CH – 3

Decline of the Mughal Empire

Death of Aurangzeb 3rd March , 1707

Bahadur Shah- I came to the throne of Delhi 1707
Jahandar Shah came to the throne of Delhi 1712
Farrukhsiyar came to the throne of Delhi 1713
Farrukhsiyar was killed by Sayyid brothers , Abdullah Khan
1719
and Hussain Ali Khan
Muhammad Shah came to the throne of Delhi 1719
Alamgir – II came to the throne of Delhi 1754
During the rule of Alamgir – II , the British East India
1757
Company defeated Siraj Ud daulah in Bengal
Shah Alam – II came to the throne of Delhi 1759
Akbar – II came to the throne of Delhi 1806
Bahadur Shah Zafar came to the throne of Delhi 1857
Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled to Rangoon by the British and
1862
died 1862
Poet Mirza Ghalib or Mirza Muhammad Asadullah Khan
1797
Ghalib was born in Agra in
Mirza Ghalib had become the poet laureate in the court of the
1854
last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah-II in
Mirza Ghalib died in 1867
Nadir Shah attacked Punjab in 1739
Murshid Quli Khan was the Diwan (Governor ) of Bengal
1717
under Aurangzeb appointed in
Murshid Quli Khan was the Diwan (Governor ) of Bengal
amended the rules of land settlement and introduced new 1722
Zamindary system in
Murshid Quli Khan was defeated in the battle of Plassey in 1757
Saadar Khan was appointed the Governor of Awadh by
1722
Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah in
Safdar Jang , son-in-law of Saadar Khan was appointed as
1748
wazir in
Safdar Jang died in 1754
Banda Bahadur captured by Mughals and died in 1715
British took Punjab finally under their control in 1840
Ahmed Shah Abdali conquered Punjab in 1761
Third battle of Panipath held in 1761
Hydar Ali over throw the king Chikka and captured the throne
1761
of Mysore in
Hydar Ali died in Anglo-Mysore war in 1782
1. Name the Mughals who ruled after AurangZeb .
Ans. : After Aurangzeb’s death , the name of Mughal Emperors are as follows :

Bahadur Shah – I : He was Aurangzeb’s third son . He came to throne in 1707 at the old age of 64 .

Jahandar Shah : He succeeded Bahadur Shah in 1712 but only could rule one year . He was deposed by his
nephew Farrukhsiyar .

Farrukhsiyar : He could manage the throne by the two powerful ministers Sayyid brothers in 1713. But ,
when he tried to free himself from their influence , they killed him in 1719.

Muhammad Shah : He was the grand son of Bahadur Shah – I . At the age of 18 years old , he came to the
throne by the Sayyid brothers in 1719 .
Alamgir – II : During his rule , the British captured Bengal by defeating Siraj-ud Daullah , the Nawab of
Bengal in 1757 . ***

Shah Alam – II : He came to the throne in 1759 . He could not resist the English East India Company from
occupying three cities Bombay , Madras and Calcutta .
Akbar Shah – II : He came to the throne in 1806 but could not revive the lost glory of Mughal Empior . He
remained a British Pensioner .
Bahadur Shah Zafar : He was the last Mughal Emperor . He came to the throne of Delhi in 1837 after death
of his father Akbar Shah-II . In 1857 he was exiled to Rangoon by the British .

