EHI - 4

18th Part 

Q.  How was the Portuguese trade in India financed?

A.  There are different ways by which Portuguese trade in India was financed -

European Merchant Financers -

As the Portuguese king couldn’t finance the whole trade on his own, he encouraged and readily allowed to let European financiers and merchants participate and finance the trade. Most of the European financiers and merchants (Italian, German, etc.) concluded contracts with the Portuguese king. They supplied cash or materials to the king in Lisbon. The king used them to purchase pepper and other commodities which were in great demand in Europe from India. These commodities were given to these financiers at Lisbon in view of the contracts signed. However, some of the financiers also sent their own factors to India. Cash or commodities were always sent under the supervision of the Portuguese authorities to the East. Sometimes, the financiers could fit out their vessels, entrust cash and commodities to the India House in Lisbon to be taken to India under the Portuguese flag and buy the commodities from Lisbon according to the terms and conditions of the contracts signed with Portuguese.

Indian merchants And Rulers - 

Sometimes, Indian traders and some rulers also facilitated Portuguese trade and supplied commodities to the Portuguese on credit when the latter did not have cash or commodities to furnish in exchange. Some of the local rulers stood surety for the Portuguese when they did not have money to pay to the merchants for the commodities bought by them. For example, the king of Cochin came forward to help the Portuguese several times making the required volume of commodities available to them on credit. Also, some Indian traders provided assistance to Portuguese by supplying them with goods on credit. Defeated rulers were compelled to pay tributes to the Portuguese, either in cash or kind. This source was also exploited by the Portuguese several times for investment.

Monopoly -

Right from the time Portuguese arrived at Calicut they had demanded that other merchants, Indian as well as foreign, should be ousted and a complete monopoly over trade be granted to them. Portuguese ships equipped with arms and ammunition threatened other merchants and confiscated their merchandise and Vessels in order to thrust their demand. The Portuguese had armed vessels plying in the Indian Ocean and the Arabian sea. Ships carrying commodities that were not given passes (cartaz) by the Portuguese officials were confiscated by them. The booty thus obtained yielded a sizeable source of income to Portuguese which was again invested in trade. The persons interested in sending their ships to other parts of India or to Asian countries were required to take passes (cartaz) from the Portuguese for which a fees was charged. Such ships were obliged to visit any of the ports in India where the Portuguese had customs houses, and to pay taxes. This was another source of income for the Portuguese. Indian merchants, rulers and all those engaged in maritime trade, had to take cartaz from the Portuguese. While issuing such passes, it was specifically mentioned that certain items like pepper, horses, ginger, coir, ship pitch, sulphur, lead, saltpeter, cinnamon, etc. were not to be loaded on their ships. All these were monopoly items of the Portuguese routes and destinations of such ships were also sought to be controlled. Rulers like Akbar and his successors, Nilam Shah of Ahmednagar, Adil Shah of Bijapur, kings of Cochin, the Zamorins of Calicut and the rulers of Cannanore purchased passes from the Portuguese to send their ships to various places.  Indian Kings were pressurized to forbid other merchants from trading with their ports. Similarly, certain commodities were declared forbidden to be traded by others. Thus, the Portuguese demanded a monopoly of trade. The treaties concluded with the Indian rulers specifically mentioned this. The setting up of Portuguese fortresses at strategic places, surveillance by their patrolling vessels, and the insistence on passes for other ships were the attempts made to establish a monopoly of trade in Asian waters. 

Spice trade -

The Portuguese established themselves on the coastal regions of India and constructed fortresses and factories in these regions that were necessary for monitoring sea trade and also facilitate trade. It reaped large profits by conducting trade in spices. For the first time in the history of international trade, commercial treaties with Indian rulers were concluded. The production of cash crops, especially spices, kept its stride with the increasing demand overseas, thus helping Portuguese in financing trade.

Q.  Trace the evolution of the Mughal school of painting under Akbar.

A.  The emergence of the Mughal School of painting was distinct from all other styles mainly due to the deep interest Akbar took in the promotion of art. Hence the art flourishes and has obtained a great reputation under Akbar.

Royal Atelier - 

Akbar established Royal Atelier where many artists were employed. The atelier was supervised by daroghas with the assistance of clerks. They were responsible for making materials of painting easily available to the artists and to oversee the progress of their work. They also arranged for the periodical presentation of

the artists' works before the Emperor. These artists belonged to different religions and castes. The painters were assisted by a set of gilders, line drawers and pagers. Works of all painters were weekly laid before Akbar by the Daroghas and the clerks who then confers rewards according to the excellence of workmanship, or increase the monthly salaries. The minuteness in detail, the general finish, the boldness of execution, etc., now-observed in pictures, was incomparable; even inanimate objects look as if they had life. The first major project undertaken during Akbar's regime was that of illustrating the Hamza Nama which began in 1562. 

Style and Technique -

There was a gradual evolution of style and technique during Akbar time in Mughal art. In the early phase Mughal art was influenced by the Persian tradition, the identifying features of which are listed below:

# symmetrical compositions;

# restricted movement of figures;

# fineness of the lines of drawings;

# flat depiction of architectural columns; and

# profuse embellishment of buildings in the manner of jewels.

However, the paintings in the later period acquired a distinctive character of their own. They assumed a more eclectic character composed mainly of the Persian and Indian traditions with touches of European influence.

Distinctive Feature - 

The Mughal style became recognizable within a span of fifteen years since the setting up of royal atelier under Akbar. By about 1590 it acquired a distinctive form which was marked by:

# Naturalism and Rhythm

# clothing objects of daily use assuming Indian forms.

# picture space having subsidiary scenes set in background

# extraordinary vigor of action and violent movement

# luxuriant depiction of foliage & brilliant blossoms 

                 The identity of the Mughal paintings under Akbar was as much made of an original style as a fusion of the Persian and Indian traditions. It emphasizes on the depiction of action and movement which is not to be found in either the pre-Mughal art of India or the art of Persia hence it was unique in its form. 

           Painting under Akbar's period distinguish itself as a tradition from Persia painting as well, as from Indian styles particularly by the presence & of the historical subject matter. The two most commonly used themes were:

# daily events of the court, and

# portraits of leading personalities

While portrait painting was known in Persia, painting as a chronicle of actual events was a new emphasis that started during this time under Akbar. Painters used the familiar forms and for hunting or battle scenes regardless of the fact that the literacy reference for the scene was historical or purely imaginary.Moreover, specific events illustrated are frequently reworkings of scenes The painters conceived scenes according to a repertoire of types e.g. the seize of a fortress, crossing a river, an audience or battle scene. In the working of whole volumes such as the Akbar Nama, the artists seem to have reworked or adapted these compositional types. Painters usually mated new compositions only when no prototypes existed and these were produced by only a few who were capable of innovations.

Q.  What were the problems faced by Humayun at his accession? How did he overcome them?

A.  Humayun faced multiple problems during the time of his accession like -

             At the time of his accession, Humayun didn’t command the respect and esteem of the nobility like his father Babur. Firstly, Humayun faced the rebellion of nobles who were divided into different camps, supporting different candidates for the throne. The Chaghatai nobles were not favorably inclined towards him and the Indian nobles, who had joined Babur's service, also deserted the Mughals at Humayun's accession. Secondly, there were other contenders too for the throne, these contenders like Muhammad Sultan Mina, a descendant of Timur; Muhammad Zaman and Mir Muhammad Mahdi Khwaja, brother-in-law of Babur, were also considered worthy and supported by a section of nobles indicating Humayun didn’t have the complete grip on his throne initially. Thirdly, Humayun had to contend against the united Afghans both at the east and west which was supported by a large social base. These Afghans wanted to overthrow Mughal rule and establish themselves. 

