Chapter 8 Crisis Of Mughal Empire Introduction
Under the able leadership of Shivaji, the first founder of the Maratha race, the independent Maratha state came up. From that viewpoint, the second part of the seventeenth century was an important chapter in the rise of an independent Maratha state.
At that time, the areas of Bombay, Berer, Konkan, and Khandesh were called the Maratha region. The largest part of the Maratha region is Maharastra. It is extended from the Arabian sea on the West to Hyderabad in the East.
Read and Learn More WBBSE Notes For Class 7 History
Chapter 8 Crisis Of Mughal Empire Rise Of Maratha Power Under Shivaji And Mughal State
Childhood of Shivaji:
Alauddin Khalji abolished the existence of an independent Maratha state by defeating Ramchandradeva, the king of the Yadav dynasty. After 50 years or so, Bahmani state came up in that place.
Wbbse Class 7th History Notes
After the fall of Bahmanis, the Marathas took services under the sultans of Bijapur and Ahmednagar. Shahji, Bhonsle, father of Shivaji, became the Jagirdar under the Sultan of Ahmednagar. Shivaji was born in the cave of Shivan (1627 A.D. or 1630 A.D.).
But Shivaji was very unfortunate as his father left him behind and went away somewhere else. Shivaji was brought up by his mother Jizabai and maternal grandfather Kondadeva, who was also a wise Brahmin.
” what is the idea of supreme god class 7 “
During this time, Shivaji learned war tactics from Kondadeva. He also got inspired by listening to the stories of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata from his mother Jizabai.
Unification of Marathas:
He was brought up in a safe shelter of a rugged hilly place which was surrounded by the Vindhyas and Satpura mountains on the North, the Western ghats, and the Narmada river on the West.
Marathas used to live in the infertile dense forest areas of Nasik, Kankon, Pune, Satara, etc. Naturally, they were very hardworking and painstaking. Ambar, the ruler of Ahmednagar first taught the Maratha peasants the tactics of guerilla warfare.
So Shivaji faced no’ difficulty in adopting the guerilla training of the Marathas. Historian Jadunath Sarkar thinks that Shivaji did not face any difficulty to unite, the simple and poor farmers.
It was not a problem for him to covest the hard-working and struggling farmers into fighting soldiers. So he organized. the Mawali youths of hilly area and set up a strong military régiment first.
Pride of the past:
Besides this, the influences of Bhaktibadi leaders Tukaram, Eknath, Ramdas, etc. inspired Shivaji to build up the united Maratha state.
The books like ‘Dashbodh’ written by his guru Ramdas, Abhanga by Tukaram, ‘Pothi’ by poet Sridhar, and the ‘Pobara’ or the ballads written by the local poets made him conscious about the pride of the past.
Protest against Mughal:
It is written in the book Cambridge Economic History of India that due to the battle between Adilshahi of South India and the Nizam Shahi sultans with the Mughals, which continued for a long time, hampered cultivation and agriculture a lot.
Wbbse Class 7th History Notes
During these hard days of the farmers, Shivaji lent his helping hands to them and encouraged them to be united and loot. Some modern historians say that Shivaji dreamt to establish an independent Maratha state as against the blind religious policy of Aurangzeb.
But it is very difficult to say which cause, religious or economic, was active behind the rise of the Maratha dynasty. Prof. Satish Chandra said that the different hill tribes like Kol Bhil, Ramosi, etc.
Joined with Shivaji just to boost up their status. Shivaji basically took the initiative, being inspired by the ideas of his guru Ramdas, to build up a powerful and united Hindu dynasty in the entire India.
The Marathon historian Dr. G. S. Sardesai said that he had the idea of establishing a powerful and strong Hindu dynasty in India and not any regional state.
“class 7 history chapter 8 pdf “
Unpleasantness Of Shivaji With Bijapur
So at the age of 18, he conquered the forts of Torna and Raigarh, (1645 A.D.-1647 A.D.). He recovered the Jagir of Pune after the death of his maternal grandfather Kondadeva in 1647 A.D.
He established his domination in the Konkan region by capturing Jaoli fort after killing Chandra Rao More in 1656 A.D. After that, he conquered Chakan, Raigarh, Singhagarh, Purandar, Baramati, and Indrapur one after another.
Torna was under Bijapur and Raigarh fort was 5 miles away from it. But the angry sultan of Bijapur imprisoned his father Shahji when this fort was captured by Shivaji.
After that, the relationship with Bijapur improved when he promised not to attack Bijapur in the future. But within a very short period, Shivaji violated all his promises and as a result, the sultan of Bijapur sent his commandant Afzal Khan along with 10,000 soldiers and some cannons against Shivaji (1659 A.D.).
But with the help of guerilla warfare, Shivaji cornered Afzal Khan. Then Afzal invited Shivaji in the Pratapgarh fort for a compromise. But Krishnaji Bhaskar came to know about his bad intention and warned Shivaji.