2. Write causes of the decline of Mughal Empire after AurangZeb

Ans. : Empty Treasury : Shah Jahan’s passion about construction during his rule became a great pressure on
Mughal treasury . Later , Aurangzeb’s long wars in the Deccan further drained it . Moreover , many regional
states and zamindars stopped paying revenue to the empire . Lastly , continuous and demand and pressure on
cultivators became unbearable and they rose in revolt . These reasons weakened the empire financially but also
led to decline .
Foreign invasions : Invasions of Nadir Shah and Ahmed Shah Abdali not only weakened the empire
financially but also led to decline .
Nadir Shah , the ruler of Persia , attacked Punjab in 1739 . At that time Muhammad Shah was the
Mughal Emperor . The Mughal army was easily defeated by Nadir Shah . Nadir shah marched towards
Delhi and looted the Indian glory famous Kohinoor diamond . He also took away the beautiful Peacock throne
from India to Persia .
Ahmed Shah Abdali invaded India total eight times from 1748 to 1767 . The frequency of his repeated
invasions Mughal treasury became almost empty and led to the way of decline of the empire .
Rise of Independent states : Some Governors of independent states such as Bengal or Hyderabad did
not want to abide by the order passed by the Mughal Emperor at Delhi . These Governors did not pay the
revenue to the Mughal Emperor because he was too weak to demand his share of the revenue . Since the time of
Muhammad Shah , the Mughal empire was steadily declining and confined to Delhi and its surrounding areas .
This was a major cause of decline of the empire .
3. Who were the Peshwas ? Describe their contribution in expansion of Maratha empire .
Ans. : The Peshwas were the appointed Prime Ministers of the Maratha empire . Originally Peshwas served as
sub-ordinate to the Chhatrapati . Later , they became the ultimate leaders of Maratha empire and the king
became a nominal ruler .
In the field of expansion of Maratha empire , Peshwas contributed at a large scale . Taking appointment
from Shahu as Peshwa , Balaji Biswanath , concluded a treaty with Mughals for which all the territories of
Shivaji ‘s kingdom which had been occupied by the Mughals were restored to Marathas’ . After Balaji
Biswanath , his son Baji Rao – I was an excellent commander . Under him , the Maratha Territory expanded as
far as Bihar and Orissa in the East and Punjab in the North . Thus , Marathas had a great control over Mughal
Territories by the help of Peshwas .

4 . Write short note on Mirza Ghalib

Ans. : Mirza Ghalib was born in Agra in 1797 . He became the poet laureate in the court of last Mughal
Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar . He was mostly famous for his Urdu Ghazals . Despite of his fame , he spent his
old age in distress condition . He petitioned to British to settle his family property in his name which was
wrongly taken by his cousins . But , without showing any sympathy to him they ignored his petition and
insulted him . The Mughal court could not come to rescue him . Mirza Ghalib also wrote to the British Queen
for this problem but his problem remained unsolved . He died in 1867 .
5. When and why Nadir Shah invade India ?
Ans. : Nadir Shah , the ruler of Persia , attacked Punjab in 1739 . At that time Muhammad Shah was the Mughal
Emperor .
Nadir Shah invaded Punjab in 1739 with an excuse that the Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah had
insulted the Persian envoy at the royal court of Delhi . The Mughal army was easily defeated by Nadir Shah .
Nadir shah marched towards Delhi and looted the Indian glory famous Kohinoor diamond . He also took away
the beautiful Peacock throne from India to Persia .
6. Why the third battle of Panipat fought ?
The main causes of third battle of Panipath are as follows :
a) After the departure of Ahmed Shah Abdali in 1757 , Najib Khan a serviceman appointed by Ahmed Shah
Abdali was forced to leave Delhi along with his men . This incident made angry to Ahmed Shah Abdali .
b) In 1758 , Maratha leader Raghunath Rao crossed into Punjab and drove Ahmed Shah Abdali’s son Timur
Shah and his men out of Punjab. This fact insisted Ahmed Shah Abdali to take a revenge . Thus war between
Marathas and Ahmed Shah Abdali became unavoidable as a result , third battle of Panipath was happened.
Ans. :
7. In reference to Rajput kingdome , state the contribution of Raja Sawai Jai Singh .
Ans. : Raja Sawai Jai Singh , the ruler of Amber , was the most outstanding Rajput Ruler . He introduced many
social reforms and took interest in science and astronomy . he was the founder of the “ Pink City ” of Jaipur
which became a great centre of art and science . He built Jantar Mantar and observatories at Delhi , Jaipur ,
Ujjain , Mathura and Banaras .
 Photo study Question

1. Identify what is shown in the picture

Ans. : This is the picture of renowned Kohinoor(diamond) , India’s lost glory . It is said to be one of the one of
the biggest and precious diamond in the world .
2. Who had given it to whom ?
Ans. : Kohinoor was gifted to the Mughal Emperor Humayun by the Raja of Gwalior .
3. Who took it away from India ?
Ans. : Nadir Shah , the ruler of Persia , took away the renowned Kohinoor from India at the time of his invasion
to India .

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