                 Finally, Immediately after the death of his father Babur, Humayun was forced to divide his empire into four parts as were the norm among the Mughals. He gave Mewat to Hindal, Sambhal to Askari and Punjab, Kabul and Qandahar to Kamran Mirza. The very division itself was unfavorable to Humayun for he was left with little resources at his disposal. In spite of this kind of treatment, his brothers hardly helped him when he needed it. He even faced hostility of his brothers especially Kamran Mirza who wanted to dislodge Humayun and usurp the throne. On many occasions, he dealt with them too kindly. The situation thus deteriorated by the existence of two centers of power within the empire - Humayun at the center and Kamran Mirza who had autonomous control over Afghanistan and Punjab.

           After losing his empire to the Afghans, he started mobilizing resources with the help of Shah of Iran thereby the measures he took helped him in regaining the throne.

             Firstly, Humayun wrested Qandahar from Persia in 1545 thus gaining the support of many nobles. Thereafter, he attacked Kabul and regained control in 1553 forcing Kamran Mirza to flee and eventually killed. With the end of opposition to his rule, he redirected his power to regain his throne.

         Secondly, The weakening of Afghan rule in India due to Sedition and rebellions marred the entire country and the Empire broke into 'five' kingdoms. This created an ideal political condition that was exploited by Humayun. He started in November 1554 and reached Lahore in Feb. 1555. Humayun reached Salimgarh in June 1555 and occupied Delhi by defeating Sikander Shah Suri. 

Q.  Discuss the administrative structure of the Marathas.

A.  The Maratha polity was essentially a centralized autocratic monarchy. The king was at the helm of affairs. The king's chief objective was the happiness and prosperity of his subjects.

Central Administration

To assist the king, there was a council of state ministers known as ashtapradhan:

i) Peshwa(Prime Minister) : He was the head of both civil and military affairs.

ii) Mazumdar (auditor) : He looked into the income & expenditure of the state.

iii) wakins: He was the in-charge of the king's private affairs.

iv) Dabir : Foreign secretary

v) Surnis (superintendent): He used to take care of all the official correspondences.

vi) Pandit Rao : Ecclesiastical head

vii) Sehapati : Commander in chief

viii) Nyayadhish : Chief Justice

The council could advise the king but it was not binding on him to accept its advice. Each of the ashtapradhana was assisted by eight assistants: diwan, Mazumdar, fadnis, sabnis, karkhanis, chitnis, jamadar, and potnis.

Provincial Administration - 

The country was divided into mauzas, tarfs and prants. Mauza was the lowest unit. Then were the tarfs headed by a havaldar, karkun or paripatyagar. The provinces were known as prants under subedar,  karkun (or mukhya deshadhikari). Over a number of prants there was the sarsubedar to control and supervise the work of subedars. Each subedar had eight subordinate officers: diwan, mazumdar, fadnis, sabnis, karkhanis, chitnis, jamadar and potnis. Under Shivaji, none of the officers was permanent and hereditary. All officers were liable to frequent transfers. This was done to ensure they do not develop roots and threaten the state.

Military - 

               Forts found the prime place in Maratha scheme of military organization. No single officer was entrusted with sole charge of a fort. Instead, in every fort there were a havaldar, a sabnis and a sarnobat. Big forts had five to ten sarnobats . All these officers were of equal status and rank and were frequently transferred. This system acted as a check and balance on each others authority. The havaldar was in charge of the keys of the fort. The sabnis controlled the muster-roll and dealt with all government correspondences. He also looked after the revenue-estimates of the province (under the jurisdiction of the fort). The sarnobat was the in charge of the garrison. Besides, there was karkhanis who used to take care of grain stores and other material requirements. All daily accounts of income and expenditure were to be entered by the karkhanis. None held absolute power. Though the sabnis, was the in-charge of accounts, all orders had to bear the seal of the havaldar and the karkhanis. Besides, no single officer could surrender the fort to the enemy. 

Judiciary

The Marathas failed to develop any organized judicial department. At the village level, civil cases were heard by the village elders (panchayat) in the Patil's office or in the village temple. Criminal cases were decided by the Patil. 

Q.  Write a note on the growth of the Mansab system under Akbar.

A.   The word mansab means a place or position and therefore it means rank in the mansab system under the Mughals.The system was developed to create a centralized administrative system as well as creating a large force. Mansabdars and their large forces were used to expand the empire and administer it effectively. Akbar gave mansabs to both military and civil officers on the basis of their merit or service to the state. To fix the grades of officers and classify his soldiers. Akbar had established 66 grades of mansabdars ranging from commanders of 10 horsemen to 10,000 horsemen. Mansab denoted three things:

i) It determined the status of its holder (the mansabdar) in the official hierarchy.

ii) It fixed the pay of the holder.

iii) It also laid upon the holder the obligation of maintaining a specified number of contingent with horses and equipment.

            Initially, a single number represented the rank, personal pay and the size of contingent of mansabdar, but under Akbar, the rank of mansabdar instead of one number, came to be denoted by two numbers - zat and sawar. The first number (zat) determined the mansabdar's personal pay and his rank in the organization. The second number (sawar) fixed the number of horses and horsemen to be maintained by the mansabdar and, accordingly, the amount he would receive for his contingent. During Akbar’s reign three classes of Mansabdars emerged, these were-

a) those with horsemen (sawar) equal to the number of the zat;

b) those with horsemen half or more than half of the number of the zat, and

c) those whose sawar rank was less than half of their zat rank.

                The sawar rank was either equal or less than the zat. Even if the former was higher, the mansabdar's position in the official hierarchy would not be affected. But there are exceptions to this rule particularly when the mansabdar was serving in a difficult terrain amidst the rebels. In such cases, the state often increased the sawar rank without altering the zat rank. Thus the system was not a static one and it changed to meet the circumstances. The salaries and obligation of maintaining troops were governed by a definite set of rules which underwent changes from time to time. This is how, mansab system developed under Akbar.

Q.  Discuss various categories of land rights in the Deccan and South India in the 16-17th century.

A.  There were 4 kinds of land rights in the Deccan, these were-

 Mirasi Rights - It refers to hereditary or transferable right or patrimony (bap roti) obtained by descent, purchase, or gift, etc. The mlrasdars were the holders of land under the mirasi tenure. They owned the village land and could exact rent in money or service from persons who lived on their land. There were two categories of the mirasdars - 

(a)  the hereditary owners of the miras land, and (b)those who had reclaimed the gatkul land of the village.

The village land was held by the mirasdars: 

1)on the basis of joint co-parcenary terms according to which the village land was divided into several shares, and 

2) on the basis of single proprietor ownership of the village. The mirasdar possessed complete private proprietory rights in the miras land. The state could not encroach upon the mirasi rights.

Inam Land - Inam implied the grant of a specific amount of revenue of a village to a person. The inam village was assigned on a hereditary basis to persons or officials. The inam lands were either totally exempt from tax or subject to a low tax called inam patti. It was a privileged category of land right. Inam was assigned to different categories: hereditary village officials. state officials, temples and balutedars (priests). The holders were designated inamdars. There were both residents and absentee inamdars.

State land or Crown land - Land held by the government as a corporate body or by the Peshwa/ruler was treated as state land. State lands existed in many villages of the Deccan managed by the local bureaucrats. They could be sold by them after taking approval from the central government. These lands were granted in inam or could be developed into house sites.

Waste Lands or Lands of Extinct Families - The lands of the families which had become extinct were called gatkul zamin. Lands that were left uncultivated for long periods were called pad zamin. Even the miras lands contained pad zamin. The wastelands could be appropriated and disposed of by the village headman, local village assembly and government. The lands expropriated by the village headman were regarded as miras lands on which land revenue was levied. The houses and house sites of extinct families could be acquired by the village headman after taking

the approval of the local village assembly. 

In the south we had Kaniparru. The land tenure of the nayaks is referred to as kaniparru. It refers to rights in Lands, i.e., to buy and sell without the absolute right of ownership. It also refers to a variety of taxes. The rights were as follows:

1) to collect dues from the peasants;

2) to cultivate the land and settle people; and

3) to receive prasadam (sacred food) from the temple.

