History of India-Mugal (1707-1764)

Indian History-AD-5 (1707-1764)

India has a continuous civilization since 2500 BC. During the 2nd millennium, Aryan speaking tribes migrated from northwest into the Indian subcontinent.

From "A New History of India", by Stanley Wolpert. 2004.

BRITISH RAAJ (1619- 1947 AD) - 328 years Mugal Empire contd from Previous Page
From 1619, since first British outpost was established at Soorat, on the northwestern coast in 1619, British continued to open their permanent trading stations at Madras, Bombay and Calcutta each under the protection of native rulers. But they could not capture Dehlee until 1756

TWILIGHT OF MUGAL EMPIRE - 1707-1764 -

Bahaadur Shaah (reign, 1707-1712 AD)
Aurangzeb had three living sons (his eldest son died in prison (or in Persia where he fled in 1658?) who were always busy in their respective provincial posts, though none of them inherited their father's appetite for power or his obsession with religion and duty. The first half of the 18th century was the twilight era of Mugal Empire.

Aurangzeb's eldest living son Muazzam was 63 when his father died. He left Laahaur for Dehlee to claim the throne as Bahaadur Shaah (Brave king) the first Shaal Aalam. His brothers, Aazam and Kambakhsh, also came to claim the throne. Bahaadurshaah's brief reign of 5 years was already in the traditional Mugal war of succession. He made peace with Raajpoot, leaving young Shaahoo (Shivaajee's grandson) who had escaped to Mahaaraashtra as the king of Sataaraa. Bahaadur Shaah even won the support of Guru Gobind who went to Aagaraa to attend his court. After the death of Gobind in October 1708, Sikh got united under Bandaa Bahaadur (1708-1716), his original name was Lakshman Daas, who became the virtual king of Panjaab. He even introduced his own coins and own calendar to commemorate his reign. Bahaadur Shaah made him flee to the hills. But spiritless and depressed, Bahaadur Shaah died in February 1712.

Jahandar Shah, Sayyad Brothers (reign, 1712-)
A new fraternal warfare now broke loose among the four sons of Bahaadur Shaah, so desperately that none of them worried to bury their father for nearly a month. Jahandar Shaah, the eldest son finally won, but he was so incompetent that he lost confidence of his own Vazeer (chief minister) Zulfiqaar Khaan and Zulfiqaar Khaan took away the treasury as well as power which he managed to hold for one year (till 1713). The Emperor's 32-year old nephew Faarrukh-shiyaar seized Dehlee and Aagaraa with the help of his two powerful courtiers, the Sayyad brothers who became the real rulers of Dehlee. He also lost confidence of his people and he wasted much of his 6-year reign (1713-1719). He slowly tortured and then executed Bandaa in 1716. Faarrukh-shiyaar was dragged from his Harem, blinded by his own courtiers, and poisoned in 1719.

Husain Alee, one of the Sayyad brothers, came back from the victory from Dakkan along with 11,000 Maraathaa soldiers, intending to depose Faarrukh-shiyaar. The Maraathaa civil war had ended, thanks to Baalaajee Vishwanaath (c 1660-1720) who was the chief minister of Shaahoo in 1714. Shaahoo was made a Mansabdaar and he conquered neighboring states of Khaandesh, Baraar, pockets of Maraathaa in Maisoor, and around Tanjaavur and Karnaatak. The total paper value (the actual was always less) of the annual revenue of the 6 Mugal provinces under Maraathaa rule was almost 180 million Rupees (18 Crore Rupees) - 35% of the of the total crop value of the region.

Muhammad Shaah (a grandson of Bahaadur Shaah, reign, 1719-1749 AD)
Sayyad brothers again selected an Emperor but he was replaced by his elder brother in a matter of weeks. He was so sick that he himself died within 3 months after being crowned as Shaajahaan the Second. Sayyad brothers came up with another Emperor - a young grandson of Bahaadur Shaah - he ascended the throne as Muhammad Shaah and surprised everyone by reigning for 30 years. He appointed the strongest Turaanee noble Nizaam-ul-Mulk (1669-1748) was sent as Viceroy to Dakkan, where he had assaulted Sayyad's nephews in Khaandesh. He chose to be as king in Haidaraabaad, instead of reforming Dehlee, where he founded a "dynasty" that would long outlive the Mugal Empire.

Nizaam-ul-Mulk of Haidaraabaad (1723-1748 AD)
Nizaam and Maraathaa became competitors for Dakkan territory. Baajee Raav "Peshavaa" (1700-1740) who succeeded his father as Peshavaa was a strong defender of Maraathaa. The death of the Sayyad brothers left the Maraathaa without support at Dehlee. Nizaam bagged the title of Viceroyalty of the Dakkan. He proclaimed a new Dynasty, minted new coins of his name. The 18th century pattern of dismantling the Mugal Empire was thus established and was followed in other provinces also, including Bangaal and Avadh where powerful Navaab became independent kings in all but title and trivia.