Wbbse Class 7th History Notes
Shivaji came to the fort prepared by wearing an iron shield and a special knife known as ‘Bichhua’. Afzal Khan, with prevention of embracing him, attacked Shivaji with Baghnokh or a weapon equipped with tiger nails.
As Shivaji was alert about this type of attack, he immediately drew out the knife ‘Bichhua’ and killed Afzal with the help of the same.
After that Shivaji and his bodyguard Jeeb Mahala took away plenty of artillery, elephant, horses, and 10,00,000 of rupees along with them, on their way back, they conquered the forts of Panhala and Kolhapur.
Chapter 8 Crisis Of The Mughal Empire Mughal Maratha Conflict
After that, the conflict between Mughal and Maratha started (1660-1680 A.D.). Aurangzeb after being the emperor, sent Shayesta Khan the Subedar of South India and also his maternal uncle, to subdue Shivaji in 1660 A.D.
Shayesta Khan drove away many Marathas and established tents in different areas. As a retaliation Shivaji all of suddenly attacked the tent of Shayesta Khan in Pune on 15th April 1663 A.D. and killed his son Abul Fath.
Shayesta Khan lost one of his fingers. Mughal soldiers scattered around. Taking this opportunity Shivaji looted Surat port in 1664 A.D. and acquired wealth and treasures worth one crore of rupees.
Treaty of Purandar:
Aurangzeb being frustrated, transferred Shayesta Khan to Bengal as subedar and engaged prince Muajjam as subedar in South India. Then he sent commandants Dilir Khan and Jaisingh to subdue Shivaji.
Faza! Khan, son of Afzal Khan, and the European merchants were included in the Mughals. Then Mughal army besieged Shivaji in the Purandar fort and started firing shells from the cannons.
Wbbse Class 7th History Notes
As a result,, the walls of the fort cracked and Shivaji came out of the fort and surrendered. Then he signed a treaty of Purandar with Jaisingh on 26th June, 1665 A.D.
Condition of Purandar Treaty:
The conditions of this treaty was (1665 A.D.)
- Shivaji quitted 23 out of 35 forts.
- Made the scope of earning Rs. 20 lakhs in a year.
- Accepted the sovereignty of the Mughals.
- His son Shambhuji was proposed to be employed as 500 Mansab in Mughal Court.
- He will extend all kinds of help to the Mughals at the battle against Bijapur.
- Shivaji would pay the Mughal emperor a sum of Rs. 2 crores if he could capture Payenghat and Balaghat of Bijapur.
But after this treaty, Aurangzeb invited Shivaji to Delhi. When he came to Delhi. Aurangzeb captured and imprisoned Shivaji and his son Shambhuji in the Agra fort (1666 A.D.).
But Shivaji and Shambhuji, disguised in a dress of saints managed to escape from Agra fort in 1668 A.D. From 1670 A.D. onwards, Shivaji started looting. He recovered many forts that he lost earlier.
He also recovered Purandar, Singhagarh, Kalyan, etc. He captured some parts of Jinji, Vellore, and Karnataka. He was coronated in the capital Raigarh in 1674 A.D.
At that time he got the title ‘Chhatrapati’ and ‘Gobrahman’ ‘Prajapalak. He died at the age of 53 only on 16th April 1680 A.D.
Administrative achievements:
Shivaji ruled only for 6 years. Within this short period, he developed an improved administrative infrastructure (1674-1680 A.D.). Though he was all in all, yet he used to take advice from eight ministers (Astapradhan) for building up a welfare state.
For the sake of good administration, he divided Swarajya into three parts. These were Bargi (Government soldiers) and Shiladar (rented soldiers) in his army. Also, there were infantries, elephants, camels, artillery, and naval squad.
Wbbse Class 7th History Notes
Revenue were collected from 30% to 40%. But it was inadequate. So he collected taxes from Chouth, (4th share) and from Sardeshmukhi ( share) from the neighboring states.
So Shivaji was not only a great warrior but also was a good administrator. According to Sir Jadunath Sarkar, “Shivaji was not only the founder of the Maratha race, but also was a great national leader.”
Grant Duff also recognized him as a great national leader.
- The relationship between Aurangzeb and the Rajputs was good at the initial stage. But in 1678 A.D. many Rajputs did not agree to the appointment of Indar Singh, a relative of Jaswant Singh as the king of Marwar, which was recognized by Aurangzeb after the death of Jaswant Singh.
- The Sikh revolution happened due to political and economic reasons. The conflict between Sikhs and Aurangzeb occurred because Sikh gurus started collecting taxes of their own from the people and developed Gurdwaras and soldiers.
Aurangzeb killed Arjun, the 5th Sikh Guru Tegbahadur in 1675 A.D. As a result, the Sikhs became angry with this incident. So Gobinda Singh the 10th Sikh Guru developed the Khalsa regiment and fought a lifelong battle with Aurangzeb.
Chapter 8 Crisis Of Mughal Empire Revolt During The Regime of Aurangzeb
Historians have described the regime of Aurangzeb as a period of extreme expansion as well as a period of decline. Aurangzeb built up a very big empire by conquering a vast area. But at the same time, the number of revolts that happened maximum in his time.