However, the transfer of land to the nayak did not imply the transfer of the right of Ownership. The Nayak could use the land and collect taxes, but the temples reserved the right of ownership to themselves.

Q  Bijapur Kingdom 

A.  The independent state of Bijapur was carved out from the Bahmani kingdom in 1490. Bijapur remained independent till 1686 when it was annexed by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. During this period of around 200 years, it was ruled by Adil Shahi kings. Its founder, Yusuf Adil Khan, of Persian descent, was the tarafdar (governor) of Bijapur province of the Bahmani kingdom. He declared his independence in 1490. He enlarged his small territory by capturing Raichur, Goa, Dabhol, Gulbarga and Kalyani. But he lost Goa to the Portuguese in 1510. He was succeeded by Ismail Shah who captured Bidar. Muhammad Adil Shah (1627-1656) was the most successful ruler of the Shahi dynasty. He conquered Tivy, Barder, Sarzora etc. from the Portuguese. During his reign, the kingdom reached the zenith of its glory. At the time of his death in 1656, the boundaries of the kingdom extended from the Arabian sea to the Bay of Bengal and the tributes from the subdued Nayaks compensated for the loss incurred by payments to the Mughals. After his death, the Bijapur kingdom became weak due to the Mughal and Maratha invasions. Finally, in 1686, the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb defeated the Adil Shahi forces and annexed the kingdom to the Mughal Empire. 

Q.  Turco-Mongol concept of sovereignty -  

A.   Chingiz Khan had borrowed his divine theory of sovereignty from the Uighurs, the Mongols themselves seem to believe in absolute power of the Khan. However division of the Empire among the ruler's sons for facilitating administration with all its rigors and satiating the desires of governance among princes was the cardinal principle of Mongol concept of sovereignty.But Timur followed the concept of absolute sovereignty and had accepted the nominal overlordship of a descendant of Chingiz Khan. The existence of puppet Khans was a political necessity for Timur who did not belong to the royal family of Chingiz and in the given situation if he didn’t accept nominal lordship Timur's right to accession was likely to be challenged by the Mongols. The practice of installing puppet Khans was 'merely a political game which had been played by Timur and his successors to mobilize the support of Mongol forces and to use them finally to establish their own power and to legitimize their rule over a territory which was actually usurped by them from the Mongols.

EHI - 4

17th Part

Q.  Discuss the emergence of successor states during the 18th century.    

A.   The Mughal administration was centralized in character. Its success was dependent on the power & ability of the Emperor to subdue the nobles, zamindars, jagirdars and provincial officials. There were balance and coordination of interests and aspirations between the Emperor (who was always in a dominant position) and others. This position started changing with the death of Aurangzeb. 

                The diwan (head of the revenue administration) and the Nazim (the executive head) were the two most important functionaries. Both of them were directly appointed by the Emperor and through them, the imperial control over the provinces was retained. Besides, there were other officials like amils, faujdars, kotwals, etc. who were also appointed by the Emperor. The provincial governors also depended on the goodwill of the Emperor to continue in their job. Thus, through the control over appointment, the Emperor indirectly controlled the provincial administration. Unfortunately, the central administration was crippled by the financial crisis and factional rivalry among the nobles. The Emperor was not in a position to prevent the crisis. It failed to provide the required protection to the provincial governors. As a result, the provincial governors engaged themselves at the beginning of the 18th century to develop an independent base of power. Some of its indications were that the local appointments were made by them without the prior permission from the Emperor, and attempts were made to establish dynastic rule in the provinces. The theoretical allegiance to the Mughal Emperor in the form of sending tributes continued, however, the provincial governors virtually established their independent authority over the provinces. Even the autonomous

states in Deccan, Rajputana, etc. who were not directly under the Mughals but acknowledged the authority of the Mughals also cut off their ties with the Empire. Awadh, Bengal, and Hyderabad fall in the category of successor states. All these three provinces were directly under the control of the Mughal administration. Though the sovereignty of the Mughal Emperor was not challenged, the establishment of practically independent and hereditary authority by the governors and subordination of all offices within the region to the governors showed the emergence of autonomous polity in these regions. 

Q.  Discuss the nature of the successor states in the 18th century.     

A.  Awadh, Bengal, and Hyderabad fall in the category of successor states. 

Awadh - Sa'adat Khan became the subadar of Awadh in 1722. He devoted himself to the task of making Awadh an independent center of power. The Mughal decline provided him the desired opportunity to establish his own authority in the region. The major challenge that he faced after becoming the subadar was the rebellion of local chieftains and rajas of Awadh. In order to consolidate his position he adopted the following measures:

#  suppression of rebellious local zamindars and chieftains;

#  curtailment of the authority of the madad-i-maash grantees;

#  systematizing, revenue, collection; and

#  negotiation with some local zamindars.

             In appointing local officials, he considered only their personal loyalty to him. He nominated his son-in-law, Safdar Jang, as deputy governor of the province without the prior consent of the Emperor. After Sa'adat Khan, Safdar Jang pursued the same path. Even the sending of revenues to Delhi became irregular. A semblance of allegiance to the Mughal Emperor was still maintained, but between the years 1739 and 1764 Awadh emerged virtually as an autonomous state.

Bengal

In Bengal, the process of autonomy was started by Murshid Quli Khan. He was first appointed as a diwan but, later on, his success in revenue administration and the uncertainty after the death of Aurangzeb paved his way for the subadari of Bengal. Murshid Quli abolished the separate offices of the diwan & the nazim and combined them into one. His initial concern was revenue administration & in order to streamline it, he took the following measures:

# elimination of small intermediary zamindars;

# expelling rebellious zamindars and jagirdars to the frontier regions of Orissa;

# encouraging big zamindars who assumed the responsibilities of revenue collection and payment, and

# enlarging the scope and extent of the khalisa lands. 

            Alivardi's reign showed further development of autonomy. Major appointments at the provincial level were made by him without any reference to the Mughal ruler. He appointed his own loyalists as deputy Nawabs at Patna, Cuttack, and Dhaka. Thus, by Alivardi's time, an administrative system developed in Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa which reduced ties with the imperial court in Delhi, and for all practical purposes, an independent state emerged in Eastern India. 

Hyderabad

As in Awadh and Bengal, so in Hyderabad also the weakening of the imperial rule provided the opportunity to the subadar of Deccan to lay the basis for an autonomous state. Nizamulmulk established his control over Hyderabad by removing the officials appointed by the Mughals and installed his own men. He assumed the right of making treaties, wars, granting mansabs, titles, etc. The Mughal authority was reduced to a symbolic reading of khutba. Nizamulmulk's reign thus showed the emergence of an independent state in Hyderabad with nominal allegiance to the emperor. 

Q.  Discuss the rise of regional states after the decline of the Mughal period.        

A.  The second group of regional states was the 'new states' which came into existence as a protest against the Mughals. 

The Marathas

Among the various provincial states that emerged during this period, the most prominent was the Maratha state. The rise of the Marathas was both a regional reaction against Mughal centralization as well as a manifestation of the upward mobility of certain classes and castes. The Mughals never had proper control over the heartland of the Marathas. During the period of Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath, the office of the Peshwa became very powerful and the Maratha state system attained the status of a dominant expansionist state. Starting from Balaji Vishwanath to the reign of Balaji Rao, the Maratha power reached its zenith and the Marathas spread in every direction South, East, North, and Central India. So far as the administration is concerned, there were non-regulation and regulation areas. In non-regulated areas, the existing zamindars and chieftains were allowed to run the administration, but they had to pay tribute regularly to the Peshwa. In regulation areas, direct control of the Marathas was established. In these areas, a system of revenue assessment and management was developed of which the most important was the watan system. The Marathas adopted some parts of the Mughal administrative system, but their major thrust was on the extraction of surplus.

