she ruled from  She and her husband tried to promote only Islam in the empire  Family conflict  She didn’t care for Jahangir’s son Khusrau and ousted him and shifted her favor on another son  Khusrau rebelled against his father and sought protection from the Sikhs- this led to the Sikhs being a target of the Mughal empire

Shah Jahan  Good man but could not stand competition so he killed his rivals  He loved his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, but when she died in 1631 (from childbirth), he was devastated and spent 22 years building her tomb, which is the famous Taj Mahal  He built other beautiful things but couldn’t manage the empire  1657 he became ill and sons scramble for throne (Aurangzeb wins, executes his older brother and puts his father in prison)

Ruled from Master at military strategy – aggressive empire builder Despite his territorial gain, the power of the empire weakened because he oppressed his people o Rigidly enforced Islamic laws, outlawed drinking, gambling o Brought back tax on non-Muslims o Raised taxes to pay for military conquests

Aurangzeb drained the empire of resources Power of local lords grew while central power weakened 3 emperors reigned in 12 years after his death Patchwork of independent states Western traders building power in the meantime (Portuguese, Dutch, English, etc.) and gained foothold’s in the empire since the emperors did not perceive them as a serious threat