Naadir Shaah (1736-1747 AD)
While South India was merging as an independent of Mugal power, Mugal Dynasty was invaded by Afgaan - Isfaahaan falling in 1722. A powerful Persian General Naadir Qulee managed to drive Afgaan back to their homeland and ascended the Persian throne as Naadir Shaah in 1736. He then called upon Dehlee's Muhammad Shaah to join him in a united effort to crush Afgaanistaan. Poor Muhammad Shaah could hardly manage to defend his own Dehlee from Baajee Raav'a army (in 1737). He was obliged to ask Nizaam's help and exalted him with the unprecedented title "Aasaf-Jaah", 5 new provinces and 10 million Rupees cash to remove Maraathaa from Central India. Nizaam couldn't refuse this tempting offer and left for Dehlee with 30,000 troops. He sent his elder son, Naasir Jang, to trap Baajee Raav, but Peshavaa lured Nizaam to Bhopaal where Baajee Raav surrounded him. Nizaam was forced for peace. Baajee's terms were the formal cessation of all of Maalavaa and Bundelkhand, and to pay 500,000 Rupees in cash. Maraathaa was now greater than any other single force in India.

At this point, Persians did not wait for Muhammad's help, Naadir Shaah advanced to take Kandhaar and Kaabul alone; and then at the end of 1738, he crossed the Sindhu River. Laahaur fell, the Sikh fled to the hills, and Persians advanced toward Dehlee. The Emperor fled to Karnaal in the Spring of 1739. Naadir Shaah easily defeated Mugal and captured Dehlee slaughtering an estimated 30,000 people and looting a billion Rupees worth of gold and jewels including the Peacock throne (it was carried back to Persia). Shaah Jahaan's city was left smoldering shell by May 1739.

Rise of British in Bangaal - In the closing decades of the 18th century, the British strengthened their position on both west and east coast under the leadership of the two brothers - Sir John and Josia Child. Sir John was the president of the Company's factory at Soorat and Governor of Bombay from 1682-1690. They took permission from Aurangzeb to trade at a new base, near Hugalee River, in Bangaal in 1690. There was a Kaalee shrine from which "Ghaat" (steps) descended to the water, hence its name was Calcattaa may have been derived from the words "Kaalee-Ghaat". By 1700 its population of Englishmen grew to 1,200. Fort William was erected at this spot, about a 100 miles upriver from the Bay of Bangaal - one of the most populous cities and ports , though no one imagined how fast it would grow or how important it would be in near future. But the venue for historic development was Madraas. British discovered the key to Indian conquest from their most recent rivals in India, the French.

French East India Company - The French Company had been started with a capital of about 600,000 British Pounds in 1664. It came to India at Pondicherry, about 80 miles south of Madraas on the Coromandal coast, in 1674. They followed the British tripod pattern of settlement. They established subsidiary factories at Soorat and Chandarnagar on the River Hugalee by the end of the century and they soon started competing with British. They captured Madraas in September 1746 as well as took young Robert Clive (b/d 1725-1774) prisoner. He was a writer in the Company's civil service who got so bored with his job that he tried unsuccessfully to blow out his own brains with a pistol that misfired, Once the Navaab of Karnaatak, Anvar-uddeen tried to take Madraas from French by attacking them with 10,000 men in October 1745 but their 900 people defeated them. Dupleix became the Navaab of Karnaatak also in all but name. Had France been ruled by Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour, Dupleix would have become the Emperor of India. He was, in fact, managing the Nizaam and Navaab after the death of Nizaam-ul-Mulk in 1748.

Baajee Raav had died in 1740, but his son Baalaajee Raav (1721-1761) succeeded him as Pshavaa and led Maraathaa for two decades. There were four extremely powerful Maraathaa Generals - Gaayakvaad in Barodaa, Holkar at Indaur, Sindhiyaa in Gwaalior, and Bhonsley at Naagpur, each of whom had carved his own domain. These paid nominal allegiance to the king of Sataaraa.

Siraaj-ud-Daulaa in Bangaal (1756-)
Alee Vardee, of Bangaal, when died in April 1756, had no sons, so he designated his youngest daughter's son Siraaj-ud-Daulaa as the heir of his throne. He was only 20-year old then. He could not foresee many things and was driven toward his own destruction. The Tragedy of Black Hole (Kaal Kotharee) took place when the 146 British residents who could not flee (the rest escaped through the River Gate) were imprisoned for a night in a small guard room measuring less than 6m x 5m with only one window. Only 23 are believed to have survived. some believe that there were only 64 people held in that room. This victory was short-lived, and within a year, Robert Clive took the city back defeating the Navaab at Plassey, in 1757 - a turning point for the British in India.

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