Punjab

The development in Punjab was different from other regions. Zakaria Khan, the governor of Lahore, had tried to establish an independent political system' in Punjab. But he failed mainly because of the struggle of the Sikhs' for independent political authority. The foreign invasion (Persian and Afghan), the Mantha

incursion and internal rivalry in the provincial administration created a very fluid situation in Punjab which helped the Sikhs to consolidate their base. In the second half of the 18th century, the different Sikh pups had regrouped themselves into 12 larger regional confederacies. The process towards the establishment of an autonomous state became complete only under Ranjit Singh at the beginning of the 19th century. 

The Jat State

The Jats were an agriculturist caste inhabiting the Delhi-Agra region. The Jats also tried to establish an autonomous zone of their control. Churaman and Badan Singh took the initiative but it was Suraj Mal who consolidated the Jet state at Bhamtpur during 1756-1763. The state was expanded in the east up to the boundaries of the Ganga, in the south the Chambal, in the north Delhi and in the west Agra. The state was feudal by nature and it was the zamindar who were in control of both administrative and revenue powers.

Q.  Critically examine the empire - centric approach for explaining the decline of the Mughal empire.                                A.  Empire Centric Approach - 

#  Aurangzeb was a religious fanatic. He discriminated against sections of the nobles and officials on the basis of religion. This led to widescale resentment among the nobility. 

#  Jagirdari Crisis - The nobles in the Mughal Empire were the core state officials. They were given ranks corresponding to their status in the Mughal official hierarchy. These ranks were called mansab. Each holder of a mansab, called mansabdar, was paid in assignments of land revenue (jagir). Among the various obligations, the mansabdar had to maintain a requisite contingent of troopers.' These troopers were paid and maintained out of the revenue of the jagir. They formed the base of the mansabdar's power and assisted him in the collection of land revenue. Availability of the revenues to be assigned and the ability of the Mughals to collect them thus became two crucial pre-requisites for the effective working of the system. The Mughal failure, towards the end of Aurangzeb's reign, to maintain the system of the mansabdar-jagirdar. As this system went into disarray, the Empire was bound to collapse. The sudden increase in the number of nobles caused due to the expansion of the Empire into the Deccan and Maratha territory, created a crisis in the functioning of the jagir system. the nobels competed for better jagh, which were increasingly becoming rare due to the influx of nobles from the south. The logical consequence was the erosion in the political structure which was based on jagirdari to a large extent. 

# Agrarian crisis - the mechanism of collection of revenue that the Mughals had evolved was inherently flawed. The imperial policy was to set the revenue at the highest rate possible to secure the greatest military strength for the Empire, the nobles. On the other band, they tended to squeeze the maximum from their jagirs, even

if it ruined the peasantry and destroyed the revenue paying capacity of the area. Since the nobles' jagirs were liable to be transferred frequently, they did not find it necessary to follow a far-sighted policy of agricultural development. As the burden on the peasantry increased, they were often deprived of their very means of survival. In reaction to this excessive exploitation of the peasantry, the latter had no option but to protest. The forms of rural protest in Medieval India were varied in nature. In many areas, the peasants took to flight. Entire villages were left deserted due to the large scale migration of peasants to the towns or other villages. Very often the peasants protested against the state by refusing to pay the revenue and were up in arms against the Mughals. These peasant protests weakened the political and social fabric of the Empire. 

Q.  How does the region-centric approach explain the process of decline of the Mughal empire?                                                 

A. Political integration in Mughal India was, up to a point, inherently flawed. It was to a large extent conditional on the co-ordination of the interests and the political activities of the various social groups led by local magnates. The nobles were dependent on their position and power directly on the Emperor who appointed them. They had no hereditary estates to consolidate or bequeath to their descendants. Their resources were scrutinized and regulated by the Empire. They were in a way representatives of the Mughal Emperor. Yet the nobility also had its tensions. The policy of jagir transfer, by checking the noble's ambition to build a personal base, was meant to strengthen the imperial organization. But it inconvenienced the nobles who opposed and resisted its implementation. In many regions of the Mughal Empire, it was left unimplemented in the 17th century. Alongside the local elites (zamindars) and the nobles, the village and qasba based madad-i ma'ash holders (men of learning, who were given revenue-free grants of land by the Mughal Emperors) and a very large numbers of lower-level officials drawn from various regional and local communities, were all integrated intimately into the framework of the Empire.

           The Mughal decline in the early 18th century has to be seen in the inability of the state to maintain its policy of checks and balances between the zamindars, jagirdars, madad-i ma'ash holders and the local indigenous elements; like the shaikhzada3 in Awadh. In the early 18th century, there was a thrust 'of the nobles towards independent political alignments with the zamindars in order to

carve out their own fortunes. Alongside there was an attempt betwe& the various co-sharers of Mughal power (the zamindars, madad-i ma'ash holders, etc.) to encroach on each other's rights and territorial jurisdictions. These developments were not entirely) incompatible with what happened earlier. But in the hey-day of

the Empire, these tensions had been contained. This was achieved at times by the use of military force and at other times by balancing out the power of one social group by settling another in the vicinity.

EHI - 4

16th Part

                                            

Q.  Trace the evolution of the Mughal school of painting under Akbar.       

A.  The first major project undertaken during Akbar's regime was that of illustrating the Hamza Nama. It began in 1562 for which several artists were employed at the court. The place where the painters worked was known as Tasvir Khana.  These artists belonged to different places, but among them the majority were Hindus. Interestingly, several low caste people, due primarily to their artistic skill, were also raised to the status of the royal artists. The artists were salaried employees. The atelier was supervised by daroghas with the assistance of clerks. They were responsible for making materials of painting easily available to the artists and to oversee the progress of their work. They also arranged for the periodical presentation of the artists' works before the Emperor. The painting was collaborative teamwork, there are paintings that bear the names of two artists. Sometimes even three or 4 artists worked on a single painting. 

Style and Technique

The illustration done at Akbar's court is considered as representative works of the Mughal art. Notably, however, in these paintings, there is evident a gradual evolution in the style & technique. The illustrations of the early phase are influenced by the Persian tradition, the identifying features of which are listed below:

#  symmetrical compositions;

#  restricted movement of figures;

#  fineness of the lines of drawings;

#  flat depiction of architectural columns; and

#  profuse embellishment of buildings in the manner of jewels.

Later, the paintings acquired a distinctive character of their own. They assumed a more eclectic character composed mainly of the Persian and Indian traditions with touches of European influence. 

Distinctive Features - 

The Mughal style became recognizable within a span of fifteen years since the setting up of royal atelier under Akbar. In the next decade or so, i.e. by about 1590 it acquired a distinctive form which was marked by:

#  naturalism & rhythm 

#  clothing objects of daily use assuming Indian forms.

#  picture space having subsidiary scenes set in background

#  extraordinary vigor of action and violent movement

#  luxuriant depiction of foliage & brilliant blossoms

             It should be emphasized here that the identity of the Mughal paintings under Akbar was as much made of an original style as a fusion of the Persian and Indian traditions.

             Painting under Akbar's period distinguish itself as a tradition from Persian painting as well, as from Indian styles particularly by the presence of historical subject matter. The two most commonly used themes are :

#  daily events of the court, and

#  portraits of leading personalities    

             While portrait painting was known in Persia, painting as a chronicle of actual events was certainly a new emphasis. Painters used familiar form& for hunting or battle scenes regardless of the fact that the literacy reference for the scene was historical or purely imaginary. Moreover, specific events illustrated are frequently reworkings of scenes recording quite different events in the earliest known historical manuscript of this period, the Timur Nama of about 1580 AD. Possibly, painters conceived scenes according to a repertoire of types e.g. the seize of a fortress, crossing a river, an audience or battle scene. In the working of whole volumes such as the Akbar Nama, the artists seem to have reworked or adapted these compositional types. Painters usually mated new compositions only when no prototypes existed, and only a few artists were capable of such invention.