Revolt in North-Eastern Border:
With his instruction, Daud Khan conquered Palamau (1661 A.D.) and as a result, the states of the North-East region started revolting. The Kotch and the Ahome races of the border states attacked and to defend there, Aurangzeb sent his commander Mirjumla (1661 A.D.).
He subdued the Ahome king Jayaddhaj and collected huge compensation from him. In the meantime, Mirjumla died and Sayesta Khan became the Subedar of Bengal.
He captured Chittagong from the Aracans, Sandip from the Portuguese, and Orissa from the Pathans and set up the business atmosphere in Balasore.
Revolt in North-Western Border:
Aurangzeb snatched away the self-government of the Afghan tribals in the North-Western border of India. They in turn attacked the Mughal Empire.
Especially due to attacks by the ferocious Afghan tribals like Yusufzai (1667 A.D.), Afridi (1672 A.D.), and Khattak (1674 A.D.) the peace in the North-Western border area was very much disturbed.
Wbbse Class 7th History Notes
Historian Jadunath Sarkar thinks, that due to these revolts by the tribals, the Mughal Empire faced political and economic crises to a great extent.
Besides this, the integrity of his empire was hampered to a great extent due to the revolts by the Jath, Satnami, Sikh, Bundela, Rajput, Maratha, etc during his regime.
“class 7th history chapter 8 pdf “
Dr. Jadunath Sarkar thinks that blind religious policies are responsible for such revolutions. On the other hand, Dr. Goutam Bhadra, Dr. Irfan Habib, Dr. Satish Chandra, etc. think these revolutions took place due to socioeconomic factors.
Aurangzeb killed Arjun, the 5th Sikh Guru, and beheaded the ninth Sikh Guru Tegbahadur in 1675 A.D. As a result, the Sikhs became angry with this incident. So Gobinda Singh the 10th Sikh Guru developed the Khalsa regiment and fought a lifelong battle with Aurangzeb. After the death of Guru Gobinda. Banda and his followers continued the Sikh revolution. Aurangzeb could not manage all the revolutions that started against him during his long 50 years of rule. As a result, the path of the decline of the Mughal dynasty became widened. Taking the advantage of his weakness, the Marathas of the South and the Shia community revolted against Aurangzeb.
Chapter 8 Crisis Of Mughal Empire Mansabdari System
‘Mansabdari system’ is a Persian system. Emperor Akbar first introduced this system in 1577 A.D. The meaning of the word ‘Mansab’ is Government given Rank.
It has two parts- ‘Jath’ and ‘Sawar’. There is no doubt that the Mansabdari system has initiated a new chapter in the military as well as civil administration. The Military Personnel connected with the Mansab system are called Mansabdar.
They were given the responsibility to collect the army for their training. Some Mansabdars were given cash salaries and the same were given Jagir or land. The mughal army was based on the Mansabdari system.
Class 7 History Wbbse
Akbar used to decide which Mansabdar will keep how many soldiers or horses. Depending upon the Mansabdar’s keeping how many soldiers and horses, the Mansabdari system was divided into 33 grades.
The lowest grade was 10 and the highest grade was 10,000 (Dash Hazari). Between this, there were 20, 100, 200, 500, 1000, 5000, and 7000 grades of Mansabs, etc.
The highest Mansab 10,000 was increased to 12,000. The emperor usually donated high Mansab to his relatives and loyal people. Bhagawan Das got a 5000 mansab, 7000 mansab of king Mansingh was increased to 10,000. Aurangzeb increased it to 40,000 to 50,000.
Chapter 8 Crisis Of The Mughal Empire Jagirdari Crisis
In the Mughal period, taxation made the peasants, workers artisans, and merchants very poor. Most of the rulers were over expensive in nature. They lost Kandahar in this period which place was economically very important.
Class 7 History Wbbse
Surat lost its past importance from the line of Shah Jahan. Historian Jagadish Narayan Sarkar believed that decreasing trade of Surat made the Mughal economy weaker. The regional rulers of many areas stopped tax paying in the last phase.
Shah Jahan made many architecture, buildings, and monuments which finished the Mughal treasury. He could not increase the income of the empire. In his time there was two peasant rebellion and famines.
“who were sufis class 7 “
Dr. Goutam Bhadra believed that the Mughal empire started to decline from Shah Jahan’s time. The Jagirdari crisis created a new situation. The Jagirdari system was developed with the Mansabdari system.
The causes of the Jagirdari crisis were as-
- The vast difference between Jama’ (false record of collected revenue) and ‘Hassil’ (original revenue).
- Increase the number of mansabdars and their limitless demands on peasants.
- Corruptions and anarchy prevailed in the Jagirdari crisis.
- Dr. Satish Chandra said that the Jagirdari crisis was a crisis of social, economic, and administrative all together.
During this crisis revenue collection became difficult and the peasants were severely exploited. Many Mansabdars were given Jagirs. Two types of Jagir were there ‘Tankha Jagir’ and ‘Watan Jagir’. These Jagirdars exploited peasants.