Q.  Development of Rajasthani paintings during the 17 -18th centuries       

A.  Style and Themes

Rajasthani painting, since its beginning, adopted nature a the main theme. The illustrations are almost like landscape paintings where human figures seem to play only subordinate roles. Some of the main elements of nature depicted in these paintings are :

# a variety of tree forms;

# dense foliage;

# singing birds and frolicking animals;

# rivers full of lotus blossoms; and

# drops of rain falling from deep blue clouds.

The Rajasthani miniatures are also known for the intensity of colors used. Deep blue for clouds, streaks of gold showing flashes of lightning, and emerald green for foliage are some of the most prominently used colors. The major themes selected by painters of this gem are:

#  hunting scenes;

# portraits, and

# musical seasons.

Another characteristic of the Rajasthani paintings, particularly of the 17th century, is the use of compartmental pictures in which space is divided into bends & rectangles and used as frames for figures and groups.

Main Centres

(a)  Mewar School: The house of Nisar Din (1606) stands out as the earliest known group of Rajasthani painters. Subsequently, the same tradition was carried further by Sahib Din, who worked from 1627 to 1648. This phase represents the Mewar School at its height. Under the patronage of Jagat Singh (1628-52). a long series of illustrations called Nayakabheda was executed by a number of painters in a poetic and sentimental style.

(b) Bundi School: During the 18th century, the Bundi school took a new turn. While retaining its originality of expression, it followed the Mughal school in subject-matter and technical details, The main emphasis now was on the display of feminine grace in which it seemed to excel.

(c) Kishangarh School: The Kishangarh style was lyrical and sometimes sensuous. It was encouraged by Maharaja Sawant Singh. Although Mughal secular influence in painting influenced every court in Rajasthan, in Kishangarh deep Hindu devotionalism survived. Under Sawant Singh's patronage, there was a spurt in the art of painting based on the love-lore of Radha and Krishna. The elegant forms of the Kishangarh females, with their sharp noses, almond eyes, and arched mouths, set up a new tradition in Rajasthani painting. 

Q.  Discuss the various European technologies brought to India in the 17th century. Why did Indians show reluctance in adopting European printing press and time- reckoning devices?                     

A.  Military Technology - The fire-arms on a regular basis were introduced through the agency of the Portuguese. These guns were actually matchlocks. Europe knew of two more devices to fire a gun: wheel-lock (the 1520s) and flint-lock (1620s) in which match cord was dispensed with. European pistols were available at Burhanpur for sale as early as A.D. 1609. Sometimes Europeans gave pistols in gifts to Indians. But the Indians did not learn the art of wheel-lock. 

Shipbuilding - Prior to the European advent, the planks of ships and boats were joined together by stitching or sewing them with ropes made of coir, or sometimes with wooden nails. The Europeans were using iron nails and clamps which made their vessels stronger and durable. The Indians lost no time in adopting the new technique. Moreover, Iron anchors on ships were also adopted by Indians from Europeans. The Europeans also introduced iron chain-pumps to bail out the leaking water in the ship. 

Glass - During the 16th and 17th centuries, a variety of glass articles were brought to India by the Europeans for example, looking-glasses (mirrors made of glass).

Another object was spectacles made of glass lenses. The Europeans gave these things to Indians as a gift and, sometimes, they also sold them (but the market was very limited). Europeans also introduced drinking-glasses, magnifying or burning glasses and prospective glasses (telescopes). 

             Indians show reluctance in adopting the European printing press because the printed books were in the Roman script rather than in the Devanagari script and thus failed to generate interest among the masses. Not only language but also the dearth of technical staff to run the press. The books printed were not aesthetically appealing to nobles or Kings which therefore did not show interest. 

             Time- reckoning devices were mere toys and novelties for the Indians who received them as "diplomatic" or ordinary gifts. The one important reason for non-acceptance was the incompatibility of the Indian time-reckoning system with that of Europe at that time. In Europe, the system of twelve equal double-hours prevailed, while the Indian system consisted of 4 quarters (pahr) in the day. Further, each pahr was divided into gharis of 24 minutes each. Thus, the Indian system had 60 "hours" (of 24 minutes) to the full day, and the European consisted of 24 hours of 60 minutes each.

Q.  Trace the development of Mughal paintings under Jahangir & Shahjahan.  

A.  During Jahangir and Shahjahan, Mughal painting achieved its zenith. Jahangir took a deep interest in painting even as a prince. He maintained his own studio apart from Akbar's large atelier. He also continued the tradition of portraiture. Jahangir's preference was for paintings of hunting scenes, birds and flowers. Under Shah Jahan, the colors of the paintings were more decorative and gold was more frequently used for embellishment. 

New Style

In the period of Jahangir's rule (1605-27), manuscripts became less important than individual pictures. Two important new elements in the style of Mughal painting during the first half of the 17th century were - 

# Jahangir's paintings accentuated a formalist style, i.e., making the work realistic and preferring the precise recording of contemporary reality.

# The paintings of this period have broad margins which are gorgeously decorated with the depiction of flora and faces of human figures, etc. designs from plant motifs. 

Thematic Variations

Jahangir was a keen naturalist. We have paintings of birds and animals in the most realistic fashion. Under Shahjahan, the previous tradition of doing portraits, preparing albums, and, illustrating books, was continued. Additionally, the paintings depicting charming love scenes and portraits of female members. Another important theme chosen for painting was the superimposition of animals and the scenes of performing acrobats. 

Q.  Analyse the development of regional styles of painting during the 16 - 17th centuries.                                                         

Q.  Discuss various schools of painting that developed in India during the Mughal period.                                                       

A.  Deccan painting - 

Court Patronage

The greatest patronage to painting in Deccani kingdoms was given in the sixteenth century and the Decanni style reached its zenith in the seventeenth century under the impact of the Mughal tradition. The successor states of the Bahmani kingdom actively patronized painting. The earliest known painting from these states is dated between 1565-69. It is an illustrated manuscript of Ta'rif-i Husain Shahi composed and illustrated at Ahmadnagar. About 1570, a second Deccani manuscript was composed and illustrated at Bijapur. This was the Nujum-ul-Ulum. Towards the close of the 16th century, there had emerged a new tradition of painting in Ahmadnagar & Bijapur, known as the Ragamala painting.                           There is another category of paintings in the Deccan style which depict the pomp and grandeur of the royal processions. Several paintings of this type have come down to us from the reign of Abdulla Qutb Shah (1626-72) of Golkonda.

              In the 18th Century patronage of painting in the Deccan passed to the Asaf Jahi dynasty of Hyderabad. The painting of Azam S ah returning from bird-shooting and approaching his pleasure garden at the foot of the Golconda Fort, and the album of Himmatyar Khan, a noble of the Nizam's court, are some of the important surviving examples of the Deccani painting from Hyderabad.

Style & Themes - Although the Deccani paintings had varied degree of influence from Persian and Mughal paintings, yet some typical original features of Deccani paintings were - 

#  hierarchical scaling, i.e., the principal figure being bigger than the subordinate figures;

#  richness of the palette, in which white and gold are used as they are in no other Indian miniatures;

#  typical Jewelry, e.g., plaque of the necklace;

#  exaggerated swirl of the girdle and stole, especially in the case of feminine figures, and.

#  intersection of diagonals so as to form an arch around the principal figures.

Q.  Explain the developments in the sphere of military technology, shipbuilding, and metallurgy during the Mughal period.                    

A. Military tech - During the Mughal period, firearms began to be used on a regular basis. Babur in 1526, used guns and cannons in canons against the Rajputs & Afghans. These guns were actually matchlocks. Abul Fazl claims the manufacture of handguns without a match cord in Akbar's arsenal. European pistols were available at Burhanpur for sale as early as A.D. 1609. Cannons of various sizes were manufactured in India for the Indian rulers. Offensive and defensive weapons- like swords, spears, daggers, bows and arrows, shields and armors, etc. Were traditional still manufactured during the mughal period. 

Shipbuilding - Various methods were employed to join the planks. One of these was rabbeting which was widely practiced in India. This was basically on the tongue -and -groove principle: the 'tongue' of one plank was fitted into the 'groove' of another. The next step was to smear the planks with indigenous pitch or tar, and lime with the double purpose of stopping up any fissures and preserving the timber from sea worms. Fish-oil was also used for doubling the planks. Prior to the European advent, the planks of ships and boats were joined together by stitching or sewing them with ropes made of coir, or sometimes with wooden nails. The Europeans were using iron nails and clamps which made their vessels stronger and durable. The Indians lost no time in adopting the new technique. Similarly, Indians started using iron anchors introduced by Europeans. 

Metallurgy - i) The fuel for smelting consisted of wood charcoal (coal was not known). Thus, smelting was generally carried out at places that were near the source of wood supply.

ii) The smelters used small furnaces. 

iii) The bellows were ribless and small which did allow efficient air-blast to generate very high temperatures in the furnaces to reduce the ore to a totally liquefied state.

iv) In the case of iron and bronze, the metal was melted in diverse small furnaces were the molten material went to the mold. Since the quality of the molten metal in each furnace was not necessarily the same, the fabricated object could not have always been of high quality.

Q.  Textile production in Mughal India.                                

A.  After picking up cotton balls. there were three basic stages before cotton could be used for weaving:

i) ginning or seed extraction:

ii) carding or fiber loosening; and

iii) spinning or making yarn.

The first was done in two ways:

a) roller and board method. and

b) worm-press or worm-roller(charkhi) 

The most important technological revolution in the textile sector was the introduction of the spinning-wheel. A spinning-wheel could produce yarn six-fold more than the spindle during the same unit of time. This must-have resulted in a greater output of yarn and. constantly more cloths. 

         No radical addition or improvement seems to have been made during the seventeenth century. However, two developments that took place during this time period were, first, carpet-weaving under Akbar's patronage at Lahore, Agra and Fatehpur-Sikri; and second, production of silk and silk fabrics on a large scale.

Q.  Discuss the growth and development of North Indian languages and literature during the medieval period.                    A.  Hindi - Hindi language developed over a long period of time. A number of dialects spoken in various regions of northern India contributed to its development. The main dialects' from which Hindi emerged are Brajbhasa, Awadhi, Rajasthani, Maithili, Bhojpuri, etc. Khari Boli, a mixed form of Hindi, also came into existence in the 15th-16th centuries. During the 16th and 17th centuries, the form of poetry which developed was devotional (Bbakti). Kabir was the most famous exponent of this form. The Hindi literary language bloomed under the pervasive influence of the Bhakti movement The new poetry found its best creative expression in the writings of Gosvami Tulsidas who wrote his masterpiece Ramcharita-Mansa in 1574. Tulsidas inspired a number of other bhakti writers - like Agradas and Nabhajidas. 

Urdu - by the end of the 14th century, Urdu was emerging as an independent language. Like Hindi, the basic structure of Urdu consisted of Khari Boli - a mixture of various dialects spoken in Delhi and surrounding regions. Delhi, during this period, was ideally situated for the growth of a synthetic language since, on the one hand, it was surrounded. by people speaking different dialects of Hindi and, on the other hand, it had a Persian speaking ruling elite. Thus, Urdu adopted Persian script and Persian literary tradition but also incorporated the basic structure of Hindi dialects and, evolved an individuality of its own.

            Initially, Urdu appears to have emerged as an improvised language to enable the Persian speaking Turkish ruling class & soldiers to communicate with the local people including Muslim converts. This new common language took a century to acquire a concrete shape and came to be called "Hindavi" by Amir Khusrau. Hindavi thus forms the basis of both Hindi and Urdu. Amir Khusrau composed verses in Hindavi (using Persian script) and thus laid the foundation of Urdu literature. 

               However, it was in the Deccan that Urdu first acquired a standard literary form and came to be known as Dakhini during the 15th century. It developed first under the Bahmani rule and flourished in the Bijapur and Golkunda kingdoms. Gesu Daraz's Miraj-ul Ashiqin is the earliest work in Dakhini Urdu. Till the 18th century, Urdu was called by various names such as "Hindavi" , "Dakhini" , "Hindustani" or "Rekhta" (which means mingling several things to produce something new). In its developed form, Dakhini Urdu traveled back to the north and soon became popular during the Mughal period, It was during the period of the disintegration of the Mughal empire in the 18th century that the Urdu literature reached great heights.

Punjabi - The Punjabi language evolved from a broken form of Sanskrit known as Sauraseni Prakrit. Along with Brajabhasa and Rajasthani, Punjabi has the same grammatical base. The earliest text is the 'Adi Granth' whose compilation was completed by Guru Arjun Dev in 1604. Besides the composition of the Gurus, significant poetical work propagating the Sikh faith was done by Bhai Gurdas (1559-1637). His work is followed by devotional poetry enriching the Punjabi or the Gurumukhi language. Apart from poetry, a number of prose writings, mainly biographies called Janam Sakhis and expositions of the principles and tenets of the Sikh faith, emerged. In the secular field, a number of romances derived mainly from Muslim writers called 'Qissa' came to prevail. The most popular among these were the romance of Hir and Ranjha, and Mirza and Sahiban. The best exponent of the Hit and Ranjha story is Waris Shah. The contribution of Sufi poets to the development of Punjabi literature is considerable. The best known among these are Sultan Bahu (1631-91). 

Q.  Write a note on the growth and development of South Indian languages during the medieval period.                                A.  The important South Indian languages in which literature was being written. were Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam.

Tamil - 

A large number of Tamil works in literature are related to Shaivism & Vaishnavism. Haridasa a Vaishnava poet, wrote Irusamaya-vilakkam (an exposition of Saivism and Vaishnavism). Another Tamil work of significance was Sivadarumothram (1553) written by Marainanarbandar. The book having 1200 verses deals with chronology, temples and their constitution and theology. Saiva-Samayaneri (the path of Saiva creed) by the same author is work on the daily religious observance of Saivas. Kamalai.Nanaprakami wrote a Purana on Tirumaluvadi and a number of manuals on Saiva worship. Niramba Alagiya Desikar and his disciples also enriched the Purana literature. Desikar wrote Setu-puranamand Puranas on Tirupparangiri and Tiruvaiyaru. Madai Tiruvengadanathar an officer of the Nayak of Madura was an important literary figure of the 17th century. He wrote an exposition of Advaita Vedanta in a long Tamil poem. 

Telugu

Telugu as a language has affinities with Tamil and Kannada, but literary idioms depended on Sanskrit. The most glorious phase of Telugu literature was during the reign of Krishandeva Raya (1509-1529) of Vijaynagar. He himself was an acclaimed scholar. His Amuktamalyada is considered one of the great Kavyas in Telugu literature. The most celebrated poet at his court was, Allarrani Peddana. Manucarita is his most known work. Nandi Timmaha, another poet at Krishnadeva Raya's court, wrote Parijatapaharana in verse which is an episode of Sri Krishna's life. With the fall of the Vijaynagar empire, patronage to Telugu literary figures of the 17th

century was given by smaller states like Gadikota, Nellore, Sidhavatam, Gingee, Tanjore, and Madurai. Malti Ananta of Sidhavatam wrote Kakusthavijayam (1590-1610), Pushpagiri Timmana of Nellore translated Bhartnihari's Nitisataka.

Kannada

Most of the early Kannada works were Mitten by the Jainas; their contribution to the Kannada literature continued during the 16th and 17th centuries. Vadi Vidyananda of Geroppa compiled Kavyarasa in 1533 which is an anthology of prominent Kannada poets. Another Jaina scholar Salva (c. 1550) we a Jaina version of the Bharata Ratnakaravarhi. During the same period, Vaishnavita literature was also written. It is also in the form of translation of Sanskrit works into Kannada. A part of Mahabharata was translated by Kumaraa Vyasa, and the rest by Timmanna around 1510. 

Malayalam

Malayalam originated as a dialect of Tamil in the Odeyar region. By the fourteenth century, it acquired an independent status. A certain tradition of poets from the 15th century onwards contributed greatly to developing the Malayalam style of poetry. Rama Panikkar was one of the important poets of this tradition. Some of his prominent works are Bharata Gatha, Savitri Mahatmyam, Brahmandepuranam, and Bhagavatam. Cherruseri Nambudiri, a great poet of the 16th century, is credited for developing modem Malayalam literature. His famous work Krishnagatha is a beautiful poetic narration of Krishna's life. 

Q.  Write a brief note on the growth of Eastern Indian Literature during the medieval period.                                          Q.  Describe the growth of eastern language during the 16 - 17th centuries. How did the Chaitanya tradition enrich Bengali literature?                       

A. Bengali, Assamese, and Wiya were the major languages in which literature was produced in eastern India.

 Bengali

In the East, Bengali language and literature flourished after the advent of Sri Chaitanya The Vaisnava poets, inspired by the saint's mystic preachings, composed a number of lyrics in a new literary language with a blend of Maithili and Sanskrit This is known as Brajaboli and the lyrics - Padavali. Though the earliest biography of Sri Chaitanya was written in Sanskrit by Murari Gupta, this was followed quickly by the contemporary accounts of Brindabandas in Bengali. Brindabandas's Chaitanya Bhagavata or Chaitanya Mangal was probably composed within a decade of the saints' death and is considered to be the most authentic account of the social conditions of his time. The next important account is the Chaitanya-Charitamrita by Krishnadas Kaviraj. The work serves as the first philosophical treatise which elevated Sri Chaitanya into an incarnation of Sri Krishna and laid the philosophical foundation of Gaudiya Vaisnavism. 

Assamese

As in Bengal, Assamese literature also developed in response to the Bhakti movement. It was Sankaradeva who ushered in Vaisnavism and, being a good poet, he also introduced into Assamese a rich crop of poetry. He was followed by his disciple Madhavadas whose principal works were mainly the Bhakti-ratnavali dealing with different aspects of bhakti, a handbook consisting of a large number of hymns, the Baragitas depicting the life of Krishna in Vrindavan and another work also dealing with the childhood of Krishna. Translations from the epics and Puranas also formed a part of the literary projects of the Assamese writers. Rama Rarasvati translated parts of the Mahabharata, similarly, Gopal Chandra Dvija wrote the story of Krishna as told in the Bhagavata and Vishnu Purana. 

Oriya

Oriya literature in this mod was still under the spell of Sanskrit. A number of Kavyas were composed of Puranic themes by Madhusudana, Bhima, Dhivara, Sadasiva and Sisu Isvaradasa. Romances on non-Puranic themes were composed by Dhananjay Bharya. An interesting poetical experiment is seen in the work Rasa Kallol which deals with the love of Radha and Krishna. It was in the 17th century when Ramachandra Pattanayaka wrote his Haravali that Oriya literature developed a popular base. Vaisnava works like Prema-Panchamrita by Bhupaii Pandita opened the path of theology through poetry.  

EHI - 4

15th Part

Q.  Urban demography and composition of an urban population during the medieval period                                           

Q.   Write a note on urban life in the Mughal Empire.                 

Q.  Discuss the standard of living, clothing pattern and social life of the urban classes in medieval India.                                    A.  Urban Landscape - 

1) Physical Configuration

         Most of the towns had a fortification wall with one or more gates. The main population of the city lived within these walls. With the expansion of towns at times the cities outgrew their walls. In planned towns markets were properly laid. In others, shops could be found on both sides of the main roads. With shopkeepers living behind these shops or on the first floor of the shops. Most of the towns could boast of a number of markets. Many of these markets specialized in a particular commodity. Names of various areas suggest their specialty for example in Agra-Loha Gali (iron objects), cheenitole (sugar mart), ghallamandi (grain market), dal mandi, sabunkatra (soap market) nil para (indigo market) in Delhi. Jauhri bazar (jewellery), sabzimandi (vegetable mart), churiwala (bangles), etc. Paharganj was a wholesale market for grain. The residential areas of towns called mohalla were often identified by the professional groups that resided there. 

              Another important feature of the town was the presence of sarais which were halting places for merchants or travelers. Even the smallest towns had one. The larger towns like Delhi, Agra, Patna, Lahore, or Ahmedabad had sarais by the dozens. The travelers were provided with amenities including storage space to

stock merchandise. The foreigners visiting the towns were supposed to inform the city administration about their arrival and departure. On the whole, most of the towns lacked any detailed town planning. Except for the major street, other, lanes and by-lanes were congested and muddy. The city had its own administrative machinery and regulations to run the day-to-day administration. 

2) Composition of Population (Urban Classes)

The urban population was not a homogenous one. These can be classified into four broad groups :

i)  Nobles and their retainers, officials of the state and troops;

ii)  Persons engaged in mercantile activities (merchants, Sarraf, brokers, etc.);

iii)  People involved with religious establishments, musicians, painters, poets, physicians, etc., and

iv)  Artisans, menials and workmen of sundry sorts.

               The composition of different categories of people in different towns depended on the nature of towns, i.e., administrative centers, or commercial centers., In the case of imperial headquarters, perhaps the biggest group was that of the retainers & troops of the king and nobles. As most of the big towns were commercial centers of importance, the mercantile community of the towns was quite important. Another important group in a town comprised of people associated with the professions of medicine, learning, literature, art, and music. Generally, the religious and charitable grants were given in the vicinity of towns. Besides, a large number of poets, musicians, physicians also made their abode in towns because here money could be earned or patronage of the king and nobles was available. Artisans; workmen and laborers formed one of the biggest groups in towns having large commercial activities.

3) Urban Demography

The Tabqat-i Akbari (c 1593) says that during Akbar’s period there were around 120 big cities and 3200 small towns. In the 17th century, with the increasing trade and commerce, this number would have grown further. It is estimated that around 15 percent of the total population in Mughal India lived in towns.

Urban life - 

1) Standard of Living - 

              The standard of living in a Medieval city shows a striking contrast. While the'upper strata led a lifestyle akin to the royalty, the urban poor found it difficult to achieve the bare subsistence level.  Middle classes, especially the petty revenue officials, lower rank mansabdars and the physicians appear to be fairly prosperous. However, intellectuals were, in general, poor and depended for their livelihood solely upon their patrons. The nobles and other upper classes in Mughal India led a luxurious lifestyle. 

Clothing

The style of clothing of the middle and upper strata was by and large similar. Both could be distinguished on the basis of the quality of cloth they worn. Men wore drawers (shalwar) and breeches (churidar payjama), and a shirt. In the winter they also wore arcabick (vest stuffed with cotton) and a long loose-fitting coat (qaba). Besides, they put a shawl on shoulders and a patka around the waist and a turban. Women wore a long chadar and a bodice (chdi). In the doab area, lahanga (a long loose skirt) and choli and a long scarf were quite popular. The Muslim ladies usually wore loose drawers, a shirt, and long scarves together with their usual veil. The cloth used was mostly cotton, plain and printed, and silk, plain and striped. 

2) Social Life

The joint family system was common. The woman was subordinate to man. The higher class women observed purdah. The custom of jauhar was almost entirely confined totally among the Rajputs. Their women, in time of despair (during the war, etc.), seeing the imminent defeat, to save their pride, used to set themselves afire. Among the upper-caste Hindus, the practice of Sati or self-immolation was quite common. 

            Both Hindus and Muslims favored an early marriage age for boys and girls. Songs were sung. Marriage was performed wit,h elaborate rites. Nobles and rich merchant spent a huge amount of money on marriages.

            Elaborate ceremonies were performed at the time of death also.

Education

In general, education was beyond the reach of a common woman. But women of the elite class got the opportunity to study. Princesses were taught to read and write. 

3) Entertainment and Festivities

Gambling, elephant fights, chaupar, chandal-mandal, chess, cards, polo, etc., were the sports greatly indulged in by the higher strata. Chaupar playing was very popular among the Hindus, especially the Rajputs. Hunting was the most popular pastime of royalty. The Mughals organized qamargah hunts. 

Festivals and Fairs

Religious festivals & pilgrimages to holy shrines were popular means of amusement. Huge urs celebration was organized at the tomb of the Sufis. Dussehra was popular among the kshatriyas and all agricultural classes. The Kumbha fairs on the Ganga was most famous of all the fairs. 

Music

Big amirs arranged "mushairas" (literary evenings) in their mansions where poets recited their compositions. Singers and musicians performed their recital in the harem every day. Indoor entertainment parties (jashn) were organized which were accompanied by dance and banquet. Humayun introduced the system of river picnics on the Jamuna.

Q.  What were the main features of Sufi philosophy ? Give a brief account of the major Sufi silsilahs.                                         A.  Suhrawardi order- Shaikh Bahauddin Zakaria was the founder of the Suhrawardi order in India. He associated himself with the court and in 1228 Iltutmish appointed him the Shaikh-ul Islam. The saints of the Suhrawardi order hereafter remained in touch with the establishment and actively participated in political activities. The

Suhrawardi order made progress in provinces other than Multan and spread from Uch to Gujarat, Punjab, Kashmir, and even Delhi. 

Firdausiya - Shaikh Sharfuddin Ahmad Yahya developed firdausiya order in the 14th century. He was an ardent believer in Wahdat-ul Wujud.

Chisti - it was introduced into India by Khwaja Muinuddin. The sayings of Muinuddin show that his life's mission was to inculcate piety, humility, and devotion to God. According to him, those who know God avoid mixing with other people and keep silent on matters relating to divine knowledge. After his death, the silsilah made notable progress under his able disciples. The Chishti mystics believed in the spiritual value of music. The disciple of Muinuddin, Khwaja Qutubuddin Bakhtiar Kaki died in a state of ecstasy under the spell of music. He stayed in Delhi and exercised a tremendous influence upon the people. Khwaja Fariduddin Masud was the Khalifa (successor) of Qutbuddin. He kept himself far away from political personalities and avoided contact with rich and powerful people. Shaikh Nizamuddin was his Chief disciple. Though he saw the reigns of seven Sultans of Delhi, he never visited the court of any one of them. The liberal outlook of the Shaikh, as well as his delight in music, caused him to be denounced by the orthodox Ulema. Even after his death in 1325, the Shaikh commanded tremendous respect, and even now he is regarded to be a great spiritual force. After the death of Baba Farid, the Chishti order was divided into two main subdivisions-Nezamia and Sabiria.

Qadiri order - It was introduced by Shah Niamatullah and Makhdum Mohammad Jilani towards the middle of the 15th century. The Qadiri order found a great devotee in Prince Dara Shukoh who visited a saint of this order, Miyan Mir (1550-1635), at Lahore along with Shah Jahan and was much impressed by his saintly personality.

The Naqshbandi order - It was introduced into India by Khwaja Baqi Billah (1563-1603). From the beginning, the mystics of this order laid stress upon the observance of the law (Shariat) and had emphatically denounced all innovations which had spoiled the purity of Islam. Thus, it may be regarded as a reaction to the challenging ideas of the upholders of Wahdat-ul Wujud. 

Q.  Analyse the chief features of Mughal architecture.                  Q.  Discuss the growth of Mughal architecture from Akbar's to Shahjahan's reign. 

A.  Mughal style of architecture took a concrete form during the reign of Akbar, yet the basic principles of Mughal architecture were provided by Babur & Humayun, the two predecessors of Akbar. 

Babar - The only standing structures of Babur's reign are two mosques, built-in 1526, at Panipat and Sambhal. But both these structures are commonplace and possess no architectural merit. Babur's secular works mainly comprise the laying of gardens and pavilions.

Humayun -The surviving buildings of Humayun's reign have the same inconsequential character as that of Babur. However, two mosques from among several other buildings erected during the first phase of his reign survive. One of these lies in ruinous condition at Agra. The other is at Fatehabad (Hissar). But both these structures are devoid of any architectural distinctiveness much in the same manner as the mosques of Babur. Humayun's return to Delhi in 1555 was short-lived. There are in fact no notable buildings of this time. However, Humayun's tomb as a structure was inspired by the Persian culture imbibed by Humayun during his exile. This building is, in fact, a landmark in the development of the Mughal style of architecture. The construction began in 1564 after Humayun's death under the patronage of his widow, Hamida Bano Begum. 

Akbar - Akbar's reign can be taken as the formative period of Mughal architecture. It represents the finest example of the fusion of Indo-Islamic architecture.

Chief features- 

The architecture of the reign of Akbar represents the encouragement of the indigenous techniques and selective use of the experiences of other countries. The chief elements of the style of architecture that evolved under Akbar's patronage can be listed thus:

a)  the buildings mainly used red sandstone as the building material;

b) widespread use of the trabeated construction;

c)  the arches used mainly in decorative form rather than in structural form;

d)  the dome was of the 'Lodi' type, sometimes built hollow but never technically of the true double order;

e)  the shafts of the pillars were multifaceted and the capitals of these pillars invariably took the form of bracket supports; and

f)  the decoration comprised of boldly carved or inlaid patterns complemented by brightly colored patterns on the interiors.

            Akbar's building projects can be divided into two main groups, each representing a different phase. The first group comprised buildings of a fork and a few palaces mainly at Agra, Allahabad, and Lahore. One of the earliest building projects of Akbar's reign was the construction of a fort at Agra, conceived actually as a fortress-palace. The second group related basically to the construction of his new capital Fath-pur Sikri. The second phase of Akbar's architectural scheme coincides with the conception and creation of a ceremonial capital for the Empire at Sikri, nearly forty kilometers west of Agra. The new capital was named Fatehpur. It is one of the most remarkable monuments in India. In its design and layout, Fatehpur Sikri is a city where the public areas like the courtyards, Diwan-i Am and Jami Masjid form a coherent group around the private palace apartments.

Architecture Under Jahangir and Shah Jahan -

New Features - 

In the sphere of the building art, Jahangir and Shah Jahan's reigns were an age of marble. The place of red sandstone was soon taken over by marble in its most refined form. This dictated significant stylistic changes which have been listed below:

a)  The arch adopted a distinctive form with foliated curves, usually with nine cusps;

b)  Marble arcades of engrailed arches became a common feature;

c)  The dome developed a bulbous form with the stifled neck. Double domes became very common;

D)  Inlaid patterns in colored stones became the dominant decorative form; and

e)  In the buildings, from the latter half of the Jahangir's reign, a new device of inlay decoration called pietra dura was adopted. In this method, semi-precious stones such as lapis lazuli, onyx, jasper, topaz, and comelian were embedded in the marble in graceful foliations.

             The account of the major buildings of this period begins with a remarkable structure, that is, the tomb of Akbar, located at Sikandra, eight kilometers from the Agra on Delhi road. Jahangir was a great patron of the art of painting. His love of flowers and animals as reflected in the miniature paintings of his period, made him a great lover of the art of laying out gardens rather than building huge monuments. Some of the famous Mughal gardens of Kashmir such as the Shalimar Bagh and the Nishat Bagh stand as testimony to Jahangir's passion. 

            In contrast to Jahangir, his son Shah Jahan was a prolific builder. His reign was marked by extensive architectural work in his favorite building material the marble.

Some of these were:

a)  the palace-forts, e.g, the Lal Qila at Delhi;

b) the mosques, e.g. the Moti Masjid in the Agra Fort and the Jami Masjid at Delhi;&

c) the garden-tombs, e.g., the Taj Mahal. 

               The Lal Qila is a regular rectangle with the north wall following the old course of the Yamuna river. There are two gate-ways -- the Delhi and Lahore Gates, and massive round bastions at regular intervals along the wall. 

               The Tai Mahal is a square building with deep alcoved recesses on each side and its four comers beveled to form an octagon. The decorative features of the building consist of calligraphy aid inlay work in the exterior and pietra dura in the interior. Marble, the main building material, is of the finest quality brought from Makrana quarries near Jodhpur.